Firearms charges 'politically motivated', says pornographer

Pornographer Steve Crow has blasted as "politically motivated" his arrest on firearms charges, laid after an evening's target shooting ended in a sheep allegedly dying of fright.

Crow, 49, told said yesterday he was "just target shooting" at a friend's property in Trig Rd, Whenuapai, west Auckland, on August 20.

Police arrived after residents complained a sheep had been shot, but when no gunshot wound could be found on the animal, police accused him of scaring it to death, Crow said.

Though Crow - organiser of last week's Boobs on Bikes Parade in central Auckland - was never charged with the sheep's death, he appeared in Waitakere District Court yesterday on six charges, including two charges of illegal possession of a pistol, two charges of carrying pistols against the terms of his collector's licence, and two charges of discharging a firearm near a house to "annoy/frighten the occupants".

Crowe, a licensed gun collector, was carrying a Glock 9mm pistol and an Arcus 9mm pistol at the time of his arrest.

After the hearing Crow defended his right to bear arms on a rural property.

He said he had been firing downward into a gully "150m to 200m from where the sheep allegedly dropped dead".

"The sheep was above me, and 180 degrees behind me. I couldn't have shot the sheep even if I had wanted to."

Crow believed firearms were routinely discharged on farm properties across New Zealand, and if it caused livestock to die of fright, too bad.

"I am rejecting it, and I am also saying that if it resulted in the sheep's death, so what?"

Crow said he believed the charges were a waste of time, "but that's fine, we will go through the process".

He spent about 30 minutes in police cells after his arrest, where he "got to meet a few new bro's", and learned "some new handshakes".

Crow entered not-guilty pleas to all charges yesterday, and was remanded on bail to a status hearing in October.