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An Auckland man was caught making and selling cannabis cookies to his friends. Photo / 123RF
A wannabe chef who made cannabis cookies for his mates tried to avoid a conviction by telling a judge he wanted to travel to Canada for work.
But, the judge wasn’t buying it saying there are plenty of jobs for chefs in NZ and promptly convicted him for his crimes.
Khalifa Khalifa was charged with possessing to supply cannabis in 2020 after police were called to his home address on an unrelated matter.
Police spoke to Khalifa outside his bedroom. What Khalifa didn’t realise at the time was the fact officers could see straight into his room where he had a bong and a cannabis plant.
After providing a search warrant, police found 200 grams of cannabis plant materials in his room.
The 24-year-old told police he stockpiled for his personal use and would make cannabis brownies and cookies to sell and give to his friends.
On Thursday at Auckland District Court, his lawyer Aaron Kashyap argued a discharge without conviction was needed so that he could travel to Canada with his partner.
Kashyap said that Khalifa and his partner were in a serious relationship and wanted to travel to Canada for education and job opportunities as a chef.
Under Canada’s immigration law, if a person has committed or has been convicted of a crime, regardless of how serious it is, they might not be able to enter the country.
But District Judge Claire Ryan was not buying the excuse and asked why he had to go to Canada of all places – and where the proof of departure was.
“There are suggestions of going to Canada, but there is no proof of documents, he has simply said it is somewhere he might think of going to.”
Ryan also mentioned the need for chefs in New Zealand and said there would be no doubt he would get a job in the industry here.
Khalifa was found guilty by another judge in late 2020 but appealed his guilty verdict to the High Court. When a High Court judge backed the original judgment, he then went to the next level. The Court of Appeal also declined his application.
“He has exhausted all of his appeal rights and finds himself here,” Judge Ryan said.
At an earlier appearance, Ryan told Khalifa to engage in community work. But Khalifa only started completing voluntary work last week and has completed 21 hours.
Police opposed the application and said the offending was too serious to avoid a conviction.
“The absence of a guilty plea means the absence of acknowledging his guilt from the start,” Ryan said.
“But he now admits he was supplying cannabis for a commercial purpose.”
Khalifa’s application for a discharge without conviction was dismissed.
Judge Ryan imposed a sentence of supervision for six months and 40 hours of community work.
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Podmore died in August 2021, in a suspected suicide the day after the Tokyo Olympics ended