Looking beyond the tickets

Serious traffic crime and general crime are inextricably linked and officers involved in road policing have a significant role to play in the detection and prevention of both traffic offences and mainstream crime says National Road Policing Manager, Superintendent Steve Fitzgerald…

“A LINK between the persistent criminal offending responsible for a large proportion of crime and those with convictions for serious road traffic offences has been firmly established.

“While most drivers are not criminals, most criminals are drivers and we often come across criminal activity during routine traffic duties.

“Through the collection and assessment of information and by keeping each other in the picture, traffic work plays a full part in policing. It was one of the reasons why the Traffic Safety Service was merged with the NZ Police back in 1992.

“Road policing and general duties staff go through the same training and have the ability to ‘look beyond the ticket,” says Steve.

The most common types of general crime detected by road policing staff carrying out their routine duties include burglary-related offences; detection of wanted offenders, detection of possession of illicit drugs, and the recovery of stolen goods.

Steve can give plenty of examples where road policing staff have detected general crime while carrying out their routine traffic duties.

“The Waikato Strategic Traffic Unit [STU] stopped a driver and passenger for not wearing safety belts. It turned out that the vehicle had been stolen from Whakatäne two weeks earlier and the driver was wanted in relation to a shooting some months prior – he still had the shotgun pellets embedded in his shoulder,” says Steve.

Road Policing staff have also helped to detect precursor products and equipment for methampetamine manufacture.

“A mobile clan lab was picked up at a routine checkpoint in Auckland and $12,000 worth of precursor products found during a routine traffic enquiry in Tasman District,” says Steve.


However, Steve says while these examples clearly demonstrate what can result from coordinating road and general policing efforts, there are still misconceptions about the relationship between the two disciplines that need to be overcome.

“I believe road policing plays a significant role in combating more general crime problems and keeping our communities safe.

“However, let’s not forget that the primary role of road policing staff is reducing trauma and increasing public safety. This can only be achieved through high visibility operations that reassure the public and target the few remaining people who test our 10km tolerances.”

Steve says if it weren’t for the increased productivity and focus of road policing staff in the past five years New Zealand’s road toll would be closer to 600 per year, rather than the 430 average of today.

“Allied to that is the 6,500 vehicle-related injury hospitalisations we get per annum. If we hadn’t taken the action we have, that figure would be more than 8000. Overall our roads are much calmer in terms of speeds and people are more tolerant, patient and courteous than they were five years ago,” says Steve.