Celebrate! Forty-eight graduate | New Zealand Police

Today 48 new officers celebrated their success with whānau and friends at the 368 police wing graduation.

Attending the ceremony today was Commissioner Andrew Coster, Minister of Police, the Honourable Ginny Andersen and 368-wing patron, Chief Judge Christina Inglis.

The wing is made up of keen sports people, many volunteers and several of the new constables have tertiary educations plus extensive skills and qualifications in line with their new careers.

Constable Atu-He-Vahanoa Halatoa (Atu), proudly received the leadership award from the Commissioner of Police.  It was deja-vu as her husband Constable Maelega Lilo won the Leadership Award at the most recent graduation (Wing 367) last month. 

In a surprising twist Atu’s brother-in-law (brother of Maelega) Constable Savali Maelega Lilo also won the Leadership Award for Wing 350 back in February 2022.

Finally, it’s truly a family affair because Savali’s partner Constable Rebecca Knowles also graduated as a police officer from Wing 356 in August 2022. 

Atu says “I am blessed and grateful to have trained alongside my husband and be graduating as a Police officer in the same year. Many times, we talked about how it would be amazing to become Police officers at the same time, and we made it. 

“I’ve always wanted to make a difference in our communities especially in the Pasifika community because I have a connection through my culture and upbringing. I am very proud to receive this award.”

The Minister’s Award for Top of Wing after the collation of all course assessments was presented to Constable Wayne Wilson. Wayne was born in Zimbabwe but moved to New Zealand seven years ago. He’s previously worked as a communicator in the Christchurch-based Police Emergency Communications Centre.  He has a Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Management with Technology.

“The Police attracted me through the idea that I could make a difference, and what I would be doing with my working life is making an impact for the better. It’s why I am excited to have this opportunity. I can’t wait to get started in my new career,” says Wayne.

Constable Alexander Williams placed second in wing and received the Patron’s award. Alex has a Bachelor of Arts with a double major in Political Studies and Philosophy. He was previously a member of the Royal New Zealand Airforce as a Logistics Specialist. 

“I’ve joined Police because I want to work more with people and serve my community and country.  Thanks to the influence of my wife and brother-in-law, who are also police, I really want better work stories and I am looking forward to getting out there.”

Awards:

Minister’s Award recognising top recruit – Constable Wayne Wilson, Canterbury District.

Patron’s Award for Second in Wing, recognising second top recruit –  Constable Alexander Williams,  Waitematā District.

Commissioner’s Award for Leadership – Constable Atu-He-Vahanoa Halatoa , Counties Manukau District.

Physical Training and Defensive Tactics Award – Constable Matthew Hicks, Central District.

Driver Training and Road Policing Practice Award – Constable Keegan Martin, Wellington District.

Firearms Award – Constable Kyle Gordon, Wellington District.

Deployment:

The entire wing will disperse to the following districts the week starting Monday 7 August:

Auckland City – 4, Counties Manukau – 6,  Waitematā – 6, Waikato – 1,  Bay of Plenty – 6, Eastern – 1, Central – 5, Wellington – 6, Tasman – 1, Canterbury – 9, Southern – 3.

Demographics:

22.9 percent are female, and 77.1 percent are male. New Zealand European make up 70.8 percent of the wing, with Māori 6.3 percent, Pasifika 20.8 percent and Asian 2.1%.

Patron: Chief Judge Christina Inglis

Chief Judge Christina Inglis was sworn in as an Employment Court Judge in 2011 and appointed as the Chief Judge on 10 July 2017.

She holds an LLM (Hons) from Victoria University and an MA (Hons) from Canterbury University.

She was a Crown Counsel at Crown Law for many years, with a primary focus on civil litigation, public law and employment law.

Most recently she led the Human Rights Team at Crown Law. While in practice she appeared in most Courts and Tribunals.

Chief Judge Inglis was formerly on the Advisory Board of the New Zealand Centre for Human Rights Law, Policy and Practice; is a member of the Board of the Access to Justice Advisory Group, a joint initiative of the Chief Justice and Chief Executive of the Ministry of Justice; is Chair of Te Awa Tuia Tangata, the Heads of Bench judicial diversity committee; and is a member of the Conduct Advisory Committee and the Digital Strategy (for Courts and Tribunals) Advisory Group.

In 2022 she was awarded an honorary Doctor of Law from Te Herenga Waka – Victoria University of Wellington, for her contribution to the law and the judiciary.

ENDS

Local media will be supplied with stories of some new staff heading to their district. The Police Media Team will be in touch with photographs and information next week.

Also look out for a Ten One Magazine story that will be published, with more stories and photos about the new constables on the Police website in the next few weeks.