Whangārei man charged with alleged assault of Dallas Gurney granted interim name suppression

CCTV captured former media executive Dallas Gurney allegedly being pushed off a balcony on January 11. Photo / Michael Cunningham

A man charged with the alleged assault of Whananāki store owner and former media executive Dallas Gurney has appeared in court.

On January 11, CCTV captured Gurney allegedly being pushed off the balcony outside his store, located on the east coast of Whangārei.

Gurney – once a high-profile media figure who worked alongside broadcasting heavyweights Sir Paul Holmes, Mike Hosking, Kerre Woodham and Duncan Garner – left the corporate world two years ago for a slower pace in Whananāki, where he runs the local store and a small community radio station.

The footage showed him approaching a group of patrons that Sunday, before falling onto concrete and suffering injuries, including a fractured shoulder.

A 36-year-old Whangārei man was subsequently charged with injuring Gurney with intent to injure.

Today, the man appeared in the Whangārei District Court before a registrar.

He was represented by duty solicitor Dave Sayes and did not enter a plea.

The man was granted name suppression and remanded on bail ahead of his next court appearance in February.

He will appear before a judge at that hearing to seek further name suppression and enter a plea.

Shannon Pitman is a Whangārei-based reporter for Open Justice covering courts in the Te Tai Tokerau region. She is of Ngāpuhi/ Ngāti Pūkenga descent and has worked in digital media for the past five years. She joined NZME in 2023.