Badly beaten cop: I thought I would die

New police Commissioner Peter Marshall called for tougher penalties for people who assault officers. File photo / NZ Herald

As Constable Ian Carter lay on the ground taking blow after blow to his head, unable to fight back during a vicious attack by a burglary suspect, he didn't think he would survive.

"To be honest, I thought I was going to die," he said.

Seventeen days after his ordeal, he spoke exclusively to the Weekend Herald about his ordeal, and why it hasn't changed his feelings about his job as a front-line cop.

Mr Carter, 32, who is based at the Henderson police station in West Auckland, was called to an address early on April 6 after a report of a burglar being disturbed in a house.

Mr Carter's colleagues spoke to the occupants of the house while he went to search the surrounding.

He saw a man lurking in Manutewhau Park and went to speak to him.

The conversation was "fine and calm".

But then Mr Carter was king-hit and fell to the ground.

"The first one caught me off guard. That's the one that knocked me unconscious. From there there's memory loss," he told the Weekend Herald from his home yesterday.

"I was in and out of consciousness, it was blurred... he was saying things to me, threatening."

Mr Carter was punched repeatedly - about 20 times - around his head.

"At one point when I couldn't offer any resistance, I was pretty much out of it on the ground being attacked, I honestly thought he was going to kill me."

Despite having a broken nose, swelling and bruising around his head, with one eye swollen shut and severe concussion, Mr Carter managed to spray the alleged offender with pepper spray.

He then hauled himself off the ground and started to chase the man.

"When I was following him the pain was starting to set in. As I ran I would lose consciousness... it wasn't pleasant," he said.

He alerted his colleagues, who found and arrested the alleged attacker shortly after.

Mr Carter was then taken to North Shore Hospital.

"I had no idea of the extent of my injuries. One eye had closed over and the other one was like tunnel vision with blurry squiggly lines.

"When I saw one of my colleagues arrive, look at me and go completely white in the face, I thought it must be a bit nasty. But I had no idea until I got to hospital."

Mr Carter had a CT scan to see whether his eye socket and jaw were broken.

Doctors can't rule that out because of swelling and he will find out more about the injuries at a follow-up appointment next week.

He said he was recovering fast.

"I've still got pains in my jaw and temple area, and a bit of a bloodied eye, but otherwise most of the swelling's gone down and the headaches have gone away."

Mr Carter could be cleared to go back to work as early as Tuesday.

And he said the attack hasn't put him off his job.

"I'm quite looking forward to getting back. It's not the first time I've been attacked. I've been assaulted previously a few times but they weren't as serious as this one.

"This is the job I love and I'm going to do it for as long as I can."

Mr Carter was attacked a day after new police Commissioner Peter Marshall called for tougher penalties for people who assault officers, saying: "I would have absolutely no sympathy for someone who gets a slightly higher penalty for assaulting police."

Mr Carter supported harsher penalties for cop-bashers.

"I'd have to say yes, I think it would help. I'd like to see that happen."