Green MP Golriz Ghahraman overseas as police investigate shoplifting allegations at Ponsonby boutique

Green MP Golriz Ghahraman is overseas as she faces allegations of shoplifting from an upmarket Auckland clothing boutique, the Herald can reveal.

Ghahraman left New Zealand in the days after the alleged incident on a trip the Green Party says was pre-planned.

A man at Ghahraman’s Auckland home this afternoon told the Herald she was travelling with friends.

The prominent MP and human rights lawyer has not been charged but police have confirmed they received a report of alleged shoplifting at Scotties Boutique on Blake Street in Ponsonby on December 23.

“Initial inquiries are still being made into this report and police are not able to comment further at this stage,” a police spokesperson said.

A Green Party spokesman said Ghahraman is “overseas on a personal trip that was planned many months ago”.

A staff member at Scotties said they were unable to comment today.

The store earlier declined to provide specific details but confirmed an incident was being handled by police.

Scotties Boutique in Ponsonby. Photo / Jason Oxenham

On Wednesday, Newstalk ZB Plus revealed Ghahraman had stepped aside from her shadow political portfolios after the shoplifting allegations.

Her portfolios for the Green Party included justice, foreign affairs, defence, ethnic communities, and trade.

The Green Party said it was aware of the allegations and said the MP “will stand aside from all portfolio responsibilities until the matter is resolved”.

Golriz Ghahraman at the Lula Inn in central Auckland for the Green Party's election night event on October 14. Photo / Michael Craig

Before Iran-born Ghahraman became New Zealand’s first MP who was previously a refugee, she was a human rights lawyer.

In 2017, Ghahraman became embroiled in controversy amid allegations she and her party misrepresented her work on war crimes tribunals. Commentators said she and leader James Shaw played down her defence role while inaccurately stating she worked as a prosecutor.

In the 2023 election, Ghahraman was ranked at number seven on the Green Party’s list.

Early in 2020, Ghahraman opened up about her multiple sclerosis (MS) diagnosis. She told TV3′s The Project she had learned of her condition two years earlier when she began to lose sight in one eye.

She said she was on “hardcore medication” and had to visit a hospital every six months.

George Block is an Auckland-based reporter with a focus on police, the courts, prisons and defence. He joined the Herald in 2022 and has previously worked at Stuff in Auckland and the Otago Daily Times in Dunedin.