Waikato Comancheros boss Junior Heart was allegedly awaiting a 270kg shipment of methamphetamine from overseas when police arrested him in June 2021, the Crown has told a High Court jury. Heart has already pleaded guilty to 73 charges, but continues to defend 37 drug, firearms and violence-related charges arising from Operation Equinox.
eLocal Report: Based on reporting by Belinda Feek for the New Zealand Herald, republished by RNZ — read the RNZ report.
A High Court jury in Hamilton has heard allegations of an organised drug operation involving international suppliers, encrypted communications, firearms and extraordinary quantities of methamphetamine, with the Crown alleging Waikato Comancheros boss Junior Heart sat at the centre of the syndicate.
Heart, previously known as Sonny Fatu jnr, originally faced 110 charges. He has since pleaded guilty to 73, more than 50 of which relate to supplying methamphetamine around the Waikato.
Those guilty pleas also cover supplying MDMA, offering to supply methamphetamine, supplying materials used in meth production, unlawful possession of firearms and explosives, and participating in an organised criminal group.
But significant allegations remain contested.
Heart is defending charges involving the supply, attempted supply or conspiracy to supply about 50kg of methamphetamine, along with allegations of conspiracy to murder and kidnap another gang member and conspiracy to cut off another man's finger.
Those matters remain allegations before the court and have not been proven.
Crown Alleges Drugs Were a Highly Profitable Business
Crown solicitor Jacinda Hamilton told the jury Heart himself did not indulge in the drugs he allegedly distributed and instead spoke negatively about people addicted to them.
According to the Crown, Heart considered drugs a "scourge" capable of disrupting people's lives and encouraged gang members not to use them.
The prosecution alleges that his own motivation for trafficking them was financial.
Hamilton characterised the alleged operation as Heart's business and told the jury it was the means through which he was becoming wealthy and increasing his power.
The scale of the potential profits outlined to the court was considerable.
Hamilton said a kilogram of methamphetamine was worth between approximately $180,000 and $220,000 during the period from October 2019 to June 2021. The Crown alleges Heart could source methamphetamine and cocaine from China and Mexico for between US$5000 and US$10,000.
Heart is alleged to have distributed methamphetamine in kilograms and ounces to people further down the organisation, who could then make their own profits.
270kg Shipment Allegedly on Its Way
One of the most striking allegations concerns what police say was happening immediately before Heart's arrest.
Hamilton told the jury that in June 2021 Heart was waiting for a 270kg shipment of methamphetamine from overseas, after allegedly telling a contact he would take as much as the supplier could offer.
The quantity illustrates the scale of the operation alleged by prosecutors, although the reported evidence concerns an anticipated shipment rather than 270kg of methamphetamine actually seized from Heart.
The Crown also alleges cocaine and MDMA formed part of the business, although cocaine volumes were considerably smaller than those involving methamphetamine.
Heart has already pleaded guilty to charges relating to MDMA distribution.
Alleged Murder and Kidnap Conspiracy
The jury also heard allegations extending beyond drug trafficking.
According to the Crown case, Heart became angry with a man over a disputed drug debt involving 10 bitcoin.
Hamilton alleged Heart discussed having the man killed while he was in Colombia and also considered kidnapping one of his relatives to force him back to New Zealand.
Messages presented by the prosecution allegedly discussed killing or torturing the man, including obtaining cryptocurrency the Crown says Heart believed the target possessed.
Police eventually arrested the intended target after he returned to Hamilton and kept him in custody for his safety, the jury was told.
In a separate allegation, Heart is accused of discussing cutting off another man's finger.
These charges are among those Heart continues to contest.
Defence: 'How Far Does His Criminality Go?'
Heart's lawyer, Sam Wimsett KC, has not argued that his client was uninvolved in crime.
Instead, the defence position distinguishes the offending Heart has admitted from the additional criminality alleged by prosecutors.
Wimsett told the jury there were four central issues to consider across the remaining charges.
These include whether proposed drug deals actually occurred, whether conversations alleged to constitute conspiracies ever developed into genuine agreements, whether some allegations duplicate offences already covered by other charges, and whether other people absent from the prosecution case could explain some of the evidence.
Wimsett acknowledged Heart "was undoubtedly a criminal" but disputed that his criminality extended as far as the Crown alleges.
That distinction will be central to the approximately three-week trial.
Junior Heart acknowledges a supporter in the public gallery of the High Court at Hamilton as his approximately three-week trial begins. Photo: Belinda Feek / Open Justice
The Encrypted Network That Wasn't What Criminals Thought
Operation Equinox developed out of investigations into encrypted communications devices being used by people suspected of involvement in international drug trafficking.
In September 2019, Customs intercepted a package from Hong Kong containing 20 Dedicated Encrypted Communication Devices destined for a Waikato address. The package had reportedly been declared as containing lithium-ion batteries.
Police subsequently gained access to devices and discovered they were operating on an encrypted communications network known as ANOM.
Initially, New Zealand Police could identify communications taking place but could not read their contents.
The apparent security of the network was, however, based on a false premise.
By March 2020, New Zealand investigators learned that ANOM was part of a carefully planned FBI operation in which encrypted communications technology had been distributed through criminal networks internationally.
That created an unusual situation for New Zealand investigators.
The FBI did not want its wider international operation compromised, so New Zealand Police had to continue observing and building their investigation while the covert operation remained active.
Police eventually obtained communications covering the period from October 2019 until the operation concluded in June 2021.
Those communications now form an important part of the Crown case against Heart.
An Alleged 'Well-Oiled Machine'
Hamilton described the alleged drug organisation as operating like a "well-oiled machine".
The Crown alleges Heart set prices, controlled how much product other syndicate members received and paid wages to some of the people working immediately beneath him.
His position as commander of the Waikato Comancheros chapter is also central to the prosecution's case.
Hamilton told the jury Heart retained significant influence among people affiliated with the Mongrel Mob because he had previously been a patched member of that gang.
The Crown's position is that Heart was the controlling force behind the syndicate and profited substantially from its activities.
The defence accepts substantial criminal conduct occurred but disputes whether the evidence proves Heart committed the remaining offences before the jury.
Does This Affect New Zealand?
Operation Equinox provides an unusually detailed window into the scale and international sophistication alleged in New Zealand's illicit drug market.
If the Crown's remaining allegations are proven, the case illustrates a supply chain capable of connecting overseas drug sources with organised criminal networks operating at a regional level in New Zealand, while using encrypted technology and cryptocurrency alongside more conventional gang structures.
The alleged 270kg methamphetamine shipment is particularly significant because it demonstrates the quantities prosecutors say were being contemplated at the upper end of the operation.
But the case also illustrates the increasingly international nature of law enforcement.
A New Zealand prosecution emerged partly from an FBI operation targeting encrypted communications used by criminal organisations around the world. Technology intended to shield organised crime from police surveillance instead became a source of evidence for investigators.
There is nevertheless an important distinction as the trial continues.
Heart's 73 guilty pleas are established. The additional allegations involving major drug conspiracies, murder, kidnapping and violence remain before the High Court and should not be treated as proven unless and until the jury determines them.
Source
Belinda Feek for the New Zealand Herald, republished by RNZ: “Operation Equinox: Alleged drug kingpin Junior Heart was awaiting 270kg shipment when arrested” — read the original RNZ publication.
The report notes that the story originally appeared in the New Zealand Herald.
Independent reporting. Original context. Credited sources.