Does Sandra, 70, look like a criminal to you?

An 70-year-old New Plymouth woman was asked to take off her hat and leave her shopping trolley outside a Work and Income office because the items were deemed a security risk.

Sandra Watson has questioned security policies at the organisation after she was stopped by guards during a visit to hand over personal forms to staff.

"I wasn’t able to talk to anyone at the counter so I left very angry.

"I felt like I was treated like a criminal," she said.

Watson’s treatment is now being investigated by the Ministry of Social Development (MSD).

Gloria Campbell, MSD regional commissioner, said it was accepted the security guards who dealt with Watson had overstepped the mark.

‘‘Most guards get it right most of the time but in this case it appears they haven’t.

‘‘We understand Armourguard have already apologised to the client and we have too,’’ she said.

Watson said as soon as she entered the foyer of the New Plymouth building she was approached by two guards and asked for identification.

Another security guard then asked her to remove her hat and leave her trolley in the public alcove. The guard searched the trolley and found it empty, she said.

Moments after complying with the guards’ instructions, Watson said she saw a man enter the building wearing a hat.

‘‘I asked why was I ordered to remove my hat when he wasn’t.’’

She said she wore the hat because she had cataracts and it helped shield her eyes.

She said she tried to explain she did not want to leave her trolley outside unattended.

The guard told her he was not responsible for looking after it while she went inside the building.

‘‘I was lucky that day I had not done my shopping or else I would have had to leave everything outside in the alcove where people walk in and out. There would be nothing stopping someone taking it.’’

Watson said she was so incensed that when she got to the supermarket afterwards she thought she would have a heart attack.

She said she understood security was needed at Work and Income offices but she believed guards should use more ‘‘common sense’’.

‘‘A friend of a friend, who has impaired vision, was asked to take off his prescription glasses by guards.

"He tried to explain he wouldn’t be able to see but they took no notice of him.

"What else will they ask people to leave behind - walking sticks?’’

She said: ‘‘I don’t wish for the guard to lose his job but he needs to have more respect for the elderly.

‘‘We just need to be treated a bit fairer.’’

Campbell said the safety of both staff and clients was at the forefront for the organisation and there were procedures in place to ensure this.