A Northland police officer has been found to have improperly influenced the prosecution of the son of a man who he personally knew.

The son was charged with assault after punching a woman outside a bar on Whangārei’s Vine Street.

The Independent Police Conduct Authority found the senior officer had interfered with the prosecution, which led to an assault charge being dropped.

The officer knew the man’s father as a business acquaintance, the decision said, and told the police prosecutor it was a first-time charge and it should be dropped.

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The authority said it was satisfied that the officer had a conflict of interest and had been contacted by the father because of their relationship.

In texts seen by the authority, the father asked the officer whether he had made any progress on his son’s situation.

“I will ring this afternoon,” the officer replied.

The son told the authority he had decided not to make a statement after his father had spoken to the officer.

The authority found it was inappropriate for the officer to be involved in that conversation and for him to advise the father the son shouldn’t make a statement.

The officer also approached the prosecutor and “made it clear” he knew the man’s partner and the son might be eligible for diversion.

The prosecutor told the authority he had said to the officer: “Look, given there might be a personal relationship or a perceived relationship, let me deal with it. I’ll have a look at it and let you know how I get on”.

Upon reviewing CCTV footage of the alleged assault with the officer, the prosecutor decided “it was self-defence”.

He had been fighting with the woman’s boyfriend when he struck out, connecting with her.

“He was at a stage where he was backed against a wall and in the circumstances, I would’ve done the same.”

The prosecutor said the son had tried to walk away from the woman’s boyfriend, who was being aggressive towards him. It wasn’t reasonable to prosecute, he said.

The authority found the officer “used his position” as a senior member of police to influence the outcome of the prosecution and the prosecutor succumbed to this.

The officer viewed the son as a “good kid”, the decision said.

Police superintendent Tony Hill, Northland district commander, acknowledged the decision on Thursday.

“Police accepts the IPCA’s finding that there was a conflict of interest for the senior officer and that he should not have been involved in the case,” Hill said.

“An employment investigation has been concluded.”