An alleged robber “blatantly lied” about being Aboriginal to avoid jail under Victoria’s relaxed bail laws for indigenous people.
Haley Terei, 32, was granted bail in the Supreme Court of Victoria in May and June on eight charges relating to robbery for profit. The Herald of the Sun reported.
The mother of four is accused of stealing seven firearms, ammunition, $470,000 in cash, gold nuggets and other valuables from a home in Hastings, southeast of Melbourne, in December.
In an affidavit filed with the court, Terei claimed she was an Aboriginal woman from the Yorta Yorta nation and that following the death of her Aboriginal mother when she was three, her cultural heritage had been “whitewashed” by her father.
Prosecutors opposed Terei’s bail, arguing she posed an unacceptable risk to the community amid concerns that she knew the location of the stolen firearms and could access them.
However, Judge Rita Incerti dismissed the objections and freed Terei, citing new bail laws that require members of the judiciary to ensure that “incarceration rates for Aboriginal people do not increase further unless there is good reason.”
The judge described Terei as “a woman who has been denied access to her cultural heritage, who is expressing a desire for cultural support to turn her life around and who is facing significant personal struggles.”
In a sworn statement to the court, Terei claimed she was an Aboriginal woman from the Yorta Yorta nation.
On Friday in court it was revealed that Terei’s claim of Aboriginal heritage was a lie.
A police officer monitored the phone calls she had made while in prison and revealed His mother, presumed dead, is not Aboriginal, but is alive and living in New Zealand.
Terei’s bail was revoked and Judge Incerti admitted that the deception was “worrying.”
“It is alleged that Ms Terei claimed maternal Aboriginality, knowing this was not true, in order for the Court to consider section 3A of the Bail Act when she was not entitled to do so,” Judge Incerti said.
‘The telephone recordings from Arunta Prison provide strong evidence that Ms Terei is not an Aboriginal person and sought to gain some benefit in the bail application based on her identification as an Aboriginal person.’
A warrant has been issued for Terei’s arrest and she faces charges of perverting the course of justice, which carry a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison.
In May and June, Terei was granted bail by the Supreme Court of Victoria (pictured) on eight charges relating to a high-profile robbery.
Bail reforms to reduce the incarceration of Aboriginal people were among the recommendations of the coroner’s inquest into the death in custody of Veronica Nelson in 2020 and the parliamentary inquiry into Victoria’s criminal justice system.
Opposition spokesman Michael O’Brien said it was likely that some criminals would try to use the new bail laws to their advantage.
“This case raises serious questions about how the courts and others should apply laws aimed at Victorian Aboriginals when they rely on the honesty of those claiming that ancestry,” he said.
Judge Incerti held that the current system under which the accused claimed Aboriginal heritage, without objective evidence, was sufficient despite the deception in this case.
“I see no reason why this should change or why an applicant or their legal representative should be required to do anything other than establish the basis of a person’s Aboriginality, as was done in this case,” Judge Incerti said.
The bail law reforms addressed key recommendations from the coroner’s inquest into the death in custody of Aboriginal woman Veronica Nelson (pictured) in 2020