Eviction is put on hold for gang man

A notorious Black Power member can be evicted from land he’s illegally occupied for four years, the Ma¯ ori Land Court has ruled.

However Kevin Moore, a member of the gang for more than 30 years, was immediately granted a reprieve from having to vacate the site at Waitara’s East Beach straight away so he could establish his links to the land.

Moore moved on to the site at the Rohutu Block in 2014 and has refused to move, claiming rights to live there as tangata whenua.

Moore has built a house, without consent from the New Plymouth District Council, and a second building is underway.

The site is Ma¯ ori freehold land managed by the Rohutu Block Trust and their legal advisers under the Te Ture Whenua Ma¯ ori Land Act 1993.

At a Ma¯ ori Land Court hearing in New Plymouth yesterday, Judge Layne Harvey granted the trust an injunction to evict Moore from the land as he didn’t have a lease.

Harvey however immediately granted Moore a reprieve to further an application to the Chief Judge to have his whakapapa (genealogy) recognised.

Moore’s lawyer, Gerald Sharrock, said Moore should be recognised as an owner of the land.

Lawyer Susan Hughes QC, appearing for the trust, said Moore’s lineage wouldn’t guarantee him the right to remain.

Trust chairwoman Bridget Taylor told the court it was up to the trustees’ discretion how they administered the land.

In December Moore was presented with a lease to remain provided he paid off all rent arrears and abided by its terms.

Taylor said the trustees had concerns regarding the number of people at the property, the position of the house, how many sections Moore was occupying and the associates visiting him.

Sharrock said Moore had reformed and the trustees had not fulfilled their obligations to make inquiries into his new lifestyle.

‘‘He has been a changed man, he has found his Christian faith and he has embraced his Christian faith.’’