Convicted killer Lipine Sila has been sentenced to a non-parole term of 17 years jail for running down and killing Christchurch teens Jane Young and Hannah Rossiter, and injuring 16 others in May last year.
The 23 year-old will be 40 when he is eligible for release.
At his sentencing at the Christchurch High Court, Sila made an apology to his victims through his lawyer Pip Hall. "First and foremost, on behalf of Lipine Sila, I wish to express his extreme remorse and sadness about the damage and devastation his actions have caused to all affected,” she read from a prepared statement.
Victims and their family members read statements for 90 minutes while the Samoan stood in the dock. He never made contact with them but occasionally wiped his eyes.
The verdict was met with mixed reaction with the parent of one of the victims hoping the sentence had been more than 20 years.
Sila was a migrant from Samoa who settled with his birth parents in Christchurch. A former boxer, his deteriorating anti-social behaviour has been partly blamed on an alcohol problem.
• The issue of Alcohol abuse and disorder among Pacific youth will be explored in depth in the upcoming issue of SPASIFIK Magazine July-August. Keep an eye out for Issue 27 at an outlet near you.
