Jailed senior Comanchero gang member holidayed in Bali, made $500k a year managing airborne drug network

Thursday, 2 April 2026

A senior member of the Comanchero Motorcycle Club earned more than a New Zealand judge for flooding half the country with methamphetamine.

But Larenz Smith’s devotion to the life-ruining gang has come at a steep cost: a decade of lost freedom.

The 26-year-old has been imprisoned for 10 years for his involvement in a lucrative syndicate that transported 30kg of Class A drugs and millions of dollars across New Zealand.

Smith was arrested in August 2024 alongside the entire Christchurch Comanchero chapter. An eight-month police investigation ended with huge quantities of methamphetamine, cocaine, cash and jewellery seized.

Twenty men have progressed through the courts since, with many opting to defend their charges at trial. Those sentenced so far include the youngest underlings, the gang treasurer, and a barber-turned-drug runner.

The High Court at Christchurch heard Smith quickly ascended the Comanchero ranks to become one of just five office holders, as the sergeant-at-arms. This was in part due to almost five years’ experience in the military.

He oversaw junior members’ drug runs, which were usually completed by driving from Auckland to Hamilton, then flying to Christchurch with at least 1kg of methamphetamine or cocaine.

The drugs were often received at Smith’s home, before they were distributed to the wider community or shifted to his storage facilities. The proceeds were collected and returned north in similar fashion, with Smith personally undertaking or directing trips with $400,000 cash.

He holidayed in Bali and was financially rewarded for his work. By mid-August 2024 he boasted $500,000 in personal earnings - more than many New Zealand judges. Smith was highly trusted by the Comanchero national and local commanders.

All up, he organised 23 drug runs and was involved in the supply of 27kg of the 30kg of Class A drugs.

Justice Jonathan Eaton was satisfied Smith’s background set him on a path to crime. He grew up in a South Auckland home where methamphetamine was cooked and cannabis grown. His childhood was marked with violence and “other abuse” - at age 9 he was stabbed in the cheek with a fork.

Smith eventually joined and thrived in the army for four-and-a-half years. Afterwards, his life spiralled, he developed a gambling addiction, and he turned to the Comancheros for connection and income.

Defence lawyer Ethan Huda said since the arrest, his client had given up his sergeant-at-arms ranking and had returned to education, obtaining high grades in English and other tests.

“Here, you have someone who has taken remarkable steps to show he can, as he has before, go down a path to be a law-abiding citizen,” Huda said.

Justice Eaton awarded Smith discounts for his background, rehabilitation and early guilty plea. He emphasised that methamphetamine ruins communities and lives, fuelling further crime.

“There is no question, and I think you understand it, our society as a whole is severely harmed by those who deal Class A drugs.”

Later on Wednesday, Smith’s associate Anthony Peter Connor was imprisoned for three years and eight months in the same court. He was caught with 1.3kg of methamphetamine, cash, a pistol and ammunition during the Comanchero arrests.