Police find no corruption evidence in Manurewa Marae Census data probe

An investigation into Manurewa Marae found "insufficient evidence" of corruption, but other offences are being examined. Photo / Mary Afemata / LDR

By Craig McCulloch of RNZ

An investigation into Manurewa Marae has found “insufficient evidence” to prove corruption, but authorities are still looking into other potential offences and privacy breaches.

The police and other agencies began inquiries in June 2024 after a group of former marae workers claimed private Census data had been misused to help Te Pāti Māori’s election campaign.

In a statement issued on Thursday afternoon, a police spokesperson said they had “found insufficient evidence to establish criminal culpability for corruption”.

It said the Serious Fraud Office had begun its own detailed review of the case file in April and also found “insufficient grounds” to pursue a criminal investigation into serious or complex fraud.

A key barrier to proceeding was the need to prove a public official had been directly involved in the “use or disclosure of official information”.

“Other potential offences that fall outside the SFO’s remit will continue to be handled by police through normal processes,” the statement said.

“The SFO is engaging with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner (OPC), which is carrying out an ongoing inquiry into potential privacy breaches.”

RNZ has sought to clarify with police what further “potential offences” are being investigated.

A separate inquiry by the Public Service Commission, ordered by Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, found that agencies failed to put adequate safeguards in place to protect personal information.

The findings, released in February, prompted Stats NZ to apologise and its chief executive, Mark Sowden, to step down.

Manurewa Marae subsequently acknowledged it should have done better at handling completed Census forms, but continued to reject claims it misused the data.

Te Pāti Māori president John Tamihere has consistently and strenuously denied the allegations.

The marae’s chief executive at the time was the late Takutai Tarsh Kemp, who went on to win the Tāmaki Makaurau seat for Te Pāti Māori.

Her death in June prompted a byelection.

– RNZ