Auckland man denied bail following assault on Herald delivery man

Herald delivery driver Soane Mateo at Middlemore Hospital.

A 20-year-old man accused of attacking a Herald delivery man has been denied bail.

The Otara man appeared at Manukau District Court this morning after being arrested on Friday.

He is charged with wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm to Soane Mateo, who was attacked in the early hours of August 26.

Mateo, 47, was waiting for a newspaper delivery truck, outside the Gull Service Station on East Tamaki Rd, when he was attacked by two men who allegedly stabbed him with screwdrivers and bashed him with a brick.

The attack resulted in Mateo being hospitalised with six stab wounds, a punctured lung, and lacerations to his arm and head. He received stomach surgery and stitches to his head.

One of the alleged offenders is still at large.

The accused was granted interim name suppression on Saturday, after his duty lawyer argued that it should be kept secret on account of his age and the fact his mother had cancer.

She was in remission but it was argued that her son being named could severely affect her health.

The man has entered no plea and will be remanded in custody until his next court appearance on September 27.

He has also been charged with two counts of aggravated robbery.

These charges relate to an incident three days prior where the man allegedly robbed a second person of money, while armed with a rifle.

The second charge pertains to the robbery of a Z station in Otara on August 29, where he was allegedly armed with a sledgehammer.

Herald delivery driver Soane Mateo at Middlemore Hospital.

The court was full with members of the defendant's family, along with his alleged victim.

Mateo said he wanted to face his fears and see his alleged attacker in person.

"I wanted to see his face, to see what he is really like."

He said it was shocking to see CCTV footage of the attack, which was released by police on Friday.

Mateo was discharged from hospital on Friday and will continue his recovery at home in Otahuhu.

"At the moment I am doing fine. I'm having home care through ACC and having a nurse that comes and changes the pouch on my stomach," he said.

"I have to wait until November and then the doctors will review whether I need to have another operation to have the tube in my stomach put back to its original place."

Mateo said he is relying on ACC and Winz to "keep on top of my finances" while he recovers.

"As long as there is money for shelter, food and the basics then I should be alright.

"When I am working I have a bit of extra income, but I will just need to live on the essentials. In terms of living off ACC and having accommodation paid by Winz, it is hard.

"My goal is to get well and get back making a living."