Banning nightclubs for soldiers after a series of attacks, mostly involving other soldiers



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Soldiers are still banned from The Daily in Palmerston North after a series of assaults between soldiers.

David Unwin / Stuff

Soldiers are still banned from The Daily in Palmerston North after a series of assaults between soldiers.

Soldiers allegedly excluded from a Palmerston North nightclub for their own safety were in fact the main attackers in the assaults, mostly involving other soldiers, newly obtained reports show.

Colonel Stefan Michie, a high-ranking military figure, barred soldiers and personnel based in or attached to the Linton military camp from entering the Daily Bar and Nightclub on Main St in July after serious assaults around the bar.

The base commander, group captain Shaun Sexton, also barred military members based at the Ōhakea air force base from entering the bar, according to documents obtained under the Official Information Act.

The colonel took The Daily offline when a soldier was seriously assaulted in the bar on July 9, according to internal Defense Force emails.

READ MORE:
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* Soldier expelled from the army after a drunken night assault

The order was given to maintain the safety, security and discipline of soldiers when they needed to be in a high state of readiness and readiness for Operation Protect, the Defense Force’s response to Covid-19, Michie said when it was issued. the order.

However, reports show that almost all of the incidents were soldiers attacking soldiers.

There were nine assaults involving soldiers on or near The Daily from July 2018 to July 2020.

The attackers were predominantly personnel from the 1st Battalion, Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment.

There was an attack by a civilian on a Burnham-based infantryman on June 28, 2019.

However, Daily staff and witnesses noted that the soldier “was being abrupt and rude to people at the club and tried to start fights with close people. [the] bathroom area, ”said a military police report.

One fight involved a 19-year-old infantryman assaulting a fellow soldier after he “saw red” at the bar on June 26, kicking his head like a soccer ball.

The wounded soldier was taken to Palmerston North Hospital.

A senior infantry officer reported being assaulted at the club by his subordinate on May 25, 2019.

SafeCity reported finding a soldier attempting to climb over the back fence of The Office after he was denied entry through the front gate in September.

David Unwin / Things

SafeCity reported finding a soldier attempting to climb over the back fence of The Office after he was denied entry through the front gate in September.

The officer told military police that “his corporal punched him in the face on the dance floor, for no reason,” the worksheet read.

A civilian was hit by a flying bottle thrown over his shoulder by a supply soldier on February 15, 2019, according to a military police report.

The soldier apologized to the victim, who suffered severe headaches and was treated by an osteopath.

Last month SafeCity, a community watchdog group for the Palmerston North Safer Community Council, reported on two events involving soldiers at other nightclubs near The Daily.

Six soldiers left the Regent Arcade when staff suggested they “move on” after “behaving in a disorderly manner” on September 12, and another person identified as working for the military attempted to sneak into The Office through a back fence after Denied entry to the bar on September 11.

The daily ban was due to be reviewed in August, but has yet to be lifted. Despite this, the soldiers continue to frequent the disco.

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