It is understood Eli Rubashkyn was charged with assault.
It is understood Eli Rubashkyn was charged with assault.
The protester who doused controversial British speaker Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull with tomato juice at her Auckland rally is unperturbed by police charging them with assault.
Police yesterday confirmed a 34-year-old had been summoned to appear in the Auckland District Court on a single charge of common assault.
“Good luck with that,” activist Eli Rubashkyn told the Herald, claiming to be in New York.
It is understood the charged person is Rubashkyn, who earlier said police told them an arrest warrant was likely to be filed in court.
Police denied it at the time, after Rubashkyn had already flown to Australia.
A police spokesperson earlier told the Herald several attempts were made Tuesday and Wednesday to locate a person of interest after an alleged “publicised assault” at Albert Park last Saturday.
Prior to any charges being laid, Rubashkyn told the Herald they would probably not return to New Zealand for some time.
“I’m not running away from justice. I’m running away from people that want to kill me,” Rubashkyn said.
“I am scared. I have been receiving a lot of death threats.”
Rubashkyn told the Herald on Thursday night masked people wearing black clothes, who they claimed were neo-Nazis, had threatened them and “so I needed to run away”.
They claimed police had gone to their apartment and “instead of checking the [men] outside they were trying to find out how to arrest me, or that’s how I feel.”
Rubashkyn was upset police had not offered them protection from those they felt threatened by.
“I had a call with one police officer and he was like, ‘we are worried about your safety’, but okay, I cannot live with your worries, you know?
“I need CCTV systems. I need you to give me a panic alarm. I need you to check who’s following me, you know, but nothing.”
Rubashkyn believed “someone like me, I have no way to get protection from discrimination in this country [New Zealand].”
Asked about the charge they faced, Rubashkyn said, “[I’m] happy to be arrested and happy to go to court and happy to serve whatever prison sentence I [may] have to serve.
“I don’t care. You know, they [my critics] say I attack freedom of speech. You cannot erase people’s existence, you cannot evade someone’s humanity. That’s not up for debate. Okay? It’s simple.”
About an hour later, Rubashkyn posted a video to social media where they said New Zealand had set a precedent that countries could stand up against hate.
Sitting next to a bottle of tomato juice, Rubashkyn claimed, “Dear Posie, I think that your genocidal hate will not be accepted in many countries of the world.
“Of course, you’re being paid for your hate,” they claimed. “You need to hate in order to use that energy to unite.
“But love is so powerful, so universal, it is everywhere. It is almost like the oxygen of the universe.”
Rubashkyn’s video was accompanied by the caption: “A message to nazi apologist transphobe Posie Parker. Trans women are woman [sic].”
— 🍅🏳️⚧️🍅Eli Rubashkyn 💚🤍💜 (@ElianaRubashkyn) March 29, 2023
When asked if they would return, Rubashkyn remained non-committal, saying they would were happy to be in New York and hoped to see some of the city’s sights.
A police spokesperson said the person of interest “was aware that police would like to locate and talk to them about the incident, and ask them to come forward so the matter can be dealt with appropriately.”
“Police will not be commenting further on the investigation or what steps have been taken.”
Rubashkyn shared a screenshot of an alleged email from police urging them to front up - claiming the situation could escalate unnecessarily if a warrant was served.
British activist Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull aka Posie Parker is escorted from Albert Park. Photo / Dean Purcell
“Some people are asking to revoke my citizenship. I have a warrant for arrest issued already so I will be arrested if I am in New Zealand,” they claimed.
Rubashkyn said a group of people were helping to find a lawyer and to raise money for a legal defence.
“I’m trying to raise money because I already know that I need to be in court and I’m spending too much money on flying and being safe and yeah, so I would like some help.”
