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Offender Databases Shane Victor Hughes

Shane Victor Hughes

Alias

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Offences

Unlawful detainment and indecent assault of a 19 year old Remuera, Auckland woman involving weapons in September 2011

Victims

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Offender Affiliations

.

Gang affiliations

none known

Age

Born 1976

Current Location

Prison

Parole/Release Dates

Sentenced to 5 years 9 months with a 3 year non-parole period in January 2012

Background
NZ Herald story here
From Auckland Now story 9th November 2011
The mother of a teenage girl who was tied up and indecently assaulted in her bed says her family refuses to be cowed by the "ugly" assailant. Niamh McMahon's daughter has been too scared to sleep in her room since Shane Victor Hughes broke into their Remuera home on September 22. Armed with a knife and a hammer, he tied up the 19-year-old and indecently assaulted her before allegedly fleeing with several stolen items. On Monday the family were in Auckland District Court when Hughes appeared via video-link and pleaded guilty to charges of indecent assault, carrying weapons and unlawful detainment.

McMahon said the guilty plea was another milestone for them. "It was obviously the most sensible course of action for him to take, to plead guilty, because the evidence against him was overwhelming," she said. However McMahon, a partner at law firm McMahon Butterworth Thompson, said the family were "up for it" if the case had gone to trial. "If that happened to be the outcome I promise you we would have braced ourselves for it and given the way we've kind of processed what happened and the kind of help that we've all had - particularly (my daughter) - that wouldn't have been a problem either," she said.

"It's not a small undertaking obviously to have to go through something like that but we'd have managed that." She said it was important to stay resolved and not be forced into hiding. The family had remained in their home since the early morning incident. "I guess it takes an event like this to make you focus on what's important in life and one thing that's not going to be that important in our lives is Shane Victor Hughes in prison. I promise you we will step over this and move on." McMahon said her daughter, a top student, was "still up and down" and nervous around the house. "Any noise around the house she's anxious and she still hasn't returned to her own bedroom as yet so I think in time that will happen and then throw in a bit of exam pressure in the middle of that..."

A top student, she was in the middle of exams and while this was a distraction of sorts, it gave her something else to focus on and McMahon said she hoped it would not affect her results. McMahon was somewhat philosophical about the ordeal. "In a sense, reflecting on what he did it was truly awful and [I] wouldn't wish for it to ever happen again but I would also say that he probably fits your average statistic of a person who engages in that kind of behaviour. I imagine his home life wasn't flash and he didn't have the opportunities and nor did he make good choices." Hughes, who sat shaven-headed in a grey tracksuit and glared at the camera during his appearance, looked like a "tough character", she said.

"You're looking at something that's a very ugly person inside and outside and demeanour is quite aggressive looking to me and quite a dangerous looking person so I can see why my daughter was frightened - very, very frightened." She praised the work of police and their prompt resolution of the crime. "I say it as a taxpayer, I say it as a mother and I say it as a lawyer, but they've been excellent." McMahon also thanked the "hundreds" of people who had supported them. Hughes, 35, will be sentenced in January. Other charges relating to the invasion as well as an alleged earlier incident are pending, awaiting test results while the judge also ordered a forensic psychiatric assessment to be carried out.

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Corrections and Additional Information
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