A poster above wrote that:

"Guns have no place in NZ activism and the country is a better place with 17 rebels behind bars."

One thing we must all realise is that you never believe what the coppers say, particularly when arrests are made and they're working hand in hand with the media. Here in Australia it's standard practice for the coppers to arrive at an "anti-terrorist" bust with the media in tow (or at least tipped off to be at the address in question) and then feed a sensationalist story to the press.

It's understandable (though still not forgivable) from the point of view of the media, since they're in the dark & are reliant on the coppers for information. After all, the arrestees are hardly in a position to comment. Further, if the friends & family of the arrested have any sense, they won't be talking to anyone in the media or the cops until they've had the chance to find out exactly what the score is.

So the coppers have the field to themselves. And, crucially, they use the story about the bust to get themselves good press and contaminate the jury pool for when the case eventually gets to trial. It is at the point of initial arrest that the worst images are conjured and the worst insinuations are made, ones for which they have no evidence and never will.

Once charges are officially laid, there are rules about sub judice, but anything goes when reporting the bust. These professional perjurers are softening up the public for the lies they are preparing to tell in court.

Therefore, the only thing that can be believed with confidence is the number arrested and the names that have come out. Don't trust anything the coppers say unless it is independently verified.