11 Feb 2015

Poacher who skips sentencing given bail

6:55 pm on 11 February 2015

A Bay of Plenty trout poacher who did not turn up for his court sentencing has been released on bail.

A warrant was issued to arrest Kawerau man Thomas Tawha, 42, when he failed to appear for his sentencing in the Rotorua District Court last month.

Tawha and David Leef were found guilty of poaching as many as 60 spawning trout from a breeding stream near Lake Rotiti last year.

Tawha was located by the police and appeared in the District Court again today, where a judge granted him bail.

A spokesperson for Fish and Game New Zealand said it opposed bail.

He will now be sentenced in April.

Leef has not yet been found.