John Arthur of Whangārei says he has been a registered gasfitter since 1985.
John Arthur of Whangārei says he has been a registered gasfitter since 1985.
A man who created fake identity cards and posed as a qualified gasfitter was found to be doing unauthorised work so dangerous he could have blown up two family motorhomes.
Then, he attempted to offer his fraudulent services to a world-class marina, but was caught and trespassed after providing a fake gasfitting registration number and suggesting he could carry out work he wasn’t qualified to do.
Now, John Arthur is before the courts for showing “little regard for the safety of the public”.
Arthur, of Whangārei, was sentenced by Judge Philip Rzepecky last week on seven charges laid by the Plumbers, Gasfitters and Drainlayers Board related to doing acts of a gasfitter while being unregistered or licensed.
In late 2022, Arthur was referred to the McKean family for gasfitting work on their house bus installing a gas water heater.
He was referred to them by another unsuspecting family, who showed them his apparent certificate of compliance dated 2022 and a laminated gasfitter registration card with the number 143660, which expired in 2024.
“But this was completely dishonest because these were not valid registered numbers for any licensed gasfitter,” Judge Rzepecky said.
Arthur requested $1300 from the McKeans, which was paid, and then spent several days in November and December installing the water heater behind a removable exterior panel.
Days later, the board emailed Arthur to advise he was not authorised to carry out gasfitting work, but he continued with the job anyway.
The McKeans paid Arthur an additional $500 on completion of the job but within two days, the appliance stopped working.
Arthur told the family he would leave a certificate of compliance in their letterbox, however this never arrived.
The McKeans hired another gasfitter to fix the broken appliance and the contractor was so concerned about the quality of work, he contacted the board in June 2023.
An adviser to the board looked at the work and found there was a risk of gas build-up in the enclosure near the water heater and a risk of full combustion and fire.
“The expert says the risk to explosion is high,” Judge Rzepecky said.
“They were no doubt fortunate that this installation failed because it was dangerous to life.”
Around the same time Arthur was conducting work on the McKeans’ house bus, he was also speaking with another person he found on a Facebook motorhome group.
Plumbing, gasfitting and drainlaying are a regulated industry in New Zealand and it is illegal to do work unless authorised by the board.
He offered to complete the work for $1800 and the woman paid $1000 in advance.
“She specifically asked you if you had the qualifications to sign off and you said you had been doing it since 1982. That also was not correct,” Judge Rzepecky said.
Arthur performed gasfitting work on her house bus and when he left the site, she observed the work was incomplete and called in a professional.
That professional noted the work was unsafe, non-compliant and required complete removal.
Arthur’s final victim was the Tūtūkākā marina trust board, where he attended a meeting and offered his services to boating clients.
Arthur told the marina board he was a registered gasfitter with extensive experience and inspected a yacht docked on site.
Arthur provided the marina with a gasfitting inspection sheet and a fake gasfitting registration number. But, when queried the gasfitting board advised the marina he was not authorised to carry out work.
Tūtūkākā marina then trespassed Arthur from the site and charges were laid.
Tūtūkākā Marina attracts clients from around the world who want to experience Northland's world-class dive spots like the Poor Knights Islands. Photo / Michael Cunningham
Arthur pleaded not guilty to the charges and on the day a scheduled judge-alone trial set down in August this year, witnesses arrived to court to give evidence but Arthur did not show up until the afternoon.
When he did arrive, he changed his plea to guilty.
The court heard Arthur told pre-sentence report writers the issue was not him, it was the act that was the problem and would continue to share his knowledge in the field.
“He told pre-sentence report writers he’s a qualified automotive gasfitter. There was no qualification in 1985 for an automotive gasfitter so I’m not sure what he’s referring to because he’s never been qualified under the current act.
“This isn’t a matter of overreach. He quite clearly is not competent to do the work,” lawyer for the gasfitting board Abigail Stuart said.
Arthur’s lawyer, Jarred Scott said his client had written to the Minister of Energy about how effective the rules were for motorhomes and boats.
“Given the evidence and the way in which the installation was carried out and the work that had to be done, you can’t say there’s something wrong with the statutory regime and he deserves some credit for that? It’s unrealistic and almost grandiose,” Judge Rzepecky said to Scott.
“He has a different view. He thinks gasfitting regulations should be different [for motorhomes] because they’re not fixed, they move,” Scott submitted.
Arthur attempted to submit he did not have the financial means to pay a fine but Judge Rzpecky said the information was only supplied to the court in the 11th hour and sentenced him to a fine of $8000.
Judge Rzpecky also ordered Arthur to pay $2800 in reparation and $699 in prosecution costs.
“I hope you take this prosecution seriously and desist from carrying out any gas work.”
“Little regard for the safety of the public”
Plumbers, Gasfitters and Drainlayers Board chief executive Aleyna Hall told NZME there were serious risks posed by unauthorised gasfitting work.
Graeme Kyle was sentenced and fined $9,000 in June 2024 for carrying out electrical and plumbing work while unlicensed at a Dannevirke property that risked the health and safety of the property and its occupants.
Shannon Pitman is a Whangārei-based reporter for Open Justice covering courts in the Te Tai Tokerau region. She is of Ngāpuhi/ Ngāti Pūkenga descent and has worked in digital media for the past five years. She joined NZME in 2023.
