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Police used tasers and pepper-spray when they arrested a gang associate in Inglewood in May, 2020.
The police watchdog has found officers were justified in their use of force when a gang associate was tasered three times and pepper-sprayed during his arrest in 2020.
The man complained to the Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) about his treatment during the arrest but in a decision released this month authority chair Judge Colin Doherty said that while the force used was “considerable and prolonged” it was “necessary and proportionate” given the man’s strong resistance.
On the day of his arrest the man, who was regarded by police as one of its top five priority violent offenders and was wanted for recall for prison, had already been on the run for eight months and fled officers several times before.
About 4pm on May 21, 2020, six officers including a dog handler surrounded a house in Inglewood, Taranaki. When police knocked on the door, the man jumped out a window and tried to get to a car parked in the driveway.
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The man moved towards one officer aggressively, and the officer fired his taser twice as the man reached a narrow gap between the car and fence. The second attempt hit the man, but he ripped out the taser probes and tried to open the car door, keys in hand, then fell onto his back.
Officers tried to control the man while he kicked out and resisted violently. The man was tasered again, but he again pulled out the probes.
As officers tried to handcuff the man he was put in a headlock, pepper sprayed and given a five-second contact stun from a taser before he was brought sufficiently under control to transport to the police station.
Even then, the man attempted to open the door of the moving police car during to escape and needed to be pepper sprayed again.
Phil Reid/Stuff
The man was tasered three times during the arrest – force the IPCA said was “justified” given the circumstances.
In its decision, the IPCA found the use of significant force was justified to prevent the man from escaping custody.
He was powerful and muscular, and fought against police for approximately three minutes before being restrained, it said.
He was wanted for serious offences and had successfully evaded police several times already, placing the public and officers at risk during these attempts. He posed an ongoing risk while he remained at large, the IPCA said.
The man complained that he was kicked in the head four times by police.
Footage of the arrest found an officer put his foot on the man’s shoulder and neck while he was on the ground to restrain him but the IPCA said this was a reasonable option in the specific circumstances. There is no evidence of a deliberate kick.
In an emailed statement in response to the decision, Central District Commander Superintendent Scott Fraser said police acknowledged the findings of an IPCA report.
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