Tyson Sykes. Photo / File
A champion Rotorua boxer will get six weeks of relative freedom before being sentenced alongside a former Rotorua police officer for defeating the course of justice.
It can now be revealed that Tyson Jack Sykes was sentenced earlier this year to home detention after being convicted for dealing cannabis, unlawful possession of a firearm and unlawful possession of ammunition.
Police searched his house in March 2018, found cannabis and firearms and seized his phone. Facebook messages found on the phone formed the basis of the evidence presented this year in a Rotorua District Court trial relating to Sykes and Rotorua police officer Melissa-Mae Ruru ripping off the community work scheme.
Sykes, 32, appeared in court yesterday when his lawyer successfully got his bail conditions varied. It means he can be remanded on bail without strict conditions between when his home detention sentence finishes in December and he is sentenced in January alongside Ruru.
Sykes and Ruru were found guilty in August of one count of attempting to defeat the course of justice in 2017.
The jury cleared them of a charge relating to Ruru, a detective constable who was seen as a poster girl for New Zealand Police, taking on the role of Sykes' "sponsor" to ensure he did his community work ordered by the court for a charge of disqualified driving.
The jury heard evidence via hundreds of Facebook messages between the two that showed she signed off community work hours he didn't complete.
The Crown presented evidence she did this out of a misguided loyalty to him because she was also his boxing manager and was helping him to get to the Rio Olympics.
Ruru, who was also an Olympic hopeful in volleyball, was also found guilty of two separate forgery charges after the jury found she signed Sykes' signature on community work forms and an Olympic form.
The charges have been before the court since 2018 but the pair were granted name suppression until the conclusion of the trial, which was lifted upon their guilty verdicts.
Sykes' separate drugs and firearms charges could not be reported earlier as it could have prejudiced his trial.
Judge Phillip Cooper has just released the sentencing notes relating to those charges to the Rotorua Daily Post.
The notes said Sykes pleaded guilty to the charge of possession of cannabis for sale and was found guilty at a judge-alone trial of the firearms charges.
Sykes was charged after his Steeles Lane home was searched by police on March 15, 2018 and police found 100g of cannabis plant in a plastic bin in the hot-water cupboard, 2g of cannabis head in the kitchen, 2.3kg of cannabis head and stalks in the basement and one mature cannabis plant in the backyard.
Analysis of text data on his phone found on two occasions he was in possession of cannabis tinnies for the purpose of sale and on a third occasion, an unknown person contacted him asking him the price for an ounce of cannabis.
Police also found a .303 calibre bolt action rifle in his bedroom wardrobe and 4 bullets in different areas of the house. Sykes is not a firearms licence holder.
The sentencing notes said Sykes had 28 previous convictions, two for violence, some for dishonesty, and some for driving but the bulk were for non-compliance with sentences of the court. There were none for drugs and firearms offences.
Judge Snell gave Sykes credit for a favourable report written by Billy Macfarlane, who leads a Puwhakamua tikanga programme in Rotorua to help offenders change their ways.
"In my view, the report from Mr Macfarlane is wholly positive as to your progress and as to your attitude."
He was sentenced to 10 months' home detention, which ends on December 4.
Sykes and Ruru were to be sentenced on their charges on October 23 but Judge Cooper adjourned sentencing until January 19 next year as he wanted Sykes' home detention sentence to be completed before sentencing.
Yesterday Sykes' lawyer, Tim Braithwaite, asked Judge Cooper if his client could be remanded on bail, rather than electronic bail, until his January sentence.
Braithwaite said his client had spent a long time either in custody, on electronic bail and on home detention while the matters went through the court and he would like a "break" from them.
Crown prosecutor Duncan McWilliam asked that a curfew be imposed from 9pm until 7am but Braithwaite said that effectively meant little would change for Sykes and he would still be stuck at home.
"He would be tied to that address over Christmas when he would like to take his family away."
Judge Cooper yesterday said home detention was an option for Sykes when he was sentenced in January and allowed Braithwaite's request.
He said he didn't see a need to impose a curfew as he wasn't a flight risk and only imposed conditions that he lived at a certain address and not consume illegal drugs.
Those bail conditions would apply from December 4 when his home detention sentence ended.