Video footage has emerged of an elderly motorist brawling with a patched gang member in the street during a road rage incident.
The footage shows the older man facing off with the younger Black Power gang member in Papatoetoe, Auckland, on Thursday - as traffic was brought to a standstill behind them.
In the background, two others also appear to be fighting.
In the violent fight that follows, the older man throws several punches at the gang member before landing a bruising right hand that knocks the younger man to the ground.
The pair then continue to trade blows and grapple.
Throughout the clash, the older man - dressed in a worker’s high-vis top - continues to get the better of the exchange.
Police said they responded to reports of a “disorder” on East Tamaki Rd in Papatoetoe at about 4pm yesterday.
“The parties involved left before police arrived,” a spokeswoman said.
Information can also be provided anonymously via Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111.
The video titled “Old man gots hands” has since gone viral on Facebook, drawing thousands of comments.
Facebook users almost universally mock the gang member for getting into a fight with an older man - and then losing.
“Uncle took that boy to school”, one user said, while another added: “Halloween was last week take the gang costume off.”
“Not all heroes wear capes. They wear hi viz,” posed another commenter.
Many others joked about why they learn to never mess with their parents.
“That’s an Islander dad right there,” said one.
“Ya don’t get to be a Koro without learning a few skills along the way, chur. Young peoples need to learn respect,” another added.
However, Manukau ward councillor and former police officer Alf Filipaina has called for calm in the wake of the incident.
He urged gang leaders to ensure there was no retaliation for the “kaumātua getting the better” of the younger man.
Filipaina said he didn’t know what had led to the fight and so couldn’t comment about that.
“But the Facebook comments are more of the issue for me,” he said.
He feared the more the public - and even fellow gang members - mocked the younger man then the greater risk it could lead to a further incident.
“I hope common sense prevails with the [gang’s] leaders to say, ‘what’s happened, happened mate. There’ll be no retaliation at all,” Filipaina said.
“That’s the key thing for me - that’s the message.
“I feel for our kaumātua more than anything else.”
-By Ben Leahy
