Latest news with #policedirective
RNZ News
27-05-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
'Giving liberty to the criminals': Shopkeeper speaks out on police memo
Police Commissioner Richard Chambers has tried to reassure the public after the police directive was leaked. Photo: RNZ/Calvin Samuel The Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says he expects police to tackle crime everywhere as he and Police Commissioner moves to reassure the public about a new police directive that's sparked confusion among police and caused concern among shop owners. The directive told officers not to investigate allegations of shoplifting below $500. While petrol drive offs below $150 and online scams under a $1000 would also not be investigated. After attracting some not-too-favourable headlines , the move was slammed by the police commissioner who labelled it "confusing and unhelpful". While the Prime Minister says the memo got it wrong and was not appropriate. Hamilton dairy owner Manish Thakkar said the police directive gave shoplifters a free pass. "We are giving liberty to the criminals, 'come and steal up to $500, you are free to go', so that is wrong," he said. He said all offenders should be treated equally. "Whether it is 500 or a thousand [dollars], their intention is to steal from the property, so all criminals should be taken equally, and the should be punishable, they are punishable." Thakkar said crime - even crime that was perceived to be on a small -scale - had a financial impact on business owners and their emotional state. "If a shop keeper, retailer, is fearless, he can happily enjoy his business and he can happily think about his prosperity, what next I can do for my future growth," he said. "Right now, that [...] has been wiped out." Liquor shop owner Ash Parmar said retailers needed confidence that reported crimes are being followed up. "They just need to do a much more better demonstration of giving retailers confidence," he said. "I'm aware of countless examples where high levels of thefts have happened, and the follow up has been very less than ideal, especially when so much footage has been uploaded." He was asking questions about whether the current 105 method for reporting was up to scratch. In Wellington, Ngaio GAS petrol Julian, who didn't want his surname published, said the rule change was quite unfair, as most drive-offs were under the new $150 threshold. He was worried about busier stores. "We are community based, we are not on the main road, so we kind of carry a lower risk," he said. "However, for those petrol stations located on the main road they will be targeted again, there will be so much petrol drive offs with this." The concern from these shop owners comes after RNZ obtained an internal police memo telling staff that said they would no longer be investigating allegations of shoplifting below $500, petrol drive offs below a $150 and online frauds below a $1000. Police Director of Service Superintendant Blair McDonald confirmed on Monday there would be a financial threshold for investigating crimes - saying they must prioritise what resources they have. But the Police Commissioner said the memo was confusing and unhelpful. Richard Chambers released a statement saying retail crime is a top priority. He said he'd asked all district commanders to continue to catch offenders wherever possible, regardless of the memo's thresholds. Speaking in Auckland on Tuesday, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said he expected police to tackle crime everywhere. "We're a party of law and order, we expect our police to tackle crime everywhere, and that's good to see him clarify that this morning." While the police commissioner hasn't said whether the directive will be reversed, the Prime Minister said the Commissioner's words offered clarity. "It's good to see It's good to see the Police Commissioner quickly correct the memo that went out, that was wrong and not appropriate," Luxon said. "We want our police helping New Zealanders, protecting and serving us, and hunting down crime in all sorts and all types." But there were those who needed convincing. The Sensible Sentencing Trust called reports of the directive 'disturbing'. Spokesperson Louise Parsons condemned the move, saying it sent the wrong message. "The past five or six years, retailers have been hit with an onslaught of crime, and now they're being told that crimes under certain thresholds are essentially not worth investigating," she said. "This is a green light to criminals," The directive flied in the face of work already done by the Ministerial Advisory Group on Retail Crime, Parsons said. "If we let this stand, it could undo all the progress we've worked so hard to achieve."
RNZ News
27-05-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
Watch: Police Commissioner on controversial shoplifting directive
Police Commissioner Richard Chambers has called the memo confusing and unhelpful. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi Police Commissioner Richard Chambers is talking to media this afternoon about a controversial new police directive, as the prime minister says he expects police to tackle crime everywhere. Watch a live stream of the commissioner's media conference, due to start at 4.30pm, here: The directive told officers not to investigate allegations of shoplifting below $500, while petrol drive offs below $150 and online scams under $1000 also not be investigated. Chambers has called the memo confusing and unhelpful, but has not said if he will reverse the directive. It has drawn concerns from business and advocates, including the Sensible Sentencing Trust, who described reports of the directive as disturbing. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has said says he expects police to tackle crime everywhere, and that the memo got it wrong and was not appropriate. Hamilton dairy owner Manish Thakkar said the police directive gave shoplifters a free pass. "We are giving liberty to the criminals, 'come and steal up to $500, you are free to go', so that is wrong," he said. He said all offenders should be treated equally. "Whether it is 500 or a thousand [dollars], their intention is to steal from the property, so all criminals should be taken equally, and the should be punishable, they are punishable." Thakkar said crime - even crime that was perceived to be on a small -scale - had a financial impact on business owners and their emotional state. "If a shop keeper, retailer, is fearless, he can happily enjoy his business and he can happily think about his prosperity, what next I can do for my future growth," he said. "Right now, that [...] has been wiped out." Liquor shop owner Ash Parmar said retailers needed confidence that reported crimes are being followed up. "They just need to do a much more better demonstration of giving retailers confidence," he said. "I'm aware of countless examples where high levels of thefts have happened, and the follow up has been very less than ideal, especially when so much footage has been uploaded." He was asking questions about whether the current 105 method for reporting was up to scratch. In Wellington, Ngaio GAS petrol worker Julian - who did not want his surname published - said the rule change was quite unfair, as most drive-offs were under the new $150 threshold. He was worried about busier stores. "We are community based, we are not on the main road, so we kind of carry a lower risk," he said. "However, for those petrol stations located on the main road they will be targeted again, there will be so much petrol drive offs with this." Police Director of Service Superintendant Blair McDonald confirmed on Monday there would be a financial threshold for investigating crimes - saying they must prioritise what resources they have. But the police commissioner released a statement saying retail crime is a top priority. He said he'd asked all district commanders to continue to catch offenders wherever possible, regardless of the memo's thresholds. Speaking in Auckland on Tuesday, Luxon said he welcomed the commissioner's statement this morning. "We're a party of law and order, we expect our police to tackle crime everywhere, and that's good to see him clarify that this morning. "We want our police helping New Zealanders, protecting and serving us, and hunting down crime in all sorts and all types." But there were those who needed convincing. The Sensible Sentencing Trust called reports of the directive "disturbing". Spokesperson Louise Parsons condemned the move, saying it sent the wrong message. "The past five or six years, retailers have been hit with an onslaught of crime, and now they're being told that crimes under certain thresholds are essentially not worth investigating," she said. "This is a green light to criminals." The directive flew in the face of work already done by the Ministerial Advisory Group on Retail Crime, Parsons said. "If we let this stand, it could undo all the progress we've worked so hard to achieve." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
26-05-2025
- RNZ News
Police Commissioner slams shoplifting directive as 'confusing and unhelpful'
Police Commissioner Richard Chambers says the directive sent to staff was "confusing and unhelpful". Photo: RNZ/Calvin Samuel The Police Commissioner says a directive sent to staff about not investigating retail crime below certain thresholds was "confusing and unhelpful". He has asked for a reminder to be issued to all district commanders that they should continue to catch offenders wherever possible, regardless of the memo's thresholds. RNZ revealed last week a directive was recently sent to staff relating to police's File Management Centre (FMC) titled 'Assignment Changes - Theft and Fraud'. The directive said that from 26 March the FMC was applying "nationally standardised value thresholds" when assessing theft and fraud files. The value thresholds are - general theft $200, petrol drive off $150, shoplifting $500, fraud (paywave, online, scam etc) $1000, and all other fraud $500. "When assessing files with these offences, you will apply the relevant value threshold and file any file under that threshold regardless of any lines of enquiry or IFA score." The police instructions relating to Case Management define an IFA score as "a numeric value derived from a series of weighted factors which gives an indication of the solvability of the case, based on the presence or absence of certain key lines of enquiry". Police Commissioner Richard Chambers said in a statement to RNZ that he wanted to reassure the retail community and the public that retail crime is one of his top priorities. Chambers said the wrong message had been sent to the retail community and the public about the Police approach as a result of confusion about the memo which referred to thresholds for retail crime. "I have made retail crime one of the priorities for the Police executive and that means increasing the focus on it. The memo has been confusing and unhelpful and does not meet my expectations on retail crime or the expectations of the retail community." He had asked for a reminder to be issued to all district commanders that they should continue to catch offenders wherever possible, regardless of the memo's thresholds. "It is my expectation police continue to work hard to catch offenders wherever possible. Our role is to enforce the law. If we were to take our focus off that, we are giving license to offenders to commit crime. That will not happen. "That is important for police, for the retail community and for trust and confidence with the wider public." "Retail crime is increasing and we are working closely with the retail community to address it. I want them to have confidence that we will continue to do so." He said there were examples of successful approaches to retail crime, such as in Tauranga and Gisborne where a combination of dedicated teams, highly visible beat police and close work with the retail community had paid dividends. Victims and Resolutions executive director service Rachael Bambery said district commanders were being reminded today that districts continued to have discretion to investigate crimes, taking into account the context and available resources. "Early case closure is not final as new information and patterns often allow Police to revisit cases, for example where a small number of offenders can be linked to multiple offences." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
26-05-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
Retail NZ wants meeting with police minister over police shoplifting change
Retail New Zealand wants an urgent meeting with the police minister over concerns retail crimes under a certain value may not not be investigated. Checkpoint has seen a police directive to staff that said they will no longer be investigating allegations of shoplifting below $500, petrol drive-offs below $150, and online frauds below $1000 regardless of lines of inquiry as part of a new nationwide directive. Police director of Service Superintendent Blair Macdonald spoke to Lisa Owen. Tags: To embed this content on your own webpage, cut and paste the following: See terms of use.
RNZ News
26-05-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
Retail NZ wants 'urgent meeting' with police minister over police shoplifting change
Police Minister Mark Mitchell at a media stand-up after the crime statistics were released on 15 April 2025. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi Retail NZ is seeking an "urgent meeting" with the Police Minister after RNZ revealed a police directive to staff said they would no longer be investigating allegations of shoplifting below $500 regardless of lines of inquiry as part of a new nationwide directive. The directive, sent to staff in March, has sparked confusion about the reality of the situation, with police conceding on Friday that while the wording of the directive "could have been clearer" police would continue to investigate reports if there are avenues of inquiry to explore. RNZ has seen a directive that was recently sent to staff relating to police's File Management Centre (FMC) titled 'Assignment Changes - Theft and Fraud'. The directive said that from 26 March the FMC was applying "nationally standardised value thresholds" when assessing theft and fraud files. The value thresholds are - general theft $200, petrol drive off $150, shoplifting $500, fraud (paywave, online, scam etc) $1000, and all other fraud $500. "When assessing files with these offences, you will apply the relevant value threshold and file any file under that threshold regardless of any lines of enquiry or IFA score." Do you know more? Email The police instructions relating to Case Management define an IFA score as "a numeric value derived from a series of weighted factors which gives an indication of the solvability of the case, based on the presence or absence of certain key lines of enquiry". Retail NZ advocacy manager Ann-Marie Johnson told RNZ on Monday the organisation was seeking an "urgent meeting" with Police Minister Mark Mitchell to discuss the directive further "and to understand if anything has changed in the police's approach to retail crime". "In an ideal world, police would have the resources to attend and investigate every report of crime. Unfortunately retailers know this is not the case. Retail NZ has consistently advocated for police to have more resourcing. "We have also formed a working group comprising a number of large retailers which is developing agreed approaches to crime prevention measures including legislative change and technology like Facial Recognition Technology." Retail NZ chief executive Carolyn Young is a member of the Ministerial Advisory Group for the victims of retail crime. Johnson said Retail NZ recently published a report which identified that 99 percent of respondents, representing more than 1500 stores across New Zealand and online, experienced some form of retail crime or anti-social behaviour. There were more than 140,000 incidents through 2023-24. "The incidents ranged from credit card fraud and shoplifting through to threatening behaviour, criminal damage and physical assault." Johnson said about 40 percent of the retail crimes were not reported to police. "There were a range of reasons why respondents did not report incidents to police, such as low value items not being worth the effort; the retailer discovered the offence too late or dealt with it directly. Some also raised concerns that Police would not do anything." Retail NZ continued to encourage members to report all crime incidents to the police, regardless of the scale of the offending, Johnson said. "Our understanding is that all reports of retail crime are sent to the National Retail Investigative Support Unit so that they can track the full extent of retail crime, supporting Police to assign appropriate resources and keep track of repeat offenders." She said the cost of retail crime was about $2.6 billion a year in New Zealand. "This cost flows through from retailers to customers to the New Zealand economy, and so is a major brake on the retail sector's contribution to economic growth. "Every day, retailers are dealing with threatening, violent or simply unpleasant customers, who are trying to steal or damage their property. Almost every retail worker has been affected by crime and aggression which is traumatic for those directly involved and their colleagues. This is a serious health and safety issue for retail employers." Mitchell declined to comment when approached on Friday. RNZ has requested further comment in response to Retail NZ's statement. On Friday, police's National Retail Investigation Support Manager Matt Tierney confirmed police was "standardising" its approach to reports of lower-level crime, "ensuring more consistency nationwide" and freeing up frontline staff to focus on "the most significant incidents and prolific offenders." He said there was no change to the way police assessed and responded to reports of "lower-level crime". Tierney said that if a 111 call was placed regarding an incident such as shoplifting which had just occurred, and the offender was still there or had only just left, this had always been - and would continue to be prioritised for dispatch by police. "This means that, pending availability, officers will typically be immediately dispatched. This is regardless of the value of goods taken. "However, the reality is that police cannot attend every such report right away - but we need people to keep reporting incidents to us, so we continue to have a picture of when and where offending is occurring." He said the public could be "rest assured" that each report had always been, and would continue to be, assessed on its individual merits. "Reports through 105, or Auror, where there is clear accompanying evidence to support a potential prosecution - CCTV, for example - will continue to be forwarded to Districts for further follow-up. "However, if there is no provided or potential further evidence to support a report below a certain threshold, the possible lines of enquiry are limited - meaning that unless further supporting evidence comes to light, no further action can be taken." Tierney said police knew it was "likely to be frustrating for victims" if police cannot progress their report. "We would continue to urge people to report all offending, no matter how low-level. It is this information that allows us to track patterns, and link offences together - potentially leading to significant prosecutions. "Police's focus is on holding the most harmful retail offenders to account, meaning those who are undertaking brazen and dangerous retail offending, such as aggravated robbery." Further pressed on the directive by RNZ's Checkpoint, Tierney said the value of the crime did not change the way that police investigate. Asked what police would do if the offender had left the scene after stealing $450 worth of goods and police were called, Tierney said it depended on the level of evidence available. He said the examples given in the directive would be "investigated as part of a wider investigation" into offenders when police are "looking at the offender as a whole". Tierney said the document seen by RNZ was not his document and that it was an internal email sent out by another senior police officer. Asked if police's position had changed since the directive was sent out, he said it had not. "But it needs to be read and understood in its entirety. You're focusing on the value that's not the whole entirety of the email." Asked what the purpose of supplying the dollar values was, he said Checkpoint would have to ask the author of the report. Tierney said police would be seeking prosecutions on files below the financial levels. He said the directive had been "taken out of context and possibly misunderstood". "Police will 100 percent investigate crimes, irrespective of value." "I can assure the New Zealand public that that person will be prosecuted and put before the courts. There's no change in that at all. Whether they're arrested on site or arrested later after the fact, and it could be, you know, up to a year after the fact, they'll still be held to account for whatever that value is." He said he had only been made aware of the email after RNZ made inquiries. "There's multiple 1000s of emails that go through police every day. I'm not privy to all of them, so it's not unusual, but it's good that it has come through, and we can seek clarification and we can explain how we can explain our point." In response to further questions a police spokesperson said while the wording of the directive RNZ had seen "could have been clearer", it must not be considered in isolation. "There have been a number of conversations and discussions around getting this to a nationally-consistent place. "This is more of a back-channel streamlining of initial report assessment - practically speaking, the public can be reassured that if there is something for police to follow-up with, we will do so." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
