Force Used to Remove Man From Lower Hutt Bus Justified

The Independent Police Conduct Authority has found that Police were justified in using force to take a man off a bus and into custody after he had been arrested but refused to cooperate. The man later complained to the Authority about Police's actions.

The incident occurred at about 9:30pm on 16 June 2025, when Police were called to a hotel where a man was allegedly behaving aggressively. Two officers saw the man walking away from the hotel and followed him towards a bus stop. One officer caught up with the man and told him he was under arrest for disorderly behaviour. The other officer organised for a third officer to bring copies of an existing temporary protection order and trespass notice to their location, so that these documents could be served on the man.

The man would not cooperate and boarded a bus. He then refused to accept service of the documents and would not get off the bus. Officers attempted to manhandle the man off the bus, and an officer sprayed him twice in the face at close range (less than one metre). The officers eventually removed the man from the bus and restrained him at the bus stop while awaiting transport to the Police station.

The man complained that Police were unprofessional, antagonistic, that they used excessive force against him resulting in dental injuries, and that they did not respond appropriately when he complained he could not breathe properly while being restrained.

What happened on the bus and afterwards at the bus stop was captured on the bus's CCTV camera.

We found that the officers were justified in using force (including pepper spray) to arrest and secure the man. However, we identified that the officer sprayed the man too close to his face which was inherently dangerous and contrary to policy. We also found that two of the officers used unprofessional language during the incident.

We were satisfied that the officers provided appropriate aftercare to the man and that there was no evidence to support the man's complaint that officers' actions caused damage to his teeth.

In our view, much of this incident could have been avoided if officers had taken more decisive action at an earlier stage. We acknowledge that the officers involved have used this incident as a learning opportunity.

Public Report