The arrest of 14 Auckland prison staff is the largest operation of its kind in recent memory, the union representing corrections officers says.
The Department of Corrections confirmed nine staff from the Mt Eden Corrections Facility had been taken into custody on Wednesday, while Serco said five reintegration officers were arrested at the Kohuora Auckland South Corrections Facility.
Authorities have not detailed the exact charges, citing ongoing court proceedings, though the Corrections Minister has indicated the alleged offending is linked to gang activity.
Speaking to Breakfast, Corrections Association of New Zealand president Floyd du Plessis said the situation, while serious, was not unexpected.
"Unfortunately this is the largest operation we've seen of this kind."
Allegations of bribery and contraband smuggling emerge as police probe gang-linked activity across Auckland jails. (Source: Breakfast)
Du Plessis said the arrests came after long-standing warnings from the union about corruption risks inside prisons.
"For quite some time… we've been asking for additional training, awareness, and ramping up protections around entry and exit out of the prison to help prevent these things from happening."
He said staff regularly faced attempts by prisoners and outside associates to influence or manipulate them.
"On a regular basis, there are attempts by these groups to influence staff, manipulate staff, all those from a very minor level to a high level," he said.
"Some of these things take months or years, where they slowly just work away - find weaknesses. We've also had examples where we've had people turn up to staff members' houses and threaten them, intimidate them into doing things."
Despite the scale of the arrests, du Plessis stressed the alleged offending involved a small proportion of the workforce.
"It’s 14 staff out of thousands… for the most part, staff around the country do a phenomenally good job."
Corrections Minister Mark Mitchell said gangs actively target staff in an effort to move contraband and information into prisons.
“They try to target people. They try to get contraband and information into our prisons,” he said.
Deputy Commissioner for Men’s Prisons Dave Pattinson confirmed both corrections officers and senior staff were among those arrested.
“This matter is now subject to active investigation and court proceedings, which we don’t want to compromise in any way,” he said.
“We are actively working through the impact on these staff members’ employment.”
Corrections said the arrests were part of a wider police operation across Auckland, with investigations ongoing.
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