Man assaulted elderly stranger who refused to give him a cigarette, Rotorua District Court told

Paul James Takimoana appeared before the court after he pushed an elderly man who would not give him a cigarette.

A man who assaulted a stranger who refused to give him a cigarette has been put on a “good behaviour bond” by a Rotorua District Court judge and warned not to cross the line again.

Paul James Takimoana, a 35-year-old of no fixed abode, appeared in court on Monday charged with assaulting an unknown man in a Mobil service station in Rotorua on August 17.

Through his lawyer, Mike Olphert, Takimoana entered a guilty plea to a charge of assault and an unrelated charge of breaching bail by failing to attend court on September 8.

Olphert explained to Judge Alayne Wills that Takimoana saw an elderly Māori man in the service station and asked him for a cigarette.

When the elderly man told him to “go away”, Takimoana pushed him in his back. Service station staff called police.

However, Olphert said the elderly man got talking to Takimoana and eventually gave him some cigarettes and they “parted on good terms”. Despite this, Takimoana was still charged.

He told the judge Takimoana did not have a favourable history and suffered from ADHD and anxiety.

Judge Wills said Takimoana was currently on a sentence of supervision which would end in June next year and he would be getting support through that.

“There are clearly some real issues you need to work through,” he told the defendant.

The judge said Takimoana’s ADHD and anxiety should be addressed with “proper medication”.

On the charge of assault, Judge Wills ordered Takimoana to be sentenced if called upon within six months.

“It is essentially a good behaviour bond. You will be called for sentence on this charge if you come up in court within the next six months.”

On the charge of breaching bail, he was convicted and discharged.

Kelly Makiha is a senior journalist who has reported for the Rotorua Daily Post for more than 25 years, covering mainly police, court, human interest and social issues.