Thames Coromandel District Mayor Len Salt stands by his decision to respond to a person who emailed requesting private information about council staff to "go f**k yourself".
The email was sent on July 10, 2023, however, was only posted online a few days ago by Steve Hart, who unsuccessfully stood in the 2022 mayoral race.
The email was requesting private information about council staff such as their names and addresses.
"My official response, as Mayor of Thames-Coromandel District Council, to your request for personal details of staff names and addresses, is this. Go fuck yourself. Kind regards Len," Salt replied.
Speaking to Stuff, Salt said he believed the email came from a person associated with Sovereign Citizens.
"If people were to say this is not the language or decorum you expect from a mayor, I would take that criticism on the chin," Salt said.
"But I have always said to the council, and the community, I will protect them. In a climate of increasing hostility towards elected representatives and their staff, I believe it was necessary."
Sovereign Citizens or SovCits is a global movement that rejects the authority of all government entities.
Members of the group in New Zealand have been known to send threats and display aggressive behaviour towards councils and police.
A briefing by New Zealand's Combined Threat Assessment Group (CTAG) and police's Security Intelligence and Threats Group previously said the movement is "not inherently violent". Some individuals adhering to its ideology have been responsible for violent extremism overseas, particularly against law enforcement the summary said.
"There is a realistic possibility that a threat actor inspired by SovCit rhetoric will commit a spontaneous act of extremist violence in New Zealand," the briefing said.
Newshub.
