Security incident at Korowai Manaaki youth justice facility: Three young people climb onto roof

Six young people also climbed onto the roof on July 1 this year, spending a cold, wet night up there. Photo / Alex Burton

Three young people have triggered a security incident at an Auckland youth justice by climbing onto a roof they weren’t supposed to.

Mike Bush, deputy chief executive of residence and community at Oranga Tamariki said the young people left their unit at the 40-bed Korowai Manaaki centre in South Auckland suburb Wiri on Friday night.

They then got onto a roof within the facility.

Bush said staff dealt with the incident and all three young people had now come down safely.

“The situation remained contained and at no point did any of the young people exit the grounds of the facility,” he said.

It comes after two earlier standoffs on roofs at youth justice facilities ended when those on the roof were given KFC and McDonald’s in exchange for coming down.

In the most recent incident, six young people endured a wet and cold night on the justice facility’s roof on July 1 after forcing their way out of a unit.

Temperatures dropped to about 11C during the course of the July night and there was heavy rain in the area.

However, the 30-hour standoff was ended when OT staff agreed to get them burgers and fried chicken.

One week before that, another group of youths staged a rooftop standoff at the Te Puna Wai ō Tuhinapo youth justice facility near Christchurch.

During the incident, a staff member received a broken wrist and four young people spent the night in the facility’s roof cavity.

A fifth youth who also escaped to the roof came down earlier in the evening.

But the remaining four were brought down by ladder 24 hours after the incident began, and put in police custody.

However, Oranga Tamariki was criticised when it was revealed that after the stand-off came to an end the youths were given KFC, Stuff reported.

Those involved were “vulnerable young people” and the first approach was always to use the least harmful ways to convince them to come down safely on their own terms, Bush told Newshub at the time.

“Fast food was part of the negotiations and additional items were also used to attempt to bring the young people down throughout the day and overnight, such as clothing and hot drinks.”