Prison for man who had P lab in rental

File photo / NZ Herald

A man who operated a P lab in his rented home, causing more than $44,000 of damage, has been sentenced to three years in jail.

Anthony Vincent Morris, 35, appeared in the Rotorua District Court last week after earlier pleading guilty to the manufacture and supply of methamphetamine, and possessing equipment and materials used in its manufacture.

His former partner Linda Clair Nicky Te Aonui, 28, was sentenced to 12 months of intensive supervision for permitting the premises to be used for the manufacture of methamphetamine.

Judge Phillip Cooper said Rotorua police executed a search warrant near Westbrook Primary on November 4 last year and discovered evidence of a fully functioning, clandestine meth lab which had been recently in use.

Morris told police an associate cooked the methamphetamine and his role was to store it and wash it down. In exchange he was given a small amount of the highly-addictive drug, which he sold.

"You held it, cleaned it, you were very much involved," Judge Cooper said.

The judge said it had cost more than $44,000 to repair damage to the property and noted the effect being a former P lab house would have on its resale and rental value. He noted Morris did not have the means to make any reparation for this.

In sentencing Morris, Judge Cooper acknowledged that he appeared motivated to address his drug issues and would need access to a rehabilitation programme. He also gave Morris credit for his guilty plea.

The judge said although Te Aonui was the legal tenant, she was not "the real villain of the piece". He said Te Aonui had pleaded guilty and accepted she could have prevented the offending, although he questioned whether this was really the case.

He imposed a rehabilitative sentence because Te Aonui had already made significant changes to her life. She was no longer in a relationship with Morris, had been receiving counselling and had moved away from Rotorua. He had responsibilities to her two children, aged 4 and two months.