Kevin Burke, a former detective inspector, left the police after being found not guilty of sexual violence charges. Photo / Dean Purcell
Kevin Burke, a former detective inspector, left the police after being found not guilty of sexual violence charges. Photo / Dean Purcell
One of two women who accused a top cop of sexual assault is happy he is no longer in the ranks but remains disappointed with the investigation and has "no trust or confidence left in police".
Kevin Burke, a senior and well-known former Northland officer, recently retired after successfully defendingallegations from a time when he was a detective in the Auckland area during 2002 and 2003.
Two women claimed they met him during separate criminal investigations he was involved in before accusing him of sexual violence.
However, after a High Court jury trial, Burke was acquitted in February of two charges of indecent assault and two counts of sexual violation by unlawful sexual connection.
The second woman but first complainant - who came forward in 2017 and sparked the investigation - told the Herald she was happy Burke has tossed in his badge.
"I'm happy knowing that he is no longer in police but a bit upset by the news he may have been given a big payout, as if he is the victim here," she said.
The Herald on Sunday reported Burke and police have reached a form of settlement which included the high-ranking officer's retirement.
But the 61-year-old and police have not been willing to discuss the particulars of any such agreement or whether there had been a sizable payout.
Both parties are now bound by a confidentiality clause, the Herald understands from multiple sources.
Burke retired with the rank of detective inspector and his last day was on August 30, Detective Superintendent Chris Page said in a statement.
He had not been on active duty since April 2017, when he was suspended with pay at the start of the criminal investigation.
Both Kevin Burke and police are remaining tight-lipped about the possibility of a payout. Photo / File
As the case continues to generate headlines, the second complainant also said she remains disappointed with how she has been treated by police throughout the process.
"Two things that really stick out in my mind are, police refusing to tell me what charges he would be facing and then reading them in the media later the same day, and when they tried to replace my support person with one that suited them.
"There was no victim focus and was so many issues that I just get to a point where I couldn't take another one."
The woman has earlier said police wanted to have her support person, police complaints advocate Shannon Parker, replaced by prominent victim rights supporter Louise Nicholas.
Burke also made an unsuccessful application to the High Court to bar Parker - who has a fraught relationship with police - as a support person during the trial.
Police said an employment investigation was to follow the criminal proceedings, but the details of any such investigation remain unclear and are yet to be released or discussed publicly by police.
A review by the Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) is also in the works after complaints were made about how the case was handled.
Police have already apologised for a procedural and communication error after claiming one of Burke's complainants had been contacted by an investigating officer when they hadn't.
"I would like to see the IPCA report identify police's communication failings in the hopes that police learn from that and change the way they treat victims when the accused is one of their own," the second complainant told the Herald.
"A few months before trial I cut off all contact with the investigation team. From that point on any communication was between a superintendent and my support person. I went into trial with no trust or confidence left in police."
During Burke's High Court trial, the jury heard the first complainant was of a similar age to Burke, in her 40s, while the second complainant was in her 20s at the time of the alleged offending.
The second woman was in a violent relationship with a notorious criminal as Burke investigated an assault after she had been stabbed.
"I thought [Burke] was awesome. He was my hero," she told the court during the trial.
"I felt like if they hadn't come to the house that day I probably would have died."
But she later accused Burke of coming to her home one night, before undressing, climbing into bed with her, and rubbing himself on her.
A few weeks later, Crown prosecutors alleged, he returned to the woman's house and pinned her up against the wall - groping and grinding into her.
On a third occasion, Burke was accused of exposing himself to the woman, then forcibly performed oral sex on her.
Burke, however, has said the woman's allegations simply never occurred.
"I totally refute these allegations, it just never happened," Burke said during one of his three police interviews played during his trial.
The first woman met Burke in 2002 to discuss her dealings with a fraudster he was investigating.
Burke was accused of arriving uninvited at the woman's home one night carrying a box of beer and a bottle of wine before allegedly sexually assaulting her, the Crown claimed.
Burke, however, said any sexual contact with the woman was consensual.
