A former North Island mayor who intentionally facilitated crime by providing legal help was a "polite" prisoner and has been released on parole with three years still to run on his jail sentence.
Hugh Edward Staples Hamilton, who did legal work for failed finance company Belgrave, was found guilty in 2014 of 14 charges of theft by a person in a special relationship. Hamilton, a former Central Hawkes Bay mayor, was sentenced to four years and nine months in jail.
Belgrave's 2008 collapse left more than 1200 investors $22 million out of pocket.
A former partner of DAC Legal who was struck off as a lawyer in 2013, Hamilton advised Belgrave Finance until its receivership.
Belgrave made around $12 million of loans to entities effectively controlled by property developer Raymond Schofield.