As put by Superintendent Shanan Gray, Relieving District Commander Waitematā:
Police acknowledge the IPCA’s findings into an incident last year where a man was inadvertently able to self-harm while in police custody.
The incident occurred on 8 October 2022 at the Waitakere District Court Custody Unit, after a man in custody was found unconscious and unresponsive.
Earlier in the day, custody staff had provided the man with an unlabelled eye dropper bottle from his property that he claimed to contain eye drops liquid.
This bottle was left in the man’s possession, and he ingested the contents of the bottle which later was found to have contained the drug GBL.
In its report, the IPCA found the two Police staff failed in their duty of care. While Police policy allows for access to medicines, in this case correct policy was not followed in allowing the bottle to be accessed in the custody area.
Police acknowledge and accept the Authority’s findings in this case.
A critical incident investigation was commenced by Police and the report is being finalised.
A full review around the process of managing prisoner property was also carried out, and Police have implemented several learnings identified as a result.
This includes a full training package being developed highlighting the risks of GBL, particularly for persons in custody. Steps have been taken to improve supervision at the Custody Units in Waitematā District.
One of the two staff involved remains employed by New Zealand Police.
