According to the summary of facts, Griffin, Hutchinson and Mulitalo arrived at the victims' house, asking to speak to the son inside.
Hutchinson took out a revolver-style pistol and passed it to Mulitalo, before asking again to be allowed to come into the house.
Hutchinson and Mulitalo demanded the son give them $10,000, saying they wouldn't leave until they got the money.
"They told the complainant that they were from the Head Hunters gang and Hutchinson said he was the boss and the others worked for him," the summary stated.
The victim's mother came home and the pair continued to demand $10,000.
"Fearing for her life the complainant and her son drove Hutchinson and Mulitalo to the bank. Once at the bank she went in and withdrew $10,000 from her bank account."
Once she was back in the vehicle and handed the money to Hutchinson, he shook their hands and said "we are friends now".
"The complainants were both left shaken and fearful for their lives," the summary said.
The three men returned to the address on November 4 but the woman and her son fled and called the police.
Hutchinson and Mulitalo's lawyer Ron Mansfield said an associate of the pair's, a member of the Head Hunters, had purchased a motorcycle from one of the victims.
There had been an accident involving the motorcycle and the associate thought a mechanical failure was to blame, he said.
"It appeared to be a misguided attempt by the defendants to extract compensation from the complainant for loss suffered by their associate," he said.
Griffin's lawyer, Bill Lawson, said his client had led a responsible life before moving to Auckland, where he experimented in drugs and befriended Mulitalo and Hutchinson.
Griffin was his high school dux and was a successful accountant for several years before he moved to Auckland, Mr Lawson said.
"It was his drug-hazed lifestyle that resulted in bad decision making, the offending was an example of that."
The men will repay the victims the $10,000 taken.
