On Monday, Deputy Commissioner Jill Rogers told RNZ 10 police staff, five of whom have been stood down, remained under investigation.
“In total, Police have investigated 18 cases. Several more were initially identified but later excluded when the searches in question were found to be work-related.
“To date, five cases have been resolved through either disciplinary action or performance management. Three people have resigned or retired during the process.”
RNZ understands one of the staffers investigated is an award-winning detective based in the Auckland region.
Rogers earlier told RNZ the staff who had been stood down were investigated for “serious matters” that ranged from potentially accessing objectionable material, or accessing inappropriate material while also subject to separate misconduct matters.
Some of the staff being investigated may have had legitimate purposes for accessing material, which police would verify through their inquiries.
Police were not able to disclose the ranks of those under investigation.
Rogers earlier confirmed to RNZ a police officer had been stood down from duty for “inappropriate content on a police device”.
“The officer is under employment investigation for serious misconduct, relating to inappropriate, but not objectionable, material on a police-issued device. The alleged misconduct was uncovered through following recent audits of staff internet usage.”
Police Commissioner Richard Chambers earlier told RNZ the misconduct being investigated was uncovered as a result of the new monitoring measures introduced following the rapid review of the settings for police devices, launched after McSkimming’s resignation.
“I sought that review because of my concern that such conduct was not being detected. This offers some reassurance that we now have the necessary tools to detect potentially inappropriate behaviour.”
- RNZ
