By Emily Moorhouse, Open Justice multimedia journalist, Christchurch of 
Philip Arps jailed again - this time for sending abusive messages using obscene language to his probation officers. (File picture) Photo: RNZ / Nate McKinnon
A notorious white supremacist has been jailed for four months for sending his probation officer abusive messages.
Philip Arps, who was jailed for spreading disturbing footage of the March 15, 2019 terrorist attacks on two Christchurch mosques, appeared at the city's District Court on Tuesday for sentencing.
The father of six boys and self-confessed Hitler admirer was charged with three counts of using offensive language and breaching his release conditions.
Stuff reported in February that Arps sent text messages to his probation officers, calling them "worthless", "fat", "piss-weak" and "violently disgusting".
He was convicted of using obscene language and on Tuesday Arps was sentenced to jail for the offences.
In September last year, Arps stood for Te Aratai College's Board of Trustees in Linwood.
Arps received 25 votes (2.6 percent) and finished in last place. The next successful candidate with the lowest number of votes received 131.
At the time, city councillor Sara Templeton said the news came as a "huge relief to me and many others in the school community".
"This won't be the last time that someone tries something like this, so it's still essential the minister and the associate minister should be looking at safeguarding our schools and making any changes to make that happen," she said.
After Arps joined the race for the board, associate education minister Jan Tinetti sought urgent advice about school board elections.
Tinetti said she had also been examining whether legislative changes needed to be made.
She had sought urgent advice about whether the code, which was already being developed, could be tied to someone's eligibility, she said.
"I want to see whether there's room for that to strengthen the work of who is eligible or what people can declare when they come through to stand for a board. I'm not sure what that will look like but that's what I'm seeking."
In 2020, Arps was jailed for almost two years for getting footage of the mosque shootings doctored with a "Call of Duty" tagline.
And in 2016, he was one of a group of men who filmed themselves doing Hitler salutes as they delivered boxes of pigs heads and offal to the Al Noor mosque in Christchurch.
"White power… Bring on the cull," Arps was seen saying in the video.
In that case, he was convicted of offensive behaviour and fined $800.
* This story originally appeared in the New Zealand Herald.
