The Weekend Herald can now reveal details of the evidence police gathered against the 44-year-old.
Detectives from the Organised and Financial Crime Agency say Read organised 77 packages of pseudoephedrine to be smuggled into New Zealand between June 2009 and last September.
Family and friends in Auckland, Waihi, Tauranga and Hamilton acted as "catchers" for the drug packages from Thailand.
Some of them believed the parcels were herbal products.
Read is the director of NZ Party Pills Ltd and internet Sales Ltd, a company which specialised in herbal supplements and legal highs.
Read allegedly smuggled more than 32kg of pseudoephedrine over that time.
Police estimate between 16kg and 24kg of P could be manufactured from the amount.
At $700 a gram, it would have been worth up to $17 million.
When the armed offenders squad swooped on Read's home in Tauranga last September, he was allegedly found in the kitchen with a package of 1.8kg of pseudoephedrine.
The arrest was made soon after the precursor drug was upgraded from class C to class B, lifting the maximum prison sentence from eight to 14 years.
But Read has also been charged with conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine and possession of the Class-A drug for supply, a charge which carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
Police say that shortly before his arrest, he was seen in a garden area near the intersection of 15th Ave and Cameron Rd in Tauranga.
They later found a plastic container buried in the undergrowth. It held seven bags of methamphetamine each weighing an ounce (28.5g). An ounce is sold at wholesale level for $10,000 to $15,000.
Bugged phone conversations and text messages revealed a close relationship between Read and his 24-year-old daughter, Kahsharn.
She became embroiled in a dispute with another young woman in Tauranga and turned to her father for help.
Read allegedly enlisted a third woman to intimidate her. She placed a hose through an open window and caused nearly $10,000 of damage.
She also visited the woman several times and warned her to stay away from Kahsharn Read - who has been jointly charged with her father with burglary and importing pseudoephedrine.
A dispute between Read and another man also emerged from the intercepted phone conversations.
While waiting to pick up a woman from an address, Read became involved in an altercation with her partner and allegedly fired a pistol. He has been charged with discharging a firearm with reckless disregard.
Read is in custody, while his daughter and another woman Jade Brady, 29, were released on strict bail conditions.
Brady is charged with possession of methamphetamine, cannabis and benzylpiperazine (BZP) for supply, a joint charge with Read of the supply of methamphetamine, and possession of a stun gun.
Three others - Veronica Mirindi, 44, Sivakumar Thuraichamy, 45, and Brian Dereck Read, 43 - are charged with importing pseudoephedrine and participating in an organised crime group.
All six are to be committed for trial next week.
Gary John Read
* 16 charges
* Accused of importing 32.5kg of pseudoephedrine ...
* ... enough to cook 16kg to 24kg of methamphetamine.
