Key player in Rotorua, Taupō and Hamilton cannabis growing syndicate imprisoned

Tony Herbert appears for sentencing in the Rotorua District Court via the audio visual link. Photo / Andrew Warner

Tony Herbert isn't a drug user but he got involved in an elaborate $4.2 million cannabis growing syndicate because he didn't want to experience poverty again.

Herbert has now been jailed for five years for the role he played in being one of the masterminds behind the large-scale cannabis growing operation.

It involved the running of bogus companies and stealing power to grow premium crops of cannabis inside industrial warehouses in Rotorua, Taupō and Hamilton.

More than $4.2m worth of cannabis was seized from Rotorua, Taupō and Hamilton commercial buildings linked to a major drug syndicate. Photo / Supplied

Herbert, 32, appeared for sentencing before Judge Greg Hollister-Jones in the Rotorua District Court via audio visual link on Tuesday after previously pleading guilty to three charges of cultivating cannabis, three charges of possession of equipment used for cultivating cannabis, three charges of theft of electricity and one charge of attempting to cultivate cannabis.

For Herbert, it was purely about money.

The court heard he had a tough upbringing. His parents separated when he was young and he was raised by his mother and stepfather. His stepfather died when he was 11 and his mother suffered a medical condition which meant she couldn't work. She also died when Herbert was young.

Herbert went to work at the age of 14 to support his family and had been a hard worker since.

In the months before the offending, he set up a company called BOP Automotive but it got into financial strife with the Inland Revenue Department.

The set up to grow the cannabis indoors cost the offenders thousands. Photo / Supplied

Herbert then seized the opportunity to get involved in growing cannabis as a "financial parachute", Judge Hollister-Jones said.

Herbert's company was instead used as one of the many fronts for the operation that involved 18 other offenders.

They included key offenders Joseph Horopaera, Gareth Tabener, Clayton Grant and Macarthur Atkins, who died not long after being charged.

Other offenders considered "workers" included Jared Steven Wepa, 26, Andrew David Donaldson, 35, Tumanako Waaka, 22, Eddie Clarke, 42, Rima Selwyn, 21, Sharn Kelvin Mahuika, 21, Thomas Joseph Hoani, 28, Charles Frederick Poi Poi Te Whaarangi Riritahi, 30, Trent William Cochrane-Daniels, 30, Tamahou Wirihanga Ruffell, 28, Tamihana Ruffell, 33, Hamiora Mason, 29, and Jason Robinson, 29.

The drug syndicate partnered with a Unison foreman, Duane Simon, 42, who tampered with wiring at their leased buildings to steal power, saving the offenders thousands of dollars but also helping to avoid suspicion.

All were to be sentenced this week but red traffic light restrictions and limitations within the courts meant they have been adjourned until next year.

The cannabis growing operations in Rotorua, Taupō and Hamilton were described as elaborate. Photo / Supplied

The operation saw 4102 cannabis plants found inside buildings on View Rd and Riri St in Rotorua, Rakaunui Rd in Taupō and Te Rapa Rd and Bandon St in Hamilton. The plants would have given a total yield at maturity of 769lb, which would have a street value of $4.2m.

The syndicate was selling pounds of cannabis priced between $5000 and $6000 depending on the number of pounds they bought. One deal was worth $50,000 for 10lb.

Police soon discovered the syndicate was accumulating wealth and assets. They tapped cell phones and got warrants to install surveillance devices to monitor the group's movements.

These included fixed cameras installed at three commercial properties being used by the offenders.

The syndicate went about their growing, dealing and selling for several months while police watched to work out the key players and associates.

The operation was busted by police in August 19 last year.

Police described the setup as "elaborate". Each tent had dedicated lighting, ventilation and nutrient feeding systems. The equipment in the View Rd operation alone was valued at more than $30,000.

Cannabis grown hydroponically fetches a higher price, between $5000 and $6000 a pound. Photo / Supplied

Herbert's lawyer, Andy Hill, said his client was described as a hard worker and a "good dude at heart" and wasn't someone likely to appear before the court again.

"He wasn't a drug user himself so it's not a situation where he was addicted to the drug and was offending to feed his habit. It was because of poverty he experienced growing up and at that time a blanketed view of a way of making money quickly."

Hill said Herbert had been doing well while in custody by taking up opportunities offered by the prison, including what he admitted ironically was completing a horticulture programme.

Judge Hollister-Jones described the set up as of an "industrial scale based on an excellence model".

He said Herbert misjudged the seriousness of the offending because he didn't think it was "a major" compared with other illegal drugs.

He didn't give him any reductions for remorse because although he was sorry for the embarrassment and shame he brought on his family, he didn't think Herbert understood the social impact of his high-level cannabis offending.