Officer under investigation after arrest
A police officer who allegedly punched and pepper sprayed a man at a food and wine festival is the focus of an Independent Police Conduct Authority investigation after a District Court judge criticised his actions.
Senior Constable Steve Middleton arrested Tyler Pogan at the festival at Gisborne’s Awapuni Stadium after Pogan got into a scuffle with a security guard.
Middleton is alleged to have punched Pogan six times in the side of the head as he lay on top of him, after Pogan threatened to kill him ‘‘and your kids’’. He also allegedly pepper sprayed him while he lay face-down.
Pogan, 22, complained to the IPCA and was initially told his allegations would be dealt with at the same time as his court charges.
He admitted assaulting the security guard and was also charged with disorder, resisting arrest, assaulting a police officer and threatening to kill the officer.
But the resisting and assault charges were thrown out by Judge Warren Cathcart who said the arrest was unlawful. By the time police arrived on the scene Pogan was leaning against a vehicle and there was no good cause to suspect he had committed the offence of disorderly behaviour, the judge said.
Pogan was convicted of threatening to kill Middleton, however.
Judge Cathcart said the issue of whether Middleton used excessive force remained live, but he said a female witness who saw the alleged punches had provided compelling evidence and seemed reliable.
‘‘She felt shocked by that part of the incident and she was quite disturbed by what she had seen,’’ the Judge said.
He said the witness was ‘‘sufficiently reliable’’ that police should reopen their internal investigation into Middleton’s actions.
Figures released under the Official Information Act this week show 2015 had the highest number of allegations upheld against police since 2011.
There were 2300 allegations made against police last year, with 2129 investigated and 213 upheld.
Figures from 2011 show allegations made, with investigated and 159 upheld.
Middleton declined to comment. The IPCA wrote to Pogan saying that 1826 1816 While he was sitting on my back with my face on the ground he punched me in the head about six times because the judge had criticised police and made ‘‘adverse comments’’ the matter now required investigation.
Pogan, a mechanic in Tauranga, said the incident happened after he’d had an argument with his girlfriend and he was trying to leave the stadium.
He became angry when the guard wouldn’t let him through an exit.
‘‘I was trying to do the right thing. I have a history of anger and stuff. I didn’t want to be around people.’’
When Middleton arrived, he turned his back on him and refused to speak, he said.
‘‘He grabbed me and said under arrest’ and threw me ground.
‘‘I was really angry, I said ‘you have no right to touch me’. I said some not very nice things to him - to this day I feel real bad about saying it.
‘‘While he was sitting on my back with my face on the ground he punched me in the head about six times, it bruised up the whole side of my face and head quite badly.
‘‘Then he pepper sprayed me as well. He didn’t give me any warning about it.’’
Pogan said he had bad cystic acne on his back and was covered in blood and ‘‘in agony’’.
He took responsibility for his actions on the day but wanted to see police held to account as well. ‘you’re on the