Repeat offender in Northland loses appeal against jail sentence

When police caught up with Zeke Lowe, he was busy transferring parts from a stolen Mitsubishi L300 van into another van of the same make and model. Photo/File

An attempt by a man with 282 previous convictions for dishonesty offending to have his current sentence reduced for similar offending has failed.

Zeke James Lowe was sentenced to two years and eight months in Whangarei in July last year after he pleaded guilty to three charges of unlawfully interfering with and getting into a motor vehicle.

He also admitted three charges of receiving, one of theft and another of burglary under a plea arrangement with the Crown.

Lowe appealed his sentence in the High Court, saying it was manifestly excessive on the basis the summary of facts relied on for sentencing did not properly reflect the plea arrangement.

Zeke James Lowe when he was being sought by police for burglary in 2004.

But Justice Simon Moore said Lowe was "a recidivist offender with an appalling criminal history" and that numerous aspects of the sentence was generous to him.

Lowe was arrested after police executed four search warrants at properties in Waipu and Kamo in September and October 2015 and vehicles and power tools were among items recovered by police.

In one case, police located a stolen Mitsubishi L300 van in Waipu when Lowe was in the process of transferring parts from it to another vehicle of the same make and model.

Justice Moore said Lowe's offending included a residential burglary, possession of significant amounts of stolen property, theft of power tools, and theft and conversion of other peoples vehicles.

With 282 previous convictions, he said Lowe was either on parole or subject to release conditions for an earlier burglary when he committed the last lot of offending.