Sergeant in ‘flagrant abuse of power’

Greymouth police ‘‘seriously breached’’ the rights of three people after their arrests, the Independent Police Conduct Authority has ruled.

A man and woman were kept in police cells for more than 15 hours, without access to lawyers, so a sergeant could interview them when he returned to work.

Another man was left handcuffed in a cell for a prolonged period.

In a report released yesterday, the IPCA said police arrested a woman and two men in Greymouth on May 2, 2015.

The woman and one of the men were arrested for possession of cannabis. The second man was arrested for assault.

The IPCA found police lawfully detained the man arrested for assault, but they were not justified in keeping him handcuffed for a prolonged period while he was alone in a cell.

‘‘The actions of police breached his right to be treated with humanity and respect for his inherent dignity while deprived of liberty,’’ the report said.

Police were not justified in arresting and charging the second man, and they continued to ‘‘arbitrarily detain’’ both him and the woman by not taking them to appear in court on the morning of their arrests, the IPCA said.

A sergeant directed that the pair be kept in custody while he was off duty so he could interview them when he returned at 10pm. From the time of their arrests, the woman was detained for more than 19 hours and the man for more than 15 hours.

The authority determined that officers failed to provide the woman and man arrested for assault with timely access to legal advice. ‘‘This was a breach of their rights to consult or instruct a lawyer without delay.’’

Authority chairman Judge Sir David Carruthers said the sergeant’s actions were a ‘‘flagrant abuse of his power’’.

‘‘As an experienced officer, [he] must have known full well that it was illegal to detain the man and woman so they could later be interviewed.’’

Tasman district commander Superintendent Karyn Malthus said the actions of several staff involved were ‘‘not in line’’ with police practice and process.

‘‘Police have reiterated correct custodial practices with all staff on the West Coast,’’ she said.

‘‘Senior staff have been reminded of their command obligations and a number of changes, including the introduction of a station sergeant under a recent restructure have also been made.’’

Malthus said police had spoken with the other officers involved and, where appropriate, had a ‘‘professional discussion’’ with them. Police were ‘‘undertaking an employment relations process’’ in regards to one officer.

‘‘Police regret the actions taken by a number of officers on the day. However, I am confident appropriate steps have been taken to guard against similar errors in the future.’’