A witness to a brutal gang assault in a sleepy Coromandel town has revealed details of the vicious beating he says shows a “sorry state of humanity”.
Aucklander James called Newstalk ZB’s Kerre Woodham this morning to share details of the moment he came upon a man left “lifeless” by the side of the road after a pack assault by a large group of patched Rebels gang members.
He said he was visiting Coromandel Town when he drove past immediately after the attack.
" I think we probably got there maybe 10 seconds after the violent altercation occurred and there was a gentleman on the ground.
“He was completely knocked out and people were pulling on his body and it was just disgusting.
“I’ve never seen anything like it. It was horrific.”
Fearing for his safety, James said he and his wife drove past to call police but doubled back a mere 15 seconds later to find the assailants had left the scene.
“Those scumbags, they’d all driven off.
“All in all, it was a horrific thing to see in small town New Zealand.”
He said he regularly visited the town and gang activity has tarnished a “lovely place”.
“It’s a sorry state of humanity when you have to see that sort of carry-on,” he added.
Coromandel Town locals have been left fearful after members of the Rebels gang spent the weekend attacking and terrorising people in their community.
Starting on Friday, members of the public have been attacked, business owners have been intimidated and a number of thefts have been reported, according to the local business association.
One video shared with the Herald shows at least a dozen gang members assaulting three men outside the Coromandel Smoking Company, a fish shop on Tiki Rd.
The men, some in Rebels patches, surround a young man, kicking and punching him as he lays on the ground.
As he sits up one gang member runs back and kicks him in the face, causing his head to snap backwards.
Two other men are then pulled off the ground, with one leaning over the first victim and trying to help him as he lays still on the ground.
Most of the attacks happened on or near the main street of the town. The gang left on Sunday but told several business owners they would be back.
Police say about 12 gang members and associates travelled through the area at the weekend.
Eastern Waikato Area Commander Inspector Mike Henwood said they received one formal report about the assault caught on video and said NZ Police had “no tolerance for this type of offending”.
“Three people were later taken to Thames hospital, with various injuries, after initially declining treatment,” Henwood said.
“Police have spoken with those involved and there has been no complaint forthcoming at this point. Further inquiries are being made to establish what occurred.”
Coromandel Business Association vice chairwoman Anne Louden told Newstalk ZB’s Mike Hosking this morning the town was “really shocked” by the weekend’s events, with several videos doing the rounds on social media.
One attack on Saturday night at the local hotel had left her “appalled by the brutal violence and lack of humanity these people seem to have”.
The perpetrators seemed to believe there would be no repercussions, she said.
Gangs - not just the Rebels - were a common sight in the town as she believed some “nasty distribution business” was happening nearby.
“We’re sick to death of it up here.”
Thames-Coromandel Mayor Len Salt told the Herald today that the brutal violence over the weekend had caused anxiety for locals.
”This isn’t common and it’s obviously a gang that has come through town.
”It’s brutal, unprovoked and sets a lot of anxiety in the community, but we don’t think it’s likely to set a trend for what we will see in the future.”
He said he had regular discussions with police about how they can improve the safety and security of communities.”I don’t think we will be taking any extreme or reactive measures, but we will be making sure our settings are fit for purpose.”
The National Party has organised a town public safety meeting for 6pm tonight, to be attended by the party’s police spokesman Mark Mitchell and Coromandel MP Scott Simpson.
The original venue was the fire station but because of the number of people attending it has been moved to the Coromandel Citizens’ Hall.