Another man arrested as part of Operation Vintage died by suicide a year after his arrest.
A prosecution summary of facts revealed 45-year-old Clinton Lee Forman, of Cromwell, was allegedly cultivating "large numbers" of cannabis plants on various plots around Haast and Westland.
From two of the plots, police seized 88 plants with an expected yield of more than $68,000.
Forman was arrested in April 2023 and faced 19 charges, which later sparked police proceedings to restrain his home and vehicle under proceeds-of-crime legislation.
His father told a later coronial inquiry the man’s mental health declined "sharply" after becoming aware of the civil proceedings.
The report of Coroner Heather McKenzie, released to the Otago Daily Times, showed Forman was found dead a year after his arrest, while on bail.
There were no suspicious circumstances, she ruled.
Asset-recovery proceedings have continued.
Forman’s partner, Wendy Maree Davison, the owner of a Central Otago beauty clinic, has had her $1.4 million Tarras home frozen by the High Court after allegedly benefiting from the drug crimes.
Court documents stated Forman made cash deposits of $156,784 to her bank account between 2017 and 2024, which police said were the proceeds of crime.
While the property remains restrained, police are now expected to make an application for a forfeiture order which would see the home in the hands of the Crown.
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