Police officer admits possessing objectionable material after McSkimming scandal

Author: Ella Scott-Fleming,
Publish Date: Fri, 7 Aug 2026, 1:29pm

Matthew Rogers first appeared in Manukau District Court in June on charges of possessing objectionable publications. Photo / Jason Dorday

A police officer has admitted possessing objectionable material after internal reviews following the Jevon McSkimming scandal.

This morning, Matthew Rogers, 59, appeared in the Manukau District Court, and admitted a representative charge of possessing an objectionable publication.

Rogers had faced nine charges, but Crown lawyer Kristy Li said the remaining charges would be withdrawn at sentencing.

The court heard the representative charge relates to offending in Auckland between August 2023 and October 2025.

Former Deputy Police Commissioner McSkimming was sentenced to nine months’ home detention in December after admitting three representative charges of possessing objectionable publications, namely child sexual exploitation and bestiality material.

Police announced in June they were prosecuting three “constabulary staff” for multiple counts of possessing an objectionable publication. Rogers was one of the three.

“Prosecution of our own staff is a serious but important step to take as it recognises the significance of the alleged offending that has been identified,” Deputy Commissioner Tim Anderson said at the time.

appear in the same court this afternoon. However, the Herald understands his matter has been adjourned until later this month.

The third officer, of Wellington, appeared in court in June and his identity also remains secret.

The three officers have been stood down from duties.

Rogers was remanded at large and will appear in October for sentencing. A pre-sentence report was ordered.

His lawyer Todd Simmonds, KC, indicated Rogers may apply for a discharge without conviction.

In June, Anderson said the charges against the three officers arose after investigations in a “rapid review” of police information security controls.

He said the police National Integrity Unit ran the investigations and screened a “significant volume” of web activity.

By then, he said police had investigated 22 cases, and 12 were resolved internally. Four people had resigned in the process.

“It is important we now let these matters progress to the court process, which limits the level of information we can provide at this point,” Anderson said.

Ella Scott-Fleming has been a journalist for three years and previously worked at the Otago Daily Times, Gore Ensign and Metro Magazine. She has an interest in court and general reporting. She’s currently based in Auckland covering justice-related stories.