Meth, motorbikes and the cost of coffee

A forensic accountant’s testimony in a methamphetamine trial featured chat about building motorcycles and how many coffees you can buy in Palmerston North for $125.

Ultimately, the jury was given a detailed look at the money flowing to and from Andrew John Sisson’s bank accounts.

Sisson and Scott James Allan are on trial in the Palmerston North District Court, facing charges related to their alleged involvement in a meth ring featuring multiple Hells Angels members.

Police officers involved in Operation Buckle targeted Palmerston North-based Hells Angels member and drug dealer Daron Ian Charles Gilmore, who has already pleaded guilty to various charges.

Sisson, who the Crown says is an Auckland-based Hells Angels president, is accused of being Gilmore’s supplier, while Allan is accused of cooking meth for Gilmore when the first Covid-19 lockdown made sourcing the product difficult.

Much of yesterday’s evidence focused on Sisson’s finances, which accountant Ashna Achari was tasked with going through.

The trial earlier heard drug dealers largely deal in cash due to the illicit nature of their economy.

Achari referenced the bank accounts of Sisson, his partner and related trusts to show what she said were shortfalls between his spending and income.

She used Statistics New Zealand’s household expenditure survey – data collected regularly to show the average spending habits of people in various parts of the country – to evaluate Sisson’s spending.

She said there was a $120,000 discrepancy between the Sissons’ bank account activity and the average spend of an Auckland couple with two children between 2013 and 2020.

They significantly underspent, when compared to the average, on food, clothing, rates, insurance and more, but overspent on travel, she said.

It was likely they were using cash to pay for things, especially given the Sissons’ low income, she said.

She also noticed large cash deposits and bank transfers going into accounts, with those sums withdrawn as cash a few days later.

Sisson also had a range of vehicles, including motorcycles, some of which were paid for in ways that could not be explained via bank records, she said.

She accepted when questioned by Sisson’s lawyer Mark Ryan the discrepancy between the Sissons’ spending and the average was about $125 per week.

‘‘That’s about 25 flat whites at Palmerston North rates,’’ Ryan said, which led to Judge Bruce Northwood stepping in.

‘‘The witness doesn’t know how much a cup of coffee costs in this town,’’ the judge said.

Ryan also mentioned there would be evidence Sisson’s partner got inheritance payments in 2012 – bank records that historic were not able to be obtained – while the Sissons’ two children had moved out years ago.

Furthermore, them living on a lifestyle block could help keep costs lower, while Sisson paid for one motorcycle via an insurance payment going directly to the dealer and another was built, Ryan said.

The trial continues.