Napier drinking session ends in 'nasty' livestreamed assault, woman's hair cut

The pair were sentenced in the Napier District Court. Photo / Warren Buckland

A man has been jailed and a woman sentenced to a night-time curfew after they carried out a "nasty assault" on another woman, cut her hair and live-streamed the attack on social media.

Rihari Hata Brown, 25, and Cheyenne Te Whaia Coster, 24, had been drinking with their victim for several hours in June last year before an argument started and they attacked her.

The Napier District Court was told that Brown hit the woman with a closed fist and threw a can of alcohol at her, She suffered a fractured eye socket and cuts and bruising to her face. Her right eye was swollen shut.

Both Brown and Coster pushed the dazed and confused woman back onto a couch as she tried to get away from the assault.

A laughing Coster, live-streamed a video of the attack, lasting two minutes and 35 seconds, to social media.

Judge Gordon Matenga said 20cm of the woman's hair was cut off over most of her head.

Brown and Coster both pleaded guilty to injuring with intent to injure.

Brown also admitted unrelated charges of driving with excess breath alcohol, escaping lawful custody, resisting police and possessing a methamphetamine pipe.

Judge Matenga said that the woman lost consciousness during the attack, to which Brown interjected: "No, she fell asleep."

The judge said neither Brown nor Coster did anything to assist their victim and showed her no empathy.

"It was a nasty assault, which effectively became a two-on-one situation," he said.

"It's appropriate to acknowledge that it was in the context and background of alcohol. Alcohol is not an excuse but provides some explanation as to why it happened as it did," the judge said.

The woman awoke the next day to find her shoes removed and her shirt ripped. She left the house and was helped by a concerned member of the public.

Judge Matenga sentenced Brown, who has been in custody since May, to two years in prison with leave to apply for home detention.

On his other charges, he was sentenced to lesser concurrent prison sentences and disqualified from driving for a year and a day.

Coster was sentenced to 15 months of intensive supervision and six months of community detention with a nightly curfew from 8pm to 6am.