A convicted robber who claims he was bashed by a policeman in the back of a patrol car has admitted he lied numerous times during his police interview after his arrest and that claims he was slipping in and out of consciousness during the alleged attack were only raised in court this week.
Police officer Richard Soper, 38, is on trial in Whangarei District Court charged with the assault of Wiremu Henare, now 18, on August 27, last year.
Soper has pleaded not guilty to the charge.
Yesterday, Henare was cross examined by Soper's lawyer, Arthur Fairley, and Henare admitted he lied a number of times during a police interview after his arrest as he was trying to minimise his involvement.
He also admitted that a claim he made that Soper punched him so many times in the back of the car that he slipped in and out of consciousness was only made publicly for the first time when he was in the dock on Monday.