Michael Forbes. Photo / LinkedIn
By Sam Sherwood of RNZ
Police immediately escalated allegations about the Prime Minister’s former deputy chief press secretary Michael Forbes to the police executive – including the Police Commissioner and the Deputy Commissioner – but he was told the “onus was on him” to inform his employer, documents released under the Official Information Act reveal.
Forbes, a former journalist, resigned after it emerged he recorded audio of multiple sessions with Wellington sex workers, and amassed a gallery of women working out at the gym, shopping and being filmed through a window getting ready to go out.
Police earlier said they got a complaint from a Wellington brothel last July after images were found on a client’s phone, but decided the case did not meet the threshold for prosecution.
On Wednesday, a series of documents were released to RNZ under the Official Information Act, including a timeline of key events and executive notifications.
The incident at the Wellington brothel happened at 7pm on July 11. Police Comms were notified the following day at 5.40pm. Ten minutes later the National Command and Coordination Centre (NCCC) was alerted and then the District Command Centre.
At 6.15pm on July 12 the NCCC emailed a large number of senior leaders in police including former Police Commissioner Andrew Coster, former Deputy Commissioner Jevon McSkimming and others.
“Police Comms have been called by an informant who works for an escort agency. The informant has found images on a client’s phone of naked females, including one very intoxicated female that appear to have been taken with the consent of those photographed/filmed.
“The client is allegedly Michael FORBES who is the Senior Press Secretary for the Hon Louise Upston, the Minister for the Community and Voluntary Sector, Minister for Social Development and Employment, and Minister for Child Poverty Reduction.
“The alleged offender has left his personal and work cell phones with the informant. The file has been assigned to the Wellington District Crime Squad for attendance.”
The police media team had been notified, the email said.
The email was recalled about 20 minutes later after current Deputy Commissioner Tania Kura asked for the recall as “the distribution list is too broad for this type of communication”.
The staffer replied they had done so.
Kura said the case was “one of those ones that is a little more sensitive and didn’t need such a wide audience”.
The documents include an investigation summary.
The documents included an investigation summary, which said on July 12, 2024, Wellington Police received a complaint that Forbes had covertly made an audio recording the previous day while engaging the services of a sex worker.
“The informant advised police that they had taken two mobile phones from Forbes, one believed to be a personal phone, the other a work device. The informant also reported finding other audio files, images and videos that caused concern.”
The informant was spoken to by police and both phones were taken.
“Once it was established that Forbes was a senior press secretary at Parliament, procedural escalation notifications were made that evening.
“The Wellington District Command Centre was advised, as was the duty inspector.”
On July 13, a detective obtained search warrants to examine the two cellphones.
“The suspected offence was making an intimate visual recording, being an offence against section 216H of the Crimes Act 1961.”
On July 15, a detective visited Forbes and advised him of the police investigation. During that visit Forbes provided access codes for the phones.
On July 18, a detective examined the phones.
“Located within both phones were numerous videos, screen shots and photos of unidentified females, some in various state of undress, and exposed breasts were visible in multiple videos.
“It was apparent to detectives that some images were taken in, and from, public places, including a gym. Some images were also taken through street-facing windows of unidentified women, dressing (undressing) themselves, and who were visible from the waist up.”
The summary says the examination of the phones did not identify evidence of criminal offending.
On July 18 Forbes met with a detective and the phones were returned to him.
“He was also provided copies of the search warrants that had been obtained.
“During the meeting it was suggested that Forbes should delete some of the images on his phones, and he began doing so. Police also stressed the onus was on him to inform his employer.”
On July 19 Police provided an update to the complainant. On August 6, Police also provided an update to another staff member at the brothel.
“They expressed frustration and disappointment with the outcome,” the summary said.
In an earlier statement, Wellington District Manager Criminal Investigations, Detective Inspector John van den Heuvel, said that as part of the investigation, police obtained a search warrant to seize two of his phones.
On examining the phones, Police found a number of photos and videos of women in public spaces, and what appeared to be women in private addresses, taken from a distance away, van den Heuvel said.
“Police considered the available evidence and concluded it did not meet the requirements for criminality, and therefore charges could not be filed.
“The individual concerned voluntarily spoke with police and admitted to taking the images and recordings. He was reminded of the inappropriateness of his behaviour and encouraged to seek help.”
Forbes also deleted the images in the presence of police.
“Police acknowledge this man’s behaviour was extremely distressing for the women involved and would like to reassure them that any new information will be thoroughly considered.
“Based on the initial report and available evidence to date, police are unable to progress the matter further.”
Van den Heuvel said any new information regarding Forbes would be “thoroughly considered”.
When earlier asked why police did not alert the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) after executing a search warrant on a government-issued phone, the department said: “We are still gathering facts and will look into all of this as part of our deep dive.”
The DIA said all Ministerial Services staff were subject to standard pre-employment checks when they were first employed. These included reference checks, serious misconduct checks and a criminal conviction check. In addition, security clearances were required for some positions in ministers’ offices.
The department says these checks were completed when Forbes was first employed by Ministerial Services and were not required for the later temporary assignment to the Prime Minister’s office.
“We acknowledge staff may be unsettled or feel their safety may have been compromised. We are committed to supporting our people and ensuring they feel, and are, safe at work.”
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said the incidents that were investigated by police but did not lead to any charges occurred after Forbes was vetted to work for Social Development Minister Louise Upston.
“He has an obligation to actually declare those issues or those incidents to us, that didn’t happen, which is why his employment would have been terminated, obviously,” Luxon said in a media conference at Parliament in June.
“But there is a good question about making sure, and I have asked specifically for DIA to look at vetting processes.”
He added that the expectation was on Forbes to have raised the incidents with the Prime Minister’s office “because it impacts the office and the reputation of the office, for obvious reasons, but that did not happen”.
Forbes moved from Upston’s office to the Prime Minister’s in February this year and “had the vetting that he needed to come into the Beehive”.
“We will look at that to make sure that there is anything else we could have done differently in that vetting.”
Luxon would not discuss what level of security clearance Forbes had in the Beehive.
Luxon also had questions about whether the investigation should have been elevated by police to the Beehive.
“We have to take this incident and understand what has happened here and how it happened, and what more can we do about it.
“I think it is a legitimate question to say what can we look at between the inter-agency processes, between the different agencies, whether it is police, whether it is the SIS or whether it is ministerial services.”
Forbes earlier offered an apology for the harm his actions caused to women.
“I want to offer my sincerest apologies to the women I have harmed,” he said in a statement.
“In the past, I was in a downward spiral due to unresolved trauma and stress, and when confronted with the impacts of my behaviour a year ago, I sought professional help, which is something I wish I had done much earlier.
“What I failed to do then was make a genuine attempt to apologise. Instead, I tried to move on without offering those I had harmed the acknowledgment, accountability, or amends they deserved. I recognise how wrong that was.”
Forbes said he spent the past year “reflecting on how I may have affected these women’s sense of safety and ability to go about their lives and work”.
“No one should ever feel violated, unsafe, or disrespected, especially in spaces where they should feel secure, and I am truly sorry for contributing to an environment where women may have felt otherwise,” he said.
“The therapy I’ve received over the past year has helped me to understand the roots of my behaviour and begin addressing the patterns that led to it. This is a long-term commitment to change that I take very seriously.
“I understand that my past actions may have undermined the trust people place in me. So, I have resigned from my job to focus on the work I need to do.”
Forbes declined to comment when approached by RNZ on Wednesday.
– RNZ