Police accept they incorrectly charged a man with a serious sexual assault during a property viewing after a lengthy botched investigation. 

The Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) found the investigation into an alleged sexual assault at an Auckland property viewing in October 2019 was inadequate. 

Police were called by a woman who had locked herself in the bathroom during a rental property viewing, and was claiming she had been threatened and sexually assaulted by the man hosting the viewing. 

The man was taken into custody and interviewed at the Avondale Police Station. 

The IPCA found the arrest to be justified as police initially had good cause to suspect he had committed serious offences, but the following investigation and charges were inadequate. 

“While being interviewed by a trainee detective at Avondale Police Station, the man raised several matters that should have caused police to question the veracity of the woman’s statement. 

“The woman told police that, after refusing to have sex with the man, he punched her several times in the face and head, tried to remove her underwear, ripped the buttons from the front of her dress, and threatened to kill her. 

“We note that none of the officers observed any injuries on the woman and that the buttons on her dress were undone and pulled loose, but not torn off,” the IPCA said. 

The man told police he believed he was being set up by someone who had previously attempted to extort money and property out of him, and who had been charged with assaulting him. 

The IPCA found if a more thorough assessment was completed police would likely have discovered the woman’s claims at least warranted further investigation. 

Instead, the man was charged with threatening to kill and assault with the intention to commit rape, and these charges remained in place until February 2021 before being withdrawn. 

“Police could have charged the man with a lesser offence while assessing and investigating the information,” the IPCA noted. 

Throughout the police investigation, the man, his legal representatives and others raised multiple points that cast doubts about the woman’s allegations. 

It took police almost a year to review the timeline of events and to extract data from the woman’s phone, and overall the charges against the man remained before the courts for 469 days. 

Just before the man’s trial was about to start, police identified the inconsistencies in the woman’s statements, and established a connection between the woman and the person the man suspected was attempting to extort property and money from him. 

The charges against the man were withdrawn and the woman was subsequently charged with making false statements, but these charges have since been withdrawn. 

Acting Superintendent Sunny Patel said police acknowledged the man and his family suffered significant financial, emotional, and reputational damage, and accepted the IPCA’s findings. 

“While the initial arrest at the scene was justified, we accept the findings around the subsequent assessment and supervision over the case.” 

“If a more thorough assessment of the evidence had been carried out by police at the time, as required by the Solicitor-Generals’ Prosecution Guidelines, it is likely we would have discovered the woman’s allegations warranted further investigation.” 

“This ultimately meant the charges against the man were before the Courts for significantly longer than they should have been,” Patel said. 

Patel said a comprehensive review found there was a lack of oversight and guidance by the relevant supervisors, which should not have occurred. 

“This has been managed as a performance issue with the staff involved and clear expectations have been set moving forward.” 

This article was originally published on the NZ Herald here.