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A man has appeared in court after police found a large amount of meth and a pistol following a raid at an Auckland rehabilitation facility where people on bail are approved by the courts to live together.
Armed police including specialist Operation Cobalt gang staff descended on the rural Aucklandproperty of Nga Kete Wananga Solutions yesterday morning.
Nga Kete is a residential facility where people on bail facing charges pay nearly $19,000 for a 12-week programme including treatment for drug and alcohol addiction.
During the raid at the property in Dairy Flat, North Auckland, police officers found a semi-automatic pistol, ammunition, $5000 cash, about 500g of methamphetamine and 1kg of pseudoephedrine.
A 38-year-old patched Head Hunter was arrested and charged with firearms and drug supply offences.
The charge of possession of methamphetamine for supply has a maximum penalty of life imprisonment, while the charge of possessing pseudoephedrine, a methamphetamine precursor, carries the possibility of five years.
He was also charged with unlawful possession of a prohibited firearm and ammunition.
He made his first appearance in the Waitakere District Court on Friday afternoon, the day after the raid, before a Community Magistrate.
His lawyer Kima Tuialii, appearing on behalf of barrister Jasper Rhodes, did not seek bail but made a successful application for interim name suppression for their client.
The accused was remanded in custody without plea until his next appearance in the North Shore District Court later this month.
Police at Nga Kete's rural property on Thursday. Photo / Dean Purcell
Among the small number of current residents at the Nga Kete facility are prominent members of the Head Hunters, Hells Angels and Mongrel Mob.
The other residents were transferred to another bail facility in the wake of the raid while police remained at the property in Postman Rd undertaking an extensive search.
In August, police raided Ahikaa Trust, another facility offering treatment and accommodation to men on bail who would otherwise likely remain remanded in custody while awaiting trial or sentencing.
Ahikaa was among the first such bail houses to be set up several years ago.
Officers found bundles of cash, ammunition and three firearms - including one military-style semi-automatic with a silencer - concealed in a communal space at the facility in central Auckland.
The courts have to approve applications for people on bail to live at such facilities. Corrections prepares reports on the suitability of the accommodation, while police can support or oppose bail.
