Police saw Asher's plea as 'rubbish'

Iraena Asher

Police officers considered Iraena Asher's plea for help as "a bit of rubbish", and thought she wanted a "free ride" home, according to the first independent report into the bungled emergency call.

The 25-year-old part-time model disappeared at Piha five hours after ringing 111 and asking police to send a patrol car to the remote beach settlement 40km west of Auckland.

She had spent Sunday, October 10, 2004 drinking with friends but rang police at 9pm saying she was being pressured for sex and did not feel safe.

The call was coded priority two - to be responded to within 30 minutes - but police decided to call her a taxi. It went to the wrong suburb and Ms Asher has never been found.

An investigation by the Police Complaints Authority released yesterday agreed with an internal police inquiry that the call was mishandled but made no recommendations.

Authority Judge Ian Borrin said problems in the police communications system had been addressed in an external review last year.

Ms Asher's parents, Mike and Betty Asher, described the report as "conservative" and said it failed to expose the true behaviour of the people involved in handling the call.

The Asher family is fighting to view all documentation held by the police and have complained to the Office of the Ombudsmen.

Judge Borrin said the dispatcher used "inappropriate and unprofessional" language and made "undignified and unprofessional" remarks when talking to a sergeant about Ms Asher's call, but the comments would not have been heard by Ms Asher.

The report does not reveal the comments, but does say the dispatcher considered her call "a bit of rubbish" and the sergeant, who had nine years' experience, thought she wanted a "free ride" home.

He suggested the dispatcher call a taxi and did not think Ms Asher was in danger because she could leave the address, "as the man she said was pressuring her for sex was in another room with someone else".

"He thought Ms Asher was looking for a free ride as a taxi from Piha to Auckland would cost over $200. He added that it 'happens a lot' that the police 'are used as a free taxi'."

An internal police inquiry found the sergeant "placed too much emphasis on Ms Asher being drunk, partying and wanting a ride home because she was stranded.

"[His role] required him to make an accurate assessment of the event, and had he done so he would have concluded that Ms Asher was in some danger and he should either have sought further information or sent a unit to establish the situation."

Mrs Asher said the family had never been told what comments had been made about Iraena.

"Of course not. They will hide that at any cost. As far as we're concerned that is something we want to pursue but we probably won't get it. [The Ombudsman] is saying we will get to see information with deletions and it's obvious that would be a deletion."

Police yesterday revealed the sergeant was given a formal warning and the dispatcher underwent counselling.

One of the men has since resigned from the police and the other has transferred to a different unit, a police spokesman said.

He said the sergeant was issued with an "adverse report" - a formal written warning "that recognises that a sworn officer has allowed his/her conduct or performance to fall below the standard required".

Adverse reports can prevent promotion for a limited time.

The counselling handed out to the dispatcher was also considered a disciplinary measure.

Judge Borrin said Ms Asher's behaviour at Piha that day was described by her group as "strange and restless".

People who came into contact with her did not know she suffered from a "mood disorder".

She disappeared to the beach in the afternoon and was seen walking through a waist-deep stream fully clothed and wearing boots.

A couple who spoke to her said she was emotional and complained of being tired and cold.

They drove her back to the house and Ms Asher said she wanted to have a shower and rest.

Her boyfriend left the house at 8pm and the other two people were in bed when Ms Asher made her first call to police at 9pm.

The call-taker said Ms Asher remained relatively calm and did not come across as stressed or in any immediate threat or danger.

Judge Borrin said there were three telephone calls in which police spoke to Ms Asher and a further four unsuccessful attempts to ring her back after 9.16pm.

She was seen walking up Piha Rd between 9.20pm and 9.30pm by a local resident and her son, who offered help and took her to their home.

She went to bed about 1am but got up 10 minutes later and left the house naked. The residents rang police at 1.19am and a patrol car arrived 35 minutes later.

Ms Asher was last seen on Marine Parade around 2am by a couple who said she appeared to be "addressing the streetlight" and kissing the ground. 
 

The Iraena Asher tapes

* Her three conversations with police on October 10, 2004, as presented in edited form in the Police Complaints Authority report


FIRST CALL: 9pm

Iraena Asher to 111 call-taker

Ms Asher: Could you please umm come and get me from [number] Piha Rd?

[The number provided by Ms Asher was in fact an incorrect street number].

The call-taker repeated the address and asked, "what's happening there Ma'm?"

He repeated the question when Ms Asher did not respond.

She replied, "Yes please". The call-taker again asked, "what's happening?"

Ms Asher: Umm I just need to be taken away from here ... please can you get here as soon as possible.

Call-taker: Yeah, can you tell us what's going on Iraena - Iraena.

He again repeated the question when she did not respond.

Ms Asher: I don't feel safe in this house because - there's a guy here who I'm very afraid of.

The call-taker asked if the person she was afraid of was her "partner" and Ms Asher replied "No".

When asked who she was scared of, Ms Asher named a person who was later established not to have been at the address at that time.

Ms Asher: Well I feel, well I feel scared of him and because he's, basically he's got me here and I just, I don't feel safe here.

Ms Asher told the call-taker she did not live at the Piha Rd address and did not have her wallet with her.

"I need help immediately."

[Ms Asher's bag was in the vehicle in which she had travelled to Piha and which was parked at the address.]

Call-taker: I can't hear anything going on ... you still haven't told me why you are afraid of this guy. Is that his address?

Ms Asher said it was.

[The person named by her did not live at the address and he was not at that time at the address.]

Call-taker: What's he done to scare you?

Ms Asher: Well, he's just been pressuring me for sex and I really don't want to.

In response to a question as to her age, Ms Asher correctly told the call-taker that she was 25. She told the call-taker that she had been drinking and that she had come in a person's car and "He's actually quite scary too".

The call-taker asked what he was doing and Ms Asher said she did not know.

"I just need to be taken away from here 'cause I don't know these people very well and I don't feel safe here."

Call-taker: We'll try and get there as soon as we can, Iraena. That's your mobile you're calling on?

She had picked up the phone off the table.

Ms Asher: I just thought I want to get out of the situation 'cause it's not healthy for me.

Ms Asher said she had known her boyfriend for a week but not very well. She also said that they had started drinking at her flat in Ponsonby that morning.

"We kept drinking, and now I need your help now please.

"I don't feel safe right now and I thought the best thing to do would be to ring the police and that's what I've done 'cause I want to do the right thing. I'm just ***** really scared, okay?

The call-taker asked if she still wanted a lift.

"Yeah I do and I didn't know it was going to be so hard to get some help." She referred to it being an emergency.

The call-taker suggested that she could have taken the cellphone and walked up the road and called, to which Iraena answered that she "could have - I don't have any shoes".

[Ms Asher was in fact wearing shoes when seen walking up the road soon after.]

Call-taker: No worries, we'll be there as soon as we can.

Ms Asher: Yeah I hope so.

[The call lasted 5 minutes.]



SECOND CALL: 9.09pm

Police dispatcher to Ms Asher.

Dispatcher: ... can you call a taxi?

Ms Asher: No,'cause this phone won't let me call out.

Dispatcher: I'll phone one - which company would you prefer?

Ms Asher: Umm, Discount Taxis.

Dispatcher: Okay, I will give them a ring and I will ring you back with how long they're going to be.

Ms Asher: I will really need them to come here soon because it's just really weird here'cause they've given me drugs and stuff as well.

Ms Asher referred twice to being scared and said, "and it's probably the drugs as well, making me more paranoid or something, I'm quite scared".

This was the first time that drugs had been mentioned by Ms Asher.

The dispatcher said he would ring her back: "Okay, no worries, I'll sort it out."

Ms Asher said she was unsure of the precise address.

"I think it is either [number] or [number], can you just check the driveways between [number] cause I've been on drugs so I don't know what it is, it's between [number] and [number], can you check all those please."

Dispatcher: Okay, yeah, no worries.

This call lasted about 1 minutes.

[At 9.10pm the dispatcher called Discount Taxis to organise the pick-up from Piha and was told the taxi would be "about 20 minutes".]


THIRD CALL: 9.11pm

Police dispatcher to Ms Asher

Ms Asher: Why aren't police coming - you know they ******* gave me so many drugs and shit, I was totally confused. I didn't know what I was doing, they actually made me - oh ****, I can't do this by myself.

Dispatcher: I'll, I'll get the sergeant to give you a ring.

Ms Asher: No wait, can you just wait, can you just talk to me.

Dispatcher: Yeah. I'll get the, I'm at the Communications Centre so I can't help you directly from here, and I am doing ...

Ms Asher: No, no, can you just talk to me.

Dispatcher: "I'll ...

Ms Asher:'Cause I'm quite scared at the moment.

Dispatcher: Yeah and I understand that but ...

Ms Asher: No, you don't understand.

Dispatcher: Yes I'm dealing with units as well at the same time, I'm not a call-taker - I'm not someone that you phone up and speak, you know, where you speak when you phone 111.

Ms Asher: But you don't understand.

Dispatcher: I honestly don't have time to talk to you, I'll get the sergeant to give you a phone call, okay?

The dispatcher recorded that Ms Asher then terminated the call.

It lasted 1 minute and 18 seconds.

That was her final conversation with the police.