Three days after he became a father, Jamie Michael McNae faced his reckoning for running a large-scale cannabis operation worth more than $520,000.

The child was conceived while Jamie Michael McNae was on bail awaiting sentencing for the offending, the Christchurch District Court heard when he appeared before a judge to learn his punishment.

At Wednesday’s hearing, McNae’s lawyer Matt Smit submitted that a non-custodial sentence was appropriate, partly citing the newborn as a reason his client should avoid prison.

But Judge Tom Gilbert said McNae’s daughter would not know if he was gone and in prison in the same way an older child would.

The court heard McNae, 29, operated a cannabis supply business, South Island Skunk, selling cannabis vape juice and cannabis-related products.

When police caught up with him in August 2025, they found his Christchurch house loaded with illegal supplies.

Customs had intercepted two packages addressed to him three weeks earlier containing two vials of cannabichromene, a cannabinoid found in the cannabis plant.

In a spare room, police found a workstation for the manufacture and extraction of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main psychoactive compound found in cannabis.

A hotplate, scales, glass beakers, an injection gun, eye droppers and chemicals were among the items.

Syringes, packaging for vape cartridges and unused vape cartridges were scattered around the room.

Two large boxes of aeroplane lollies, cooking equipment and plastic lolly moulds were found in the kitchen, along with dozens of vape cartridges containing THC distillate.

Four large storage containers contained 1200 edible gummies.

As police continued searching the property, they found cannabis, magic mushrooms and two 3D printers, one in the spare room and another in the garage.

Hidden in the garage was a large quantity of 3D-printed firearms parts, including a .22 firearm with a firing pin and .22 magazine, plus an assortment of grips, magazines, pistol slides and receivers.

Alongside them were 100 rounds of .22 ammunition hidden in a bag with firearms springs.

Financial records uncovered during the investigation revealed the scale of McNae’s operation.

McNae registered a sole-trader Wise account under the name Canterbury Care Collective in 2021 and listed himself as the company shareholder.

He had collected $520,500 through 3328 transactions.

Smit submitted McNae was selling cannabis to fund his addiction, but Judge Gilbert said the operation was more than mere peddling.

Smit said sentiment towards cannabis offending had shifted over time.

He said McNae maintained the 3D printing was a hobby, as other items from the printer were found in the home.

“He is extremely creative.”

McNae was in a long-term relationship and a new father, and had been depressed at the time of the offending, Smit submitted.

“He has significantly turned his life around.”

Judge Gilbert said McNae had spent the past few years doing drugs.

“This is clearly beyond funding his own addiction,” he said.

“The offending is serious, sophisticated and a sentence of jail is appropriate.”

The judge accepted McNae had long-standing issues with drug and alcohol use, but said the offending had gone beyond that.

The duration and scale of the offending were aggravating features, he said.

“It continued over a long period and involved significant sums.”

With a starting point of five years, Judge Gilbert applied a 40% discount for guilty pleas, background issues and McNae’s absence from his child.

The judge did not accept good character submissions.

Judge Gilbert sentenced McNae to three years’ imprisonment on charges of manufacturing class B and C drugs, possession of class A drugs, importing class B drugs, manufacturing firearms using illegal parts and unlawfully possessing firearms.