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The government's mathematics experts have apologised for getting their sums wrong when working out the country's burglary hotspots.
Statistics New Zealand data published in last week's Herald on Sunday incorrectly identified Waitakere City as the country's worst area for break-ins.
The table was worked out using the wrong set of population figures and neighbouring Auckland City was actually hardest hit by burglars in the first half of last year. Statistics NZ has acknowledged and apologised for the error.
"The crime statistics are correct but they were matched incorrectly with the regional population data, to give an inaccurate rate of burglaries per regional population," a spokeswoman said.
"Statistics NZ has internal procedures to ensure correct analysis of statistics. On this occasion the standard quality assurance process was not followed.
"Statistics NZ seeks to maintain the highest standard of quality and accuracy in the release of official statistics and regrets the misinformation these figures have caused."
Waitakere's top police officer, Superintendent Bill Searle, said there were 1407 burglaries reported to Waitakere Police for the six-month period to June 2008, 993 residential with the remainder commercial. A population of 186,318, as indicated in the 2006 Census, meant a ratio of one burglary per 132 people, not per 35, as indicated by Statistics NZ.
Searle said Waitakere Police has several strategies to effectively address burglary and to ensure community safety.
"We constantly use our intelligence and information resources to assess what is happening in the criminal sector... to combat such crime. Burglary and property crime is a priority for us."
Statistics NZ has provided a new set of figures using slightly different methodology. The Waitemata police district, of which Waitakere is part, had one of the best records, with an estimated 53.9 burglaries per 10,000 people or one per every 186.
