Man admits blackmail to fund P habit

File photo / APN

A Rotorua man blackmailed an elderly man out of $8000 by threatening to reveal alleged sexual indecencies in a public toilet, a court was told.

Campbell Christianson-Knight, 38, was remanded in custody for sentencing on November 24 after pleading guilty in Rotorua District on Thursday to two counts of demanding money with menaces, the Rotorua Daily Post reported.

Christianson-Knight approached his 76-year-old victim in a public toilet telling him he was aware police were investigating him for sex offending.

He told the man he could make it "go away without any fuss" if he paid him $4000. In the end he got $8000 from the man after finding out where he lived and phoning him to demand more.

He was caught after the distressed victim told his wife about the matter and went to police.

When apprehended by police, Christianson-Knight claimed he and the man were involved in a consensual sexual encounter and he had decided to blackmail the man.

He said he did it because he needed money to pay off a methamphetamine debt.

- NZPA