Name supression continues for former transport official in bribe case

The High Court confirmed receiving an appeal, meaning the defendant still cannot be named for now. File photo

Name suppression continues for a former Auckland Transport official accused by the Serious Fraud Office of receiving bribes totalling more than $1 million, pending a High Court appeal.

Judge Pippa Sinclair last week rejected an application by the man in North Shore District Court for continued interim name suppression, ruling that any hardship he might suffer from being identified would not be extreme, and would be outweighed by significant public interest in the case.

But she extended the suppression order until 4pm (today) after the man's lawyer, Paul Wicks QC, said he intended appealing to the High Court against her decision.

Mr Wicks had submitted an affidavit from the man's current employer stating he would be forced by reputational considerations to dismiss him, should his name be published.

The High Court has (this afternoon) confirmed receiving an appeal, meaning the defendant still cannot be named for now.

It has yet to set a date for considering his case.

The man has pleaded not guilty to six charges of accepting bribes from engineering projects management company Projenz (2005) over more than five years to mid-2013, and has been remanded to reappear in the district court on August 6, as have co-defendants Barrie Kenneth James George and Stephen James Borlase.

Borlase, 51, has stepped down temporarily as head of Projenz while facing eight charges of bribing the man and George in their capacity as public officials and four of doctoring hours worked by subcontractors in invoices submitted to the former Rodney District Council.

He has denied all charges.

George, 68, has pleaded not guilty to four charges of accepting bribes in his previous roles as a road maintenance contracts manager with Auckland Transport and as infrastructure manager before that with the Rodney council.