Man guilty of two assaults

A MOSGIEL man punched a bus driver after being told to put on a mask and stop eating chicken, a court has heard.

Rewa Benjermin Herini Kingi (51) appeared in the Dunedin District Court on Friday after pleading guilty to two assaults which occurred a couple of months apart.

The most recent was on January 16 when the defendant was boarding a bus in Great King St bound for Mosgiel.

As Kingi got on, the driver asked him to stop eating chicken and don his mask properly.

The defendant gave him a thumbsup in response but his mood appeared to sour over the 45minute journey.

As Kingi was disembarking at Gordon Rd he aimed a couple of expletives at the bus driver and ‘‘got right up in the victim’s face’’.

He said he would not allow the defendant on the bus again if his behaviour continued.

Defence counsel Steve Turner said the driver threatened to call police, something that ‘‘triggered’’ his client.

Kingi threw three punches at the victim, two of which were glancing blows. But one connected with the man’s mouth, leaving him with a bleeding lip.

On November 24 last year, the court heard, Kingi was sitting outside McDonalds in George St when he confronted another man.

The victim raised his hands to protect himself but the defendant moved them and punched him once, causing a cut to his forehead.

Mr Turner said violence had been ‘‘peppered’’ through Kingi’s criminal history but his last such conviction was seven years ago.

Judge Dominic Flatley said the second incident was aggravated by the fact the driver was just doing his job.

‘‘This simply will not be tolerated in the public domain,’’ he said.

Kingi, who was now working fulltime as a hairdresser, was sentenced to 75 hours’ community work, six months’ supervision and ordered to pay the bus driver $250.