Top cop cleared on sex charges
A top cop has been found not guilty of indecently assaulting two women.
Kevin Stephen Burke, a detective inspector in Northland, has been on trial for two-and-a-half weeks over sexual allegations.
Yesterday, the jury returned its verdicts in the High Court at Auckland on the two charges of indecent assault and two counts of sexual violation by unlawful sexual connection.
The 61-yearold’s charges related to two separate women’s allegations.
“This is largely a he-said, she-said case,” Justice Sarah Katz said before the jury began deliberating.
It took them about three hours to reach their unanimous decisions of not guilty on all four charges.
The accusations stemmed from when Burke was an Auckland detective in 2002 and 2003.
Both women claimed they met him during separate criminal investigations he was involved in.
Crown prosecutor Jo Murdoch had told the jury the two women — who are unconnected — came from “very different worlds and led very different lives”.
“The Crown says the complainants have one thing in common — the defendant sexually assaulted them after they put their trust and confidence in him.”
Burke claimed the sexual contact with the first complainant was consensual and that he had no sexual contact with the second.