WorkSafe NZ offers helicopter crash survivor help with legal costs

Sergeant Stevin Creeggan won a guilty plea from the New Zealand Defence Force in the Wellington District Court after taking a private prosecution against his own commanders. Photo / Mark Mitchell

The health and safety bureaucrats who failed to prosecute the air force over the fatal Anzac Day helicopter crash have offered to help cover legal costs for the sole survivor who successfully prosecuted his commanders.

WorkSafe NZ has confirmed an offer has been made to Sergeant Stevin Creeggan for part-payment of the case he took under their own legislation.

However, the Herald understands the offer is also conditional on Sergeant Creeggan not taking any future claims against WorkSafe NZ.

Sergeant Creeggan survived the 2010 crash which killed three others aboard when the helicopter went down en route to Wellington for an Anzac Day fly-past.

In the aftermath, the Department of Labour misunderstood its responsibility to investigate the crash, believing it had no jurisdiction. It later discovered it did - but blamed the lack of action as closing the opportunity to pursue the case.

Last Friday, Sergeant Creeggan won a guilty plea from the New Zealand Defence Force in the Wellington District Court after taking a private prosecution against his own commanders. The prosecution followed a successful application for leave to file charges outside the usual timeframe.

It was said in court to be the first private prosecution carried out under health and safety legislation amended a decade ago to allow individuals to take such cases.

So much time has passed between the crash and the verdict that the Department of Labour has gone through two incarnations - it was folded into the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment and then became WorkSafe NZ.

The agency's high hazards and specialist services manager Brett Murray said an "offer of a contribution towards Mr Creeggan's costs" had been made. He said it was "recognition of the Department of Labour's role in this incident".

He said it had been publicly acknowledged there had been an "error in not investigating the crash because [the department] mistakenly believed it fell under another agency's jurisdiction".

"The department had no ability to launch a prosecution once the error had been realised as, firstly, it had no evidence as there had been no investigation, and secondly, even if it had evidence, it is required to prosecute within six months of first becoming aware of the incident."

Mr Creeggan paid tribute to solicitor Charles McGuinness of Cullen Law and prosecutor Tim Mackenzie of Wynn Williams for pursuing the case with minimal fees.