Otago Daily Times
February 2, 2004

Commissioner accuses media of hampering inquiry
NZPA

Wellington: Police attempts to investigate historic rape allegations against three former Rotorua officers are being "hampered" by the refusal of media outlets to reveal all their information, New Zealand's police chief says.

Commissioner Rob Robinson, who announced a review of the case on Saturday, said he believed that "confusion was arising in the public mind as to the issues that required examination".

Police clarification of the issues was "hampered" by the fact the media outlets involved had not, despite his invitation last week, tabled specific allegations with police, he said in a statement yesterday.

He took particular issue with the tactic of drip-feeding information to maximise the life of the story.

The Dominion Post , which first made the allegations public on Saturday, had indicated "some serialisation of allegations was under way", with part two of their investigation to be published today, he said.

"The review will be complex, as the historical inquiries will be multifaceted," Mr Robinson said.

"The first objective is to understand all these complexities and assess them.

"When the full extent of the allegations is known, I will be able to determine whether a new investigation will be launched and investigation undertaken."

"Additional material" was coming forward, which would require consideration, and Mr Robinson said he wanted the media to table all the information they were currently holding "to ensure this process is properly informed".

The review will occur under the direction and oversight of the Police Complaints Authority.

The Dominion Post editor Tim Pankhurst declined to respond to Mr Robinson's comments last night, saying he would consider his response today and any statement would be made through the paper.

He also declined to comment on the newspaper's deal with One News to collaborate on the story.

Philip Kitchin, the reporter who has spent two years researching the story, has recently moved from The Dominion Post to One News.