A group of partygoers heading home were attacked by about 30 teenagers on Auckland’s western train line, leaving them with life-altering head injuries and deep scars.
Three women and a man in their early 20s say they have been left deeply fearful of public transport after the late-night incident, which they claim saw them dragged by their hair and beaten.
The group has spoken out to raise awareness about the long-term impacts incidents like this can have. They asked the Herald not to use their full names.
The unprovoked attack unfolded at midnight at Morningside Station on October 31 last year.
The attack involved a large group of teenagers who were either watching, filming, or taking part in the assault.
One of the victims, Harry, told the Herald he and his friends boarded the late-night train and noticed there was a large group of intoxicated teenagers causing a “nuisance”.
“They were pretty intimidating, and we were like, ‘we’ll get off at the next stop if they don’t,’” Harry said.
Harry said a warden told the group to get off at the next stop, and as they walked past to get off, one person “took exception” to him.
Another victim, Zara, said there was eye contact, and then one of the guys said, “What the f**k are you looking at?” And Harry said, “Nothing, just keep on going”.
Harry said the brief interaction caused the incident to escalate rapidly.
“After it started on me, one of the girls tried to split it up. [The offenders] started to attack the girls as well,” Harry said.
When the train stopped at Morningside, one of the offenders left through one door and then came back through another door closest to Harry and his friends.
“[They] sort of king hit me to the back of the head, so I went back down to the ground,” Harry said.
Another victim, Harriet, said when the group swarmed them, her friend Olivia was dragged off the train and suffered a deep cut from a wine bottle.
“They pulled me by the hair off the train as well.
“Olivia was in the middle platform ... and she was bleeding heaps, we thought she was bleeding from her face, but it was actually her finger that had been cut really badly,” Harriet said.
Harry said after viewing CCTV footage of the incident, he estimated around 35 “kids” were surrounding them, filming and “taking turns”.
Some of the group had their bags, phones and IDs stolen during the attack.
Detective Senior Sergeant Anthony Darvill said police were continuing to investigate the assault at the Morningside Train Station.
“Initially, police attended a report of disorder at the train station just after midnight. On a unit’s arrival, most of those present had left the area, but a smaller group was located on Wolseley St,” Darvill said.
He said the group dispersed, and one female was spoken to at the time.
Subsequently, Darvill said further information was provided to police concerning an assault taking place prior to police arrival.
Harry said it was hard to feel safe on public transport, especially as a means home from a night out after the incident left him concussed and bruised.
“I was concussed for a couple weeks, but I was actually relatively better off,” Harry said.
Harriet said she was badly bruised and was still going to a concussion clinic nearly two months later after suffering severe headaches and even collapsing.
She was also forced to drop back hours at work due to the ongoing impacts.
Zara also suffered a concussion, and the discs in her neck were wrenched due to the whiplash from a punch, and Olivia had to get stitches on her hand.
The victims said they have received minimal communication from the authorities after the incident.
Police did not respond to the specific claims about their communication with the victims when approached by the Herald.
AT rail franchise partnering manager, Hayden Rawcliffe, provided the group with findings from an investigation into the incident in late November.
The investigation found that a security guard and a Māori warden on the train were both active in attempting to prevent the large group from re-entering the train as they exited Morningside Station.
“Personnel can be seen acting with personal bravery in protecting the victims that were knocked to the ground, pushing large numbers of teens away and standing over them to protect them,” Rawcliffe said.
There was also a train manager on board the train who was seen contacting police.
“Reviewing the footage, it appears Auckland One Rail staff took every step within their powers to intervene and minimise the impact of this incident,” Rawcliffe said.
AT data revealed hundreds of people have reported violent incidents on services between November 2023 and November 2025.
On bus and ferry services alone, there were 256 records of abuse, 209 of assault and 286 of injury.
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