Police officer seriously assaulted in Rotorua

Te Ngae Rd near where a police officer was seriously assaulted on Thursday night. Photo/Ben Fraser

A police officer is in Waikato Hospital with serious head injuries after being assaulted while on duty in Rotorua.

At midnight on Thursday he and another officer responded to an emergency call from a residential property in Owhata.

The constable was in the process of arresting a male for an alleged assault of a female, when a second offender jumped a fence and struck him on the side of the head with an unknown object.

He was knocked unconscious and the offender took off on foot.

The officer was taken to Rotorua Hospital, then transferred to Waikato where he is currently sedated and in a stable condition.

In a written statement, Bay of Plenty District Commander, Superintendent Andy McGregor said, "police work tirelessly to keep our communities safe and acts of violence like this against our officers are unacceptable".

"Police takes the safety of its staff seriously and will continue to investigate this attack to hold those responsible to account.

"We are continuing to offer support to the officer and his family at this time."

Police Association President Chris Cahill expressed concern for the police officer who was assaulted.

"Our thoughts go out to the officer who was the victim of a horrific and cowardly attack while making an arrest at a property in Rotorua in the early hours of the morning," Mr Cahill said.

"The association is offering support to the injured officer and his family and assisting where we can.

"This is the second serious assault on a police officer this week, after a constable was bashed up to 15 times over the head in the main street of Morrinsville on Monday," Mr Cahill said.

"This incident highlights the dangerous situations that officers put themselves in while carrying out their duty. It very quickly turned a routine policing matter into a volatile and life-threatening situation.

"We all hope for a favourable outcome for the injured officer from this sickening assault," he said.