NZ First wanted the SFO charges in the New Zealand First Foundation case to be kept secret until after the election

New Zealand First tried to gag the Serious Fraud Office from announcing charges in the New Zealand First Foundation case until after next month’s election.

The party sought court orders to prohibit the SFO from releasing details of the deception procurement charges, which it revealed today were brought against two defendants with name suppression.

However, a Supreme Court judge said the party’s offer was “not particularly strong” based on the evidence he could see.

“There is no evidence before me that the [SFO] The director’s decision to issue the public statement was influenced by political considerations or because the announced deadline for the completion of the investigation was set due to the elections. I accept that there is a risk of confusion and a negative impact on their electoral prospects, ”said Judge Matthew Palmer.

“However, I consider that there is a significant public interest in New Zealand’s voting public being informed during an election campaign of criminal charges of serious fraud against persons or organizations associated with political parties. Ultimately, I believe that the interest public in transparency overcomes the drawbacks of the announcement to NZ First.

“It will be up to the political system, including the media, rather than the judicial system, to ensure that the transparency of the announcement is not clouded by confusion and misinformation,” said Judge Palmer.

The decision, made by the judge last week but published publicly tonight, also revealed that NZ First’s lawyers objected to the SFO “indexing the timing of the investigation into the foundation for the election.”

“Based on public statements made by [SFO director Julie Read] We conclude that: she is expediting the investigation and impeachment decision so that it can be made before the general election, but has no intention of completing the Labor Party investigation prior to the general election. Contrary to the statement that she is acting consistently, this clearly demonstrates the inconsistency of treatment by the director between two political parties that are being investigated in relation to the same issue, “lawyers for NZ First Cook told SFO. Morris Quinn in a letter.

The SFO, in July, said it had launched an investigation into donations made to the Labor Party in 2017. It did not reveal when that investigation would conclude.

Read counterattack in response to Cook Morris Quinn: “We categorically deny that our treatment of the New Zealand First Foundation (NZFF) research was different from our treatment of the research on Labor Party donations or that it was motivated by prejudices, “she said.

“The assumptions on which it proceeds in this regard are unfounded. We note that the NZFF investigation was announced on February 18, 2020 and it was not until April 21, 2020 that a statement was made on the timeline for completion. Of the investigation.

“We will make decisions on the New Zealand First Foundation matter in accordance with our normal processes.”

Serious Fraud Investigation Findings Released: Two People Charged

Two people face charges following an investigation by the Serious Fraud Office into the NZ First Foundation.

The couple has been accused of obtaining by deception. The charges were filed on September 23.

“The defendants have provisional name suppression and therefore cannot be named or identified at this time,” the SFO said in a statement.

“We note, however, that none of the defendants is a minister, sitting deputy or candidate in the next election (or a member of their staff), or a current member of the First New Zealand party.”

NZ First leader Winston Peters says all party deputies and ministers, candidates and employees were cleared of wrongdoing: “No party member has been implicated or charged by the OFS,” he told reporters.

The SFO charges were now a sub judice issue, and Peters said he could not answer whether the two people facing charges were ever members of the party.

I would not say if I knew the two accused persons.

He said the timing of the decision to press charges against two NZ First Foundation defendants was “a terrible intrusion” and a “misjudgment on the level of James Comey.”

“The OFS cannot justify the timing of its decision.”

It was a day before overseas voting began and a few days before advanced voting began, he said.

The distinction that the party was “completely separate” from the foundation would be lost for some, he said.