Zac Marsters tied elderly home invasion victim’s hands with shoelaces as group searched Huntly house

Published

5 months ago

June 26, 2026

An elderly man was ordered to lie face down on his bed and had his hands tied with shoelaces after masked intruders broke into his home early one morning.

One of them was Zac Marsters, who demanded the man’s bank card PIN number and car keys before the group fled with his phone and $310 in cash.

Nine months later, Marsters took out his aggression on his partner, pushing her down two flights of stairs, leaving her briefly unconscious.

Yesterday, the 28-year-old appeared before Judge Tini Clark for sentencing in the Hamilton District Court on charges of aggravated robbery and wounding with reckless disregard.

It came as no surprise to Marsters when Judge Clark told him he was going to prison.

Tied up in home invasion

The court heard that around 4am on 27 May 2024, Marsters and three others wearing balaclavas broke into the elderly victim’s home in Huntly.

The noise woke the victim, who left his room to investigate.

Marsters confronted him and, during the encounter, one of the intruders struck the man on the arm with a hard object, smashing his watch.

The group then went into his bedroom and demanded his wallet and phone.

Marsters stayed with the man and told him to lie face-down on his bed as his co-offenders searched his home with torches.

When a co-offender told Marsters to tie him up, Marsters found a pair of shoes and used the laces to bind the victim’s hands behind his back.

The group stole the man’s phone and took $310 from his wallet.

The victim suffered a sore arm but did not require medical treatment.

‘Quick, quick, run, run’

The assault on Marsters’ partner happened on Valentine’s Day last year after the pair began arguing at home.

Marsters used his body to push her, causing her to fall to the ground outside their unit.

He then grabbed her, pulled her to her feet and repeatedly told her, “Quick, quick, quick, run, run”.

Walking aggressively towards her, he pushed her along a hallway with his body before forcing her through an open doorway towards the stairs.

He then shoulder-barged her, causing her to fall down a flight of stairs and briefly lose consciousness.

As she struggled to get back to her feet, he followed her down the stairs, continuing to yell, before pushing her down a second flight of stairs to the bottom of the stairwell.

Realising she was injured, he asked a member of the public to call an ambulance and remained with her until police arrived.

‘Look how remorseful I am’

Marsters attended a restorative justice conference with the home invasion victim.

Defence counsel Glen Prentice told Judge Clark that Marsters “obviously got a good talking to” from the male victim, and commented that he wanted to know where he would end up in 10 years’ time.

Prentice sought a discount based on a cultural report, which showed Marsters had been moved around frequently as a child.

While he had performed well at school and found employment, Prentice said Marsters had ultimately fallen in with the wrong crowd.

Crown prosecutor Kasey Dillon questioned the sincerity of Marsters’ remorse, noting he had brought two unsigned letters to court.

“This is a letter written by someone else and provided to the court to say, ‘Look how remorseful I am’.”

He argued the cultural report ultimately showed Marsters’ offending was the result of choices he had made and the company he had chosen to keep.

‘Very scary and traumatic’

Marsters had earlier accepted a sentence indication from Judge Clark on both cases combined.

She adopted an overall starting point of eight years and six months’ imprisonment before allowing a 20 percent discount for his guilty pleas because they avoided two separate trials.

While Dillon had raised “a fair point” about the remorse letters, Judge Clark said she appreciated the sentiment behind them and wanted them passed on to the victims.

She also noted the home invasion victim had been frank with Marsters during restorative justice.

“He’s certainly someone who wants Mr Marsters to make better decisions and do better for himself in the future, but he didn’t give Mr Marsters a free ride.

“He was the victim of what must have been a very scary and traumatic event.”

Judge Clark said it was easy to imagine the lasting impact on an elderly man of waking to find strangers in his home and being treated in such a way.

She told Marsters it was “always such a waste” to see a young man jailed, but that he still had the opportunity to turn his life around after his release.

After allowing a further 15 percent discount, she reduced the total sentence from 105 months to 68 months, and sentenced Marsters to five years and eight months’ imprisonment.

She also ordered him to pay the elderly victim $460 in reparation at a rate of $20 a week, with payments to begin 28 days after his release from prison.

*This story originally appeared in the New Zealand Herald.

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Police say person who fired gun at officers still at large

Published

3 days ago

November 12, 2026

News Staff

Police say a person who fired a gun at officers in Napier is still at large.

Eastern District Commander Superintendent Joel Lamb said Police tried to stop a vehicle in the Pirimai Area at about 10pm on Tuesday.

He said someone in the back seat pointed what was presumed to be a firearm at officers pursuing the vehicle.

“Staff have then heard two distinct gunshots as the firearm was discharged.

“Fortunately, neither of our officers were injured, and the patrol vehicle did not sustain any damage.”

He said hours later, the vehicle was seen travelling north on the Waikato Expressway towards Auckland.

Police seized the vehicle at an address in Manurewa, but they had not found the alleged offender.

Lamb said people who lived at the Manurewa address were engaging with Police.

He said Eastern District and Counties Manukau Police were making enquiries.

“Presenting a firearm at a Police officer is a serious escalation that puts our staff and the wider community at risk. This behaviour is entirely unacceptable.

“We are taking this incident extremely seriously and will be pursuing all lines of enquiry to locate the offender and hold them accountable.”

Police asked anyone who witnessed the incident to contact Police on 105 or online using the reference number 261111/3764.

Information could also be provided anonymously via Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111.

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New Zealand sides named for RLWC finals

Published

3 days ago

November 11, 2026

News Staff

The players tasked with ending Australia’s Rugby League World Cup dominance have been named.

The Kiwis and Kiwi Ferns have announced their squads for this Sunday’s World Cup finals in Brisbane.

Both sides are chasing their first titles since 2008, and both are looking to end their opponents run of three crowns in a row.

“Our Kiwi Ferns have been so dominant in years gone by, and we want to bring dominance back to this jersey, so I think it will be a case of who wants it more,” said co-captain Georgia Hale of the impending clash.

The Kiwis get a major boost for the final as they welcome back Ronaldo Mulitalo after he served a one-match ban for a high tackle against Fiji Bati.

Mulitalo replaces Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, who moves to the six-man bench, which again includes utility Te Maire Martin, middle forwards Naufahu Whyte, Erin Clark and Xavier Willison plus fullback Keano Kini.

Loose forward Joseph Tapine will make his 30th Test appearance in a familiar pack again, including second-rowers Isaiah Papali’i and Briton Nikora, and props James Fisher-Harris and Moses Leota.

Winger Jamayne Isaako is on the cusp of claiming the New Zealand record for most Test points.

His five goals against Tonga lifted his career points tally to 225 – level with Shaun Johnson – while centre Casey McLean goes into the final with 16 tries in just eight Tests.

Fisher-Harris will again captain the team.

Fullback Ponga said the goal of the group was clear.

“We have high expectations around what we want to achieve, and obviously winning a world Cup is one of them.”

Meanwhile, Ricky Henry has selected a settled side to take on the Jillaroos, led by their lethal centre combination of Stacey Waaka and Mele Hufanga.

Veteran Apii Nicholls takes the number one jersey, Leianne Tufuga and Mackenzie Wiki on the wings.

Henry has stuck with his halves pairing of Chantay Kiria-Ratu and Raecene McGregor with Alexis Tauaneai, Georgia Hale and Otesa Pule up front.

Rounding out the starting pack is Shaniece Monschau, Kaiyah Atai, and Angelina Teakaraanga-Katoa.

“We have been building well throughout the tournament; we understand the Jillaroos side, and will give it our all to make New Zealand proud this weekend,” said Henry.

RLWC Finals:

Kiwi Ferns vs Jillaroos- 6.10pm

Kiwis vs Kangaroos – 9.35pm

Sunday November 15

Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane

Live blog updates on RNZ

Kiwi Ferns:

1. Apii Nicholls 2. Leianne Tufuga 3. Mele Hufanga 4. Stacey Waaka 5. Mackenzie Wiki 6. Chantay Kiria-Ratu 7. Raecene McGregor 8. Alexis Tauaneai 9. Georgia Hale 10. Otesa Pule 11. Shaniece Monschau 12. Kaiyah Atai 13. Angelina Teakaraanga-Katoa.

Interchange: 14. Ashleigh Quinlan 15. Annessa Biddle 16. Shannon Mato 17. Ivana Lauitiiti.

Reserves: 18. Brooke Anderson 19. Zahara Temara 20. Brianna Clark 21. Abigail Roache 22. Tenika Willison.

Kiwis:

1. Kalyn Ponga, 2. Jamayne Isaako, 3. Dane Gagai, 4. Casey McLean, 5. Ronaldo Mulitalo, 6. Kodi Nikorima, 7. Jahrome Hughes, 8. James Fisher-Harris (c), 9. Jeremy Marshall-King, 10. Moses Leota, 11. Isaiah Papali’i, 12. Briton Nikora, 13. Joseph Tapine (v/c).

Interchange: 14. Te Maire Martin, 15. Naufahu Whyte, 16. Erin Clark, 17. Xavier Willison.

Reserves: 18. Keano Kini, 19. Phoenix Crossland, 20. Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, 21. Scott Sorensen, 22. Leo Thompson.

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Latest News

Parliamentary Service working on extra chairs and offices for increased number of MPs

Published

3 days ago

November 11, 2026

News Staff

The chief executive of the Parliamentary Service is confident there will be enough room to accommodate the increased number of MPs and their staff coming into Parliament.

On current numbers, up to 131 MPs could be sitting in the Chamber following the election, brought on by a record overhang result.

Clerk of the House of Representatives Dr David Wilson told the Spinoff that currently the debating chamber had enough chairs to seat 124 MPs – including the Speaker of the House – and work was being done to accommodate more by altering the seating arrangement.

In a statement, Parliamentary Service chief executive Rafael Gonzalez-Montero said planning for a larger Parliament had been going for “some time”.

“Now that the election results have confirmed an increase to the number of members we are looking at several options.

“We are confident we will be able to accommodate all members within the Chamber.”

Chief Executive of the Parliamentary Service Rafael Gonzalez-Montero appears before select committee. — Parliamentary Service chief executive Rafael Gonzalez-Montero.

VNP / Phil Smith

Gonzalez-Montero said office accommodation for members and their staff would be “stretched” for a short time, but the new Members’ Building was only a few months away from “practical completion”.

That building – located behind Parliament – was due to be ready to occupy in April next year and had capacity to accommodate around 30 backbench MPs.

“All members should be in fit-for-purpose accommodation from that point,” Gonzalez-Montero said.

Following the 2023 election, 123 MPs sat in the Chamber – a record number at the time. That decreased to 122 following the resignation of National MP Judith Collins.

Collins held the seat of Papakura and stepped down in May and Parliament voted against holding a by-election because it was too close to the election.

The election result also meant high-ranking National Party MPs like Chris Bishop, Paul Goldsmith, Nicola Willis and Gerry Brownlee – Speaker of the House and an MP for 30 years – would likely not make it back into Parliament.

Only resigning or retiring MPs were permitted to give a valedictory speech meaning none of them would get the chance to give a valedictory statement.

Asked if their would be special allowances for valedictories, Wilson said in a statement that normally only MPs were allowed to speak in the House but the House could suspend its own rules or temporarily alter them.

“It could do so to allow former members to address the House.”

Wilson said no such arrangements could be made until the next Parliament opened and members sworn in.

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