DNA clue sought in hunt for beer bottle offenders

A bloodied and frightened Mary Loader after being hit by the bottle. Photo / Tauranga Police

A beer bottle flung at a 65-year-old grandmother from a passing car, cracking her face, has been taken away for examination and police are confident they will find DNA traces of the offenders.

Mary Loader, from the Bay of Plenty's Papamoa, had reconstructive surgery and five metal plates inserted in her face at Tauranga Hospital and continues to be in an induced coma after the incident on Sunday morning.

Mrs Loader was walking along Domain Rd early on Sunday morning to collect feijoas when a car full of young men passed her on the sidewalk.

She would have been just a couple of metres away when a man threw a glass bottle, three-quarters full of beer and carrying the momentum of the car, out of the window and smashing into her face, said Detective Senior Sergeant Greg Turner, of Tauranga.

Police believe the bottle was thrown deliberately at Mrs Loader, who was knocked to the ground.

She was bleeding heavily from wounds on her temple and between her nose and lip, but was still conscious when emergency services arrived.

Mrs Loader underwent three hours of surgery at the hospital and had titanium plates inserted into her face to set a fractured cheekbone and a broken nose.

The bottle, however, was intact on the road and police have brought it in for forensic examinations by Environmental Science and Research.

"ESR have significant success extracting DNA from the neck of bottles so we're hopeful," Mr Turner said.

People in the area were calling into police saying they had had similar incidents in the past - though the bottles were thrown at their cars while driving, not at pedestrians.

Only one witness has contacted police so far, saying there were four men in a light-coloured four-door car.

There were other vehicles around when the incident happened and police are urging people to call in.

"Look, those occupants of that car will have their own grandmothers and hopefully their conscience will realise they need to bring resolution," Mr Turner said.

A hospital spokeswoman said Mrs Loader had been placed in a coma because of swelling around her face.

Doctors had initially hoped to take her off the respirator earlier this week.

Daughter Vicky Loader said the injuries to her mother's face had made her nearly unrecognisable.

"We're just devastated, and to see her now really is shocking. I don't think they realise what they've done," she told the Bay of Plenty Times.

"[It's] such a mindless act that caused so much devastation, really. They just need to see what they've done - if it were their mother up there [in hospital] ... it's just terrible."

The family were concerned the attack would hinder their mother's freedom - she lived alone and often went out walking.

Police released photos of Mrs Loader's injuries to try to get more information from the public about the attack.

"This was a senseless act that has resulted in an innocent woman suffering horrific injuries," said Mr Turner.

"We have spoken to some witnesses. However, we urgently need further information from other members of the public. It may be someone who was in the area at the time, or someone who may have overheard people talking about it since."

Senior Constable Adrian Oldham of Papamoa said a witness had seen a bottle fly out of a vehicle and Mrs Loader dropping to the ground on a driveway.

Four cars were passing at the time of the attack, and police wanted to know whether the drivers of those vehicles could identify a light-coloured car which had four young men in it.

* Any witnesses should contact Tauranga police station on 07 577 4300, or anonymously on 0800 SPEAK UP.