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For six years, David Saxton and son Morgan flew their helicopters into remote South Westland to plunder a treasure they claimed was theirs to take.
They went in with heavy specialised diamond-tipped cutting saws driven by petrol motors to slice off large chunks of greenstone (pounamu), before flying out with hauls of up to about 600kg at a time, and planting it at family properties. They even made videos of it.
Yesterday Judge Gary MacAskill in the Christchurch District Court concluded the pair had no right to take tonnes of the stone, belonging to South Island iwi Ngai Tahu, and they were convicted of theft.
Ngai Tahu praised the verdict and warned others operating in a lucrative black market in greenstone they may be next to be prosecuted. "Hopefully people will understand there is a property right ... and if you wish to access pounamu, you come through Ngai Tahu, you don't just help yourself," said Ngai Tahu kaiwhakahaere (chairman) Mark Solomon.
David Anthony Saxton, 60, and his son, Morgan David Saxton, 28, of Haast, were accused of stealing up to $800,000 worth of greenstone. The pair were caught in a large police operation into greenstone theft, nicknamed Operation Roar, that began in 2004 when Ngai Tahu complained.
The Saxtons had argued they had been passed on a customary family right to the greenstone.
But yesterday, four months after the pair were tried in court, Judge MacAskill rejected that claim and ruled that both Saxtons were guilty of stealing the stone between October 1997 and September 2003. Two other theft charges against David Saxton and one charge against Morgan Saxton were dismissed.
The Crown prosecutor, Robin Bates, Ngai Tahu, and police called the outcome pleasing. The Saxtons would not comment yesterday, and their lawyers said they would have to analyse the judge's written decision before commenting.
Mr Solomon said the guilty verdicts made it clear anyone stealing the tribe's greenstone would face consequences. "Of course we are very pleased that we have won ... and anyone that takes pounamu without our permission, will be prosecuted for theft."
He had hoped the Saxtons would be found guilty on all charges but "we'll accept what has been given. "We believe there has been an active black market [in greenstone] going on, and still is".
How much the Saxtons stole is still to be determined but Ngai Tahu believes the pair took up to 14 tonnes.
The pair will be sentenced in December.
