Teen's mental health in question

Hawke's Bay Hospital

A teenager who allegedly went on a violent, naked rampage in Hastings before stabbing himself is recovering in hospital and will undergo a psychiatric assessment before police decide whether he will face charges.

The 18-year-old allegedly attacked his 70-year-old grandmother along with 65-year-old passerby John Higgs, in the Friday morning drama on Grays Rd.

The elderly woman was hospitalised with a head injury after allegedly being knocked to the ground by her grandson.

She was discharged from Hawke's Bay Hospital over the weekend.

Mr Higgs, who told Hawke's Bay Today he was on his way to work when he came across the "possessed" teen, was hit and kicked by the naked man.

The beating only stopped when a former colleague of Mr Higgs, who happened to be driving past at the time, urged him to get into her car.

The young man then allegedly used a knife to inflict several wounds on himself including, it is understood, puncturing a lung.

The man and his grandmother were both taken to Hawke's Bay Hospital and the teenager was later flown to Wellington Hospital in a critical condition.

Police said yesterday the man remained in Wellington Hospital's intensive care unit over the weekend but was due to be moved to a ward at the hospital yesterday.

It was likely he would be transferred back to Hawke's Bay Hospital sometime during the coming week.

Police said he would undergo a mental health assessment and a decision on charges would follow.