Napier accountant Rodney De Terte was sentenced to home detention for not paying taxes. (File image)

A Napier accountant who owed almost $150,000 in taxes and GST has been sentenced to home detention.

Rodney De Terte​ appeared in the Palmerston North District Court on Tuesday.

Earlier he had pleaded guilty to 11 charges of not supplying GST returns for $70,500, between 2009 and 2014, and four charges of not filing tax returns for $78,370, between 2010 and 2014.

"You said you were not in a good financial situation, not in a good head-space, and that you prioritised your clients' affairs over your own," judge David Smith said to De Terte.

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"You were a self-employed accountant and a Chartered Accountant until 2010. So you were perfectly aware that both the GST and tax returns were required and you were well aware of what the consequences were if you didn't comply."

Since legal action had begun, De Terte had repaid $15,880 to the Inland Revenue Department.

New Zealand Insolvency Services records show De Terte was made bankrupt in October 2014, which automatically lapsed in December 2017.

The redundancy showed he was "not in any position to make any further payments", the judge said.

There was no suggestion De Terte was unsafe for the community, he told the court, so home detention could be considered instead of jail.

De Terte was sentenced to four-and-a-half months home detention, to be served at an address in Napier, and 100 hours of community service.

In November 2010 the professional conduct committee of the New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants issued a statement saying they had "severely reprimanded" De Terte and accepted his resignation.

The judgement said through his practice De Terte was unable to meet debts, had not met tax responsibilities, did not hold professional insurance, did not supply audits and financial statements when requested or cooperate with a review, and did not keep up to date with ongoing professional training.