Tributes to a top cop

Paul Charman reflects on the life a popular cop who, in a different time, knew a heavy hand wasn’t the answer.

The funeral of former Te Kūiti-based police and traffic officer Barry Hazelton attracted more than 400 people last week.

Mourners included past and present members of the Te Kūiti Motorcycle Club, which Hazelton helped to establish in the late 1980s.

The police, former traffic officers, and the Fire Service were well represented. Both Barry and his wife Thelma, who predeceased him were active members of the Te Kūiti Volunteer Fire Brigade, with Thelma its first female fire fighter.

The Hazeltons – who had six sons – lived in Te Kūiti from about 1988 till 1998, during which time MOT traffic officers merged with the NZ Police.

Barry Hazelton served about two years as Te Kūiti’s first community constable. His police career lasted 38 years – right up to a medical discharge from active service in 2020, at which point he became a firearms officer.

This was a role the keen hunter enjoyed according to Barry’s son JJ.

JJ said his dad helped establish his town’s motorcycle club and many of the 20-30 bike riders who attended the funeral, received their licences under Barry’s testing.

“Dad used to enjoy riding his Kawasaki ZL 1000, but later his ultimate bike later was a 2010 Harley Softail.”

Eventually the family left Te Kūiti and moved to Whangamatā, where Barry worked in the police for a several years ahead of joining the highway patrol, based out of Paeroa. In this role he covered most of the Hauraki Plains.

The News asked JJ how it was his dad became so popular.

“It’s really hard case isn’t it? The amount of people who liked him. I think it was because he was so fair. He went by the book – if you stepped out of line you’d get in trouble. But most of the time it was a proper warning. I have heard a few good stories. When you are in a small town you don’t come in with a heavy hand; you’ve got to think of the community first.”

JJ also reflected that growing up in the late 1980s and 1990s Te Kuiti it was, “a different style town”.

“There were still the Mob guys and all that, but everyone got on pretty well. We lived on View Rd and had mob guys just near us. A lot of them were there – but pretty harmless back in the day.

“I had friends whose parents were in the Mob and I went to school with them. They used to ask, ‘hey JJ, do you want to join’. And I’d say, ‘oh no thanks I’m alright’, but we still hung out and did things together.

“There was a huge five-a-side social soccer tournament down at Centennial Park. The police, fire brigade and many local businesses had teams. The Mob had a team too – they came along and played social soccer. The Mob versus police games used to be so awesome. Both sides really got stuck in, with a bit of elbow thrown in – but all played in good spirit, with a couple of beers afterwards.

“I guess growing up I was slightly in awe of dad – all of us boys were. We were a little bit mischievous. But I think (when we did wrong) we were more scared of our parents than anything else.”

Another treasured memory was his parents’ involvement in drag racing events held for cars and motorcycles at Centennial Park.

“Mum won one of the drag racing events and dad would sit there in his patrol car and measure the speeds with his radar. The bike club organised it with the local hot rod guys - there was less concern over stuff like health a safety back then.”

• Changes have been made to the online version of this story.