A man busted piloting his boat back from an unsuccessful 120kg cocaine pick-up from a ship in the Port of Tauranga told police he was out on the water at night “practising to be a boat captain”.

Kuka Koinaki was deemed at the “lower end of the hierarchy” but he was still fundamental to the operation as his role was to bring the drugs back from the ship, Quest, in a newly purchased Nuline aluminium boat.

Koinaki, 52, appeared in the High Court at Hamilton on Thursday where Justice Michele Wilkinson-Smith jailed him for four years on charges of conspiring to possess the class A drug, cocaine, for supply and driving while disqualified.

He was also given an extra two months in remittance for $8861 in fines.

The bulk carrier ship Quest entered New Zealand shores on December 22, 2022 carrying 120kg of cocaine concealed in four packages within the sea chest of the vessel.

On January 3, last year, the Quest was finally given a berth in the Port of Tauranga.

Police were already aware of the planned drug importation and had seized the drugs by the time Koinaki set off.

According to a police summary of facts, about $70,000 was spent by other people over several days in preparation to retrieve the drugs, including buying a secondhand Toyota Hilux, the aluminium boat, along with kayaks and other diving equipment.

On January 8 Koinaki towed a small aluminium boat from Auckland to Tauranga, and he went to check out the Quest in the harbour.

By January 11, the plan to retrieve the drugs was put into action.

At 8pm, Koinaki arrived at Pilot Bay and launched the boat from Sulphur Point 15 minutes later, heading out to the Quest.

Koinaki was arrested when he returned several hours later.

When questioned by police, he said he was “practising to be a boat captain and practising using the boat at night to get his boat skipper’s licence”.

‘Kicked out of rehabilitation’

Koinaki’s counsel Nicola Pointer said there was a direct correlation between the offending and his dysfunctional upbringing which had led him into a life of crime.

She also urged the judge to issue a discount for his time on electronically-monitored bail to the Grace Foundation, despite being “exited” for using cocaine and cannabis.

“It’s not perhaps surprising he fell off the wagon given his long-standing issues ... notwithstanding that, he’s reached out to Odyssey House [for treatment] and it’s what he hopes to do once he goes to the Parole Board.”

She also asked that his $8861 in fines be remitted for extra jail time.

‘Inconceivable you didn’t know drugs were involved’

Judge Wilkinson-Smith found his offending was driven by commerciality rather than his life-long drug addiction.

She also took aim at Koinaki’s continued stance that he didn’t know drugs were involved, labelling it “completely unbelievable”.

“You towed a boat from Auckland to facilitate the offending and you were located in the sea awaiting the delivery of an item.

“It is simply inconceivable that you did not know drugs were involved.”

However, she accepted he was to be sentenced on the fact he didn’t know the exact drug or quantity.

The judge acknowledged his dysfunctional upbringing which saw him living on the streets as a youngster, huffing petrol and glue.

By 15 he was selling cannabis and went on to live in a cycle of drug abuse with little pro-social support.

“On the other hand, you are a mature man and have been in and out of the prison system for years.”

She noted an inconsistency in his reports; one noted he had been a patched senior member of the Mongrel Mob as recently as 2020 but he told the pre-sentence report writer that he left the gang 10 to 11 years ago.

Ultimately, from an eight-year starting point, she agreed to hand down 50 per cent in discounts, arriving at a jail term of four years.

He was also disqualified from driving for 12 months in the hope that when he was freed from prison, he could start his life again unimpeded.