Figures released by the New Zealand Transport Agency in June 2018 showed that in excess of $60,000 was being spent each month to remove graffiti on Auckland motorways.
Sean Evan Anderson Oddy, known as “Blume,” caused more than $1 million in damage with graffiti in 2022.
Oddy pleaded guilty to multiple charges, including wilful damage and burglary, but sought to avoid prison.
Judge Kevin Glubb acknowledged Oddy’s rehabilitation efforts but cited the significant impact of his crimes.
The former owner of a seven-figure business said his investment - and, to an extent, his life in general - was starting to unravel when he began to lead a double life by night as one of Auckland’s most prolific graffiti taggers.
Sean Evan Anderson Oddy is not a name Aucklanders would instantly recognise, but anyone who regularly commuted on the city’s motorways in 2022 would likely recall his calling card: the word “Blume” spray-painted in large block letters atop buildings, bridges, electrical boxes and even, on occasion, shrubbery.
The now-32-year-old caused more than $1 million in damage in a six-month period.
But he had put that life behind him and was on the road to recovery, he told a court last week as he asked for a non-custodial sentence following guilty pleas to 17 counts of willful damage, nine counts of burglary and myriad other charges.
Auckland District Court Judge Kevin Glubb congratulated him on his efforts but said the damage, which he has no way of repaying, was too great.
Oddy, aka Blume, was sentenced to prison.
Sean Oddy was at one point one of Auckland's most prolific taggers, causing more than $1 million worth of damage. His "Blume" graffiti has resulted in a prison sentence.
“...Planning and premeditation was significant,” the judge said. “You were offending at will, it would seem.
“None of that does you any credit whatsoever, Mr Oddy.”
The bulk of charges Oddy pleaded guilty to involved tagging between March and August 2022.
“The tag name was ‘Blume’ and ‘Blumer’ and was often seen on roofs and the side of buildings that were clearly visible on the Auckland motorway network,” the agreed summary of facts for the charges asserts.
“Tagging is often about being noticed and claiming territory by tagging as many buildings and infrastructures as possible in highly visible places.”
During that period, police identified 11 locations where Auckland Council infrastructure was tagged - including benches, signs, tunnels and garages. NZ Transport Agency sought $50,000 in restitution for damage to its structures.
On April 22, he painted “Blumer” in black on construction fencing at Gulf Rise Metlife Care Retirement in Red Beach before climbing over a fence and onto the roof of Crazy Sales in Wairau. He spray painted “Blume.Earns” and “Blumer” in silver paint - large enough to be seen from the motorway.
One week later, he was arrested after a bystander spotted him climbing on the roof of Auckland Panel and Paint in Auckland Central.
“In explanation, the defendant stated that someone had paid him $100 to take items onto the roof,” court documents state.
Not even shrubbery was safe from prolfic Auckland tagger Sean Oddy, otherise known as "Blume". Photo / Supplied
That arrest didn’t deter him, nor did his subsequent arrest three days later when he was charged with burglary after being found inside the old Inland Revenue Building in Birkenhead. He had entered through an open window after climbing onto the roof.
After being spotted by police, he bolted, running through a kindergarten on Birkenhead Ave before being found in a fenced-off patio of a nearby apartment. He declined to comment but police noted he had numerous markers with him for tagging.
Marking electrical boxes at Auckland University of Technology and in Parnell on multiple occasions;
Climbing onto the roof of Black Salt Bar and Eatery in New Lynn on May 16 and painting “Blumer” in red large enough to be seen from the road;
Spray painting “Blume” in black on the wall outside Sensational Chicken on the AUT campus on May 19;
Painting “Blume” and “Blumer Earns GWS!!” in silver on the concrete barrier of State Highway 16 near the St Lukes off-ramp on May 19;
Climbing onto the roof of Kennards Self Storage in Wairau on May 25 and writing “Blumearns” in black on the side of the building, using a fire extinguisher to propel the paint;
Again using a fire extinguisher to write “Blume” in letters large enough to be seen from the motorway on the side of National Storage in Albany on an unknown date in June;
Painting “BLUME” twice on the roof of Albany Senior High School from June 3 to 5;
Spray painting “Blume” on the side of Mitre 10 in Albany;
Accessing the roof of Westfield Newmarket shopping centre on June 27 and using a fire extinguisher to mark the side of the building;
climbing to the roof of a Woolworths store in Pinehill on July 5 and painting “Blumerogta” on the building large enough to be seen from the motorway;
Hiding in the back storeroom of a Glenfield Pak’nSave on the same day before climbing to the roof and using a fire extinguisher to propel “Blume” onto the side of the building;
Painting “Blume” on the front garage door of Glengarry Wines in Auckland Central just after midnight on July 8;
Painting “Blumer” twice from the roof of Glenfield Mall on July 14; and
Painting “Blumer” on the concrete barrier of State Highway 1 near the Constellation Rd off-ramp around 12.25pm on July 17.
On the last occasion, Oddy was seen running across live lanes of the motorway after a witness pulled over.
Cop pushed into traffic
On July 27, police executed a search warrant at Oddy’s home, finding a cannabis plant, Hello Kitty-themed MDMA pills, cocaine, methamphetamine, ammunition, firearms parts and two ladders that had gone missing from a Glenfield grocery store on the same day it was tagged.
The tagging spree seemed to come to a violent end with his final arrest in Glenfield on August 8, 2022. An officer had pulled him over for a minor traffic breach around 7.30am but quickly realised Oddy was the subject of numerous arrest warrants.
Prolific tagger Sean Oddy, a former small business owner whose "Blume" graffiti caused more than $1 million in damages, appears in Auckland District Court for sentencing on April 7. Photo / Craig Kapitan
“No, what for?” Oddy said upon being told he was to be placed under arrest. “No, you are not.”
He opened his car door and exited aggressively, court documents state.
“Mr Oddy barged into [the officer] on the road and said, ‘You’re not arresting me,’ before he pushed [him] into the path of oncoming traffic,” court documents state.
Fearing for his safety, the officer deployed his Taser. But Oddy ran across the road and out of sight. A police dog tracked him down in the area about an hour later.
Police later analysed a blood sample that was taken after he was transported to hospital to be treated for dog bites. He was charged with driving with a controlled drug in his system after the blood tested positive for methamphetamine.
A search of his car turned up a cornucopia of illegal items, including nearly 50g of methamphetamine, 35g of cannabis, 8g of MDMA, a hunting knife, 10 spray paint cans, scales, cash and point bags frequently used for the sale of illegal drugs.
Of all his many charges, possession of methamphetamine for supply was the most serious, carrying a maximum possible punishment of life imprisonment. But he also faced up to 10 years’ imprisonment for each of the burglary charges.
Trauma and adrenaline
When all the damage was tallied, it added up to $1,127,000 - the vast majority of which was to replace side pannelling at the Westfield Shopping Centre.
“That’s a huge amount,” Judge Glubb said. “The impact on these victims has been significant.”
The "Blume" tag seen at Victoria Park Market in central Auckland. Photo / Supplied
The judge said the amount of drugs Oddy was in possession of was also “significant”, describing the defendant as a street-level dealer who seemed to be running his own operation. The impact of the drugs on the community “is significant in and of itself”, he added.
But defence lawyer Lester Cordwell noted that his client had now been sober just shy of two years after “considerable efforts” at self-betterment that included the completion of two rehab programmes.
“He has demonstrated his commitment to recovery,” Cordwell said.
Oddy had been a landscape gardener who owned a company called Bloominati Land Scaping.
But his life took a turn when he lost custody of his daughter after four years and his business was liquidated following the economic downturn caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the court was told.
The judge was told that Oddy suffered chidhood trauma involving bullying, which was said to have resulted in post-traumatic stress disorder and addiction-related issues. In a letter to the court, one of Oddy’s supporters noted that the trauma started to take over his life and “cause chaos”.
“That really did contribute to his offending and it impaired his rational choices,” Cordwell said, pointing out that his client has now been assessed to be a low risk of re-offending.
Oddy now works “long, arduous days” for a building contractor and would be able to keep his job if given a non-custodial sentence, the defence lawyer said, adding that it would also be the best long-term option for the defendant’s recovery.
Crown prosecutor Shanayla Barrett acknowledged there should be some sentence reductions for Oddy’s mental health and addiction issues, as well as his efforts at recovery. But the end sentence should involve prison, she countered.
Art had always been an important part of Oddy’s life, but when combined with an “adrenaline addiction” the results were anti-social, Judge Glubb said.
Auckland District Court Judge Kevin Glubb. Photo / Dean Purcell
He settled on a starting point of three years, with 10 months added for the other offences during the violent traffic stop, 20 months added for the numerous burglaries and eight months for the multiple counts of wilful damage. He then allowed discounts for Oddy’s guilty pleas, the personal factors, his remorse and efforts at rehabilitation and the 228 days he spent on electronically monitored bail.
The end result - three years and one month’s imprisonment - didn’t “get anywhere near the two-year mark” that would be necessary to consider converting a prison sentence to home detention, the judge noted.
But he wished the defendant the best of luck in continuing his rehabilitation while in prison.
“Please make the most of it,” he said. “When released, let’s not see you back before this court again.”
The judge did not order restitution, noting that there was no use if Oddy couldn’t pay it.
Craig Kapitan is an Auckland-based journalist covering courts and justice. He joined the Herald in 2021 and has reported on courts since 2002 in three newsrooms in the US and New Zealand.
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