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Hamilton Press A Hamilton woman responsible for one of three false rape complaints made in the space of a week last November has been prosecuted for wasting police time. Police last week warned anyone who makes a false rape complaint and wastes valuable police time and resources, runs the risk of prosecution. Decisions to prosecute were made on a case-by-case basis and are more likely to be acted upon. The woman, Kohine Dallas Pania Turanga, 41, appeared in the Hamilton District Court charged with attempting to pervert the course of justice arising from a rape complaint made in November last year. Detective senior sergeant Chris Page said the woman alleged she was raped after an offender forced his way into her Albert St flat. This was proven to be untrue. "A large amount of police and ESR (Environmental Science and Research) resources and time were put into the investigation. Media coverage was significant as police were dealing with a number of rape allegations. This case proved to be the third false rape complaint in that week." Mr Page said he was disappointed that the time of specialist doctors, forensic experts and detectives had been wasted. "It's even more frustrating when real complaints had to be sidelined to deal with this and other false allegations. The detrimental impact is far-reaching and precious time can not afford to be wasted. Instances like these are an insult to the real victims police work closely with," he said. However, three rape complaints that make up Operation Phil file are still under investigation and police are committed to locating the offender, he said. Also in November last year a Japanese woman, attempting to get the attention of her ex-boyfriend, claimed she was dragged into a van in the central city and raped by a group of men. Chie Ikee, 21, appeared in the Hamilton District Court in November charged with making a false complaint. The Court was told police had spent 90 hours investigating her complaint and sought $12,378 in reparation. However Ikee had no money and her mother had paid for a ticket home. |
