NSW: Taufahema's seven years for cop killing ridiculous: father

AAP General News (Australia)
12-13-2007
NSW: Taufahema's seven years for cop killing ridiculous: father

By Kim Christian

SYDNEY, Dec 13 AAP - The father of murdered police officer Glenn McEnallay said today
he was "disgusted" over the seven-year minimum sentence handed down to one of four men
implicated in the killing.

Senior Constable McEnallay was shot four times in the chest and head after he pursued
a stolen car at Hillsdale in Sydney's south-east in March 2002.

He died of his wounds in hospital a week later.

Four men were jailed over the killing, including Sione Penisini, who is serving 36
years after pleading guilty to pulling the trigger.

Brothers John and Motekiai Taufahema were both convicted of murder and sentenced to
maximum terms of 24 years in jail, but had their convictions quashed on appeal.

They argued successfully that they had not been party to a joint criminal enterprise.

After retrials were ordered, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) outraged police
and the McEnallay family by accepting guilty pleas from both men to the lesser charge
of manslaughter.

John Taufahema, 25, was sentenced in the NSW Supreme Court today to a maximum sentence
of 11 years dating back to March 2005, and will be eligible for parole in March 2012.

John Taufahema is the last of the four to be sentenced over the death after his brother,
Motekiai, was given the same sentence in August this year.

Meli Lagi was acquitted of murder but jailed for 10 years for firearms offences.

In sentencing Taufahema today, Justice Michael Grove said he had run from the car with
a loaded rifle.

"The accused admits he was complicit in the act that caused Constable McEnallay's death,"

Justice Grove told the court.

"His complicity arises from his participation in a joint criminal enterprise to possess
the revolvers."

He said while Pensini's firing of a revolver caused Mr McEnallay's death, Taufahema
had contemplated the possibility that one of the four might fire a gun.

Outside the court, Mr McEnallay's father Bob McEnallay said he was "bloody disgusted"

with the DPP for accepting a manslaughter plea.

"They'd already tried him on murder once and convicted him and a jury could have done
the same again," he told reporters.

"If not we'd have still ended up with manslaughter, but they just took the easy way
out and that's the most annoying part of it."

Mr McEnallay said criminal enterprise laws should be changed because today's result
was "an absolute joke".

"They all had loaded pistols, they were all in company with one another ... but all
this stuff's got swept under the carpet," Mr McEnallay said.

"There's just no respect for Glenn or the loss of Glenn's life or for every serving
police officer in NSW, it's just a bloody disgrace."

He said today's court appearance ended a frustrating period for himself and his family.

"I've been there four times and read that (victim impact) statement, I can't do it any more."

AAP krc/was/jt/mn

KEYWORD: MCENALLAY LEAD

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