Sentencing — dishonestly accessing a computer system — public service — corruption — Privacy Act 2020 — Sarah v R [2013] NZCA 446 — Pakau v R [2016] NZCA 177. The defendant was to be sentenced after pleading guilty to five charges of dishonestly accessing a computer system. She was a former employee of Waka Kotahi. In the course of her employment she had accessed the private details of registered vehicle owners, and had then passed the details on to gang members. She offended on numerous occasions (the exact number was unknown), and in return for the information she was supplied with drugs. There was evidence to suggest that the defendant's information disclosures then led to violent offending against the vehicle owners. The Court observed that the defendant's employment had placed her in a privileged position, and that she had abused this privilege and damaged the integrity of the public service. Aggravating features were the major breach of trust, the nature and scale of the offending (providing private information to criminals, with violent consequences), and planning and premeditation. The start point for sentence was three and a half years' imprisonment, which was the same amount as in two other cases that had involved dishonest access of the police intelligence system. In mitigation the defendant had pleaded guilty, shown a measure of remorse and made efforts at rehabilitation. The Court imposed a final sentence of 11 months and two weeks' home detention. Judgment Date: 25 July 2024