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A former Maori Party candidate has been committed to trial on charges of grooming young people for sex and possession of objectionable material.
A depositions hearing in the Auckland District Court yesterday found Kelvin Andrew Martin, 48, had a case to answer. He entered not guilty pleas to two counts of grooming a person under 16 for sex and 12 counts of knowingly possessing objectionable material.
In depositions handed up to the court, Detective Stephen Waugh, of the Auckland City District child exploitation team, said police created a number of teenage profiles in public chatrooms and on social networking sites such as MySpace. One of these profiles exchanged messages with Martin for about a month late last year.
During the exchanges, Martin allegedly sent explicit photographs and performed sexual acts.
Mr Waugh said other officers reviewed the messages he sent to Martin to make sure they weren't considered to be instigating the discussions and it was Martin who was the "agent provocateur". During their online chats Martin allegedly asked the so-called teenage girl to accompany him to Whangarei, saying: "You'll learn more with me than attending school."
Court documents showed he set up a meeting with a young woman at a Burger King outlet but he couldn't find her and left.
Martin then set up another meeting at Gribblehirst Park in Sandringham last December.
Police say he went there thinking he was to meet a 14-year-old girl for sex, and was arrested.
Mr Waugh said police found at Martin's house disks with images of girls having sex with adults.
Martin, from Massey in West Auckland, has also stood for the Waitakere City Council.
