Police trifecta: Chanel Ruri joins her two sisters as police officers to make Aotearoa a safer place

Blue bloods: Wāhine Māori sisters Briahn, Chanel and Geneva Ruri are all sworn police officers.

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Chanel Ruri and her sisters, Briahn and Geneva, have a lot in common — same mum, same dad, same three sisters and same brother, and now they all have the same jobs as police officers.

Chanel has just completed the trifecta, joining her sisters as police officers after graduating from December’s Wing 371 just in time to take look after New Year revellers.

Following in her sisters’ police boots was a step Chanel (Ngāpuhi) knew she would take after devoting 10 years’ service to New Zealand’s defence forces in the navy.

“I wanted to join the police a long time ago, but decided to join the navy and get some travel in,” Chanel, 31, told the Herald. “But I always knew I would join and move back home to Northland.

“The navy was a great career path to police because it taught me discipline and respect.

“Plus once my daughter came along, my partner, who was also in the navy, decided it was time to leave the navy and start a different journey.”

Chanel said having a child also gave her a different outlook on life.

“It’s the classic story that I have always wanted to contribute to keep New Zealand safe for my daughter,” Chanel said.

She also has personal reasons for wanting to make Aotearoa a safer place for everyone.

“I have two sisters who have mental health issues. One was diagnosed with schizophrenia and another who was recently diagnosed bipolar. So that’s a direction I would like to take,” Ruri said,

From the Hokianga, Chanel comes from a tight-knit whānau and her younger sister “snuck into police in June” knowing she was going to join, she said with a laugh.

“I was waiting for my daughter to turn 2, and that happened this year.”

Graduates of Police Wing 37.

Chanel said it was important for Māori to be part of the New Zealand police. In her graduating wing, Pākehā made up 71 per cent of the wing, with Māori 16.1 per cent, Pasifika 8.1 per cent, and Asian 4.8 per cent of the 62 graduates.

“It is important we have joined as we are Māori and unfortunately, a lot of the crime is from Māori people,” Chanel said.

“It is important to represent Māori in a positive way so we can relate more to our community. We also had a good upbringing, even though my dad wasn’t around much. He passed in 2014, but we were brought up by our mum who is very proud.”

Briahn, who is based in Kaitāia, joined the police in 2018; Geneva, the youngest and based in Whangārei, in June 2023; and Chanel, who will also be based in Whangārei, in December 2023.

Joseph Los’e joined NZME in 2022 as kaupapa Māori editor. Los’e was a chief reporter, news director at the Sunday News newspaper covering crime, justice and sport. He was also editor of the NZ Truth and, prior to joining NZME, worked for 12 years for Te Whānau o Waipareira.