A man who made up a story about being assaulted and robbed by three men to hide the fact he had images depicting child sexual abuse on his phone has been sent to prison.
Mark James Woods, 44, was sentenced in the Rotorua District Court today to two years in prison for one charge of possession of objectionable material and one charge of committing an indecent act on a child.
According to the summary of facts, Woods called police to his Glenholme address in August last year and told them he had been assaulted by three unknown males and their dog, and that his cellphone had been taken.
Police spent an hour that night looking for the three men and the next day dedicated more time to the case, prioritising it over a stabbing which saw three people admitted to hospital.
However it was revealed later that month the story had been concocted by Woods after an associate of his found objectionable publications on Woods' phone, and said he would report it to police.