Northland's Ngāwhā Prison, where remand inmate Freeman Fraser's spate of destructive behaviour earlier this year ruined cells and caused shutdowns of sprinkler systems. Photo / Tania Whyte
Northland's Ngāwhā Prison, where remand inmate Freeman Fraser's spate of destructive behaviour earlier this year ruined cells and caused shutdowns of sprinkler systems. Photo / Tania Whyte
A remand prisoner has admitted causing thousands of dollars worth of damage to cell blocks and incapacitating sprinkler systems, which put other inmates and staff at risk.
Freeman Price Fraser's spate of destruction at Northland Regional Correctional Facility earlier this year began with him announcing he was "sick of being dicked around".
It ended with an incident in which he used his own blood to write "FTP" on one of his cell walls and lit a fire, which resulted in an entire block's sprinkler system being shut down for the third time.
According to an agreed summary of facts, that act "put both inmates and staff at a heightened risk and undue danger, should another fire have occurred while the sprinklers were deactivated".
Fraser, 26, pleaded guilty to arson and five counts of intentional damage when he appeared in Whangārei District Court via video link from the Auckland Prison at Paremoremo on Wednesday.
The charges related to his actions at Northland Correctional Facility or Ngāwhā Prison as it is also known, while he was on remand in January and February this year.
He was first remanded there on numerous active charges on December 27, last year.
About 11.30am on January 15, he smashed the front window of his cell in the prison's Kahu Pod, afterwards telling staff he was "sick of being dicked around".
Freeman Fraser's spate of destruction at Northland's Ngawha Prison caused more than $4000 damage and resulted in entire cell blocks' sprinkler systems being shut down three times. Photo / 123RF
He remained locked in that cell until about 3.15pm when it was discovered he had smashed all the remaining windows, ripped a metal shelf off a wall, shattered the sink causing it to fall off the wall, and smashed the toilet bowl.
Repair costs amounted to more than $2000.
He was moved to Cell 10 of the Placement Unit, where just after midday on January 18 he interfered with two sprinkler heads causing them to activate and resulting in the water supply to the entire cell block needing to be cut off and reset.
The repair costs were $542.
Fraser's cell was uninhabitable so he was moved to cell 7 of the Placement Unit.
But at about 6.30pm that day he did the same thing to the sprinklers in that cell, causing the need for a full reset of the system, this time at a cost of just over $600.
According to the summary of facts, the prison unit was left with no sprinkler system for "a substantial amount of time".
On February 13, Fraser was housed in cell 16 of the prison's Kahu South block when at about 4pm he smashed three windows in the cell, and shattered the toilet, sink, and a glass shower door.
Once he had destroyed those things, he wrote "FTP" in his own blood on one of his cell walls. Repair costs were more than $1100.
About 6.50 that evening he lit two fires in his cell using prison bedding and some of his clothes.
The cell couldn't be used again until it had been bio-cleaned and the extensive smoke damage was repaired.
Because the sprinkler system was activated a full reset of the system had to be done again, and again the entire unit was without sprinkler protection for "a substantial amount of time".
"This put both the inmates and staff members at a heightened risk and undue danger should another fire have occurred while the sprinklers were deactivated," the summary of facts states.
The cost of repairs for that incident has yet to be determined but the total reparation bill for the other damage so far runs to $4396.
Fraser refused to be interviewed about the offences.
Judge Greg Davis further remanded Fraser in custody for sentence on October 25.
Fraser will be sentenced that day not only for this offending but for the charges on which he was initially remanded into custody and to which he has previously pleaded guilty – wilful damage, assault in a family relationship context, four breaches of a protection order, and two breaches of release conditions.
