The bridge from which the 63-year-old was thrown. Photo / Kenny Rodger
The bridge from which the 63-year-old was thrown. Photo / Kenny Rodger
KEY POINTS:
Police investigating an attack in Remuera last weekend have arrested a man and charged him with assaulting a Police Officer.
Police said a 33-year-old local man had been arrested at his home about 8.30am.
Originally it was believed that the man would be appearing in court todaybut police spokeswoman Noreen Hegarty said the man would be in the care of mental health authorities until deemed fit to appear in court.
The man was arrested during the execution of a search warrant by officers investigating an attack in which a 63-year-old woman was allegedly punched in the face and thrown off a three-metre bridge.
The assault took place on Sunday in Waiatarua Reserve.
There have been at least three similar attacks in the area since mid- January but Detective Sergeant Mark Rowbottom said no-one had been charged in relation to the attacks.
"However I'm reasonably confident that, because of the publicity around them, the heightened levels of awareness among locals regarding the possibility of threat and because of this morning's activities, the risk to public safety from the sorts of attacks we've been investigating has been reduced," Mr Rowbottom said.
In the latest assault, a woman was biking alone when a man approached her as she was crossing the footbridge and - without saying a word - began punching her.
He picked her up and threw her from the bridge into the water below, then dropped her bicycle on top of her.
The woman, who hasn't been named, suffered a bloody nose, a back injury and scratches to her legs.
