Cops acquitted after smoking text messages seized cannabis

– By RNZ

Two policemen who sent text messages about smoking cannabis that they had confiscated from a member of the public were acquitted of any crime.

Police said the two Waitematā district officers did not smoke cannabis, but instead participated in an “unprofessional text message exchange and were spoken to.”

The police refused to release the investigation file on the matter after a request under the Official Information Law, citing privacy reasons.

“The police have weighed the public interest in having the public know the detail and the outcome of internal investigations against the privacy of the individuals involved. In weighing those competing interests, we have taken into account the fact of the Conduct Authority summary Police, that already the public arena, and the fact that the IPCA, as an organ of control of police conduct, was satisfied that an appropriate result had been applied, “said a police spokesman.

The IPCA said the officers’ text messages were found during an unrelated investigation.

Police said the text messages are “personal information.” A police spokesman could not say whether the messages were sent and received on mobile devices issued by the police.

“The police thoroughly investigated these allegations and found that they were not true,” said Waitematā District Superintendent Commander Naila Hassan.

“There was no evidence that any crime had occurred and the IPCA supervised this investigation.”