Second person suspended for police secret information leak

A second Counties Manukau police staff member has been suspended for allegedly leaking secret information from the police national intelligence network.

Counties Manukau district commander Superintendent Mike Bush said police were investigating allegations that information from the National Intelligence Application had been illegally distributed.

The second police employee was stood down from duty on Monday, just two days after the Weekend Herald revealed a constable had been suspended for allegedly leaking sensitive information to help a known criminal avoid arrest.

The pair could face a police misconduct hearing, or even criminal charges.

A small number of police staff have been charged with using the computer system to help friends and family to evade arrest. But most have been non-sworn staff in call centres, not officers.

The National Intelligence Application is a computer network that holds information on people's criminal convictions and whether they are wanted by police or are a surveillance target. The system also gives police facts on criminals' associates and their addresses. Police national headquarters figures show 33 police staff were caught making unauthorised checks of the National Intelligence Application since August 2007. Nine of those later resigned.

A police spokesman said the figure was low given that the force had more than 11,500 staff and the public made 1.7 million phone calls to police communication centres every year.

It is understood many unauthorised checks highlighted in the random audit were of an innocent nature on personal acquaintances, a practice which is banned. Random audits of the system were introduced after officers were caught looking at the personal files of high-profile police sex complainants.

Constable Steven Hales resigned from the police before it was discovered that he looked at the file of Tauranga woman Donna Johnson, who alleged former officer Brad Shipton had violated her. It was also revealed Mr Hales had checked the file of a victim of pack-rape by Brad Shipton, former policeman Bob Schollum and millionaire Peter McNamara. Mr Hales' brother, Warren, admitted abducting the woman in the 1989 attack.

Other incidents, involving non-sworn staff, include Rotorua police telephonist Maxine Griffiths, 45, who was sentenced to nine months' home detention in May after she was found guilty of attempting to pervert the course of justice by giving her P-dealing partner secret police information.

The partner, Gregory Tuuta, was later jailed for methamphetamine dealing after a large undercover operation. But Griffiths tried to help him to avoid arrest by giving him sensitive National Intelligence Application information. In March 2006, a police communications worker was charged with helping a senior member of the Head Hunters gang to avoid arrest.

The call-taker helped David Dunn while he was on the run from the law and facing methamphetamine charges.