Smuggling attempt in poor taste
An attempt to smuggle a cellphone hidden inside a kebab to a man in police cells was undone by its poor wrapping.
Thomas James Kumeroa, 19, concealed the cellphone in a kebab he gave to a police officer to pass to his brother, a prisoner appearing as a witness in a case being heard at the Nelson District Court on August 14.
In the same court yesterday, Kumeroa pleaded guilty to a charge of attempting to deliver a cellphone to a prisoner. He also faced a charge of breaching community work.
The court heard that Kumeroa’s brother had been escorted from Christchurch Men’s Prison to the Nelson court. Police had earlier agreed that a family member could bring him a packed lunch.
At 11.15am, Kumeroa purchased a cellphone and two $20 topup cards from The Warehouse. He also bought a kebab from a shop in Nelson. He unrolled the kebab and placed the cellphone and cards amongst the food, before rolling it back up in the tinfoil wrapper.
About 11.45am, Kumeroa arrived at the courthouse and handed the food to the officer looking after his brother. The officer took the kebab into the custody area, but noticed that the wrapper was torn and the kebab appeared to have been tampered with. He opened the kebab and found the cellphone.
Defence lawyer Luke Acland said Kumeroa was a young man who had been influenced by others. The offending had been an ‘‘amateur’’ attempt.
‘‘They are not the easiest things to wrap, and it would have been pretty obvious to the prison guard.’’
Judge David Ruth said Kumeroa had to understand that community work was not a lifestyle he could choose to do as it pleased him.
‘‘You will do the sentences I am about to impose. If you don’t, I will put you in jail, and you won’t have to worry about a cellphone for your brother – you will be able to talk to him in the exercise yard.’’
Judge Ruth also said maintaining order within the prison system depended on people like Kumeroa not acting in such a way.
On the cellphone charge, Kumeroa was sentenced to 100 hours of community work. On the charge of breaching community work, he was sentenced to another 40 hours’ community work.
An order was made for the destruction of the cellphone and the cards.
The court also head that on July 1, Kumeroa was sentenced to 80 hours’ community work for driving with a breath alcohol level over 400 micrograms of alcohol per litre of breath. He failed to report to the Probation Service within 72 hours, and eventually appeared on August 30, but was said he was unable to stay for the induction because he had something else on.