A teenage girl involved in the fatal home invasion of a 90-year-old Levin woman is back before court, facing robbery and theft charges.
(File image) Photo: RNZ / Dan Cook
Grace Virtue died 25 days after the invasion of her Horowhenua property, where she lived alone, in November 2019.
One of the trio who pleaded guilty to her manslaughter is now accused of robbing a person of their MacBook and iPhone, and also faces four charges of theft of groceries from a Levin supermarket, according to court documents obtained by RNZ.
The 18-year-old, whose name is suppressed, served 12 months' home detention on the manslaughter charge.
She was 15 at the time of the home invasion, and the oldest of the trio. Another girl, also then aged 15, was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in jail, while the youngest of the group, then aged 14, was ordered to serve 12 months' home detention.
The 18-year-old first appeared in the Levin Youth Court in May and is due to reappear next week.
Grace Virtue's daughter-in-law Jenny Virtue said she was not surprised to hear of the charges, and she felt sorry for the alleged victims.
"I do feel the system's a joke and this is living proof of it. If they had been dealt with accordingly they may have been rehabilitated and they may not be in this position now."
The latest alleged offending was sad for everyone involved.
The 18-year-old came across as remorseful at a restorative justice conference, but that impression was clearly untrue, Jenny said.
"She had us fooled. We actually felt sorry for her. We thought she was the pick of the bunch."
Jenny said the justice system had failed the latest alleged victims, as it had failed Grace through the lenient sentences given to her killers.
The 18-year-old was one of two who tricked their way into Grace's Bath Street house, saying they needed to use the toilet, after a plan was hatched to rob her of $30 for tickets to a party.
As the youngest of the three stood outside, the 18-year-old was present as the girl who was sent to jail punched Virtue in the face.
She fell and hit her head, and was kicked while on the ground.
The girls took Virtue's debit card and used it to buy cigarettes, soft drinks, jeans, a sweatshirt and lollipops.
Virtue died 25 days later, but never uttered a word of hatred towards the girls, her family said in a victim impact statements read during the killers' sentencing.
The three girls were to face trial for murder, but pleaded guilty to manslaughter.
The girl sent to prison was released earlier this year.
Last year, she told the Parole Board she did not strike the blows against Virtue, despite the High Court being told at her sentencing that it was her who lashed out.