Man, 41, admits abducting teen

A 41-year-old man found bathing in a hot pool with a schoolgirl has admitted he abducted her.

Craig Howard was set to go to trial but changed his plea on a charge of abduction to guilty when he appeared in Tauranga District Court.

Howard, a Waikato father of seven and a grandfather, went on the run for 12 days with Mt Maunganui teenager Julie Davies in July, last year.

Davies, now aged 15, was befriended by Howard a few months before while she was on holiday with her family at Waingaro Hot Springs where he worked.

The girl, who lived with her mother, stepfather and brother, went missing after school on July 5. She met up with Howard and the pair went on the run, sleeping in his car, mainly around the Bay of Plenty, Coromandel and Waikato. They also visited Auckland and Gisborne.

They were found bathing in a Rotorua hot pool at 11pm on July 15 after extensive publicity prompted a member of the public to tip police off.

Hundreds of mobile phone calls had been exchanged over three months between the teenager and Howard before she disappeared.

Howard had made 693 calls to the girl between April 1 and July 5 and in turn she rang Howard 963 times.

At a depositions hearing in October 2008, Ms Davis insisted Howard had not abducted her and insisted: "I abducted him".

Howard, now sporting shorter and blonder hair, pleaded guilty to a charge of abduction, that is, depriving a parent of the custody of young person aged under 16, when he appeared at a sentencing indication hearing on Friday.

He was remanded on bail pending sentencing on December 8, on the condition that he continue to have no contact with his victim and her family.