Sandford became the holder of a standard New Zealand firearms licence in 2019 when he was 16.<\/p>\n
His biological father, Allan Johnson, had come into his life only three or four years before the offending.<\/p>\n
The agreed facts said a Black Power associate messaged Johnson in July 2024, saying his life was in danger. Johnson offered to get guns to help him out.<\/p>\n
He told his son about the threats to the man\u2019s life and asked him for help.<\/p>\n
Johnson also made out that his own life was at risk if he didn\u2019t help the man.<\/p>\n
On July 14, 2024, Sandford picked up his father, and they drove to a Hunting & Fishing store in Botany, East Auckland.<\/p>\n
In the store, the father selected two firearms, a Rossi semi-automatic rifle and a Montenegro rifle-shotgun combo.<\/p>\n
He also chose 100 rounds of rifle ammunition and 30 shotgun rounds.<\/p>\n
At the counter, Sandford presented his licence and paid $1488.91 for the items with cash provided by Johnson.<\/p>\n
He then dropped Johnson back at his home with the guns and ammunition.<\/p>\n
That same day or the next, Johnson gave the guns and ammunition to his Black Power associate.<\/p>\n
Later that month, father and son went to Hunting & Fishing in Westgate and repeated the process.<\/p>\n
This time, Johnson selected a Mossberg Maverick and a Churchill pump-action, 12-gauge shotgun and 120 rounds of ammunition.<\/p>\n
Not long after he was dropped off at home with the firearms, Johnson told his son they needed more.<\/p>\n
Sandford picked him up again, with the recently bought guns in tow, and they went to a Hunting & Fishing store on the North Shore.<\/p>\n
There, Johnson chose a Ruger American rifle and 40 rounds of ammunition. <\/p>\n
The same licence and cash exchange followed before Johnson told his son to take him to the home of the intended receiver of the guns in Te Atatu Peninsula.<\/p>\n
Nike shoes and cash for guns<\/p>\n
While at the man\u2019s pad, Johnson ground off the guns\u2019 serial numbers with a Dremel power tool.<\/p>\n
In exchange for getting the firearms, the Black Power associate gave Sandford a pair of Nike shoes and about $1600.<\/p>\n
On the way home, the father and son divided the cash, leaving approximately $1000 for Sandford.<\/p>\n
David Jack Peter Sandford was given $1000 and a pair of Nike sneakers for the illegal gun sales. Photo \/ 123<\/p>\n
In July 2024, police executed a search of the Black Power associate\u2019s home for unrelated reasons, finding the Churchill pump-action shotgun and Ruger American rifle in the process.<\/p>\n
Despite the serial numbers being ground off, police were able to dismantle the shotgun and find a number inside the barrel.<\/p>\n
The rifle was also sent for forensic examination.<\/p>\n
Both guns were found to have been bought by Sandford.<\/p>\n
Police also found various kinds of ammunition, including 154 rounds for a shotgun.<\/p>\n
A month later, Sandford\u2019s firearms licence was suspended and then revoked.<\/p>\n
Allan Johnson will be sentenced at Waitakere District Court in July for his role in selling firearms illegally. <\/p>\n
A \u2018breach of trust\u2019<\/p>\n
Sandford\u2019s lawyer, Sharnita Pratap, argued in the Waitakere District Court that he should not be convicted on the two charges because of his youth and \u201climited role\u201d in the offending.<\/p>\n
He deserved to keep a clean record because his crimes were driven not by money but by a belief that he was being \u201cguided\u201d by his father, Pratap said.<\/p>\n
The police opposed discharging him without conviction.<\/p>\n
Judge Rebecca Guthrie said Sandford had committed a \u201cbreach of trust\u201d by misusing his firearms licence. <\/p>\n
She said there was a \u201cblatant disregard\u201d for the licensing system, which existed to ensure the safety of the public, \u201cto ensure that weapons such as these do not end up in the hands of criminals\u201d.<\/p>\n
Another factor making the offending more serious was the types of guns Sandford bought, which all had the potential for \u201creal harm\u201d.<\/p>\n
The judge admitted there was nothing to suggest the defendant knew the guns were to be used for gang activity.<\/p>\n
But she noted that he didn\u2019t check who was getting the guns or whether they were licensed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe immediate question would be why the person was not purchasing the firearms themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n
Misguided, obliged and betrayed<\/p>\n
The judge accepted that Sandford was involved in the criminal activity out of a misguided sense of loyalty to his father.<\/p>\n
He felt obliged to help his father, and did so without really thinking things through, she observed.<\/p>\n
She commended Sandford for seeking counselling to deal with the \u201creal impacts\u201d of what he \u201cproperly\u201d saw as his father\u2019s betrayal.<\/p>\n