An Auckland man with an extensive rap sheet that includes shooting a man, receiving a stolen Bentley and 70 theft-related convictions can now be identified after being sentenced for his most recent offending.
Matthew Vernall, who is in his late 30s, was sent back to jail earlier this year after police caught him behind the wheel of a stolen Bentley in Remuera and with the keys for a Maserati that had vanished from the same posh – but abandoned – St Heliers property where the other high-end car had been stored.
Auckland District Court Judge Nevin Dawson sentenced Vernall to 22 months’ imprisonment for the offending; however, the media were unable to publicly link him to the bizarre crime until a sentencing hearing this month.
During the hearing, Vernall and his co-accused, Antony Gray, were jointly sentenced after pleading guilty to wounding with intent to injure on the morning of their trial for shooting an acquaintance with whom they were “not on good terms”.
This month, Manukau District Court Judge Yelena Yelavich said the men were on bail at the time of the 2023 attack, and Vernall was legally barred from possessing a firearm at the time.
According to the summary of facts, at 4.49pm on October 23, 2023 Gray Snapchatted Vernall, saying he was going to visit the victim.
They then spoke over the phone for 56 seconds.
Gray later looked up the victim’s address and at 6.04pm, Vernall shut off his electronic monitor bracelet.
Gray shut his down about 10 minutes later.
With Gray behind the wheel, the pair drove past the victim’s workshop multiple times before he exited the building.
The summary said the victim was not expecting them.
The men then got out of their Volkswagen and when the victim saw them coming, he got into his vehicle.
Vernall, who was wearing a black face covering, pointed a pistol in the direction of the victim and shot him through the driver’s side window.
Judge Yelavich said Gray continued to walk towards the victim before shaking his head at the injured man.
Following the attack, the victim drove himself to the White Cross Medical Centre in Mt Wellington, where staff observed he had a wound to the abdomen and lower bicep.
An ambulance was called and he was taken to Auckland City Hospital, where he underwent surgery, which included removing part of his bowel.
Wounding with intent to injure carries a maximum prison term of seven years.
Judge Yelavich listed the use of a lethal weapon, the injury and impact on the victim and premeditation as aggravating features.
She noted both men had shut down their electronic bail-trackers and taken a loaded firearm to the property.
Although Vernall fired the gun, Judge Yelavich proposed granting the men the same starting point of three years and six months’ imprisonment.
She gave Vernall a discount for his guilty plea and personal circumstances.
“Early exposure to violence and eventual abuse in state care; unsurprisingly, substance abuse and addiction also feature,” she said.
Judge Yelavich said Vernall had been actively undertaking rehabilitation while in prison.
While he sought a discount for remorse, she told the court this needed to be seen in light of comments he made to the report writer.
These included claims he had been “ripped off” by the victim and that he didn’t see that he’d shot him because the windows were dark.
Overall, she gave Vernall a discount of 40%, but also a sentence uplift for his previous convictions and offending while on bail.
After adjusting Vernall’s sentence in relation to his current jail term, he was handed a final prison term of 28 months.
Turning to Gray, Judge Yelavich said the 43-year-old had long-standing addiction issues.
She granted him discounts for his plea, addiction, rehabilitation efforts and time he had already spent on electronic bail.
However, she gave him a four-month uplift due to his historical offending and offending while on bail.
This resulted in a sentence of 24 months, making him eligible for home detention.
Given his rehabilitation efforts and future prospects, Judge Yelavich considered home detention to be the least restrictive outcome.
She then converted Gray’s two-year prison sentence to one year of home detention. After credit for time in custody, he was given an end sentence of seven months’ home detention with 12 months’ post-detention conditions.
In February, Judge Dawson denounced Vernall’s earlier conduct.
“It’s all behaviour which is unacceptable to the community.”
Court documents state the vehicles, a blue 2010 Maserati GranTurismo worth an estimated $65,000 and a silver Bentley Continental Flying Spur valued at $75,000, went missing during a burglary of two neighbouring addresses in January 2023.
The properties, jointly valued at more than $10 million, were unoccupied and had been previously seized as part of a bankruptcy along with all the items inside. Before going into receivership, the property was formerly associated with a couple who were sentenced to prison in Hong Kong in 2016 for fraudulent business dealings in New Zealand.
Both cars appeared to have remained parked inside the internal garage for years while the property was the subject of an overseas restraining order related to the Hong Kong case.
Police spotted the Bentley with false registration plates as Vernall was driving it through Remuera a month-and-a-half after the burglary, according to the agreed summary of facts.
After being followed by the police Eagle helicopter for about 20 minutes, Vernall and his partner abandoned the vehicle at the end of a street and headed towards a secluded pathway with a backpack.
Vernall was stopped by police at the start of the pathway, while his partner continued on and dumped the backpack in the bushes, police alleged. Inside the recovered backpack, police later found 51g of meth and electronic scales.
“I was just being a hero by taking the bag,” Vernall’s partner later told police, adding that the drugs were “just for personal use”. She was sentenced last year.
Defence lawyer Levi Jackson emphasised during the earlier hearing that Vernall pleaded guilty to receiving stolen property for the Bentley. It would be unfair to hold him accountable for the burglary in which the cars were taken when it hadn’t been proven beyond a reasonable doubt that he was involved, Jackson argued.
Crown prosecutor Liam Dalton didn’t disagree but noted there was ample evidence that Vernall knew both vehicles had been stolen.
A search of his phone revealed Google searches for:
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