From men who seemed the best, the worst of crimes

By BRIDGET CARTER

People would see them as good, honest men, a judge told the former businessmen facing him in the High Court at Auckland yesterday.

They lived in exclusive parts of Auckland and their children went to private schools.

But when they lost money they resorted to trafficking pure methamphetamine, or P - among the most destructive and addictive drugs in the country.

Using their status as businessmen as a disguise, they smuggled up to $14 million of methamphetamine in and out of the country for an international drug syndicate.

One of the pair, a King's School board member, hid some of the drugs behind a couch in his Remuera home. He later justified his illegal activities to his probation officer, saying he was "like the truck driver taking the alcohol from a brewery to a pub".

They calculated the risks against the gains, approaching the task like any other business venture, and decided that the system was lax and they would not get caught.

But they were caught "red handed", Rotorua Crown Solicitor John McDonald said in the court yesterday, and Theodoor Graaf, aged 52, and David Cyrus Shaida, 47, were sentenced to 14 years' prison and 11 1/2 years' respectively.

"If a member of the community looked at either of you they would have thought you were good men, but you good men have done a terrible thing," Justice Hugh Williams told the pair.

"You are facing punishment for some of the most serious offending known to New Zealand."

Justice Williams said the pair's planned, premeditated and sophisticated drug smuggling was motivated by greed. They would have been given a greater sentence if not for their early admission of guilt.

They were cavalier, almost arrogant about their activities, he said, making little effort to hide the drugs as they came into the country.

In a case for which there were few close comparisons because of the recent reclassification of methamphetamine as a class-A drug, Justice Williams gave Graaf a minimum non-parole period of just over eight years and set Shaida's minimum term at just under six years.

The sentence was handed down after the court heard from defence lawyers about the lives and backgrounds of Graaf and Shaida, two men who enjoyed status in society.

Brought up in a Dutch immigrant family, Graaf had private schooling and a university education before working as a business consultant. He speaks four languages.

Then the Grafton father of five - who taught his children about the dangers of drugs - lost everything when he was declared bankrupt eight years ago.

His wife later tried to get help for his compulsive desire to make money, before the couple separated. His loss of financial security sparked mood swings and depression.

Graaf admitted importing, supplying and possessing for supply up to 11kg of
methamphetamine worth between $6.6 million and $11 million.

Police found 6kg of the drug at his home, with $164,000 and expensive jewellery, during a search in April.

He also confessed to importing another 5kg during four drug-running trips, which earned him payments totalling about $200,000.

Like Shaida, he carried drugs to and from Asia.

Shaida came to New Zealand from Britain in 1979, then carried out consultancy work for people in the Middle East before that stopped after the terror attacks of September 2001.

Desperate for money, he began smuggling drugs while working as an export manager.

He had admitted possessing for supply and importing methamphetamine from Asia after he was caught with almost 2kg of the drug at the airport and later 900g at his home.

Dealing directly with the drug "mastermind" in Malaysia, according to the police, Shaida, a King's School governor, received more than $22,000 for his trips.

Outside the court, Detective Inspector Stu Allsopp-Smith said the case showed that no one was above the law and that methamphetamine affected all levels of society.

"Police and Customs remain determined to deal with those people and target those involved in the methamphetamine trade."