Horse trainer guilty of pensioner assault

Photo / Bay of Plenty Times

A Waikato horse trainer has been found guilty of assaulting a pensioner as an act of revenge.

A Hamilton District Court jury yesterday found Darrel Lang, 41, guilty of injuring James Crawshaw, 68, with intent.

Lang was remanded on bail to be sentenced in July.

The assault, which left Mr Crawshaw bruised and bloody, followed a fight the night before between him and Lang's father, fellow horse trainer Roger Lang.

That fight arose after Mr Crawshaw spread "malicious" rumours about Roger Lang's wife, Sheryll.

Lang had wanted to punish Mr Crawshaw for assaulting his father and bad mouthing his mother.

Crown prosecutor Louella Dunn said it was simply a pay back crime, the Waikato Times reported.

The jury found Lang not guilty of aggravated burglary, after defence counsel successfully argued he had been lawfully let into the house where the assault occurred.

- NZPA