Shock as film of boy left at gang pad airs

The Ministry of Children in Hawke’s Bay has been thrown into a second public crisis in just over a week after the Facebook posting of a video claiming a caregiver dropped a boy at a gang pad to scare him.

A staff member of the Ministry, otherwise known as Oranga Tamariki, took a boy aged 13-14 years to a gang pad in Hastings on Thursday, people close to the child told Hawke’s Bay Today last night.

It is understood the staff member has been involved in the care of the boy including at a little-known residential facility in the city.

The Ministry wouldn’t confirm if the boy had indeed been dropped off at a gang pad.

A video posted by a Hastings man was viewed at least 10,000 times before it was removed on Thursday night.

Ministry deputy chief executive Alison McDonald said Oranga Tamariki was “very concerned” about the video, because it identified the boy and revealed other details which breached privacy and could pose harm to others.

She said the person who posted the video had removed it from social media and apologised for identifying the boy.

“We are very concerned that this video identifies the boy, and mentions various names and locations openly in the recording,” she said.

She urged people not to circulate the video.

“Our priority is the safety of the young person and as soon as we were alerted to this issue, Oranga Tamariki staff quickly confirmed that he was safe and with wha¯nau,” McDonald said, adding that while facts were being established Oranga Tamariki was not in a position to comment further.

Expressing his frustration, the man who posted the video said he was not a “patch member” and expressed his anger at what had happened. “I understand he’s made mistakes in his life, but he’s a young fella. It's not his f ***ing fault.”

The boy, who gave the first name of caregiver, said she threatened to send him to the pad if he “kept getting cheeky”.

“And then she ended up turning around and taking me to the pad,” the boy said.

Last week Oranga Tamariki came under fire after an attempt to remove a newborn child from its mother in Hawke’s Bay Hospital.