Press Release – New Zealand Police
Police acknowledge the findings by the Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) relating to the care of a man who was taken into Police custody in September 2019.
Police had been called to an address in Manurewa after the man was reported to have been shouting, swearing, and possibly assaulting his partner.
When our officers arrived at the scene, they found the man asleep on the driveway.
Once woken, he became aggressive and uncooperative.
Police were told he was possibly under the influence of drugs.
Officers attempted to call for an ambulance but were told it was going to take some time to arrive.
Photo: RNZ / Richard Tindiller
In September 2019, police were called to a house in the South Auckland suburb of Manurewa, where a drunken man was shouting, swearing and smashing his head against a wall.
When officers arrived, the Independent Police Conduct Authority said the man was asleep on the driveway, snoring loudly.
Once he woke up, he became aggressive and uncooperative. Officers were told he was possibly under the influence of drugs.
The man was placed in handcuffs, but he then tried to bang his head on a fence and hit his head on the concrete driveway, the IPCA said.
He was taken to the police cells, but the IPCA said he should have been taken straight to hospital.