Ex-cops not guilty of obstructing justice relating to Alan Hall case

Two former police officers accused of obstructing justice in an investigation which led to the wrongful conviction of Alan Hall in the 1980s have been found not guilty.

The men, whose names are suppressed, have been on trial in the High Court at Auckland charged with wilfully attempting to obstruct, prevent, pervert or defeat the course of justice.

A third former defendant has since died.

Justice Ian Gault delivered the decision on Wednesday morning. The men's interim name suppression is extended while the court considers an application for permanent name suppression.

Hall spent 17 years in prison after being convicted of murdering Arthur Easton, who was killed during a home invasion by a man wielding a bayonet.

The decision was quashed by the Supreme Court in 2022 after it found a substantial miscarriage of justice had occurred.