Richard Sivell held an impromptu stand-up outside court for "citizen journalists" who streamed the appearance to social media. Photo / NZME
Richard Sivell held an impromptu stand-up outside court for "citizen journalists" who streamed the appearance to social media. Photo / NZME
A man charged with threatening to kill Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern was this morning restrained and handcuffed by police on the floor of a Tauranga courtroom, claiming he had been "kidnapped" and detained illegally.
Richard Trevor Sivell, 39, was arrested at his Te Puke home during a police raid last week, which was filmed and posted to social media.
Sivell was later charged with three offences - one of intentionally obstructing a police officer during arrest, one of failing to comply with police, and one of threatening to kill.
The details of the threatening to kill charge are suppressed and cannot be reported.
Dressed in a polo shirt, shorts, and jandals, Sivell appeared before Judge Thomas Ingram at the Tauranga District Court on Monday.
Sivell repeatedly refused to enter the dock when instructed by the Judge, choosing instead to stand in the public gallery.
Richard Sivell was arrested by police at his Te Puke home last week, charged with threatening to kill the Prime Minister. Photo / NZME
The accused referred to the "line" between the public gallery and the floor of the courtroom, telling Judge Ingram repeatedly that he would not walk "past the line".
Sivell told officers that he was arrested "under duress", and that he was "a man of peace".
He wouldn't appear in court, he said, unless he was provided "the data". The exact data Sivell referred to is not known, but is understood to relate to Covid-19 vaccinations.
Police officers and court security staff restrained the unmasked Sivell on the floor of the courtroom, in full view of the public gallery and watching media.
Clutching his Bible, he was dragged along the floor to the dock, yelling that he was being detained illegally and was being assaulted.
He was eventually moved to the dock, where he stood motionless, staring in one direction.
From that point, Sivell refused to acknowledge questions asked of him by the Judge. The hearing was adjourned, while Sivell was held in custody for the remainder of the morning, reappearing around 40 minutes later.
When he reappeared, Sivell again refused to acknowledge the Judge, standing motionless and silent in the dock for most of the hearing.
At one point, Sivell told the court he had been kidnapped by police, and did not consent to being held in custody.
Sivell was reminded of his rights and then remanded on bail by Judge Ingram, set to appear again in a fortnight. He did not enter a plea.
Sivell exited the court shortly after midday to a group of supporters and members of the public posing as journalists, who recorded an impromptu press conference with the accused on their mobile phones.
