A man who abused the customary permit system to illegally harvest more than 4600 crayfish for a widespread black market ring has been sent to prison.

John Nohotima, 60, made nearly $64,000 from his commercial-scale poaching operation, but the value of the crayfish he took would have been $300,000 if it had been harvested and sold legally.

He appeared for sentencing in the Wairoa District Court on Wednesday - the latest of 11 members of what the Crown called a “sprawling” black market operation to face the courts.

Nohotima harvested the crayfish at Māhia over 11 months between 2020 and 2021 using falsified customary permits and they were sold throughout Auckland, Kawerau, Tauranga, Gisborne, Wairoa, Māhia and Napier.

Crown counsel James Bridgman, prosecuting for the Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI), said the Wairoa resident obtained 72 customary permits after providing kaitiaki, or guardians appointed under the Kaimoana Customary Fishing Regulations, with details of fake hui or tangi where the crayfish would be consumed.

“Enquiries at the marae and other facilities named on these permits revealed that not only did the events not take place, but also the people involved were unaware their marae or facility was being used in this way,” an MPI summary of facts said.

It is illegal to sell seafood taken under a customary permit.

In sentencing Nohotima, Judge Warren Cathcart called his abuse of the permit system a “cultural violation”.

 “The regulations were a hard-won victory for all Māori, and it is important to maintain the integrity of the regime,” he said.

He sent Nohotima to prison for two years and two and a half months.

When interviewed by MPI, Nohotima told them he would like to “apologise to all my people”. On Wednesday, dressed in a cream hoodie, he spent almost all of his sentencing hearing with his back to the public gallery, where several people were watching.

The court was told Nohotima sold the crayfish for $15 to $25, depending on their size, and other members of the ring on-sold them for $30.

Nohotima sold 4664 rock lobsters, or crayfish, between September 2020 and August 2021.

He pleaded guilty to one representative charge of acting in contravention of the Fisheries Act to obtain a benefit.

Kawerau father and daughter Martin Te Iwingaro Ernest Paul, 49, and Whareake Tamaku Paul, 26, were the ringleaders of the operation. The details of the fake tangi or hui events were supplied to Nohotima by Martin Paul.

Martin Paul was sentenced to nine months of home detention by the Whakatāne District Court in March, and his daughter got eight months of home detention and 100 hours of community work.

They had each pleaded guilty to a charge of selling 1449 crayfish on the black market for a total of $43,140.

MPI began investigating the black market ring after noticing Whareake Paul was selling raffle tickets with a large seafood prize on Facebook.

A prison transport vehicle takes John Nohotima away from the Wairoa District Court. Photo / Ric Stevens

Nohotima communicated with members of the Paul family in the Bay of Plenty using two cellphones. Paul family members then travelled to Wairoa about 46 times to collect the crayfish.

In addition to sales to the Paul family, Nohotima sold crayfish to one of his own family members in Tauranga and directly to various other people in Wairoa, Māhia, Napier and Gisborne.

Nohotima told investigators he funneled the money through his daughter’s bank account so the Ministry for Social Development would not see large cash deposits in his own account, where he receives his benefit payments.

The charge Nohotima admitted carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison or a fine not exceeding $250,000.

MPI seized three motor vehicles, a six-metre fibreglass boat and outboard motor, two cellphones and 16 craypots that were identified as being used in the offending. Judge Cathcart ordered these be forfeited to the Crown.

Other members of the syndicate were sentenced in the Whakatāne District Court in March.

Kawerau man Dean Hemi Karepa, 29, was a “courier” and made 23 return trips to Wairoa to collect crayfish. He was ordered to do 180 hours of community work.

Te Teko woman Terri Aroha Wetini, 44, was ordered to do 100 hours of community work for buying about 571 crayfish from one of the Pauls. She on-sold 417 of these crayfish for $11,695 – the commercial value is $26,688.

Former Eastern Bay of Plenty woman Urukapuarangi Benita Waretini, 47, who now lives in Australia, was fined $3000. She bought about 200 crayfish for $6000, which had a commercial value of $12,800. She would on-sell these crayfish at $30 each to family and friends.

Kawerau woman Wowi Hineahoana Ioane, 42, was ordered to do 40 hours of community work for selling 60 crayfish at $30 each to friends, which she gained through her sister-in-law Waretini’s contact with the Pauls. The commercial value was $3840.

Whakatāne woman Ebony Mihi Paul, 25, pleaded guilty to a charge of possessing 53 poached crayfish, of which she sold 23. She was ordered to do 60 hours of community work and the vehicle she used to possess the crayfish was forfeit.

Kawerau woman Barbara Anne Ririnui, 53, was ordered to do 80 hours of community work for being in possession of 160 crayfish which were sold for about $4800 and had a commercial value of $10,240.

Hastings man Conrad Jensen Whakangaroa Rarere ,33, appeared in the Napier District Court in March and was fined $1500 for possessing 45 crayfish bought for $675 that were harvested illegally. They had a commercial price of about $2880.

Kawerau woman Stacey Maria Arohanui Savage, 51, was ordered to do 70 hours of community work for possession of 142 crayfish that were harvested illegally. She paid around $3000 for 100 crayfish and deposited $1260 to members of the syndicate for 42 crayfish. The commercial price estimate would be more than $9000.

Ric Stevens spent many years working for the former New Zealand Press Association news agency, including as a political reporter at Parliament, before holding senior positions at various daily newspapers. He joined NZME’s Open Justice team in 2022 and is based in Hawke’s Bay. His writing in the crime and justice sphere is informed by four years of front-line experience as a probation officer.