All three accused men in the cocaine trial must now wait for the jury's verdicts. Photo / File
All three accused men in the cocaine trial must now wait for the jury's verdicts. Photo / File
The identity of people in messages dredged up at the Bastion Point drug trial could be pivotal to deciding the fate of three accused cocaine importers.
Russian sailor Aleksandr Cherushev and Polish men Ryszard Wilk and Patryk Lukasz Lukasik have pleaded not guilty to importing cocaine.
Jurors have heard RalphWilk, son of Ryszard, previously pleaded guilty to a cocaine supply charge.
Justice Tracey Walker summed up the case on Friday, nearly three weeks after the trial began.
"The Crown says the Wilks arrived in New Zealand to receive cocaine as catchers, the cocaine being brought in by Mr Chersuhev on the Discovery Bay," she said.
Prosecutors alleged the Poles then supplied the drugs to local distributors.
Judge Walker said the Crown claimed Lukasik encouraged or assisted the drug business.
The Crown has claimed Cherushev arrived in Auckland on Discovery Bay, then went into downtown Auckland with kilograms of cocaine.
Prosecutors said he supplied the drugs to the Wilks in early September 2016, then collected his "commission" in a Mt Maunganui car park a few days later.
Ryszard Wilk. Crown prosecutor Brian Dickey claims Wilk's nickname was "Richie" and he was a drug ring boss. Photo / Interpol
The Crown said data showed Discovery Bay was approaching at a critical point during exchanges which allegedly related to drug importation.
"Who is the recipient of those critical messages on 7 September? The Crown case is this is Mr Wilk and Mr Cherushev arranging a rendezvous," Justice Walker said.
The Crown claimed Lukasik told the Wilks a person was 60km from the "destination" and this message coincided with Discovery Bay being that distance from Auckland.
Summing up Cherushev's position, Justice Walker said the Russian consistently denied ever importing or dealing drugs.
Russian sailor Aleksandr Cherushev was arrested during a return visit to New Zealand. Photo / Supplied
The sailor's defence counsel Ron Mansfield said it would have been extremely brazen or stupid for Cherushev to return to New Zealand if he had imported drugs three years earlier.
But Justice Walker said the sailor did return in 2019, bringing an item which in the defence view made allegations against him even more outlandish.
"How stupid he would have been to carry his expired passport, which provided to the authorities instant confirmation that he had indeed been in New Zealand in September 2016?"
Justice Walker said Mansfield emphasised Cherushev had a senior role on the ship, had career ambitions, and a comfortable life at home in Kaliningrad, Russia.
The Crown alleges garbage bags and cocaine remnants detectives dug up at Bastion Pt in July 2017 were linked to the multinational drug conspiracy.
