Rami Lazar Youhana jailed for receiving $100,000 worth of stolen goods

Youhana was sentenced today after previously admitting eight charges of receiving stolen property, including one relating to receiving 18 heat pumps valued at $30,000.

The court heard Yuhana’s crime was the result of a police operation carried out in 2022 that targeted a large-scale intake operation.

This morning Judge Paul Radich said

Yohana, he played an active role in the enterprise, discussing available items and negotiating their price, transportation and storage. There was also evidence that Yuhana was paid by bank transfer from Sun.

When the funds from Sun came slowly, Yuhana chased him for money, citing the need to pay other people for the stolen goods.

Judge Radić told Juhana that his level of guilt was high.

“Although you were not the ultimate leader or instigator in this scheme, you yourself conducted a commercial operation,” he said.

“You must arrange for accomplices to bring you stolen items, which you would then like to sell to your accomplice.

“You have established yourself as the main conduit for stolen property in the Wellington area.”

The judge noted that Yuhana’s crime caused harm to many civilian and commercial victims.

Fear, financial stress and feelings of violation

Crown prosecutor Madeleine Storey provided the court with three victim impact statements from people whose stolen items Juhana received.

One was from a woman whose two bikes were stolen but she couldn’t afford to replace them. She also spoke of her fear after her bike was stolen from what was supposed to be a secure part of her block of flats.

The second victim was able to replace the stolen bike, but had to spend several hundred dollars on accessories that were not returned.

The third victim worked for a construction company whose goods Yuhana received were stolen from construction sites.

This caused financial difficulties as well as a breakdown in customer confidence due to delays caused by stolen items. Not only did this cause a lot of stress for the company, but workers also felt their hard work was being undermined “and that their trust and sense of safety on the sites was violated,” Judge Radić said.

The court heard Youhana was already serving a two-year prison sentence for burglary and receiving charges in 2023 handed down by District Court Judge Andy Nicholls.

Judge Radic said that because the two sets of charges related to separate offences, a cumulative sentence had to be imposed. But he also acknowledged that it was important to impose a final sentence that was not disproportionate to the gravity of the crime as a whole.

He said Youhana’s history of dishonesty over the past six years was “very worrying indeed” as he had 13 previous convictions.

Problems with adding

But Judge Radić also accepted that Juhana had problems with substance abuse, particularly methamphetamine, which led to the offending.

Yuhana’s lawyer Kevin Preston told the court his client had voluntarily enrolled in a drug treatment program while in custody. Yuhana himself stated that he would like his treatment to continue in a rehabilitation center after his release.

“I acknowledge what you said in your letter, if you can stay motivated to address your addiction issues, I believe you can make a difference,” the judge said.

But the judge said he was not sure Youhana’s expressions of remorse were sincere, given his history of dishonest crimes and the time Youhana had already had to reflect on his actions while serving previous sentences of home detention and supervision.

“Although you have expressed remorse, it is of a general nature and, in my view, does not demonstrate a full understanding of the consequences of your crime for the many victims.”

Looking at the crime as a whole and taking into account Juhana’s guilty plea and addiction problems, Judge Radić imposed a sentence of three and a half years, but reduced it by two years for the sentence Juhana is currently serving.

Judge Radić told Juhana he hoped he would continue to use his time in custody to reflect on the choices he had made and the harm his addiction had caused to society.

“You have a chance to make a difference by continuing to attend classes to address your drug problem and following through on your expressed desire to attend rehabilitation programs if you are granted parole,” the judge said.

“I commend you for this, and furthermore, it will be vital for you, as you yourself have admitted, to stay away from those who brought you back to the lifestyle that got you where you are today.”

He jailed Youhana for 18 months, cumulative to his current sentence.

Catherine Hutton is an Open Justice reporter based in Wellington. Work experience as a journalist for 20 years, including Waikato Times and RNZ. She most recently served as a media adviser at the Department of Justice.