Police investigation clears officer of stealing shellfish

A police investigation has cleared a Northland police officer of theft after he helped take hundreds of oysters from an oyster farm without permission.

Police caught off-duty Kaikohe officer Senior Constable Robert Hippolite and two other men, named as Mark Apiti and Manuel Kahura, with about 600 oysters in a boat near the Waikare Inlet oyster farms last December 29. The farm's owner, Alan Brain, said he had seen the men taking the oysters and rang police, who caught the trio.

However, a police investigation has cleared the men.

Theft charges were dropped early this month.

Northland police boss Superintendent Viv Rickard said that after a thorough police investigation a legal opinion had been sought.

"It was clear from the investigation that the people gathering the shellfish believed they were entitled to gather the oysters. The legal opinion recommended no prosecution take place," Mr Rickard said.

Bay of Islands Senior Sergeant Dan Dickison wrote to Mr Brain saying the main reason a prosecution did not proceed was because the men believed Waikare oyster farmers had given a "general mandate to the community to help themselves to the oysters due to their lack of commercial value caused by sewage contamination".

Mr Brain said he had "never given anyone a right to take oysters at any time".

His oysters were still of commercial value because he could transfer them to clean water on a second oyster farm at Kerikeri and on-sell them after two months, according to Northland Health criteria.

The Waikare Inlet oyster farms have been closed since 2001 due to contamination by viruses carried in human effluent.

Mr Brain was concerned at health risks to the community with "tens of thousands" of oysters being plundered from the Waikare Inlet farms - and he was concerned at the precedent set by the decision not to prosecute. He was now in a bind if he caught others taking his oysters.

"I am now at an absolute loss as to how to protect my property as a law-abiding citizen. I totally rely on the justice system to protect me. It's either that or I protect myself."

Mr Dickison's letter to Mr Brain said none of the Waikare Inlet oyster farmers spoken to by police had given a general mandate to remove oysters, but some had given individuals permission to take oysters on a restricted basis.

Sergeant Brian Swann, of Kawakawa police, who initially investigated the case, told Mr Brain to put up signs warning people the oysters were off limits.

Mr Brain said his signs had been destroyed in the past but he would put them up again, and his farm was clearly marked as private property.

Mr Dickison and Mr Hippolite could not be contacted for comment.