This abuse of legal and police power is jaw dropping…
High-profile Crown prosecutor concealed meeting with secret witness in murder case
A top Crown Solicitor tried to hide the fact he met a secret jailhouse witness who was offering evidence about an unsolved murder.
Ben Vanderkolk, Palmerston North’s Crown Solicitor, requested the police officer accompanying him not to record that he and another Crown prosecutor, Debbie Davies, were at the 80-minute prison meeting in February 2018.
Vanderkolk’s presence was kept hidden for five years, despite numerous attempts by the court and lawyers to ensure all information about the jailhouse informant had been disclosed.
It was only revealed last month when the police officer’s original notebook was finally released.
…Let me get this completely straight.
Senior Crown prosecutor Ben Vanderkolk admitted to concealing crucial evidence in a murder trial which was his presence during a jail house snitch deal that gained a massive discount in sentence in return for evidence that sent someone to prison!
What. The. Fuck???
Why was this hidden?
Why was a Senior Crown prosecutor present during a jailhouse snitch deal?
Why? Why? Why?
The events were revealed last week at a High Court hearing, where lawyers for two men charged with the 2016 murder of Palmiro MacDonald were seeking $250,000 costs for numerous alleged breaches of legal requirements by police and Vanderkolk.
The two men, Chea Brattle-Hemara and Joseph Johnson, eventually had the charges against them dismissed.
A third man accused of the murder, William Hines, had charges against him withdrawn before his trial.
The murder remains unsolved.
This is an extraordinary abuse of legal power.
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So is this the same police force which stood by and watched or sat in cars and watched while biological women were intimidated and jeered at and jostled and struck by transgender activists in Auckland when all they wanted was the chance to stand to stand up and speak? These police?
This story represents true journalism and is sadly lacking these days. in our press .
There are more bent coppers than a number of people might imagine. In my personal experience too. From teen years as a Queen St late night V8 driver, to violent union pickets, busting up peaceful protests to now, I have seen how they rely on the ”three Bs”–Bravado, Breaking Bones and Bullying (and Batons, Taser and Pepper of course).
NZ Police Culture is rotten, racist and macho. They are still pursuing pardoned Arthur Thomas for crissakes! They fitted up Scott Watson and hundreds of others that the public can get some handle on, and statistically probably thousands in Jail over the years should never have been there.
An ex cop I know was finally retired early after his misdemeanours piled up. He turned off the video in an interview and threatened the suspect with a beating if he did not cough, but the audio was not turned off and it went to IPCA. Last year he leant on a prosecutor to let his business partners son off an assault charge, again before the IPCA. The cops only let him go because senior officers are not meant to run commercial enterprises while a sworn officer! rather than the substantive matter.
Wake up NZers–the cops are not your friends.
Corruption in the judicial system is extremely corrosive.
Any lawyer abusing the rules should be struck off.
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