Man assaulted two Dunedin pensioners, claimed they started it — judge disagrees

A Dunedin man who assaulted two pensioners was fined $500 after a judge said his rendition of events was “unworthy of belief”.

On the afternoon of March 12 last year, Peter Alexander Roger, 63, was at his home in Hawksbury Village.

The privately owned residential community was once home to the Cherry Farm psychiatric hospital.

Allegations of “bullying tactics” were noted in 2021 by the Otago Daily Times, when Roger’s partner complained management was dragging its feet to remove tree roots and repair pavements.

Dissatisfaction was mounting and on the autumnal afternoon last year, Roger had three things on his mind: “Tree roots, gravel and potholes,” Judge Jim Large said.

“There’s been a lot of trouble,” the man told the judge.

“They put a new path over rotten roots.”

Peter Roger was fined $500 and ordered to pay $249 reparation.

Roger said he was approached by two fellow residents and after attempting to discuss repairs, things became heated.

“I was discussing the hole in the footpath ... I also told them about other hazards around the village.”

He said he pointed to a pothole he had recently repaired and told the couple: “That’s my gravel, I want it back.”

The defendant described how the pair of pensioners became antagonistic, ordering him to move on.

“She closed the distance so she could get under my chin ... She is quite confrontational with everyone, she never turns her back.

“We bounced off each other, she came at me again.”

Roger said the woman used her body to trap him in a verbal altercation when her partner suddenly struck him in the face.

“He sucker-punched me ... He stood over me with both fists clenched, I thought he was going to kick me.

“I just gave him a little tap on the chin.”

Both victims gave evidence this week, detailing an entirely different scenario, pinning Roger as the aggressor.

The couple described how the man began yelling abuse at them and spontaneously shoulder-barged the woman.

“He came out of the shed and said ‘You can f*** off and take your wh*** b**** with you’,” the male victim said.

“He dropped his right shoulder into her back and knocked her to the ground.”

The woman landed on the grass and was grateful to avoid damage to her ceramic hip, the court heard — but the violence was not over.

Attempting to protect his partner, the male victim grabbed Roger by the shirt.

The momentum of his aggressive move caused Roger to trip over the man’s foot and fall to the ground.

As the couple retreated towards their unit, Roger pursued them through a paddock, landing one final punch to the pensioner’s face.

Lawyer Liam Collins questioned the couple about the steps they took following the altercation, drawing attention to the lack of police contact immediately after the assaults.

The male victim said the endless disputes involving Roger had led him to believe contacting police would be fruitless.

“This is Mr Roger going on and on and on about nothing ... It’s all rubbish,” he said.

“When something like this happens, you just think ‘what’s the point’?”

Roger maintained his innocence, despite a damning email trail provided to the court in which he confessed to the crimes at least three times.

Among his email confessions were: “I smacked him right in the chops” and “I did hit you square on the jaw and your teeth did go clack together”.

Judge Large said Roger’s version of events was “entirely unconvincing”, “uncorroborated” and “overstated”.

“I reject it as unworthy of belief.”

Roger was found guilty on two charges of assault and had since been trespassed from the Hawksbury Village.

He was fined $500 and ordered to pay $249 reparation.

erin.cox@odt.co.nz