The Spinoff tried to get details about concerns Police raised with Wellington’s mayor. Three months later we’ve finally found out what happened.
In April, The Spinoff asked Police for details of the concerns Wellington City area commander Dean Silvester had raised with mayor Andrew Little about the capital’s controversial councillor Ray Chung. Police told us repeatedly there was no complaint.
Now, new information released to The Spinoff by Wellington City Council, under the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act, shows that Police not only raised Chung’s behaviour with Little but planned to tell The Spinoff this before doing a U-turn.
It started on April 21 when Wellington was battered by extreme weather and rising flood waters, forcing the evacuation of more than 100 homes. One man went missing and would later be found dead. Chung went to a location where there was an unofficial search and rescue party, despite Civil Defence issuing a warning to stay at home.
Chung was already controversial after running for mayor in 2025. His campaign was dogged by scandal after revelations that he had spread unverified rumours about former mayor Tory Whanau’s sex life.
A few days later, Little announced he would take formal action against Chung regarding his behaviour during the storm. The Post reported that the mayor had revealed Wellington City area commander Inspector Dean Silvester had contacted him with concerns about Chung’s actions.
Following this report, The Spinoff asked the Police media team to clarify exactly what Silvester said and what issues he raised, including whether he had contacted the mayor by email, phone, or in-person.
The Police media team responded: “Police are not aware of any complaint in relation to the question posed.”
The Spinoff asked “Is that a denial?” then added: “I am seeking a comment from Inspector Dean Silvester that directly answers the question: Did you have any communication with Wellington mayor Andrew Little about Ray Chung’s actions during the state of emergency? If so, please detail exactly what was said.”
The Police then responded: “I’ve reached out to Insp Silvester, however given the time of day before a long weekend, we may not hear back from him this week. I will let you know once I’ve had an opportunity to speak with him.”
The next working day, Police provided this comment attributed to Silvester: “I can confirm I spoke to Mayor Little during the severe weather in Wellington last week which is normal in such an event. No complaint was made.”
Communications released to The Spinoff by Wellington City Council this week show that the Police media team originally drafted a lengthier response for The Spinoff, confirming Silvester had raised a Wellington City Councillor’s behaviour. Police sent this draft response to Wellington City Council’s media manager. The draft statement, attributable to Silvester read:
“During last week’s flooding, Police suspended a search and rescue operation due to the unacceptable level of danger to the search teams. That night, I spoke with Mayor Andrew Little on the phone to brief him on a situation where a Wellington City Councillor appeared to be contradicting advice from Police warning members of the community against carrying out their own search.
“The conditions posed a very real danger to life and if an untrained searcher got swept away or trapped, emergency personnel would be put at further risk to rescue them. That risk was unacceptable. We have a close working relationship with Wellington City Council and have regular communication. This is even more important in times of emergency.”
Wellington City Council responded: “Great stuff”. Police, however, never sent The Spinoff this response.
The communications released to The Spinoff this week also reveal that Silvester messaged Little specifically about Chung’s actions during the storm. The message read:
“Kia ora Andrew, this is Dean Silvester, Area Commander, Wellington Police. It’s been an eventful few days for the city. Apologies for contacting you and adding to your burden however I would appreciate it if I could have a discussion with you tomorrow in respect of the behaviour of one of your councillors, Ray Chung. I’ve been advised that councillor Chung had made a nuisance of himself in relation to the search and rescue efforts in Karori. This has included the spreading of misinformation and inappropriate contact with emergency services and the missing person family. Nga mihi, Dean”.
It later became apparent that Chung was not in contact with the missing person’s family. Little told Silvester: “One of my criticisms of Mr Chung so far is his failure to check directly with the family whether they supported a volunteer effort contrary to Police instructions.” Communications show Chung denies spreading misinformation, engaging inappropriately with Police or carrying out a search.
Silvester later spoke on the phone with Little. The communications released this week also include internal council documents where Little refers to a conversation with Silvester as a “complaint”.
In May, The Spinoff sent an Official Information Act request to Police seeking communications about the Chung matter, including Silvester’s recollections of his conversation with Little. Police rejected the request, saying all relevant information had already been provided.
Wellington City Council, however, responded to a similar request from The Spinoff, which has now revealed Silvester’s text and Police’s draft response to The Spinoff, which it never sent us.
Police did not responded to a request for comment by deadline, though a member of the Police media team yesterday personally apologised to The Spinoff for mishandling the Official Information Request.