Latest news with #DunedinDistrictCourt
Otago Daily Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Otago Cabs accused of exploitation
Director of Otago Cabs Limited, Gurpreet Singh, denies exploiting foreign employees. Photo: Gregor Richardson A "luxury" Otago taxi company, and the man behind it, have been hauled before the court, accused of exploiting foreign workers. Sole director and shareholder of Otago Cabs Limited Gurpreet Singh, 37, appeared in the Dunedin District Court yesterday facing six charges of exploiting temporary workers between August 2023 and July 2024. The company faced six identical charges. Not-guilty pleas were entered to all 12. Court documents accused the man and company of being "responsible for a serious contravention of the Wages Protection Act" in respect of six employees. The Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment brought the charges, which carry maximum penalties of seven years' imprisonment and a fine of $100,000. After being incorporated in February 2022, Otago Cabs caused ructions in the industry the following year when it expanded from Queenstown to Dunedin, leading to allegations. While the nature of those issues cannot be reported, Singh, at the time, vehemently denied any wrongdoing. "If we are doing something wrong, why [haven't] we had any complaints from the police or our reviews? Why are customers still using us?" The alleged exploitation of the workers coincided with the company's expansion to Dunedin and, online, the firm also advertises its services in Alexandra and Wānaka. On its website, Otago Cabs boasts of its "luxury" services, offering personalised chauffeur options and corporate vehicles which "exude elegance and professionalism". It describes itself as a "leading player in the taxi industry", taking pride in "delivering safe, efficient and reliable transportation services". It also promotes its "friendly and supportive team that values teamwork and collaboration" and growth opportunities for its dedicated employees. Singh was remanded on bail and will appear before the court again in August.
Otago Daily Times
6 days ago
- Otago Daily Times
40 years of service enough for sergeant
From "good old-fashioned dust-ups" to prosecuting criminals in court, retiring sergeant Chris George has done it all. Sgt George, Dunedin born and bred, retired yesterday after 40 years of service. "It's time to go, [I'm] getting too old," he said. He began his career in Invercargill, working for seven years as a uniformed officer before transferring to Dunedin in the early 1990s to become a detective. While completing his detective training he also earned a law degree from the University of Otago and became a prosecuting officer at the Dunedin District Court. He said the biggest changes he had seen in the police during his time as an officer were that no-one smoked any more, there was a lot less alcohol consumed and there were a lot more women in the force — which was a good thing. When he was a young officer in the 1980s, Sgt George was told to drive a police truck through a gang pad's fence in Invercargill so firefighters could get in and control a blaze inside. "It was quite funny because no-one told me that you were supposed to pull up to the fence and gently nudge it over." He hit the fence at speed, knocking it over, and ended up well inside the property. "The problem was I couldn't reverse the truck out because there were police coming in and party-goers going out. "So I had to stay where I was behind the wheel and I got a punch in the head from a bikie who was unhappy about their party being closed down on the way past." Sgt George said it was an exciting "good old-fashioned dust-up". Back then there was a lot more direct leadership in the force, he said. "We got told in no uncertain terms by the senior cops if we'd made a mistake. But you learn from that." About 15 years ago, there were a lot of problems with inner-city violence and a lot of police were put back on the beat with a particular focus on the Octagon. Sgt George said he and his team came up with some simple but effective strategies to deal with the issue including intercepting unaccompanied juveniles and intoxicated people and encouraging them to go home. "Looking back on it that was probably the most rewarding time on the street." There had been a lot of ups and downs but he could not see himself doing any other job. He had struggled with the general direction of policing of late but still very much believed in it as an institution. "I think Dunedin is well served and long may it continue." Sgt George will be taking July off to follow the British and Irish Lions rugby tour to Australia and is in no rush to get into another job.
Otago Daily Times
6 days ago
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Night in custody result of an error
An unfortunate typo left a Dunedin protester in a police cell for the night before he was cleared of wrongdoing by a judge. Adam Currie, of climate advocacy group 350 Aotearoa, was held in custody overnight following his arrest for apparently breaching bail at a peaceful protest in central Dunedin, on Wednesday. In April, Mr Currie and 10 others were charged with wilful trespass after about 70 protesters camped on the West Coast's Denniston Plateau for five days in opposition to mining company Bathurst Resources seeking fast-track approval to expand its operation. He and five other protesters climbed into cable cars used to transport coal at Stockton Mine. Mr Currie said it had been a "real shock" to be arrested on Wednesday and it was the first time he had been held by police overnight. Climate activist Adam Currie (centre left) leaves the Dunedin District Court with supporters yesterday. Photo: Gerard O'Brien He said when he appeared in Dunedin District Court on Thursday morning, a clerk confirmed there had been a typo when his bail conditions were set in April. "It was meant to say 'you will not engage in unlawful protest', but then there was a typo by the registrar, and so it said 'you will not engage in lawful protest'." The judge found "clearly that bail condition was unlawful", Mr Currie said. "The Dunedin District Court judge confirmed that banning me from lawful protest was inconsistent with the Bill of Rights. "But the judge said he would not take further action against the registrar who set this condition due to judicial immunity." Mr Currie said he would much rather be talking about Bathurst Resources' fast-track application and the damage it posed to the climate, nature and human health than his arrest. Mr Currie (far left) during Wednesday's protest outside ANZ's Dunedin central branch. Photo: Peter McIntosh "It's about people versus Bathurst, not about us and the police." "But, yes, absolutely, the police should not be arresting me for lawful protest, and absolutely, I do not enjoy being in a jail overnight." Mr Currie said climate activists had been protesting for years and noticed an "increasing crackdown on public protest". He said those arrested in April planned to contest the c charges "due to it being public land". Following the protest on Wednesday, a police spokeswoman said a 25-year-old man was taken into custody for breaching bail and would appear in court on Thursday. There were no other issues at the protest, she said.
Otago Daily Times
28-05-2025
- Otago Daily Times
Man found slumped over in car with bottle of Scrumpy jailed
A Dunedin man has been jailed after he was found slumped over in his car with a bottle of Scrumpy between his legs. Joseph Brett Isaac Morris, 37, appeared in the Dunedin District Court yesterday after earlier pleading guilty to his sixth charge of drink-driving, three charges of suspended driving, resisting police and breaching a zero-alcohol licence. The court heard that on November 17, police received a call about a man slumped over in his car with a bottle of Scrumpy between his legs. The defendant was in the carpark with his engine running and had been there for about two hours drinking. After police arrived, Morris failed a passive breath test and was required to accompany officers to the station for further testing. The defendant punched the steering wheel multiple times saying "f... ". When police tried to handcuff him, he told them to "get f....." and slapped the officers' hands. An evidential breath test revealed Morris had a breath-alcohol level of 899mcg — more than three times the legal limit. He claimed he had not been driving. While on bail for that offending, Morris drove while his licence was suspended three times in a week. Judge Michael Turner said that showed "complete disregard or contempt for the law". He highlighted Morris had a history of drink-driving and suspended driving. Counsel Sarah Cochrane said her client had a place at a residential rehabilitation facility lined up for September. Judge Turner sentenced Morris to 12 months' imprisonment which would see him released in time to attend the programme. Morris was also disqualified from driving for 12 months and one day. , Court reporter
Otago Daily Times
28-05-2025
- Otago Daily Times
'Entirely unconvincing': Disgraced Dunedin teacher guilty on new sex charge
A former Dunedin teacher who groped his students has had another sex conviction added to his record. Ex-Otago Boys High School maths teacher David Bond, 73, was this morning found guilty of indecent assault following a day-long judge-alone trial before the Dunedin District Court this week. Judge David Robinson said Bond's claims of innocence were 'entirely unconvincing' while the victim of the molestation appeared 'sincere and honest'. The pair were part of a group who travelled to Mt Aspiring on a camp in 2008, the court heard. The victim said he was asleep in a bunk room when he heard Bond enter in the middle of the night and remove another pupil who had been sleeping on the floor. About an hour later, he awoke to the teacher placing a hand on his buttocks and the other down the front of his pyjamas. 'I was just checking on you, making sure you were ok,' he recalled Bond saying. The man said he was frozen at the time. 'I was so uncomfortable, I didn't know what to do. I didn't know how to react, so I did nothing,' he said. The judge said the victim's description of events appeared genuine. 'I was struck by aspects of the [police] video interview where he detailed emotions and reactions to the incident,' he said. Bond, who opted to give evidence at trial, said he had been on 38 camps and had never been in the dorms after lights-out. 'If someone was in the bunk room, standing over you, it would be a very creepy thing to happen and I would never have contemplated doing something like that,' he said. But the slew of propensity evidence of his previous crimes weighed heavily against him. The court heard of four incidents between 1975 and 2011 when Bond had committed indecent assaults on pupils, some of which Judge Robinson said were 'strikingly similar'. They included several episodes during which the ex-teacher had molested children in their bunks. Bond attempted to expose the differences between those sex attacks and the newest allegation but the judge highlighted the 'substantial departure' from the facts to which the defendant had previously pleaded guilty. The claims were "self-serving", he ruled. While the victim in the current case accepted he had made errors in some of his evidence, Judge Robinson said the appropriate concessions bolstered his credibility. '[He was] unshaken in his core allegation,' the judge said. Bond, on the other hand, had a 'surprisingly clear recollection of the activities' of 17 years ago. Allegations the teacher had indecently touched students during rock-climbing, exposed himself and instructed kids to defecate on a makeshift barbecue were not the subject of charges, though Judge Robinson dismissed the latter as 'far-fetched'. Bond has previously served two terms of home detention on similar sex charges before being sentenced to more than two years' imprisonment after a slew of ex-pupils came forward in 2022 and 2023. The defendant was granted parole in January 2024 and the board heard he had told a psychologist he was 'unsure regarding the exact number and names of all his victims'. Bond admitted his 'distorted thinking' and said 'at the time he believed he was not causing a great deal of harm'. He was convicted of the newest indecent assault and remanded on bail ahead of his sentencing next month.
