Before hanging up his uniform for the last time, Inspector ROSS GRANTHAM - known to most as Granny - talked to SARA STAVROPOULOS about some of his many experiences, the highlights and his reflections on a remarkable near-48 years of service.
Born in Napier and raised in Gisborne, Granny was inspired by the tales in his brother Gordon’s weekly postcards from Police College.
“Gordon joined Police when I was nine and his postcards were always exciting," he says. "As I got older, policing appealed - especially catching bad guys.
“When I told my brother I was going to join, he gave me some advice about life experience and tried to convince me to go to university and when that failed, to get a trade – but I was obstinate and joined Police."
It’s advice Granny now shares with young people interested in policing.
“It’s about gaining life experience. Policing is not for everyone so you need something to fall back on.
“Policing was for me and what I wanted to get out of life, including helping people, and I’d like to think I was half good at it!”
At 18 Granny joined the Ken and Nancy Burnside Cadet Wing 23, graduating 12 months later, in January 1980, to Section 2 at Wellington Central Police Station.
Gordon was a sergeant at Taranaki Street and also known as Granny, so Ross was ‘Young Granny’.
“Walking the beat was predominantly engaging with people, dealing with shoplifters and business owners, walking through pubs and clubs, checking car parks and shop doors and giving the doors a good rattle to check they were locked.
“Beat One included Wellington Railway Station and, as a young fulla from Gisborne, it was like nothing I’d ever seen.
“I’d go there in the morning with all the commuters coming in – I’d never seen so many people, especially all these women young and old who smiled at the young police officer in uniform.
“I’d walk out of the station and think ‘Thank you Jesus, I get paid for this’.”
Another early memory was responding to a job in peak-hour Wellington traffic.
“We only had one blue flashing light and nothing else to signal to motorists, so my colleague got on the PA system and took some creative licence with the siren sound – definitely not part of our training manual but it solved the problem!”
In 1981, Granny was deployed to the Springbok Tour frontline, policing nearly every match.
“I was in Marlborough Street in Auckland when the protesters turned a car over – I was in the third row back.
“The crowd turned on us and started pulling pickets off fences and coming at us. We only had beat helmets and batons – no armour.”
During the day a group of protesters dressed as clowns were assaulted by some police officers. “I had talked to one of the clown protesters earlier.
“He was armed with a French bread stick which he and his friends had been poking police with, chanting ‘Move, move’. All light-hearted yet there to have their say.
“It was a fraught time and, for me, polarising because it was like nothing I had experienced.”
Granny completed a CIB induction course in 1983 and started in Wellington CIB in 1984. Within days he was called to the Trades Hall bombing – a still-unsolved homicide.
He qualified as a detective in 1986, then left Wellington for a uniform sergeant role in Levin in 1990.
In April 1993, a new detective sergeant in Palmerston North, he took his first case as OC - the death of a six-month-old baby.
The baby’s sister had died 18 months earlier. “We investigated both deaths simultaneously and, after significant inquiries, charged the victims’ neighbour with murder. She was eventually convicted of manslaughter.
“She was babysitting both children and suffocated them, then tried to revive them for the attention. She got nine years' imprisonment.”
Granny received a Silver Merit Award for the investigation. He has high praise for the investigating officers and medical experts involved.
In 2000 he was OC of Operation Winter, the investigation into the deaths of Christine and Amber Lundy – a high-profile case which was significant for the scientific evidence that proved Mark Lundy’s guilt. His leadership of the investigation led to another Silver Merit Award.
Many major investigations followed. One involved a woman whose mother died in suspicious circumstances. She verbally confessed to killing her mother but it could not be used as evidence – then she wrote a book.
“I read the manuscript and in it she confessed to killing her mother.
“I told her that if she published the book, I would arrest her… she published and I arrested her and charged her with attempted murder.”
In the book, Granny was called ‘David’. In prison the woman wrote a second book. “She sent me an autographed copy with the inscription ‘To my knight in tarnished armour’.
“Among other things, what I took from it was that she was an early advocate for euthanasia.”
There was tragedy close to home in 2002 with the death on duty of colleague Duncan Taylor and wounding in the same incident of now-Assistant Commissioner Jeanette Park. “I managed that investigation and took on the victim liaison role.”
In October 2002 he deployed to Bali as an international investigator into the Bali bombings, joining officers from all over the world.
Granny, second from left, and the Operation Winter team.
In 2003, Granny was approached by then-Central District Commander Superintendent Mark Lammas to relieve as District Operations Manager.
In 13 months in the role he managed the Police response to the 2004 Central District flooding - the worst in the past 100 years – and planned and resourced the Police response to the predicted Mt Ruapehu lahar.
He spent a year as station senior in Feilding, then relieved as District Crime Manager - a detective inspector-level role - while still a detective sergeant.
During this time he was involved in the Investigative Interviewing Review led by criminologist Mary Schollum, becoming Strategic Advisor for Investigative Interviewing.
He worked with “two super-clever women”, Senior Sergeant Nina Westera and Julia Penney, writing doctrine and training packages for levels 1-4 investigative interviewing, witness and suspect.
At Police College, their plan to train all NCOs and then all frontline officers to Level 1 was not considered feasible, so they took it to District Leadership Teams and won their backing. The training went ahead.
Granny with Senior Sergeant Nina Westera, left, and Julia Penney - working on the Investigative Interviewing Review.
Back in Central District, Granny became Deployment Manager, establishing the District Command Centre and an early iteration of Workforce Management.
There followed roles as Manawatū Area Prevention Manager and relieving Whanganui Area Commander before he landed his final role as Manawatū Area Commander in March 2023.
He has relieved as Area Commander in Kapiti and Blenheim and spent three months in Adelaide in an exchange programme. He has represented New Zealand Police overseas many times.
He says the best thing about policing is our people. “The work we do creates bonds that I don’t think you get in other jobs.
“I think I have policed through a great time in New Zealand history, and I’ve certainly had some good times and laughs. When I talk about our people, I mean inside and outside Police.
“If you asked me would I do it all again? Yes, I would because that’s how I met a lot of good people – including my wife, Steph.”
They have been married 40 years. “She is a huge part of my career. She’s counselled me, she laughed with me, she’s scolded me, and she has put me back together again on occasion. We have a special relationship.”
Granny missed their first date because he got involved in a job which turned into a siege, during which he was nearly shot with an arrow.
“She probably thought I’d stood her up but once I explained the situation she gave me another chance.
“Ever since then she has complained about callouts, birthdays and the like that I have missed. I reminded her that right from the start she knew I was unreliable."
Granny front and centre for one last line-up photo with his fellow leaders.
Granny has firm views on leadership. “It’s how you make people feel and always being positive: positivity is infectious so spread it.
“It’s giving them the confidence to do their job, giving them the confidence to question me, to be innovative, try different things, problem-solve - and to know that we make mistakes and to just put your hand up, so we can fix it.
“A good leader doesn’t get angry or rip them a new one - it’s not motivational and it’s more about you than them. It’s not about me; it’s about wanting our people to be the best they can be.
“Leadership is about making decisions. If you umm and ahh, it’s too late - you have lost your people.
"Be decisive, make those decisions - it may not always be the right one and if it’s not, own it and learn from it.”
After a major incident he says, he asks the team three questions. What has happened? What have we done? What are we going to do? “They then detail their plan.
“Often, I reply ‘Great’ and leave the room and everyone goes ‘Thank God the boss came in’. Yet I have done nothing except give them the confidence to do their job.
"On the odd occasion I give some direction and we will sort it together. Leadership is simple but, because we deal with people, sometimes it’s not easy."
Now there’s a new chapter coming.
“It will take some time to get my head around no-one wanting my experience, opinion, decisions or advice any more. No texts or phone calls in the middle of the night - that stops instantly.
“Once I’m OK with that, I can focus on spending time with my family and grandkids. We have travel booked and I also have plans for time on the tools, making lots of sawdust from timber creations in my shed.
“There is a tremendous amount of people to thank for their support – I want to thank everyone who has worked with me directly and those who haven’t.
“I’ve achieved nothing by myself – any success I have had has been thanks to the fantastic people I’ve worked with inside and outside Police.
“I wish you all well. Take care and keep smiling.”