Waikato District Commander Superintendent Bruce Bird:

Police acknowledge the report by the Independent Police Conduct Authority which found that officers in Hamilton acted unlawfully while arresting a man in a carpark in June 2022.

We acknowledge the officer who initially stopped the car did not have a legal reason to do so and therefore this was unlawful.

The officer stopped the car based on the visible facial tattoos of the passenger travelling in the vehicle.

We also note the following force used to arrest the man was unlawful and not appropriate.

The staff involved in this matter have shown genuine remorse for their actions and have reflected on the impact of their decision making on that day, particularly the initial officer who made the decision to stop the vehicle.

He was subject to an employment process of which the outcome is confidential.

Three officers have undergone a training programme led by NZ Police Iwi and Communities to strengthen their cultural competency as well as further tactical communication training.

New Zealand Police is an organisation dedicated to fair and equitable policing and this incident did not reflect fairness. We are disappointed that on this occasion we fell short of our standards.

The officers involved remain working for New Zealand Police and have grown and learnt from this incident.

We know we don’t always get it right, but we are committed to ensuring that we learn from our mistakes and improve our practice.
 

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