Mob duo ran a tight operation
Two senior members of the Porirua Mongrel Mob dealt millions of dollars worth of methamphetamine from Housing New Zealand flats, police say.
Steven Blance, 48, ran a sophisticated operation from his fortified flat, sent up a drone to watch over the area, put surveillance cameras in trees, and had an electronic beam sensor on a carpad to alert him to visitors to his flat in Linden, a northern suburb of Wellington.
At the High Court in Wellington yesterday, Blance pleaded guilty to charges of supplying methamphetamine, having the drug for supply, conspiring to supply, possession of weapons and ammunition, and receiving a stolen Harley-Davidson motorcycle.
The man that police described as Blance’s right-hand man – William Allan Berkland, 45 – pleaded guilty to charges of supplying methamphetamine, having the drug for supply, conspiring to supply it, and also dealing the class B drug NBOMe, growing cannabis for supply, having diazepam for supply, as well as having weapons and ammunition.
Both men are due to be sentenced in June, Justice David Collins said. The Crown presented a summary police prepared about the investigation.
Police started an operation centred on Blance and Berkland in late 2016, collecting text messages. From February 2017, a wider operation spread that included bugging Blance’s flat and having undercover officers pose as drug buyers.
It was estimated the pair supplied about 1 kilogram of methamphetamine a week, bought in bulk from Auckland suppliers.
Between October 2016 and April 2017, at least 15kg of methamphetamine was bought for $5.25m. That amount netted at least $1.55m profit, or more if they were selling in smaller than ‘‘ounce’’ lots. An ounce is about 28 grams.
In one conversation that police recorded, Blance said he had been buying methamphetamine for $450,000 a kilo but the price dropped to $350,000 a kilo.
So the ‘‘ounces’’ he had sold for $14,000 then dropped to $12,000, and flooded the market, he was overheard saying.
In a raid at the end of the police operation, $511,000 in cash was found, along with more than 2kg of methamphetamine.
A police summary said Blance was in charge while the MercedesBenz-driving Berkland counted and concealed large amounts of cash. He also ran the network in Blance’s absence.
Blance and Berkland both lived in Housing New Zealand flats a short walk from each other.
A network of associates in the wider Linden area would keep an eye out for police, and Blance regularly flew a drone ‘‘at all hours’’ over the Linden area, police said.
Hundreds of customers visited day and night to buy methamphetamine. Between February 20 and April 11, 2017, police recorded 700 visitors to Blance’s flat.
Some were repeat customers visiting daily or even more than once a day. Most were suppliers themselves, buying drugs to onsell.
When police swooped at the end of the operation they found several stashes of money, and firearms, pieces of firearms, ammunition, and stun guns at various locations including a house in Tawa that police said Blance owned.
They also found a HarleyDavidson that was stolen.