The Defence Force has confirmed an ex-senior officer is facing charges for allegedly attempting to make an intimate visual recording when he worked at New Zealand's embassy in Washington DC.
Commodore Alfred Keating is accused of hiding a camera in the building's unisex toilets in late July last year, which was later discovered by staff.
Keating lost name suppression in the Auckland District Court on Friday morning. A lawyer entered a not guilty plea on the 58-year-old's behalf.
Along with his name, the full and shocking details of the alleged incident have also been made public.
The alleged incident
At 1:30pm on July 27, 2017, a visual recording device fell to the floor of a unisex bathroom in the New Zealand Embassy in Washington DC. Word got back to embassy staff, who reported the small camera to police.
The camera had been purposely mounted inside a heating duct unit in the bathroom, at a height and direction that captured recordings of people using the toilet, according to court documents. Analysis revealed it had been activated that morning, capturing 19 photographs of people - all clothed - before its discovery.
However, a thick layer of dust covered the camera, indicating it had been in place for a number "many months", court documents say.
The prosecution alleges Mr Keating had installed driver software on his personal computer on July 25, "as well as other inculpatory evidence". Prosecution also alleges Keating's DNA matched that found on the SD card that was in the camera.
Keating resigned from his position when charges were laid against him.
Keating's military history
Keating held the rank of Commodore in the Royal New Zealand Navy, and as such was one of its most senior officers, court documents say.
He was New Zealand's most senior ranked member of the Defence Force in the United States and the head of defence staff and the defence and naval attache to the US at the time of the alleged incident.
Keating had spent more than 40 years in the military.
The Defence Force told Newshub Keating's "engagement with the NZDF ended as scheduled on 31 March".
"He is no longer a member of the NZDF."
The Minister for Defence declined Newshub's request for comment.
Alfred Keating is not related to New Zealand's outgoing Chief of Defence Lieutenant General Tim Keating.
Name suppression
Keating applied for name suppression when the charges were laid, on the basis of protecting his daughter, who is also serving the military.
Keating's lawyer, G J Newell, told the court releasing his name could cause his daughter extreme hardship and also endanger her safety.
Mr Newell says she is a "very junior service member serving with her unit, and is often subject to long periods of isolation from her family and support networks", court documents reveal.
"[He] has an in depth understanding of the risk publication will have on his daughter, including 'possible harassment, victimisation and punitive treatment'."
The court found there was insufficient evidence to back this and lifted Keating's name suppression.
"In my view Mr Keating's assertions do not come close to meeting the high threshold for extreme hardship," Justice Powell said in Friday's ruling.
"Mr Keating's stated concerns about his daughter are in fact fundamentally counterintuitive and not supported by the nature of the New Zealand Defence Force, with its clear chain of command and accountabilities at every level."
Newshub has left a message with Keating's lawyer's office requesting comment.
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Newshub.
