When police executed a search warrant, the man allegedly refused to hand over details to his digital devices, and he was also charged with failing to carry out obligations in relation to an arrest warrant.
The man was remanded into custody and, days later, further charges were laid relating to three further complainants, including one of rape.
His bail was refused along with name suppression, both of which the man appealed.
After several hearings relating to suppression and two lawyer changes, the man’s new counsel, John Munro, requested the charges be split across two trials due to the range of time frames, complainants’ ages and circumstances of the allegations.
The Crown accepted that the man would need to have two trials.
A hearing was then held before Judge McDonald to finalise the name suppression order.
He ruled that the man’s right to a fair trial took precedence over public interest and formally suppressed his name and business details until the commencement of his first trial.
The man was also granted bail.
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.
