Ryan Bishop was involved in brokering sales or dealing in nearly 1.2kg of methamphetamine. Photo / NZME
A man described as a “broker” for a wholesale methamphetamine supply ring spanning the eastern North Island has been jailed for more than six years.
Ryan James Bishop was identified as the ring’s main player in Hawke’s Bay after police eavesdropped on private cellphone communications.
One of his customers was Brydon Boyce, who was under the influence of meth when he drove a car at 200km/h near Havelock North, crashed it into another car, and killed an innocent motorist in 2022.
Bishop was picked up as part of the police Operation Typhoon, which centred on a “Mr Big” supplying meth across Waikato, Bay of Plenty, Gisborne and Hawke’s Bay areas.
Bishop, who was dealing with Mr Big regularly, was involved in the supply of nearly 1.2kg of the highly addictive Class A drug in the second half of 2021.
At the time, the wholesale price of methamphetamine was between $180,000 and $200,000 per kilogram.
Despite this, his lawyer, Sheila Cameron, told the Napier District Court that he was a “broker”, motivated by his own addiction rather than financial gain. He would sometimes receive “product for payment”.
“In some ways he was an amateur in over his head,” she said.
Crown prosecutor James Bridgman, however, said that Bishop made multiple trips to see the supplier in Tauranga, assumed significant risk, and was organising, buying and selling methamphetamine on a “commercial scale”.
He was reasonably aware of the scale of the operation, and knew exactly what he was engaged in.
He had taken Boyce to Tauranga and put him in touch with his supplier.
Bishop pleaded guilty to conspiring to sell methamphetamine, supplying methamphetamine as a party, possession of meth for supply, offering to supply meth, possession of meth, offering to sell and supply cannabis, possession of cannabis for sale, and selling cannabis.
A Crown summary of facts said Bishop had conspired to supply at least 210 grams of methamphetamine, was party to the supply of 868g, had possession for supply of 97.4g, offered to supply at least 1g, and had personal possession of 14g.
The cannabis charges related to having at least 2.27kg for sale, offering to supply 28g and selling 28g.
Judge Bridget Mackintosh said Bishop was involved in a large operation as essentially an independent contractor, enabling large amounts of meth to flow into the Hawke’s Bay community, regularly travelling around and expecting financial reward.
She sent Bishop to prison for six years and three months.
Both Bridgman and Judge Mackintosh spoke of the connection between Bishop and Brydon Boyce.
Boyce, a banned driver, was convicted of manslaughter after he accelerated an unregistered, unwarranted Ford Falcon to more than 200km/h on a road near Havelock North, crashing and killing a married father of two, Marco Milliaccio, 45, on July 4, 2022.
When police searched the wreck, they discovered Boyce had been carrying 128g of methamphetamine in snaplock bags, a loaded revolver, cannabis, pseudoephedrine and $11,500 in cash.
His car had been modified to twice its normal horsepower. He had meth in his system at the time of the crash.
Boyce was sent to prison for seven years and four months.
Ric Stevens spent many years working for the former New Zealand Press Association news agency, including as a political reporter at Parliament, before holding senior positions at various daily newspapers. He joined NZME's Open Justice team in 2022 and is based in Hawke's Bay. His writing in the crime and justice sphere is informed by four years of front-line experience as a probation officer.
The Supreme Court found a detective's evidence on gang heirarchies was inadmissable.