An anti-vaccination campaigner who ordered a diabetic to stop taking insulin and injected him with an unknown substance will today be sentenced on a charge of criminal nuisance.
Australian Christopher William Savage (53) pleaded guilty to the charge earlier in the year.
Savage arrived in New Zealand in April. He was "widely known as being an anti-vaccine campaigner and a supporter of alternative medicines for treatment of illnesses", a police summary states.
The victim was a diabetic who suffered from several health issues and accepted the defendant's offer of help when he claimed he had a cure.
Initially, Savage had the diabetic lie on a therapeutic mat to stimulate ion channels and gave him magnesium orally.
He then ransacked the diabetic's pantry - throwing out unhealthy foods and replenishing them with a selection of his own approved foods.
"The victim was somewhat reluctant to undertake the measure imposed on him by the defendant, but continued to do so for a period of time," the summary of facts states.
Savage stopped the diabetic's prescribed regular insulin injections because he believed they were no longer needed with his alternative treatment regime.
But the diabetic became increasingly ill without his insulin, "at this point, on two separate occasions, the defendant has inserted a needle into the victim's arm and administered an unknown liquid, intravenously".
The summary stated the victim was in an ill state, unable to stop Savage and was worried about the effects of the "medicine".
- Hawke's Bay Today
