Man pleads to burglary charges
A man has pleaded guilty to charges related to the Red Cross service centre burglary in Nelson in July.
Aaron James Waharoa, 41, will be sentenced in Nelson District Court on October 2 and has been remanded in custody until sentencing.
He appeared in court yesterday charged with burglary and unlawfully taking a motor vehicle.
In the police summary of facts it was revealed that a forensic analysis of DNA samples obtained from gloves left in a stolen and abandoned Red Cross van identified Waharoa. Red Cross property was recovered from the van, along with other locations connected to Waharoa.
He was later arrested, having been traced to a Waimea flat where he was found crouching behind a curtain. The flat was less than a kilometre from where the abandoned van was found.
According to the summary of facts, the Red Cross centre in Tahunanui was ransacked in early July, with locked cabinets forced open and a large amount of property and equipment taken.
A 12-seater transit van, emergency equipment, hand-held radios, generators and tools that belonged to a contractor who was working at the centre were all taken from the premises.
Police carried out several search warrants in the Nelson area and had found a large amount of property, including two AED defibrillator machines, worth more than $2000 each.
The tools belonging to the local construction company were also found, worth in excess of $2000.
Judge Tony Zohrab indicated Waharoa was likely to face a prison sentence and sought a reparation report.
At the time of Waharoa’s arrest last week, police said they were continuing their search for the remaining stolen items and urged anyone who could assist to call Nelson Police.