Waitemata police officers have been criticised by the police watchdog for the handling of three intoxicated men arrested after arguing with bar staff.
The Independent Police Conduct Authority found one of the men was punched by police during the November 2018 arrest for disorderly behaviour in Takapuna, Auckland.
However, in a statement today it said the use of force in the man's arrest - as well as his two associates - was justified.
However the IPCA was critical of police, saying officers should have planned the roadside search better. The man ended up calling 111 from the back of a police van because he still had his phone on him.
When advised of the call, officers realised they had not searched the men, so pulled into a side street to do so.
It is alleged that during the search the man was kneed, kicked and punched by one or more of the six officers involved in the incident.
The Authority could not determine whether the man was kneed and kicked but found that he was punched.
The Authority said officers should have searched the men at the first available opportunity, that the roadside search should have been better planned and it should have been reported to the Communications Centre.
It also said officers demonstrated poor practice and a failure in their duty of care by not checking the handcuffs when two of the men complained they had become too tight.
"I accept officers had reason to restrain Mr X physically while conducting the search but Mr X was in handcuffs and he was held by two officers, so there was no reason to punch him," Authority Chair Judge Colin Doherty said.
As well, once at the police station, the man should have been given an opportunity to make a formal complaint about the alleged use of force. Four of the officers breached policy by failing to submit a report following their use of force during the initial arrest.
Waitematā District Commander Superintendent Naila Hassan said police maintained there was no evidence the man was punched, however she accepted things could be learnt from the incident.
“Police officers face situations every day where their safety is at put at risk, and in this case they were subject to abuse and were dealing with an intoxicated, very aggressive person when they were just doing their jobs.”
Four of the six officers remain working as valued members of police, while two have since left the organisation for unrelated reasons.
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