If found, he will be arrested when he returns to New Zealand and sentenced on April 15.
Details about the case can now be revealed after the Rotorua Daily Post obtained court documents.
Josey had previously pleaded not guilty to nine counts of sexual offending relating to two different teenage girls on separate occasions.
He was convicted of four charges relating to one girl - including rape, two counts of indecent assault and committing an indecent act.
He was further convicted of five charges relating to another teenager - including four counts of rape and one charge of committing sexual violation by unlawful sexual connection.
The trial lasted three days and the jury returned guilty verdicts on all nine counts on the third day.
What Bay of Plenty man Lee Josey did
Josey had been drinking at a property where a teen was present, a summary of facts said.
He asked the teen to go for a walk because he said he needed to talk to her. Josey, who was married, led her about 80m from the property.
He put his arms around her in a hug and started to kiss her but she told him to stop. She said she felt uncomfortable.
He continued to kiss her and she struggled but he was holding her arms down by her side in the hug position preventing her from getting her arms free, the summary said.
He then raped her. The summary said she felt frozen and shocked and started to cry, telling him to stop. She tried to push him off her. She managed to get free and went back to the property.
A few months later, he saw the teen again and indecently assaulted her by placing his arms around her in a hug. He rubbed her arm and kissed her hand. She tried to stop him many times. She punched him and swore at him and he eventually stopped because she was yelling, the summary said.
On another occasion, the teen saw Josey doing an indecent act. When he saw her, he said: “It’s a good thing you are here”.
The five charges relating to the second complainant involved Josey sexually violating the girl once and raping her four times.
During this time, he offered her drugs and alcohol, which she refused. She accepted alcohol once and only drank two cans, the summary said.
The teen disclosed to her friend’s mother what happened and a complaint was made with police. She underwent a forensic medical examination and swabs were taken for DNA purposes.
ESR analysis later confirmed Josey’s DNA was present on the swabs.
Josey told police he did not have any sexual contact with the teen.
Why the trial went ahead without Lee Josey
Judge Greg Hollister-Jones ruled in the days leading up to the trial it could go ahead without Josey. On the day the trial started, he ruled the jury could be told Josey had fled to Australia.
His ruling said Josey was remanded on bail on October 16 last year but on October 31 he applied for, and was granted, a passport. He left New Zealand for Australia on November 14.
Crown prosecutor Anna McConachy submitted the fact he absconded and did not return were circumstantial facts that proved his guilt and the jury should know.
She said she intended to use in her evidence that it was “telling” Josey was not present for his trial, the ruling said.
His lawyer, Annabel Cresswell, said by telling the jury, it would stop the jury speculating where Josey was but she did not accept it had direct relevance to his guilt.
Judge Hollister-Jones said Josey’s actions were inconsistent with the conduct of an innocent person.
“Even if I direct the jury not to speculate about where the defendant is, the circumstances of a trial proceeding without the defendant is so unusual that it is likely that the jury would reach a conclusion that he is overseas, such as in Australia.”
Judge Hollister-Jones said he would direct the jury to consider the possibilities of an explanation other than guilty, for example: “panic”.
He said he would also reiterate the primary focus of the jury was to decide if the Crown had proved its case.
What the police say
A police spokesperson said in response to Rotorua Daily Post questions that Australian authorities had been alerted.
If caught in Australia, Josey would need to surrender his passport and would be extradited to New Zealand where he would be arrested on the warrant, the spokesperson said.
Josey is due to be sentenced on the nine charges in the Rotorua District Court on April 15.
Kelly Makiha is a senior journalist who has reported for the Rotorua Daily Post for more than 25 years, covering mainly police, court, human interest and social issues.
