Te Puke man Richard Sivell remains on the run, six months on from being arrested on a charge of threatening to kill. Photo / NZME
Te Puke man Richard Sivell remains on the run, six months on from being arrested on a charge of threatening to kill. Photo / NZME
A Bay of Plenty conspiracy theorist who allegedly threatened to kill Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern remains on the run six months after being arrested by armed police.
The police operationwas filmed by a nearby associate of Sivell's, showing a row of police cars outside the property where Sivell was living, including multiple officers armed with rifles.
He was charged with threatening to kill, related to an alleged threat made against Ardern online, with the details of the threat currently subject to a suppression order. The charge carries a maximum penalty of seven years imprisonment.
He was also charged with intentionally obstructing a police officer during arrest and failing to comply with police.
Sivell appeared in the Tauranga District Court the following week, refusing to enter the dock before being restrained and handcuffed by police officers on the courtroom floor.
He was then forcibly taken to the dock, at one point being picked up by his arms and legs and later dragged along the floor.
He did not enter any pleas and was remanded on bail to appear again in a fortnight.
Sivell never showed for his next court appearance and Judge Thomas Ingram issued a warrant for his arrest.
For the last six months, he has continued to evade police.
Sivell was arrested at a Te Puke property on March 29 - six months ago. Photo / Supplied
Police confirmed this week the warrant to arrest Sivell remained active, but did not directly answer questions asking if they were following any leads.
Online, Sivell often posted audio recordings of his thoughts, as opposed to written messages.
Misinformation and online extremism researcher Byron Clark, who closely monitors internal discussions within conspiracy networks, said this week that people sometimes ask where Sivell has got to.
"People occasionally ask about him on [messaging app] Telegram, but don't get a response."
Richard Sivell previously played as part of a covers band, performing at a variety of clubs around the Bay of Plenty. Photo / Facebook
Clark did not believe Sivell remained active in the conspiracy movement, at least not under his own name.
Outside of those circles, Sivell was a musician performing as part of a covers band at venues around the Bay of Plenty including RSAs and citizens clubs.
After his initial court appearance, members of the public posing as journalists interviewed Sivell on the courthouse steps, asking him how it felt to be "persecuted". The interviews were later posted to multiple misinformation platforms.
In court, Sivell claimed he was being held "under duress", and that he was "a man of peace".
He wouldn't enter the dock, he said, unless he was provided "the data". The exact data Sivell referred to is not known, but was understood to relate to Covid-19 vaccinations.
He makes up a growing number of those involved in New Zealand's ultra-fringe groups currently before the court.
Open Justice revealed the active prosecution of Taupō man Graham Philip in July. Philip, an anti-vaccination campaigner, is the first Kiwi to ever be charged with sabotage - but the details of his alleged offending are suppressed. He denies the seven sabotage charges.
Kelvyn Alp and Hannah Spierer, company directors and hosts of fringe media outlet Counterspin are also before the courts. Both are facing charges of possessing an objectionable publication. They too deny the charges.
