Convicted Whakatāne drug dealer Butler Taylor has been sentenced to almost three years’ prison for selling methamphetamine, cocaine, cannabis and Fantasy/GHB.

The 39-year-old was sentenced by Judge Louis Bidois in the Whakatāne District Court on Wednesday.

Taylor pleaded guilty in October to charges of offering to supply methamphetamine, offering to sell cannabis, offering to supply cocaine, offering to supply Fantasy (also known as GHB), supplying methamphetamine, selling cannabis, and unlawfully possessing a pistol.

Two other firearm charges were withdrawn at sentencing.

He was initially granted interim name suppression, which has since lapsed.

Defence lawyer Caitlin Gentleman said Taylor was disconnected from his culture and exposed to drugs, alcohol and violence from a young age.

The court heard that he was in foster care from the ages of about five to 11.

Judge Bidois said Taylor was abused, used drugs and became a gang member at a young age.

He said the defendant did not realise he was addicted until he started selling drugs to fund his own habit.

The defence submitted that Taylor was remorseful for his offending, but Crown prosecutor Laura Clay argued that a letter he wrote read more like an apology to his daughter than an expression of remorse.

The prosecutor described Taylor as having a “cavalier” attitude towards his offending.

Taylor has been in custody since his arrest in April and spoke to the judge via audio-visual link to share that he had been given a truck-driving job within prison, which he said was available only to trusted prisoners after six months of good behaviour.

He was supported in court by a large number of whānau, including his mother, who travelled from Auckland.

Judge Bidois sentenced the defendant to 33 months in prison and ordered the forfeiture of a Samsung cell phone used to facilitate his offending.

Other court appearances:

Scaffolder imprisoned for assault

Tāneatua scaffolder Tyrone Tehara Alfred John Allen has been jailed for 10 months for assault and driving drunk.

Judge Louis Bidois said Allen, 29, was in the car with his victim when he backhanded her in the face twice. When she tried to leave the vehicle he grabbed her clothes, ripping off her dress and leaving her “half-naked”.

The judge said a good Samaritan intervened and shielded the victim from further harm.

Allen was found behind the wheel on Muriwai Drive with a breath alcohol level of 849 micrograms.

He was subject to intensive supervision at the time.

Allen was sentenced in Whakatāne District Court this week after he accepted a sentencing indication and pleaded guilty to failing to stop for police, driving with excess breath alcohol, driving while disqualified and assault with intent to injure.

In addition to the prison sentence, Allen was disqualified from driving for a total of 30 months and a protection order was issued for the victim.

Shoplifter sentenced

Prolific shoplifter Christopher John Allen has been sentenced to 80 hours’ community work after stealing small amounts of food from Pak’n Save Whakatāne on three different occasions.

The court heard that Allen committed the offences because he needed food.

Court documents showed he shoplifted food valued at $22.08, $11.17 and $15.17 across September and October.

Allen admitted the charges and three counts of wilful trespass. He also pleaded guilty to breaching the conditions of his bail.

Judge Bidois said Allen had a prolific history of shoplifting, but he heard that the defendant now had a place to live and people willing to help him.

Allen was ordered to repay the value of the stolen goods in addition to the community work.

Charges admitted

Ryan Anaru Ram pleaded guilty this week to charges of escaping police custody, wounding with intent to injure, intentional damage and threatening to kill.

A bail application was refused by Judge Bidois, who remanded Ram in custody until February 19 for sentencing.

Three months’ prison

Whakatāne man Joseph Tamure Neil Taylor, 46, has been sentenced to three months’ prison for possessing methamphetamine and failing to complete 260 hours of community work.

Taylor pleaded guilty to the charges of possessing meth and breaching community work.

Judge Bidois sentenced him to one month prison and granted an application to cancel the community work order, adding two months to the sentence to account for the hours Taylor did not complete.

Taylor also pleaded not guilty to a charge of theft and two counts of burglary.

The court heard that he had intended to apply for bail, but consent was withdrawn by the occupant of his proposed bail address.

Taylor was remanded to February 26 to appear by audio-visual link for a case review hearing.

Bail varied

A variation of Chad Paterson-Ruke’s bail was granted to allow him to go to a property neighbouring his elderly victim to move house.

Paterson-Ruke is due to be sentenced next month for a charge of assault with intent to injure.

He was allowed to go to the address between the hours of 9am and 5pm until today to move his belongings.

Case review adjourned

The case review hearing scheduled for Te Rangi Whetu Keepa – who has denied drugs and firearms charges – has been adjourned at the request of police.

Keepa was remanded on bail until next month.

Commumity detention imposed

A man who failed to comply with his community work sentence has been sentenced to community detention instead.

Torone Jordan Amota Patrick was sentenced to six months’ supervision and two months’ community detention, with a curfew of 7pm to 7am for a charge of breaching community work.

Sentencing adjourned

A man who crashed his car twice while five-and-a-half times the legal alcohol limit has been convicted of drink driving for the fifth time.

Junior Tati Paul was caught with a blood alcohol level of 276 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood. The legal limit is 50 milligrams of alcohol.

His sentencing was adjourned to February 19 to allow a pre-sentence report to be compiled.

Gang insignia charge denied

Ngawai Smith pleaded guilty this week to a charge of failing to stop for police, but he denied displaying gang insignia.

Judge Bidois heard that Smith was riding a dirt bike on a footpath while not wearing a helmet.

Smith was fined $250 and avoided disqualification.

He was remanded at large for a case review hearing in March.

Community work hours added to

A woman who relocated to Rūātoki without updating Corrections about her address has had her 100 hours of community work increased to 180.

Hineauripo Maui pleaded guilty this week to charges of breaching community work and driving while disqualified.

The judge heard that she had relocated from Ōpōtiki to Rūātoki but did not transfer to the Whakatāne Corrections office. She was sentenced to 100 hours’ community work in September 2022.

Judge Bidois cancelled the incomplete hours and reimposed them.

He ordered her to complete 80 more hours as punishment for the breach.

Section 94 of the Land Transport Act was invoked for the driving charge, meaning Maui was not further disqualified from driving. Instead, she was sentenced to nine months’ supervision.

Breached protection order leads to prison

Tepapa Reagan Williams has been sentenced to nine months’ prison for three breaches of a protection order.

Judge Bidois heard that Williams was welcomed back into the home he owned with the protected person and everything was okay for a week, but the couple encountered an issue in town that led to an argument.

Williams called the victim names and was verbally abusive.

Judge Bidois said that at 51 years old, Williams had breached the protection order 10 times.

“You’re too old to be engaging in this stuff.”

Leave for substitution of the prison sentence was refused.

Sentence enables dealer’s rehab

Despite Judge Bidois’ comments that an appropriate sentence for a drug dealer would be one of home detention, Douglas Lindsey Kurawhati-Ia Wright has been sentenced to community detention.

Wright previously admitted a charge of supplying methamphetamine and two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm.

His sentencing was delayed in late 2023 to allow him to attend a residential rehabilitation programme, which he has previously undertaken multiple times. He is enrolled in an Auckland rehab programme, but a sentence of home detention would have made him ineligible to continue.

Judge Bidois said sentencing Wright to home detention would put his parents at risk.

He noted that Wright’s parents had been at every court appearance.

“You are very fortunate for that ongoing support.”

Wright was sentenced to 18 months’ intensive supervision and six months’ community detention, to be served at an Auckland address.

He was ordered to forfeit a cell phone and $280 cash.

Old habits

A man who woke up from a nap, put on his cap and rode his bike down the road has been fined $250 because the cap displayed gang insignia.

Riki Richard Nahi pleaded guilty to a charge of prohibited display of gang insignia and was ordered to forfeit the cap.

“Old habits die hard,” Judge Bidois said.

Teacher aide disqualified

Whakatāne teacher aide Ngamane Davis has been sentenced for his third drink driving charge.

Davis was caught with a breath alcohol level of 895 micrograms per litre of breath and is subject to a community work order from his previous convictions.

Judge Bidois said Davis did not have a single criminal conviction, indicating that he was not violent or dishonest.

He said as a teacher aide, Davis was supposed to be responsible in all aspects of his life.

Letters of support about his character were submitted to the judge by Davis’ colleagues.

Judge Bidois said deterrence was required when dealing with recidivist drink drivers.

Davis was indefinitely disqualified from driving and sentenced to 160 hours’ community work and 12 months’ supervision.