2 Vietnamese police officials sexually attacked young women on visit to New Zealand, authorities say
New Zealand authorities have “no doubt” that two Vietnamese officials sexually attacked two young female servers at a restaurant during a visit to the country, but were unable to charge the men before they returned to Vietnam, police said Thursday.
Vietnam and New Zealand do not have an extradition treaty so the alleged attackers cannot be forced to face charges.
One of the women said they were attacked at a restaurant in Wellington in March days before Vietnamese Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính was due to visit New Zealand. The accused men were “associated with the police” in Vietnam and had met with officers at the police training college near Wellington, New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon told reporters Thursday.
The woman, Alison Cook, told The Associated Press that she and another server at the Vietnamese restaurant where they worked were attacked in a private karaoke room by two men who pulled the servers into their laps, pinned them against a wall and groped them. She said she was forced to drink alcohol and believed she was also drugged.
Cook, then 19, said she sustained an injury in the assault. The women reported the attack to the authorities the next day.
By Charlotte Graham Mc Lay – The Associated Press – December 12, 2024