New Zealand Defence Force
Te Ope Kaatua O Aotearoa
Media Release

Monday 6 July, 2009
NZDF Responds To Napier Siege Questions

The New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) today confirmed that the two SLR rifles found in the Napier flat of deceased gunman Jan Molenaar were disposed of legally via the Government Disposals Bureau before 1990.

“The SLR rifle was standard issue to New Zealand Defence Force personnel back in the 1960s, ‘70s, and ‘80s and was replaced by the Steyr rifles currently used by NZDF personnel,” says Defence Force spokesman Commander Shaun Fogarty.

“Obsolete weapons were sold-off in accordance with regulations of the time, and could be bought by members of the New Zealand public. Defence records confirm that the two SLR rifles found in the possession of Jan Molenaar had been disposed of.”

During the armed siege NZDF Light Armoured Vehicles (LAVs) were used to provide armoured protection to help recover the body of the Police Officer tragically killed earlier in the armed stand-off. NZDF has also confirmed that all Defence Force personnel were unarmed throughout the siege and the LAVs carried no ammunition.

In addition, the Defence Force have today revealed that no damage to either vehicle occurred during their deployment with NZ Police and that the cost to deploy the vehicles (including meals, accommodation, allowances, road user charges and fuel but excluding routine maintenance) was $5715.

“The decision to use the LAVs was made by the Chief of Defence Force in consultation with the Minister of Defence under section 9(1) (b) of the Defence Act 1990 following a request from the Police” says Cdr Fogarty.

After the Napier siege ended, the NZDF offered support to all of the NZDF people involved in the incident via the Defence Chaplaincy Service.

As a result of the armed siege, questions were also raised with the NZDF about records of any missing Defence weapons. The NZDF can confirm that over the last decade just a single 9mm pistol is reported as missing/unaccounted for in New Zealand. It was identified as missing in 2003.

Cdr Fogarty says a new weapon’s inventory and accounting system was introduced in 2000 which dramatically improved the Defence Force’s ability to track weapons. Before this significant improvement was made to its weapons inventory systems, records show between 1990 and 1997, six 9mm pistols and two Steyr rifles were reported as missing/not accounted for.

The Defence Force says their records also show a small number of trophies (weapons that had been decommissioned and mounted for public display) had also been lost during this period. They include an inoperative pistol, an inoperative and incomplete grenade launcher, an inoperative sub-machine gun, and two inoperative rifles.

The Army is currently installing microchips into all its firearms so the tracking and stocktaking of items can be done quickly and accurately, with reports going directly to an automated computer database – further boosting the enhanced inventory system introduced in 2000.

“As the Napier incident proves, weapons that end up in the hands of the wrong people can have terrible consequences,” says Cdr Fogarty. “The Defence Force takes seriously its obligations to safeguard the weapons in its possession.”

ENDS

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