• by Ray Schultz , July 5, 2019

Google is under fire in New Zealand for an email that identified the suspect in a murder case.

The company announced on Wednesday that it has suspended its Google Trends emails in New Zealand, according to Reuters. But it still faces likely legal action. 

The incident occurred last December following the murder of 22-year-old Grace Millane, a backpacker from the UK. Millane’s body was found in a hiking area outside Auckland. 

Despite a suppression order, Google included the name of the 27-year-old Auckland suspect in a Trends email listing top search terms in New Zealand, Reuters continues.

The suspect’s name was in the subject line, according to one report. 

New Zealand Justice Minister Andrew Little accused Google of “flipping the bird” at the country’s laws, the Guardian reports.

“Google’s contempt for New Zealand law and for Grace Millane’s family is unacceptable, and I will now be considering my options,” Little added.

The policy of suppressing suspect names is designed to ensure a fair trial, among other things. 

The Trends emails apparently are driven by algorithms.

Google had not responded to a request for comment at deadline. However, Ross Young, Google’s New Zealand government affairs manager, told Reuters that the Trends suspension “provides even further assurance against any recurrence.”

Young had also said: “We have looked at our systems and it appears that last year’s situation was relatively unique as it was a high-profile case involving a person from overseas, which was extensively reported by overseas media.”

Young also stated that Google respects New Zealand law.

But Little argues: “In the end, Google is effectively acting as a publisher and publishing material that is under suppression orders in New Zealand, and they cannot and should not be allowed to get away with that.”

The murder of Millane, who had just graduated from university, rattled the country, which sees few such cases.