Racism and poor culture within the police force has led to many Northland cops leaving, a Far North officer claims - revealing a shocking internal email as evidence.
The district’s top cop disagrees, saying the culture has never been better and extra officers have helped during a spike in violent crimes.
Ninety extra police officers have travelled to Northland to help relieve pressure on the beleaguered force, with 30 staying for five weeks at a time.
An anonymous Far North officer said the extra cover is needed because so many staff are leaving as a result of a poor culture within the force.
They shared an example of "systemic racism in the force“: a Far North officer referring to an alleged offender as a “little black 1″ in an internal email that was accidentally sent to all Northland staff.
The email, sent by an officer who is also Māori, was in reply to a routine internal email asking for assistance to identify several suspects. The response was accidentally sent to all.
“Dogg this fulla the little black 1 ...” the email said.
Far North Area Commander Inspector Riki Whiu followed with a response to all, acknowledging the message had caused alarm and offence to many and had failed to meet expected standards.
While Whiu said the matter was being addressed with the individual, the anonymous officer was concerned the response lacked transparency and accountability.
They also pointed to an Employment Relations Authority hearing in Whangārei last month, where senior police manager Bridget Doell alleged she was met with a pervasive “boys’ club” culture when leading the mainly male detective team.
The authority will make a decision about the personal grievance towards the end of the year.
But the District Commander, Superintendent Matthew Srhoj, said vacancies in Northland have dropped and the culture has never been better.
While the accidental email was “highly unprofessional”, it was an isolated incident, front-footed by the embarrassed officer who had sent an apology to everyone, he said.
The mistake email included slang language and text-speak, giving some context to the tone, Srhoj explained.
“I acknowledge it was unprofessional, but I don’t think there’s a racist motivation behind it.”
Srhoj said he was unable to comment on the Employment Relations Authority hearing, because it was up to the authority to make a ruling on the historical incidents.
But he acknowledged there was disappointment in the way it had played out with a public hearing.
“We work very hard and are always trying to improve culture across our organisation,” he said. “It does have an impact. It makes us feel sad because that’s not who we are.”
Srhoj said Northland’s attrition rate at 5.7% is only slightly higher than the national average of 5.5% and vacancies have halved, from about 50 18 months ago to about 25 now.
A surge in violent crime this year – including nine alleged homicides – resulted in Northland police putting out a “call for help” from officers around the country.
A total of 90 officers from as far away as Southland answered the call, with a further 30 planned to start shortly, Srhoj said.
Northland staff have “loved” having the officers here, and are feeling well-supported and able to take much-needed breaks, he said.
“They have boosted our frontline during the process, we have a team of road policing staff as part of it, and just the visibility it’s created.”
Srhoj said the secondment is a short- to mid-term solution to help Northland staff get over a pressure point. The long-term solution is recruitment to fill all the vacancies.
More Māori representation would help better reflect the community, he said.
“Having good local people applying is always our number one desire with our recruiting strategy.”
A new training centre in Auckland’s Albany is a game-changer for recruits, who are able to travel home for the weekend, rather than staying away in Porirua, he said.
Seven Northlanders are undergoing training in the new centre’s first intake, he said.
As well as considering joining the force, Srhoj said, Northlanders who care about the community need to report illegal incidents to police – such as meth dealing – if they want police to do something about it.
Police Association Northland director Murray Fenton agreed there have been big improvements in police culture in Northland.
“I am aware that the district is putting a lot of effort into addressing and focusing on improving culture for the region and I applaud the management and executive team for their efforts," he said.
“Nationally, I believe our culture is improving.”
Denise Piper is a news reporter for the Northern Advocate, focusing on health and business. She has had more than 20 years in journalism and is passionate about covering stories that make a difference.