Name suppression for Te Puke man accused of serious assaults in Pāpāmoa

A Te Puke man accused of serious assaulting two men was granted interim name suppression in Tauranga District Court today. Photo / File

The man accused of assaulting two men near Pāpāmoa's Fashion Island has been granted name suppression.

The Te Puke man faced charges of assault and injuring with intent to injure when he appeared in the Tauranga Registrar's Court today.

Police alleged the defendant punched two men, one in his 40s and the other a 61-year-old, during an altercation outside shops near Fashion Island on Gravatt Rd about 1.30pm on February 24.

One man was taken to Waikato Hospital in a critical condition with a head injury and the other was treated and discharged from hospital, police earlier said.

The defendant's lawyer, Helen Gould, argued that interim name suppression should be granted to protect the defendant's rights to a fair trial.

A Tauranga court registrar granted the request but said the issue of name suppression would be reviewed on March 15.

No pleas have yet been entered the charges and the defendant was remanded on bail subject to a raft of strict conditions, including a ban on him trying to leave the country.