St Patrick’s day bashing: Fun night out turned violent after trio randomly attacked

Warning: Distressing Content

A group of friends are still healing from injuries they sustained after being brutally attacked by a random man on what was meant to be a fun Friday night out.

The man who wishes to remain anonymous told the Herald the couple had decided to meet with friends at an Irish Pub in Auckland’s CBD.

“It was St Patrick’s night, there was live music and we were with our friends enjoying.”

Some of the group decided to head to the Sky City which was only 20 metres walk away from the bar, he said.

“Me, my fiancee and a friend stayed at the bar for another hour.”

Later, the trio walked up to join their friends at the casino.

However, as they were heading in that direction a strange man appeared in front of them, the man said.

“The guy said something to my fiancee like ‘piss off, get lost’, he just jumped in front of us, like ready to fight.

“I wanted to defend my fiancee but she told me to leave it. So I did.

“But as I walked away and turned my head around he hit me from behind with a weapon of some kind maybe a knife. It knocked me unconscious, I hit the ground bleeding.”

The injury on the back of the head of a man who was attacked on St Patrick's night on Wellesley St, Auckland city centre. Photo / Supplied

The stranger then attempted to fight his friend, he said.

“My mate got banged up pretty bad as well, he had lacerations on his arm and a black eye. My partner was very scared, she thought I was dead, and she attempted to stop the guy from attacking.

“But she too got injured in the process.”

All he remembered after that was being lifted by his friend, a lot of blood on the ground and his head being bashed up, the man said.

“That’s when the police and ambulance came.”

A manhunt has been underway to find the person responsible and inquiries were ongoing, a police spokesperson said.

Police had earlier said they received a report of an assault on Wellesley St West about 11.30pm last Friday.

“Police and ambulance attended. One person was transported to Auckland Hospital with serious injuries, and two other people were transported to hospital with minor to moderate injuries,” police said.

They said they had been working to “locate the assailant”.

He had to stay in the hospital overnight and his friends spent the night there as well, the man said.

“I am healing, I have a bad injury on the back of my head, it is still sore. I am pretty concussed, I have sleepless nights.”

It was the first time in two years the couple had visited the city, he said.

“The city has never bothered me to be honest but now a lot of my friends are saying it is a waste of time going there. Too many idiots out to only have fights.

“We can’t even go out for a good night without someone trying to fight.”

The man said he had not yet been given updates from police on whether they had found the man responsible.

The trio wanted to thank the young university student who came to their aid that night, he said.

“I saw him in the emergency department the next morning as I was leaving. He was also injured, his chin was cut and he had blood all over.”