If Corrections staff are found to have acted negligently in connection with a string of suspected murders in shared cells at Mt Eden prison, “they will be held to account”, the department says.
Corrections custodial services commissioner Leigh Marsh made the comments after the family of title="https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/family-calls-for-resignations-after-brother-rob-fitzpatricks-cell-death/ZG5IN3UCGBGZHDCSF6DHX53AKQ/">Whangārei man Rob Fitzpatrick, who was allegedly beaten to death by his cellmate, called for heads to roll at the prison.
Fitzpatrick, who had mental health difficulties, was put in a cell with another man who also had mental health issues.
His cellmate was in jail for an alleged violent attack on another man, while Fitzpatrick was there after breaching a restraining order.
The man charged with Fitzpatrick’s death is due to stand trial in October.
Fitzpatrick’s brother Ross told the Herald that he didn’t think those who allowed his brother to be put in a shared cell, a practice known as double-bunking, should still have their jobs.
“You have to question the common sense of people who are in the offices at Mt Eden prison. We just want to know why those clowns ... signed off on this decision.”
Fitzpatrick’s alleged murder is one of three deaths in shared cells at the jail in just over 12 months.
In an interview on Ryan Bridge TODAY, Marsh said he wanted to ensure prison staff were held to account should it be established that they made mistakes.
“If any of our people are found to be negligent in their duty, they will also be held to account,” he said.
“There are currently no employment investigations underway. However, this could be subject to change pending any further information we receive from the ongoing reviews and subsequent coronial inquests.”
Corrections protocol dictates that risk assessments be carried out on all inmates who share cells. Marsh confirmed that one was carried out in Fitzpatrick’s case.
Such assessments consider a prisoner’s history, including their risk of violence towards others, and their mental health status.
Marsh would not say what information Corrections had when staff decided it was suitable to put Fitzpatrick and the other man in the same cell.
He said he was having a “very close look” at the information available to staff when both men arrived at the jail.
“A lot of that information is initially maybe unknown to us because it’s coming in from other agencies, or coming in from the community.”
Fitzpatrick’s family has told the Herald they have concerns about information-sharing between government agencies, especially between Health NZ and Corrections.
Fitzpatrick was living with bipolar disorder and had been sending unwanted messages to a woman for a decade, which led to him being issued with a restraining order.
He breached the non-contact order on multiple occasions and had previously been jailed.
Before he was arrested and held on remand at Mt Eden, his family tried to get help from mental health crisis teams. They were told he didn’t meet the threshold for intervention.
Marsh said he wanted to allow various investigations to run their course before he revealed more about what the risk assessment entailed, what prison officials knew, and what checks were carried out on Fitzpatrick while he was in their custody.
“We are not denying the family answers. We have agreed and promised that we will share those as soon as we are able to.”
He said that, after the string of deaths in shared cells, information was being scrutinised more rigorously, and more inmates were being split up.
“For example, if someone is celled together and they come in during the evening ... and if more information comes to light the following morning, that decision is reviewed, and on some occasions those [double-bunking] decisions are changed.”
Night patrols of inmates in shared cells had also been introduced.
“We are conscious of things like response times and our ability to pick up on events as they occur,” Marsh said.
Michael Morrah is a senior investigative reporter/team leader at the Herald. He won News Journalist of the Year at the 2025 Voyager Media Awards and has twice been named reporter of the year at the NZ Television Awards. He has been a broadcast journalist for 20 years and joined the Herald’s video team in July 2024.