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Newsroom
14-07-2025
- Newsroom
The Boy in the Water: Is the police complaints authority fit for purpose?
On its website, the Independent Police Conduct Authority states its mission is to be 'a world class police oversight body'. 'We exist to support public expectations…for the justice system to be trusted and effective.' But in light of a recent high profile coronial finding, questions are being asked about whether New Zealand's police watchdog is fit for purpose. On June 13, Coroner Alexander Ho released his findings into the death of Gore three-year-old Lachlan Jones, whose body was found face up in the town's sewage oxidation pond on a hot night in January 2019. Police quickly deemed Lachie's death an accident and closed the case, concluding the preschooler had walked more than a kilometre from his mother's house in his hi-vis vest, climbed over a fence and traipsed across long prickly grass in bare feet to the end of the second of two vast ponds before falling in and drowning. Following extensive investigations carried out by investigative journalist Melanie Reid, police reopened the case, the new review headed by a detective inspector from Dunedin. More than a year later they completed that investigation, releasing a short media statement that said the matter had concluded and been referred back to the coroner. But Reid and her team uncovered further critical information into the case and multiple flaws in the police investigations into his death. Following the release of the first season of DELVE podcast investigation The Boy in the Water, police announced a review into their handling of the case, led by Detective Superintendent Darryl Sweeney. Police also self-referred the matter to the Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) 'to ensure an independent process is also carried out.' Both the internal police review and the IPCA came to the same conclusion – they decided not to take matters further. At the time, Newsroom requested a copy of the IPCA report, and were advised it was to be released 'in due course.' The IPCA then updated that advice, sayng it 'may decide to await the outcome' of the inquest. Eighteen months later and the IPCA says that, while its decisions are published once concluded, it has not published that initial report, and has no further comment to make. A summary of Newsroom's correspondence with the IPCA can be found at the end of this article. Lachie Jones. Photo: Instagram The Coroner disagrees In the meantime, the coroner Alexander Ho held a coronial inquest into Lachie's death, carried out over five weeks at the Invercargill courthouse in 2024 and covered extensively in seasons two and three of The Boy in the Water. Today is the final episode of season four of the podcast, which goes through every section of the Coroner's findings. It lays bare the stark contrast between those earlier assessments by police and the IPCA, and the coroner's findings. In his report, he describes the original investigation as 'a shambles', citing confusion over who was in charge, a lack of urgency, premature conclusions and basic investigative failures. He explicitly rejects the police's narrative, writing: 'I disagree with Detective Superintendent Sweeney's conclusion… I do not accept that the police investigations correctly outline what occurred that evening. Indeed, I have found in many instances that the evidence does not support the propositions which the police presented as concluded fact.' However the IPCA's review effectively had rubber-stamped the police's internal review led by Sweeney. (The coroner wrote in his findings that the IPCA had concluded the Sweeney report 'adequately addressed matters'.) The result? Two police investigations, one internal review, and an IPCA assessment, all now called into question by the coroner. Melanie Reid says: 'We came to Gore five years ago and said the policing in this case was a debacle. From day one, it was glaringly obvious this police investigation had holes you could drive a truck through. It's of no surprise to us the coroner has reached the same conclusion. 'It is troubling that police brought in one of their own top officers to do an independent review, who in short said 'no issue here'. And his view was rubber stamped by the IPCA. In view of the coroner's official findings, that's somewhat embarrassing.' Back to the IPCA The IPCA is New Zealand's only body charged with independently investigating police conduct. Yet in this case, it failed to intervene despite repeated red flags, public scrutiny and independent journalism raising alarms. Meanwhile the coroner has directed the police to reinvestigate Lachie's death for a third time, using police from outside the Southland district, and report back by January 2026. He also referred to the IPCA 'the police's conduct as it relates to the investigations which have been conducted to date into Lachie's death', effectively challenging it to reconsider its previous decision not to take matters further. But can the IPCA be relied upon to conduct a thorough investigation? On the day the coroner's findings were released, Newsroom asked the IPCA for its response and sent a list of questions, including: what do the coroner's findings say about the IPCA's review processes; were the safeguards sufficient in this case; and, if the police and IPCA are coming to vastly different conclusions than the coroner, are the current mechanisms fit for purpose? We also asked what measures the IPCA will take to ensure a thorough investigation of the police handling of this case this time around. It responded only to say it was 'considering' the Coroner's findings. That was nearly four weeks ago. So we went back to ask again for a response to our questions. The IPCA replied that it is 'not able to indicate a timeframe for the conclusion of our consideration' and has no further comment to make.
RNZ News
01-07-2025
- RNZ News
Teen dies after car crashes into house while fleeing police in Kumeū
Photo: RNZ/Calvin Samuel A person has died from injuries suffered when a car crashed into a house in the north-west Auckland suburb of Kumeū. An investigation has been under way since Friday night, when a car that had failed to stop for police crashed on Coatesville-Riverhead Highway at about 8.20pm. Two teenagers were criticallly injured, while another two received serious injuries. The conditions of three have stabilised in recent days. However, one teenage male who'd been in a critical condition since the crash, died in Auckland City Hospital on Tuesday night. "This is a tragic development for eveyone concerned on top of an incident thathas had devastating impacts for these young people," Waitematā District Commander Superintendent Naila Hassan said. The Independent Police Conduct Authority has been notified of the incident. Photo: Calvin Samuel Investigations into the events of Friday night are ongoing. Hassan said attending officers were confronted with a "very traumatic scene". Four ambulances, five rapid response units, two operations managers and a major incident support vehicle were sent to the scene, according to a Hato Hone St John spokesperson. Fire and Emergency dispatched two fire crews, but no one was trapped and the house suffered no structural damage. Police say they've notified the Independent Police Conduct Authority of the incident as part of this process. More to come... Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
01-07-2025
- RNZ News
Teen dies after car crashes while fleeing police in Kumeū
Photo: RNZ/Calvin Samuel A person has died from injuries suffered in a crash in Kumeū . An investigation has been under way since Friday night, when a car that had failed to stop for police crashed on Coatesville-Riverhead Highway at about 8.20pm. Four teenagers were hospitalised at the time, with the conditions of three stabilising in recent days. However, one teenage male who'd been in a critical condition since the crash, died in Auckland City Hospital last night. Police say they've notified the Independent Police Conduct Authority of the incident as part of this process. More to come... Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
27-06-2025
- RNZ News
Police officer charged with assaulting 13-year-old boy after fleeing driver incident
Photo: A police officer has been charged with assaulting a 13-year-old boy after a fleeing driver incident. Court documents seen by RNZ allege that Brendan Scott Munster assaulted a 13-year-old boy in Auckland on 6 February. The 32-year-old, whose occupation is listed as a police officer, was scheduled to appear in the Auckland District Court on Friday. An Auckland District Court registrar said Munster's appearance was excused on Friday, and adjourned to August with diversion one of the considerations for police. Auckland Deployment Commander Superintendent Zane Hooper confirmed in a statement to RNZ that a staff member had been charged following an incident "at the conclusion of a fleeing driver event". "The incident occurred on 6 February 2025 and ended in the Greenlane area. "Police investigated the incident and notified the Independent Police Conduct Authority at the time." The officer was summonsed to the Auckland District Court on a charge of assaults child, Hooper said. "The member was placed on restricted duties in March." As the matter is before the Court, police were unable to comment further. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
25-06-2025
- RNZ News
Police officer cleared over drunk man's fatal fall
Photo: RNZ / Patrice Allen The police watch dog has found an officer was not at fault when an intoxicated man he was escorting fell and was fatally injured. Police had been called to the Auckland City Mission in Grafton on 4 November, 2024, where an intoxicated man had reportedly been acting aggressively. "The man refused to leave despite the officer's requests, so the officer placed a hand on his shoulder to guide him along," a spokesperson for the Independent Police Conduct Authority said in a statement. "The man fell, hitting his head on the tarmac surface of the ground. Unfortunately, he was seriously injured and later died in hospital." During its investigation the IPCA reviewed security footage of the accident, which revealed the officer had not used force when placing his hand on the man's shoulder. "The man resisted and pulled away, then lost his balance on the sloping driveway and fell to the ground. We also concluded that the officer's actions were reasonable in the circumstances," the spokesperson said. Police accepted the findings. "This was an incredibly unfortunate incident for everyone concerned, including our attending staff," Auckland City District Commander Sunny Patel said in a statement. "Our sympathies remain with the man's family and friends during what was no doubt a very challenging time." The IPCA confirmed it did not believe any criminal charges or employment considerations were necessary for the officer. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
