Disgraced former government prosecutor Warwick Reid has admitted in a New Zealand court to taking a NZ$1 million (HK$5.3 million) payment to pervert the course of justice. The guilty plea blocks his extradition to Hong Kong to face nine charges and will see him serve a sentence of up to seven years in New Zealand. The court might also order seizure of Reid's assets when he is sentenced next month. Reid, 48, made a surprise appearance in Tauranga District Court yesterday after being called from Tauranga Hospital's psychiatric unit. He pleaded guilty to a fresh charge brought by the New Zealand police of 'wilfully attempting to pervert the course of justice'. The court heard Reid accepted the payment of NZ$1 million shortly after he was deported from the territory in December 1994 in return for signing an affidavit on behalf of jailed businessman Ch'ng Poh. The cash, of which more than NZ$600,000 had already been spent, was deposited in January 1995 in a bank account on the Pacific island of Vanuatu. The account was held in the name of the Grange Trust. In a bid to recoup the money, New Zealand government investigators say they intend to take action to seize the NZ$250,000 Reid family home and a gymnasium in which he invested a large amount. Hong Kong Legal Department officials and the Independent Commission Against Corruption last night denied any deal had been done to allow Reid to avoid returning to Hong Kong, where he fears retribution by his enemies. They said the original Hong Kong charges against Reid still stood. A spokesman for the Legal Department said the charges would be reviewed 'in due course'. Reid's lawyer Greg Hollister-Jones said it was 'correct' that extradition would be dropped in return for his client's guilty plea. Detective Sergeant Bruce Russell of the New Zealand Asset Seizure Inquiry Team, who was in court yesterday, said: 'If that's what Mr Hollister-Jones has told you, I wouldn't be concerned about reporting that.' Mr Hollister-Jones added: 'Mr Reid admits wrongdoing and has always maintained that the appropriate place for him to be dealt with was in New Zealand. 'This had been something that he had always considered,' he said. The former government lawyer's friend, Chartered Accountant Clifford William Burmister, who visited Reid in hospital last night, said the former prosecutor was most relieved. He said that Reid had admitted his guilt because of 'outright fear' at the prospect of returning to the territory. However, Mr Burmister said Reid would be contesting prosecution claims that any agreement to pay the cash was made in Hong Kong. Solicitors from a company involved in obtaining the statement for use in Ch'ng Poh's appeal said Reid was right to challenge part of the case against him. They could confirm he was not presented with any prepared statement and that any deal struck by Reid in relation to the statement was done in New Zealand and was completely outside their knowledge. TALE OF DECEIT The million-dollar payoff clinched over the phone Prosecutor's secret life; Ch'ng Poh loses bail
