A Dunedin woman who hollowed out a chapstick tube and stuffed it full of methamphetamine was arrested after she tried to smuggle it into the Otago Corrections Facility.

On May 11, Kelli-Anna Tristram Peck, 45, was visiting an associate in jail when she was captured on CCTV committing a crime under the noses of Corrections staff, the Dunedin District Court heard this week.

While in the visiting area, the woman handed a hollowed-out chapstick tube containing 0.64g of methamphetamine to the inmate.

Both the defendant and the inmate were detained and the package was retrieved.

Judge David Robinson called the offending “a little unusual”, drawing attention to the seriousness of the offence.

“It’s not often you see on a charging document, ‘maximum penalty — life imprisonment’,” he said.

The fact she had tried to sneak a controlled substance into prison was a significant aggravating factor, the court heard.

 “It is hoped that people can enjoy a period of abstinence from substances during their rehabilitation,” Judge Robinson said.

Peck was highly valued in her role as a care worker, with the court receiving a positive reference from an associate.

“I’m satisfied that given the commitment I see expressed to avoid these kind of temptations in the future — the correspondence I read about your nature and the assistance you provide others –— a [community based sentence] is appropriate,” the judge said.

Peck was convicted of possessing methamphetamine and sentenced to four months’ community detention and 100 hours’ community work.