Mama Hooch: Rapist brothers' co-accused can never be named but suppression lifts for bar owner

News
Crime

Author: NZ Herald ,
Publish Date: Fri, 21 Jul 2023, 1:52pm

Judge grants permanent name suppression for men charged alongside rapist, drink-spiking brothers
Suppression finally removed around the owner of Mama Hooch bar and Venuti restaurant
Jaz brothers’ dad’s words to police revealed: “These girls throw themselves at my boys”
Christchurch authorities: The Jaz family “appear to think they are above the law”

WARNING: Distressing content

Two men charged alongside Mama Hooch rapist brothers Danny and Roberto Jaz will never have their names made public after they were granted permanent name suppression today to avoid them being “stigmatised” by their connection to the high-profile case.

But suppression orders relating to other people linked closely to the prolific and predatory offenders have now lapsed.

In May - after five years of secrecy - the Jaz brothers were named as the prolific sexual predators responsible for a raft of offending against women at central Christchurch bar Mama Hooch and nearby restaurant Venuti.

Both venues were owned by their father Michael Jaz, whose name has been suppressed until today.

Their brother Davide Jaz also worked at Mama Hooch as general manager. A suppression order protecting him has also been lifted.

Neither Michael nor Davide Jaz has ever been charged in relation to the drink spiking or sex offending.

Rapist brothers Danny (centre) and Roberto (right) Jaz at the bar Mama Hooch, where they drink spiked and sexually assaulted women. Photo / Facebook

Permanent suppression orders have been granted prohibiting the publication of the names of others in the wider family.

Danny and Roberto Jaz are facing up to 20 years each in prison for a total of 69 charges including rape, sexual violation, indecent assault, stupefying, disabling, making intimate recordings of women without their knowledge or consent and supplying illicit drugs.

Their names had been suppressed since their arrest in 2018 but a High Court judge ruled that after the sibling sex offenders were convicted, there was no further reason for secrecy.

Danny Jaz, 40, was a duty bar manager at Mama Hooch and Roberto Jaz, 38, was the chef at Venuti.

Both venues have been shut down since the men were charged.

Their downfall came after two 18-year-old women went to the police and reported they had been drugged and sexually assaulted at Venuti by Roberto Jaz.

Their complaint sparked Operation Sinatra - a major police investigation that uncovered years of drink spiking, stupefying and sexual assault of many women by the brothers.

Police found they used Mama Hooch as a hunting ground for women - that they were persistent and prolific predators who targeted young attractive patrons and staff for their sexual gratification.

They were “indifferent to consent”, taking what they wanted when they wanted and bragging about it in group chats with friends.

The Jaz brothers and the third man at their trial when all three had name suppression. The third man's suppression is now permanent. Photo / Pool

Having a partner and two young children at home did not stop Danny Jaz, nor did having a long-term girlfriend stop Roberto.

The rapists were relentless and even continued offended after being spoken to by police.

Two other men charged alongside rapist Jaz brothers

Two other men were charged in connection with the prolific drink spiking and sexual assaults.

The first stood trial alongside the Jaz brothers charged with rape, sexual violation, indecent assault, stupefying, disabling and offering to supply a Class B drug.

He was acquitted on all but the last charge and today sought a discharge without conviction and permanent name suppression.

Judge Mabey granted the discharge and suppression applications.

He said the charge of supplying a Class B drug was at the “lower level” for offending in general.

In this case specifically, the man had offered a woman a “small amount” of MDMA at Mama Hooch - which she took willingly and chose the dosage of.

“This is not a serious offence in reality, it is an offence of minimal culpability,” the judge said.

Judge Mabey’s reason for granting the permanent suppression was that identification would lead to the third man being “stigmatised” despite being acquitted.

“It would be naïve for anyone to suggest that even with that reference [being acquitted] he will avoid guilt by association,” he said.

He agreed the third man would suffer “extreme hardship” if his name was published.

Judge Mabey also suppressed the names of the third man’s partner, children, parents and former workplace.

Judge Paul Mabey QC.

The fourth man was acquitted in a separate trial - after he successfully had his case severed from the three now-convicted offenders - on one charge of sexual violation.

At his trial, Judge Mabey said while the complainant impressed him as “a truthful woman” - elements of the evidence presented to him left him with reasonable doubt.

As such he simply could not convict the man.

“[The complainant] is adamant but there are many gaps in her memory ... It was put to her in cross-examination that she may have wrongly reconstructed matters and remembered things that did not happen,” said Judge Mabey.

“I consider that to be a distinct possibility that I cannot exclude ... As a result of the defence case I am left in a reasonable doubt about whether or not the act of violation occurred and entertaining that reasonable doubt I find you not guilty of the charge.”

The fourth man who also has permanent name suppression. Photo / Pool

Judge Mabey blasted the man for his involvement in the wider Mama Hooch culture.

He said some of his messaging with the Jaz brothers and others “can be interpreted as [the man] having knowledge of just what was going on at Mama Hooch”.

“The Jaz brothers have been convicted of disabling or stupefying females and of sexual violation or indecent assault of some of those females. Mr McRae would urge me to interpret some of the communications as imputing knowledge to [the man] that there were drugs available at Mama Hooch and that Danny Jaz in particular had them and that they had a certain effect.

“I do accept Mr McRae’s submission that aspects of the communications do show a knowledge of drug use at Mama Hooch ... [the man] is no innocent participant in these discussions, blind to the fact that drugs are not only available at Mama Hooch, they are used there and Mr Danny Jaz knows where to get them.”

Today the fourth man was also granted permanent suppression - alongside his partner, sisters and child.

The Herald and other media opposed suppression for the men, submitting to the court that the public had a right to know the identities of all those charged during Operation Sinatra.

Media argued the men should all be named regardless of the outcome of their charges - particularly due to their participation in the long-running, lewd and often degrading group chats with the Jaz brothers in which there were multiple messages about drugging and assaulting women.

In the messages, Roberto Jaz joked about rape and even confessed he had “roofied” his current partner.

Roofies are another name for rohypnol - widely used as a date rape drug.

The Jaz family and the story of Mama Hooch and Venuti

Michael and Davide Jaz had been seeking permanent name suppression but on Monday the court confirmed they had abandoned their application.

Other members of their wider family have been granted suppression to protect their privacy, safety and health.

Michael Jaz was born and raised in Mogila, a village in North Macedonia - but his sons were born and raised in Australia.

In 2001 the family emigrated to New Zealand, settling first in Auckland and moving to Christchurch several years later and opening the restaurant Portofino on Oxford Tce.

After the 2011 earthquake, Michael Jaz established Venuti on Colombo St and later when a nearby site became available, he opened Mama Hooch.

He was the sole owner of both Venuti and Mama Hooch during the entirety of his sons’ sexual predation and offending.

At the trial of Michael Jaz’s rapist sons, Crown prosecutor Andrew McRae told the court that from its inception the bar was destined to be a place where women were unlikely to be respected.

Even its name reflected the intentions of the men running it.

“A play on the term ‘Hoochy Mama’, defined by the Oxford Dictionary as a young woman, especially a promiscuous one or in a sexually provocative way,” said McRae.

“Both Danny and Roberto Jaz used their position to attract the young females by providing them with VIP treatment, such as skipping the queue inside the bar and giving them free alcoholic drinks and drugs.

“Further, Danny and Roberto used their position as owners to administer or facilitate the administration of the alcoholic drinks, events with stupefying substance.”

McRae said the men encouraged a specific “atmosphere” at the bar and used the freebies to “lower the resistance to their advances”.

Police said the women they targeted were “cookie cutter” images of each other - significantly younger than the rapists and attractive.

Davide Jaz also worked at the bar - most recently as its general manager - and was part of some group chats.

However, he was not charged with any offences.

Michael Jaz - who went back to Australia soon after his boys were arrested - defended them.

Christchurch District Licensing Committee documents released to the Herald outline the “strange attitude” Micahel Jaz had about his sons’ offending and his apparent “disregard” for the law.

After Roberto was arrested in 2018, a police and liquor licencing official sought a meeting with Michael Jaz to discuss patron safety at his venues.

Given the serious charges the middle Jaz brother was facing, authorities were concerned about how his licence-holding father was looking after people under his watch.

Michael Jaz assured them Roberto “had been removed from working at either of the premises”.

But it was actually a bail condition that was keeping Roberto away from the venues.

Police asked about Danny’s role.

He was under investigation but had not yet been charged and because of this, Michael Jaz said there was “no reason to remove” his oldest son from Mama Hooch.

Danny was charged in November 2018 and in early 2019 Mama Hooch’s licence came up for renewal.

At a meeting about that application, Micahel Jaz told the police officer Danny had been “removed as manager” but was still working at the bar at night.

Danny “needed to be there to guide the new person” who had been hired as duty manager to replace him, his father reasoned.

When asked what exactly Danny did at the bar, Michael Jaz said: “He enjoyed himself”.

He added that Danny was “an extra pair of hands” and “had some oversight of the bar”.

At the meeting, Michael Jaz made “disparaging comments” about “both the police investigation and the complainants”.

“These girls - they throw themselves at my boys,” he said.

He claimed: “Danny never had to force a girl to do anything”.

In a statement to the committee, the police officer said it was apparent Michael Jaz “had no concerns about Danny” and seemed to be suggesting investigators “were deliberately targeting” him and his sons.

He maintained Danny was “not guilty” that he “hated drugs” and said his “children didn’t take drugs”.

Venuti is also now closed. Photo / George Heard

He linked the issues he was having getting his bar licence with the criminal investigation and - after the police officer explained the two were entirely separate matters - Michael Jaz began “accusing police of corrupt practices”.

He said at one point: “Why do the police force these girls to make up these lies about my sons?”

The police officer said he ended the meeting and left, telling Michael Jaz he was not prepared to sit and listen to any more of his “nonsense”.

Mama Hooch - after failing miserably to rebrand as Gold Aroma - was sold in early 2020.

In February 2023 Venuti also closed its doors when Michael Jaz was refused a renewal of the liquor licence.

Police strongly opposed that application, providing a tranche of evidence of poor management and behaviour at the bar - including some of the videos depicting sexual assaults used to prosecute the Jaz brothers.

Footage was also provided of unauthorised people in the bar after hours and serving themselves alcohol, drug use and the premises being used for consensual intimate liaisons.

Among the most disturbing videos police submitted in their opposition were Danny Jaz assaulting a man in the Mama Hooch toilets, and Michael Jaz himself throwing a punch at a patron who was attempting to leave Mama Hooch.

In the second incident, Danny and Roberto chase the man after their father punches him in the face and get him on the ground ,where they proceed to punch, knee and kick him in the head.

“Michael Jaz and his family almost appear to think they are above the law,” police said in their opposition submission.

“The behaviour of the family members was unacceptable.”

It was ultimately decided that Venuti had “no effective management in place”, the venues were “out of control” and Michael Jaz and his sons had “little or no desire to comply” with licensing rules.

The committee said the evidence provided by police in their opposition to the licence renewal was “overwhelming” and “the worst we’ve ever seen”.

- Anna Leask and Emily Moorhouse, NZH