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Violent and threatening outbursts resulted in multiple 111 calls to police at the weekend.
A 31-year-old man was taken into custody after a violent road rage incident at the foot of the Remutaka Hill Rd, while unruly behaviour in Martinborough resulted in more than one police report on Saturday night.
Bar staff in Martinborough said an escalating disagreement between two parties culminated in a knee to the face and broken nose for one man late on Saturday night.
A staff member, who preferred to remain unnamed, said two parties dining at the establishment got into an argument near closing time, yelling at each other in the bar, before spilling out to the street.
She said both groups had been “lovely” up until that point.
However, tensions began to rise when a woman from one group initiated a conversation with a man from the other.
“I was the one holding them back.
“It was mainly just verbal in the bar, but they continued near the Martinborough sign.
“It progressed into a boy getting his nose broken. He got kneed in the face, but it was mostly just pushing and ‘rah rah’.”
She said the entire incident was over quickly, with the groups, who were not locals, dispersing and going home.
“The drama of it was more interesting than it was.”
Another staff member said his bar filed a police report on Saturday night but did not comment on the nature of the report.
A police spokesperson confirmed police received a report of a possible assault shortly before 11pm.
“The caller advised the injured person did not require an ambulance and had left the area while the caller was on the phone with police.”
Earlier that evening, police had received a report of a disorder involving 10 people shouting at one another on a footpath near Memorial Square.
There were no reported injuries.
Meanwhile, the victim of a violent road-rage attack, witnessed by an off-duty police officer, said she was still shaken from the incident 24 hours later.
The woman, who preferred to remain unnamed, said she and her husband were near the base of the Remutaka Hill Rd travelling north when a car overtook them on double yellow lines.
“Straight away, we tooted. We had to swerve ourselves, and he stopped right dead in front of us.”
She said the man got out of his car and came towards them.
“He was yelling and screaming, punching and smashing the windows.
“He really laid into the window. I thought he had smashed it. He smashed the wing mirror straight off.
“I was on the phone to the police. We were shaking like anything.”
She said the man accused them of driving too slowly.
The woman said by chance an off-duty police officer witnessed the entire incident
“Behind us, there was a girl, and she jumped out of the car, and he threatened her too.
“We found out she was police and had been reporting everything.”
Police officers caught up with the man on State Highway 2 near Carterton at 7.30pm.
A 31-year-old man was taken into custody, however, police could not confirm on Sunday whether any charges had been laid.
