Convicted drug smuggler Karel Sroubek has told the Parole Board he made a "terrible mistake", as he made his third bid for early release from prison today.
The Czech kickboxer, also known as Jan Antolik, is serving an almost six-year prison sentence for importing ecstasy.
He appeared before the Parole Board in Wellington this morning.
Dressed in a grey jumper, Sroubek told the Parole Board he’d made a terrible mistake and wanted to rebuild his life outside bars.
His lawyer, Paul Wicks QC, told the panel Sroubek had taken "significant steps" since his last hearing.
If he is released from prison, he won't be deported straight away.
The 38-year-old disputed fleeing from arrest warrants in the Czech Republic for unrelated offending - saying he was a free man when he left and first saw related papers at his last Parole Board hearing.
Sroubek is liable for deportation once released from prison, after the Immigration Minister backtracked on a decision to grant him residency last year.
However, he'll remain in the country until an appeal to the Immigration and Protection Tribunal is heard. As of Friday last week, a date has not been set.
The panel members formally reserved their decision.
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