Sentencing put off for 'Hole in the wall' gang leader

Simon Allan Kerr. Photo / supplied

Sentencing for high-profile criminal Simon Kerr was put off when he appeared in Whangarei District Court today.

Kerr, 50, was to be sentenced on one charge of burglary but it was put off until December 2. He was remanded in custody.

Kerr pleaded guilty to the 2009 burglary of the Noel Leeming store at Pukekohe.

He became one of New Zealand's best-known criminals about 20 years ago as leader of the "Hole In The Wall" gang of safecrackers in Auckland.

Kerr was captured near Tauranga in August following a tip-off understood to have come from a member of the public.

He had been on the run since December 2009 when a warrant was issued for his arrest for a Whangarei burglary. He remained at large despite distinctive, extensive tattoos on his neck.