“The alleged perpetrator was immediately secured and placed on directed segregation.”
Looking for answers
Detective Senior Sergeant Martin Friend told RNZ the victim died in Auckland City Hospital on Tuesday.
Police have continued inquiries since late November, which will now become a homicide inquiry.
“Our thoughts are with the man’s family at this difficult time,” Friend said.
Police inquiries into the man’s death would continue, with results of a post-mortem examination pending.
MECF acting general manager Edith Pattinson acknowledged the man’s death had been a “difficult and distressing time for his loved ones and our thoughts remain with them”.
“Police are investigating and Corrections is also carrying out a full review into this incident. An investigation by the independent Corrections Inspectorate will also be carried out. If these investigations and reviews identify areas where we need to strengthen our processes, we are absolutely committed to acting on these with urgency.
“We can confirm the victim was in a shared cell and that the suitability of this placement is part of our review into this matter. Understandably, the victim’s family will have questions they would like answered. We have been in regular contact with the man’s family, and once our review is complete we will share the findings of this with them when we’re able to do so.”
Shared cells
Corrections’ review would look into what risk assessments were done such as the Shared Accommodation Cell Risk Assessment (Sacra).
“Our frontline staff manage approximately 10,900 prisoners who are some of New Zealand’s most difficult and dangerous people.
“We take our duty to manage prisoners safely extremely seriously and are acutely aware that there have been several incidents at MECF in the past year alleged to have involved prisoners in shared cells.”
The Not to Double Bunk (NTDB) Policy has been updated in Corrections’ Prison Operations Manual to ensure staff were better supported in making informed decisions around adding, managing, and removing NTDB alerts, Pattinson said. Multi-Disciplinary Team meetings were also now required for reviewing and validating NTDB alerts.
“In addition, Corrections is undertaking a review of the Sacra process across the prison estate to ensure it is robust and as safe as possible. This review is now in its final stages, and again we are committing to acting on any changes needed with urgency.”
Corrections staff look after some of New Zealand’s most dangerous people. Photo / File
RNZ earlier revealed there had been two suspected murders, both involving double-bunked cells, in nine months at the prison.
Corrections use the Sacra tool to review the compatibility of individuals before they were placed in a shared cell.
The Sacra tool identified key risk factors to consider before placing a person in a shared cell.
If a person was deemed not suitable to double bunk, a Not to Double Bunk (NTDB) alert was activated on their profile.
Corrections custodial services commissioner Leigh Marsh earlier confirmed he requested a review of the Sacra process, which was underway.
“The review is in its early stages, so we have limited information to provide at this stage.
“However, we can confirm that our Custodial, Pae Ora and Intel teams will be considering the questions asked to inform suitability, the process to determine compatibility, and the review processes relating to Sacra. This will help inform what improvements can be made to the Sacra process.”
Corrections had also taken steps across all prison sites regarding shared cell risk assessments, including instructing that all assessments must be reviewed within 24 hours of completion to check whether any further or outstanding information had been received.
“This is because we often receive people from the courts late in the evening and information can sometimes be limited.”
By RNZ