The Independent Police Conduct Authority has found that a Police officer was justified in using force to defend himself
when he was accosted as he arrested a man in central North Island.
The officer attended a house to arrest the man for breaching his electronic bail monitoring conditions.
When the officer made the arrest, another man present physically intervened. Fearing that he was about to be assaulted,
the officer punched the second man and a scuffle broke out between the two. The second man then ran inside the house,
locking the door behind him.
The officer aimed pepper spray at the second man through an open window, and then broke a glass panel on the door to
gain entry, only to find the man had escaped through a back window.
The Authority is satisfied the officer was justified in using the force he did in self-defence and that the force was
reasonable in the circumstances. We also found that the officer’s entry into the house was lawful.