John Elliott was jailed after admitting drug charges including possession of meth for supply.
John Elliott was jailed after admitting drug charges including possession of meth for supply.
A 73-year-old says he helped a senior Mongrel Mob member distribute methamphetamine and GBL in exchange for the gangster’s help to stop a barrage of threats and arsons on his family.
But for that assistance, John Elliott will now spend three years and 11 months in prison after earlier admitting charges of possession of meth and GBL for supply, supplying GBL, and participating in an organised criminal group.
Elliott appeared before Justice Anne Hinton in the High Court at Hamilton today, where his part in Operation Oakville was revealed.
Operation Oakville was a covert police operation targeting the sale and distribution of meth, or P, and GBL around Auckland, Waikato, and Wellington.
As a result, a group of people was arrested including senior Waikato Mongrel Mob member Mark Griffiths, his partner Sharon Marfell, and Griffiths’ brother, John.
Griffiths is yet to be sentenced, but Marfell and John Griffiths have been jailed for seven years and two years and 10 months respectively.
Police raided the home of Elliott, who lives in Wellington, in November 2020 and found two large bags of P totalling 291.4g, with a purity of 77 per cent.
They also uncovered numerous messages between Elliott and Griffiths in which they discussed securing packages of drugs arriving from Elliott’s son in the United States.
One of those was one that was exchanged between the pair in Taupō in October 2020.
The same search warrant found three 5-litre plastic fuel containers containing GBL, measured to be 91 per cent purity.
Crown prosecutor Jacinda Hamilton argued that although Elliott was being subjected to threats, intimidation, and violence, at a disputed fact hearing this week, he was also in contact with his son who was sending the drugs to New Zealand.
“He was assisting his son by transporting those drugs to Mark Griffiths.
“He also had a choice about engaging in this. In doing so, he acted freely and expected some financial benefit.”
He was also no stranger to dealing drugs, having been jailed for four-and-a-half years for his commercially-sized cannabis operation - with 205 plants - found at his property in 2015.
Elliott’s lawyer Paul Surridge said the threats to his family were so serious they eventually gave up on Lower Hutt police and went to police headquarters in Wellington for help.
Justice Hinton found Elliott was not directly placed under pressure or coerced to offend, “nor were you an unwilling defendant during the offending”.
“However, you had ... been subject to substantial and ongoing pressure from others including other gang members between March and late May 2020 as a result of your son’s previous criminal activity.”
His wife, who was “extremely unwell” at the time, and his adult daughter, were also subjected to threats.
Senior Waikato Mongrel Mob member Mark Griffiths, better known as Griff, was purporting to be anti-P. But at the same time, he was the leader of a group distributing P and GBL around the North Island.
“The pressure included threats, intimidation, people knocking on the door demanding payment of the $250,000 debt apparently owed by your son, torching of one of your cars in the driveway, and setting the deck of your property on fire.”
She said while police did respond to the concerns from the Elliott family, they were unable to identify those involved in the threats and arsons.
Around April 2020, Mark Griffiths became aware of the issues he was facing and took on the role of “protector”.
The harassment stopped and a relationship began where the pair would work on the supply of P and GBL.
“You acted largely, if not solely, at his direction.
“You said in a disputed facts hearing that you felt a sense of obligation to do that in exchange for what Mark Griffiths had done for you.
“Despite much of your sworn testimony being plainly wrong and dishonest, I accept that you repaying Mark Griffiths was the primary motivator for your offending.”
Justice Hinton accepted that if it were not for the severe actions against him in early 2020, he would not have got involved in the drug dealing.
“I agree with Mr Surridge that this is a very unusual case in that sense.”
She said Elliott was promised $15,000 by his son but there was no evidence he was ever paid.
She accepted he can’t have been that naive about what he was doing, given his previous criminal history.
After issuing discounts for his guilty plea, personal background, including his wife’s death and his age, she came to an end jail term of three years and 11 months.
