IR-01-22-37539
16 January 2023
J A HARRIS
[FYI request #21323 email]
Dear J A Harris
Request for information
Thank you for your Official Information Act 1982 (OIA) request of 3 December
2022, in which you requested the fol owing:
Please provide details of the costs incurred as part of Operation Bush and
Operation Peruvian.
Please provide any documents which detail the justification for the
operations, including any cost benefit analysis or other similar.
Please provide any documents which review the success, suitability, or
value for money of the operation.
In response to the request please refer to the below information:
Costs incurred
The New Zealand Police Financial Crime Group (FCG) do not record the number
of hours or total time invested in any given asset recovery investigation. As the
two Operations are stil currently at Investigation stage and are yet to be heard
before the courts an accurate reflection of the costs incurred are unable to be
provided.
Documents which detail the justification for the Operations
This information is being withheld under Section 6(c) of the Official Information
Act. The making available of this information would likely “prejudice the
maintenance of the law, including the prevention, investigation, and detection of
offences, and the right to a fair trial”. Further, I am declining to release this
information under section 9(2)(a) of the Act. Section 9(2)(a) of the Act al ows for
the withholding of information to “protect the privacy of natural persons, including
that of deceased natural persons”.
Success, suitability, or value for money of the operation
Police National Headquarters
180 Molesworth Street. PO Box 3017, Wellington 6140, New Zealand.
Telephone: 04 474 9499. Fax: 04 498 7400. www.police.govt.nz
As of 11 January 2023, the FCG have restrained an estimated $16.9 mil ion
worth of assets as a result of both Operation Bush and Operation Peruvian.
Over 10,000 cannabis plants have been recovered over the course of Operation
Bush and Operation Peruvian.
You have the right to ask the Ombudsman to review my decision if you are not
satisfied with the response to your request. Information about how to make a
complaint is available at: www.ombudsman.parliament.nz.
Yours sincerely
H Roberts
Helen Roberts
File Coordinator
Service Group
New Zealand Police