Career criminal guilty of conspiring to sell P from jail

Arthur Taylor. Photo / Paul Estcourt

Career criminal Arthur William Taylor has been found guilty of conspiring to sell methamphetamine while serving a prison sentence.

A jury in the High Court at Auckland today found Taylor and another prisoner, who cannot be named, guilty of conspiring to sell the class-A drug, but not guilty on three counts of offering to supply it.

The Crown alleged that between May and June 2007 the two inmates in the high security prison at Paremoremo formed an agreement to supply 85g of methamphetamine which they had access to.

Taylor, who defended himself, claimed there was not evidence of outside help which was needed to prove the charges.

"To add any air of reality you would expect some sort of associates outside prison - people doing such things and transferring money, dealing drugs," he told the jurors.

Charges against a third man, who had been on trial over the matter, were dropped.

Taylor, who has a colourful criminal past, is due to be sentenced in May.

- NZPA