More than four years after the crime, Preetam Prakash Maid (34) appeared in the Dunedin District Court yesterday — representing himself — after applying to have his sentence reviewed.
Such applications are common but Maid’s situation was not.
He was originally jailed for three years over the incident, which took place just days after the Christchurch mosque attacks, but that was later reduced to 17 months by the Court of Appeal.
Maid was given leave to apply for home detention but instead chose to serve out the final few weeks behind bars until he was automatically released.
Judge Michael Turner was bemused by the man’s bid to change a penalty he had already served.
"The sentence is all over; it’s all finished. How can I change that?" he said.
"I appreciate [your] concerns upon seeking employment, and a sentence of imprisonment is viewed with some alarm by employers, whereas a sentence of home detention might be viewed differently.
"I cannot change the record ... It would not reflect what actually happened."
The judge dismissed the application, saying he did not have jurisdiction to tamper with the sentence in such circumstances.
Should Maid disagree, he could appeal the outcome, Judge Turner stressed.
He asked the man whether he had taken legal advice on the matter.
"No, your honour," Maid said.
At a Dunedin District Court trial in 2020, the jury heard the airport security worker had been vocal with superiors about what he believed was inadequate security at his workplace, and the Crown said the bomb hoax was his way of exposing that.
Swipe-card data showed that on March 17, 2019, Maid twice entered a corridor to the dangerous goods store, spending 20 minutes there.
He took items from the storeroom — a SodaStream canister, a decommissioned cellphone, and red and black wiring — and stashed them in a laptop bag knowing it would resemble a bomb.
While conducting a perimeter check of the airport, he slipped the bag into the alcove of a hut at the north end of the runway before calling it in.
Once the item was neutralised by the New Zealand Defence Force, police picked through the remains and discovered the items inside had come from within the airport.
The most critical piece of evidence came from a cryptic handwritten note wrapped around the bag’s handle.
A forensic document examiner said she was confident Maid was the author.
