In that year, he received 10 months of home detention stemming from the commercial cultivation of cannabis at his work address and home.
In 2015, he was sent to prison for two years and two months on further charges of cultivating cannabis, offering to sell cannabis oil and assaulting his partner.
The drugs charges had been laid after police searched his home in July 2015 and found 24 cannabis plants.
Data on his phone showed he had been offering to supply cannabis oil to various associates.
Phone data again proved Salisbury’s downfall in his latest offending.
Police obtained a court order on March 10 this year which allowed them to access his phone data from January 1 to March 1, 2025.
They found evidence of numerous offers to supply methamphetamine and fantasy.
For many the quantities involved could not be confirmed, so “the full extent of the defendant’s drug dealing remains unknown”, according to a Crown summary of facts.
However, Salisbury pleaded guilty to representative charges of offering to supply methamphetamine on 19 separate occasions, with total known quantities of 32.75g.
He offered to supply a gram of meth to 11 different people in a single day.
He admitted supplying meth on at least three occasions.
Salisbury offered to supply fantasy at least 11 times, with known quantities totalling 3.18 litres.
On February 27, Salisbury offered to sell two litres of fantasy to two prospective buyers, for $1000.
On March 1, he offered three people the chance to buy 500ml for $250.
Fantasy is the common name for a range of drugs, including gamma hydroxybutyrate (GHB), 1,4 butanediol (1,4-BD) and gamma butyrolactone (GBL).
GBL converts to GHB in the body when ingested and is sometimes associated with “date rape” due to its sedative and mind-altering effects.
The Crown summary of facts said GBL was highly hazardous, “as it can cause euphoria, sedation, unconsciousness and even death, with a very narrow margin between a safe and lethal dose”.
Police raided Salisbury’s Napier home on April 2, 2025.
As they arrived, he tried to throw a small container containing cannabis plant material and seeds out his bedroom window.
When searching the bedroom, police found 3g of methamphetamine, cannabis and a home-made taser.
In the lounge, police found methamphetamine utensils, more cannabis, and a slug gun near the front door.
The total amount of cannabis taken from the property was 109.5g.
Salisbury refused to provide the pin for his cellphone.
On Friday, he admitted supplying methamphetamine, offering to supply meth, possessing meth, supplying fantasy, offering to supply fantasy, possessing cannabis, possessing a restricted weapon, possessing drug utensils and failing to comply with a search.
Ric Stevens spent many years working for the former New Zealand Press Association news agency, including as a political reporter at Parliament, before holding senior positions at various daily newspapers. He joined NZME’s Open Justice team in 2022 and is based in Hawke’s Bay. His writing in the crime and justice sphere is informed by four years of frontline experience as a probation officer.
