Second inmate pleads guilty over $20m Holtze Prison riot

A second inmate involved in rioting at Holtze Prison last May will be released at the end of the month after time served on remand.

• Chaotic scenes inside Holtze Prison riot laid bare as first inmate released after time served
• Alleged prison rioters in solitary since May sue NT government for ‘false imprisonment’ compensation

A SECOND inmate involved in rioting at Holtze Prison last May will be released at the end of the month after time served on remand.

Ryan Ponto, 23, pleaded guilty in the Darwin Local Court on Tuesday to escaping lawful custody and taking part in a riot while he was serving an 11 month burglary sentence on May 13.

But his lawyer, Roisin McCarthy, told the court despite the seriousness of the unrest — which resulted in an estimated $20m damage bill — Ponto’s role in the riot was only minor.

Ms McCarthy said Ponto had left his cell and climbed onto the roof but did not arm himself or cause any damage and had only participated at the urging of other inmates.

“At the time the damage was occurring to the accommodation block in sector six, he said that he was in the toilet, he heard smashing of the window and that’s when he came out and saw what was occurring,” she said.

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“Mr Ponto instructs that these people in his block were like brothers to him he felt pressured by them to follow and he followed them out of the block and up on the roof of sector six.”

Prosecutor Rebecca Everitt said while she accepted Ponto was not among the worst offenders, who climbed onto the roof of sector two, their actions made the situation worse for prison guards.

“The presence of those prisoners on the other roof contributed to the conduct of the prisoners engaged in the more serious offending,” she said.

“(It) also contributed to the overall sense of the riot and what was being dealt with by the corrections officers, being a very difficult scene with multiple different groups of offenders engaging in riotous behaviour.”

In handing Ponto a six month jail sentence — due to end on March 28 after time served — judge Tanya Fong Lim said while he wasn’t one of the main offenders, his involvement encouraged them and distracted the guards from bringing them to heel.

She said the riot was a serious incident that had cost taxpayers dearly.

“It has also caused some significant distress for those people who were involved in this riot and I’m talking now about the prison officers and those other prisoners who weren’t involved in the riot who were in their cells and would have heard all the carry on and all the violence, not knowing what was going to be happening to them,” she said.

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“The prison officers were faced with an angry group of prisoners making demands, being violent, causing property damage and there were different groups so that made it even more difficult.”

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