Police are to launch an inquiry into why officers looked 72 times at the file of woman who says she was sexually violated by a policeman.
Donna Johnson, who has claimed she was sexually violated by former policeman Brad Shipton, has been waiting since January to find out which officers accessed her file and why.
In January, police officer Steven Hales resigned after improperly accessing her information.
She had laid harassment complaints about him in the past.
Mr Hales' brother Warren Hales, a former fireman, has admitted abducting a Mount Maunganui woman for the pack rape by Shipton, Bob Schollum and Tauranga millionaire Peter McNamara in 1989.
Police investigated the alleged attack but no charges were laid against Shipton.
After repeated requests under the Official Information Act, and a complaint to commissioner Howard Broad, Ms Johnson was told yesterday deputy commissioner Rob Pope had ordered an inquiry, The Dominion Post reported.
Ms Johnson was told by senior police legal adviser Carolyn Richardson the inquiry's purpose was "to identify all staff members who have accessed your records and to make relevant inquiries to obtain explanations from the members involved".
Ms Johnson told the paper she has lost patience with police "stalling" over her requests and said the inquiry was simply a tactic to keep information from her.
She has complained to the Ombudsman about the delays.
"Five months later I still haven't got any information, nothing's been addressed about the accessing of the files and they're giving me the fob-off.
"Why stall giving me that legitimate information. All that's doing for me is ringing alarm bells saying, 'Who's trying to cover up information now?"'
Louise Nicholas, who first made allegations about police sexual misconduct involving Shipton, Schollum and former assistant commissioner Clint Rickards, said the number of police accessing Ms Johnson's file was "disgusting".
Ms Nicholas had asked for details of her own record in April, and it had taken police just 10 days to provide the information.
She said her file had been accessed 42 times.
The privacy commissioner's office said under the Privacy Act people usually had a right to access information about themselves.
Assistant commissioner Katrine Evans said agencies such as police could refuse to provide that information if it breached someone else's privacy or restricted their ability to investigate offences.
