The man at the centre of a tense police standoff threatened to blow up his house and neighbouring properties because he was upset over a family matter for which he blamed the Government for its “lack of support”.

Corey Innocente barricaded himself in his flat and threatened to kill people and the police. In his frustration, he fired a crossbow arrow into the street, Nelson District Court heard today.

Judge Jo Rielly said while sentencing the 36-year-old that he showed little insight into the level of concern that many people would have had about the situation unfolding in their community, or the level of harm he may have posed to others.

Corey Innocente was told during sentencing in the Nelson District Court that he showed little insight into the level of concern that many members of the public would have had about the situation unfolding in the community, or the level of harm he may have posed to others. Photo / Tracy Neal

Innocente’s actions prompted the evacuation of an early childhood centre and residents from about 50 nearby homes.

He pointed a crossbow at the police from an open window of the Nelson house in which he had barricaded himself, and threatened to kill anyone who approached.

He then fired an arrow into the street as a “warning shot”, hitting a parked vehicle and causing about $1000 worth of damage. He said the police would “have to kill him, as he would kill them if they approached”.

The hours-long incident on October 23 last year, which resulted in charges of threatening to kill members of the public and the police, and threatening grievous bodily harm, sparked a large response by the Armed Offenders Squad and police negotiation team.

Innocente was also charged with possession of an offensive weapon, namely a compound bow and crossbow, and wilful damage.

Barricaded in flat

Police said they received a report of a person making threats inside a private address on Hardy St East about 3.30pm that day.

The summary of facts said Innocente had been navigating a family matter that morning and was unhappy with the outcome.

At 3.35pm, he called 111 and spoke to police communications.

He told them that he had a firearm and explosives and threatened to blow up the address if his demands to speak to a police sergeant were not met.

Because of the potential blast radius and risk to the public of a firearm being discharged in a residential area, police evacuated occupants of all buildings within about 100m of where Innocente was.

This included the childhood centre, which went into a full lockdown and led to the evacuation of all children with help from armed police.

“In summary, your actions caused a major disruption to members of the Nelson community,” Judge Rielly said.

He continued to speak to the police communicator, the negotiation team and police staff who were within shouting distance of his address until the matter was resolved and he was arrested at 8.19pm.

The cordons were lifted later that night, and residents were able to return to their homes.

‘Sorry’ for what he did

Innocente told police after his arrest that he was sorry for what he did, but that he was frustrated over the “lack of support” with regard to the family matter.

Defence lawyer Samantha Allen said in court that her client was motivated to move forward and put the events behind him in a bid to turn his life around.

Police at one of the cordons set up on the corner of Nile St and Domett St in central Nelson during an armed standoff with with Corey Innocente, who has been sentenced in the Nelson District Court. Photo / Tracy Neal.

Judge Rielly suppressed the contents of a psychologist’s report, saying it contained “extremely concerning” references, but said it was clear that his behaviour was driven by his mental health, substance abuse and an “illogical perceived grievance” over matters with his family.

She said Innocente had relied heavily on background circumstances to try to explain or justify his behaviour, but she was concerned at his limited level of insight into its impact on others.

She said he knew at the time what he might have been willing and able to do, and how far he would go, but no one else knew the extent of the threat and whether it would play out.

‘Clear message’ needed to be sent

Judge Rielly said in setting the prison sentence, without leave to apply for an alternative, electronically monitored sentence, that Innocente had displayed an element of premeditation, had threatened to use multiple weapons and had threatened to harm many members of the community and the police with his repeated threats.

She said a “very clear message” needed to be sent to him and others that conduct such as his was simply unacceptable.

From an adjusted starting point of 20 months in prison, Innocente was given credit for his early guilty pleas and factors in his background, but no discount was awarded for his remorse.

He was sentenced to 14 months in prison and ordered to pay $975 in reparation for damage to the vehicle from the crossbow arrow he fired.

Innocente would be able to engage in the rehabilitation programmes he desired after his release, the judge said.

Tracy Neal is a Nelson-based Open Justice reporter at NZME. She was previously RNZ’s regional reporter in Nelson-Marlborough and has covered general news, including court and local government, for the Nelson Mail.