25-year-old looking to ‘feed the whānau’ unfazed by unlawful hunting charges
Thursday, 18 June 2026
After being warned he needed a permit to hunt in a Marlborough forestry block, a 25-year-old returned three more times — each visit captured on security cameras.
Hohera Jade Moanaroa pleaded guilty to three charges of unlawful hunting in the Blenheim District Court on Monday and was sentenced to 120 hours’ community work.
Appearing without a lawyer, Moanaroa repeatedly told Judge Garry Barkle that legal advice was not necessary as he wanted to plead guilty and “get it done”.
A police summary of facts had a lengthy introduction on illegal hunting in general being on the rise in Marlborough. As a result, forestry company OneFortyOne had contracted a security company to monitor its forestry blocks and installed cameras throughout its properties.
According to the summary, Moanaroa was first caught unlawfully hunting in a North Bank forestry block in early November 2025.
He was spoken to by forestry security staff and warned that hunting was only allowed with a permit and subject to strict conditions, including limits on when hunting could occur.
He was told that if he was caught hunting unlawfully again, prosecution action would be taken.
Despite the warning, security staff later reviewed camera footage showing Moanaroa entering the forestry block on multiple occasions.
Footage recorded at 4.48am on November 29 showed him driving a ute through the forestry block with two pig dogs standing on the bonnet.
Police said the dogs were wearing GPS tracking collars and were being transported using a hunting technique known as “bonnet riding”, where dogs scent game from a moving vehicle before jumping off to give chase.
The ute had been modified for the practice, with black carpet attached to the bonnet to provide grip for the dogs and protect the vehicle’s paintwork.
The following day, about 2pm, Moanaroa was again captured on camera driving through the same forestry block with three pig dogs riding on the bonnet.
He was recorded twice more on December 7, at 3.15am and 5.25am, again driving through the block with pig dogs on the bonnet.
When spoken to by police, Moanaroa admitted hunting on all three occasions and acknowledged he knew he required a permit.
He told police he hunted with dogs and a hunting knife rather than firearms.
Asked by Judge Barkle if there was anything he wanted to say about the offending, Moanaroa replied: “Just, you know, feed the whānau, that’s about it.”
Judge Barkle noted Moanaroa had pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity and had no history of similar offending.
He sentenced Moanaroa to 120 hours’ community work on each charge, to be served concurrently, resulting in a total sentence of 120 hours’ community work.