The arrest and subsequent use of force towards a man in Hamilton in 2022 was "unlawful" after the vehicle he was in was stopped due to the profiling of his facial tattoos, the police watchdog has found.
The findings were part of an investigation by the Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) into the June 10 2022 incident which saw the man (Mr Z) and his partner (Ms Y) pulled over while driving.
The pair were spotted driving by an officer who initially "had no concerns" and a license plate search delivered no hits.
The officer spotted the same vehicle later, at which point the woman, who was driving, was observed without her seat belt on. The officer did a U-turn, but by the time he had turned around, the vehicle had driven down a side street. The officer told the police communications centre "a gold rodeo just slipped me on Massey" and "the front passenger has some come tip me out tats." The IPCA notes that a "tip out" is police slang for a vehicle stop.
The report said police "noticed Mr Z’s facial tattoos, which he believed to be gang related," and when that same police officer noticed the car again, in a shopping mall car park in Hamilton, he radioed for backup and approached the vehicle.
The report says the intention of the officer was to "speak to the driver, Ms Y, about the seat belt issue". The man and woman both told the IPCA that the woman always wore a seat belt while driving.
The woman had left the vehicle to collect her laundry.
When the officer approached the vehicle he said Mr Z was "initially friendly", and "happily" gave his name to the officer.
The man said the officer was also "initially friendly" also but when he was told the officer needed to check the seat belts, he was "unhappy because he did not think Ms Y’s car should be searched without a reason".
According to the woman, who had come back to her vehicle to see the exchange and asked what was happening, the officer replied he was "just wanting to see who this man is” because he was a “new face in town”.
During this exchange, two other police officers arrived. They told the IPCA their intention was to check the road-worthiness of the vehicle.
The IPCA said: "This check can be conducted by one person and involves checking the exterior features such as tyres, windscreen wipers and rust, as well as the registration and warrant of fitness on the front windscreen."
A nearby shopkeeper, who was filming the event, told the IPCA that none of the officers had checked the windscreen.
"I didn’t see any officers interested in the actual thing they came for," he said.
The shopkeeper told the IPCA that the officers took "an immediate interest in the inside of the ute" and that he heard an officer say "move away from the car because I want to look in your car".
The woman said a "swarm of cops" said they needed to check her car to ensure it was roadworthy, and that they needed access to the inside of the ute.
The original officer said he "tried to talk" to the woman but she ignored him. CCTV footage of the incident showed that the officer paid "very little attention" to the woman "despite her being the driver of the car and the person who [the original officer] alleges was driving without wearing a seat belt".
The officers told asked the man to move aside so a vehicle check could be conducted and told the IPCA that the man became "quite aggressive" and that he had adopted a "fighting stance".
An officer said he did not feel safe in front of the man.
The officers told the IPCA the man was obstructing them from conducting the road-worthiness check of the vehicle and that the man had to move or else he would be arrested for obstruction of a police officer. The man said he "not think it was fair for the car to be searched and he felt police were belittling him in front of the crowd," and did not move.
The officers told the man he was under arrest before using force, "including a head lock, to wrestle him to the ground and sprayed him with oleoresin capsicum spray (pepper spray) before handcuffing him".
The woman was also arrested by police, as was the shopkeeper.
No charges were laid against any of the three individuals.
Arrest of man and use of force 'unlawful' and 'unjustified'
Five issues bought to the IPCA were found unlawful or unjustified: The initial vehicle stop of the woman's car, the arrest of the man, the use of force against the man, the arrests of the woman and the shop keeper and the search of the woman's car.
The report said the officer's "vehicle stop of Ms Y’s car was unlawful because it was not for a genuine purpose under the Land Transport Act 1998," and therefore the following arrests of the man, his partner and the shopkeeper were all "unlawful".
The report also said the force used against the man was "unjustified" and that the search of the woman's car was "unlawful because the vehicle stop was unlawful".
The police watchdog said the officer "did not stop the car because Ms Y had not been wearing a seatbelt. He stopped the car because he had profiled Mr Z based on his facial tattoos."
Police acknowledged the ruling and said the "staff involved in this matter have shown genuine remorse for their actions and have reflected on the impact of their decision making on that day," Waikato District Commander Superintendent Bruce Bird said.
The officers involved have undergone a training programme led by by NZ Police Iwi and Communities "to strengthen their cultural competency as well as further tactical communication training."
Bird said the officer was subject to an employment process - the outcome was confidential.
All officers involved remain with the police.
SHARE ME