Olive German-Ross, 21, and Magnus Augustus Kendall-Laven, 20, appeared in the Dunedin District Court yesterday, where police offered no evidence on the 15 charges each faced.
They were alleged to have been part of a group which left a trail of graffiti around central Dunedin in November last year.
Judge Hermann Retzlaff dismissed the charges against the duo, but was not impressed.
"What a waste of time, bringing someone to court, putting them in the dock on 15 charges to then withdraw them," he said.
"What the heck is going on?
"Are you charging people willy-nilly now?"
Police prosecutor Alan De Jager explained it was no longer in the interests of justice to pursue the charges.
"There had been tagging by a group and there have been certain people in the group who have put their hand up and accepted responsibility," he said.
But Judge Retzlaff charged the police court costs of $147 on 30 of the charges — a total of $4410.
The defendants were jointly charged with Jack Field, 22, and Joel Rushton, 31, who were sentenced earlier this year.
In August, Rushton was sentenced to nine months’ supervision and a six-month deferred sentence after admitting graffiti charges and a breach of the Medicines Act.
He was also fined $500 on a charge of threatening language after telling a police officer: "go back to your own country, you f...... Samoan ... F... you, you filthy Tongan".
In September, Judge Retzlaff sentenced Field on a charge of possessing graffiti implements and a representative graffiti charge.
The defendant’s lawyer, John Westgate, said his client was simply "in the wrong place at the wrong time".
He lived in Wellington and hardly knew his co-defendants.
"I’m confident you won’t see him in court again. He’s learned his lesson," Mr Westgate said.
Judge Retzlaff fined Field $1000, imposed court costs of $143 and ordered the graffiti implements be destroyed.
In October last year, German-Ross was discharged without conviction after admitting a separate tagging incident in George St.
She successfully argued a conviction would affect an opportunity for her to take up a mentorship with Wētā Workshop.
