Home Contact Us

We are the only NZ Police oversight body

We are not part of the NZ Police

Under law we are fully independent

If you have a complaint about the NZ Police, you can come to us

Mana Whanonga Pirihimana Motuhake

Home / Outcomes / 2021 Summaries of Police Investigations

Complaint of alleged sexual assault

13 May 2021

The Authority oversaw Police criminal and employment investigations into an allegation of sexual assault by an officer while he was on duty. The officer denied the allegation.

The criminal investigation did not result in charges being laid.

While the employment investigation found that the officer had breached the Police Professional Distance Policy by failing to appropriately manage professional boundaries, the investigator concluded there was insufficient cogent evidence available to make a finding in relation to the sexual assault complaint.

The Authority agreed with the findings of both investigations.

The Authority also considered the the length of time taken to complete the employment investigation. The investigation commenced in May 2018 and was completed in August 2020.

The Authority found that at the end of the investigation there was a delay of eight months between the time Police received submissions from the officer's lawyer on the draft investigation report and when the report was finished. The delay is unexplained and was unreasonable.

MoST Content Management V3.0.9064