Far North man sentenced to 20 years for rape and brutal treatment of girls

Shannon Pitman, Open Justice Multimedia Journalist, Whangārei of

Whangarei Court Building, Whangarei Supreme Court, Whangarei District Court.

Alexander Wright, 61, appeared for sentencing in the Supreme Court of the Whangarei District Court.
photo: RNZ / Peter de Graaf

WARNING: This story contains disturbing details of child abuse.

From the outside, the kind gesture of a man who offered to support a mother by caring for her children when things got too difficult seemed genuine.

But, not knowing his mother, the man took advantage of the girls at every opportunity, even when his wife slept in the next room.

Alexander Wright, now 61, has been jailed for 20 years with a minimum non-parole period of 10 years and the judge commented that his chances of rehabilitation were slim, especially if he did not plead guilty.

Child Matters manager Jane Searle hailed the verdict as an important sentence that met with justice.

“It is impossible to underestimate the trauma and the lifelong impact on the lives of the victims.

“It’s important that the justice system responds appropriately because the consequences are far-reaching, not just for victims but for society,” Searle told NZME.

Earlier this year, Wright was found guilty by a jury in the Whangarei High Court of 38 counts of sexual offenses against three girls, who were under 12 at the time.

The charges related to a variety of violations, including eight counts of rape that occurred repeatedly.

Judge Michael Robinson said the victims were strong, brave and resilient young women with many years of potential ahead of them.

“I want to especially recognize their courage and pay tribute to them. Everyone continues to suffer for what you did to them, and everyone has a long way to go.

“I hope that moving forward they can take solace in the fact that justice has been done because of their courage,” Judge Robinson said.

For years, Wright offered mothers to babysit their children, sometimes overnight, at his family home.

Almost immediately he began sexually abusing children.

During one of his first overnight visits to the girl, Wright sexually assaulted her in the living room, and when she moved into the room to be closer to his wife to feel safe, he took her back into the living room and raped her again. The next morning he raped her.

“It is not clear whether your wife knows about any of this,” Judge Robinson commented to the man as he appeared in the dock at Whangarei High Court for sentencing on Friday. He had no support in court throughout the process.

“You hunted her”

In court, the girl testified that Wright repeatedly tried to touch her in her own home or his, and even when she locked herself in the bathroom to escape him, he managed to get to her.

The girl thought that by putting up with Wright’s behavior, she was protecting her younger sisters from him, and was devastated to learn that they had also fallen victim to his predatory behavior.

“There was nothing she could do to protect them from you, you preyed on them as you preyed on her, she bears no responsibility whatsoever for your offending. The only person responsible is you,” Judge Robinson said.

Wright brutally pinned and raped another of the girls, and sexually assaulted the other several times.

“She told you to stop, you told her not to tell you what to do and if she told anyone she wouldn’t see what would happen,” Judge Robinson said.

“How could you do that?”

One of the victims told the court that her childhood had been destroyed and her innocence taken away.

“I was told to keep my mouth shut, how could you do that to someone at the age of 7?

“Every man I looked at was a monster, every boy was a demon,” she told the court during her sentencing.

The victim said she was afraid she would be blamed if she told the truth and had a message for her younger self.

“I wish I could hug this 7-year-old girl and tell her, ‘No more worries and no more monsters living in the house.’

Judge Robinson criticized Wright’s continued objections and found his offending to be serious and significant.

“You claim to be the victim of false accusations, but your victims had the courage to come forward.

“Instead of caring for them, you used and constantly abused them for your own pleasure … they were vulnerable children.”

Judge Robinson sentenced Wright to 20 years in prison with a minimum non-parole period of 10 years.

“If you continue to deny your crime, you will serve the full term. If you continue to deny your crime, no rehabilitation programs will be offered. Your prospects for rehabilitation seem slim.”

Wright was automatically placed on the sex offender registry.

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