“Every year I have been into jail. What a waste. That’s not the father I want to be for my kids. It’s now or never.”
He said he now wanted to be a role model and show “the young fullas this ain’t the life” before apologising to his co-offender, Codie Phillips, who was in the dock with him, and who he dragged into the offending.
“It’s all my fault ... I feel sorry for my bro over here. I’m sorry my brother.”
But, while he wanted to change, he wouldn’t be turning his back on “the club”.
‘February 1, 2023′
Milne, and associate, Codie Phillips, earlier pleaded guilty to charges of kidnapping and injuring with intent to injure after accosting a “friend” in his garage in February last year and trying to get him to import methamphetamine on the dark web.
The victim tried to run away but fell over in his driveway. Phillips and a third associate dragged him back to the garage where he saw Milne, who he recognised as being in the Black Power.
Milne got Phillips, 27, to kick him in the head before insisting that he arrange for the importation of meth and firearms, while being punched in the head and threatened with an object that he believed to be a handgun.
They went into his house and got him on his laptop but he had trouble downloading a VPN and didn’t have a credit card.
The victim was forced to drive them to another property, the First Credit Union, back home to get his laptop and then to a motel where he again, unsuccessfully tried to get on the dark web.
Frustrated at his lack of progress, Milne punched the victim in the face. The victim was then left in the room with a female associate and warned not to leave or call the police, but he did just that and escaped.
‘Child labour from a very young age’
Hadaway argued for a 20% discount for her client’s pleas despite entering them six months before trial.
She also pushed for a further discount due to Milne’s upbringing with relatives which his Section 27 report writer described as the worst she had written, describing it as “child labour”, being forced to do chores from a “very young age”, enduring violence, and not having any toys.
At 13 he went to live with an uncle who exposed him to drugs and gangs and Hadaway said it wasn’t surprising he ended up in the Black Power as it gave him a “sense of belonging and trust that he needed”.
Phillips’ counsel Gerard Walsh said his client changed his plea after seeing a video that was going to be used at trial, of which he told him, “I’m pretty stuffed aren’t I?”
Judge Tahana asked Walsh about Phillips’ comments in a pre-sentence report which appeared to minimise his offending and victim blame, but Walsh said he’d pleaded guilty to the summary of facts.
“We have to accept that’s the reality.”
Crown solicitor James Lewis said there didn’t appear to be any remorse from Milne and argued Phillips shouldn’t get any discount for his upbringing as his family had always been supportive and pro-social.
‘The black sheep of the whānau’
Judge Tahana accepted their pleas avoided the victim having to give evidence at trial and agreed to give 20%.
She described Phillips as the “black sheep” of his whānau but encouraged him to engage with them.
“There’s a lot of strength in that, Mr Phillips.”
As for Milne, he had a lengthy criminal history but also had an abysmal upbringing, and despite the various discounts both were jailed for two years.
She declined to grant leave to apply for home detention given the serious nature of the offending.
Belinda Feek is an Open Justice reporter based in Waikato. She has worked at NZME for nine years and has been a journalist for 20.
