Drug-dealer uncle labelled 'disgrace'

File Photo / NZ Herald

A man who claimed he only got involved in dealing cannabis so he could buy Christmas presents for his nieces and nephews has been labelled a "disgraceful" role model by a Tauranga judge.

Dennis Bryce Borrell, 35, had earlier pleaded guilty to possession of cannabis for supply and selling and appeared before Judge Louis Bidois in Tauranga District Court yesterday for sentencing.

Judge Bidois told Borrell there were enough problems in the community without adults selling drugs. "This is disgraceful adult role-modelling. Anyone selling drugs should be going to jail," the judge said.

When police searched a Sommerset Grove address on December 16, they found Borrell in the laundry, rolling cannabis into tinfoil portions. Police found a total of 43g of cannabis, some made into tinfoil packages ready to sell.

Borrell told police he had only sold two tinnies.

His lawyer John Holmes told the court Borrell only got involved in dealing cannabis in the hope of making $200 to buy Christmas presents for his nieces and nephews.

He successfully argued for a sentence of community work, community detention and supervision saying this offending was at the lower end of scale. Judge Bidois imposed a sentence of three months' community detention, 400 hours' community work and six months' supervision.