Cop flirted with rape accuser

Officer teases woman by saying they had met on '0800 Hot Cops'.

An Auckland cop has landed himself in hot water, accused of flirting with a rape complainant.

The officer met the woman while investigating allegations she had been raped and beaten in her Auckland home. A few weeks later the officer saw the woman at a party and when a friend went to introduce the pair, he allegedly said he already knew her as she had "called 0800 Hot Cops the other day".

Inspector Keith Brady -- officer in charge of Counties Manukau police's professional conduct office -- confirmed to the Herald on Sunday an investigation into the officer's behaviour "did find a breach of the Police Code of Conduct". But police bosses have refused to reveal what punishment, if any, was imposed on the officer, a stance slammed by Rape Prevention Education survivor advocate Louise Nicholas and Labour MP Carmel Sepuloni.

Brady said the woman did not want any media attention so police would withhold specifics about her complaint. He would not reveal details about the officer's disciplinary process because it was an employment investigation and the privacy of the officer had to be protected.

"The officer still works for Counties Manukau District, that's about as much as I can provide you."

It is understood the officer has been in the force for 10 years and was a constable at the time of the 2012 incident.

The woman involved told the Herald on Sunday earlier this year police asked her whether she wanted to lay an official complaint after Sepuloni posted the details of the incident on Facebook.

Sepuloni would not reveal whether police had kept the woman updated with the disciplinary process but she was critical of the police not publicly revealing those details.

"He acted with an appalling lack of judgment and it was highly unethical behaviour," she said.

"If there is transparency and it is in the public interest, which I think it is, then we should know what action has been taken so we can have faith in our police system."

Nicholas said the officer should have been stood down and, at the very least, the public had a right to know whether he was still working with survivors of sexual violence or with women. "It is in the public interest to know what is happening with this officer."

She added police had become more "victim focused" and the culture of police mishandling complaints from sexual assault victims, as detailed in Dame Margaret Bazley's 2007 Police Commission of Inquiry, was mostly gone.

"I know there are still pockets of it. That's something police need to deal with as it comes up in such a way that it's not looking like a cover-up. It's disappointing not knowing where the officer is. Why is it such a secret? It's a bit scary."

Officer quits before inquiry

A male police officer who allegedly filmed himself in a sex act with a colleague in work time has resigned before completion of an internal investigation.

Earlier this year, Sergeant Neil Barton and Jo Rankin allegedly tried to entice a colleague into a sexual tryst by sending her lewd footage. Both were stood down on full pay in March during an employment investigation.

Auckland Central police spokeswoman Noreen Hegarty confirmed Barton resigned on October 1.

"Consequently, the employment investigation has ceased and we have no further comment on the matter," she said.

Rankin, who had worked for police for 12 years and was the second-in-charge of the file management centre at Auckland Central police station, resigned in April.