A Dunedin chef who found another man in bed with his ex-partner attacked him and chased him down the street threatening to kill him, a court has heard.
Jaden Anthony Tarapi (21) had broken up with the woman in mid-2018 but still occasionally slept on her couch, the Dunedin District Court heard yesterday.
Early on November 5, the defendant had been drinking after work and decided to visit the woman's Caversham home.
After he had climbed through the window to her bedroom, he realised she was not alone.
''Angered, you proceeded to assault [the victim] while he was asleep,'' Judge Michael Turner said.
Tarapi jumped on top of the sleeping man and throttled him with both hands.
He punched the victim twice in the face then head-butted him, causing a split to the man's eyebrow.
Tarapi's partner told him to stop but when the victim made a run for it, the defendant gave chase.
During the pursuit, he yelled that he would kill the man.
Tarapi first told police the victim had 48 hours to live and threatened to put him ''six feet under''.
He claimed he knew people who could carry out the killing for him, the court heard.
He even asked the duty sergeant whether he had been to many murder scenes.
''You'll be going to another one shortly,'' Tarapi told him.
Defence counsel John Westgate said his client had been refused bail and so spent more than four months in prison awaiting sentence.
The threats, he said, were never going to be carried out.
''He was just venting more than anything,'' Mr Westgate said.
While he characterised the violence as ''a short, sharp incident'', Judge Turner said it was more prolonged than that, citing the chase that ensued before Tarapi's arrest.
The offence, the judge said, was aggravated by the fact Tarapi was on bail at the time and was breaching his bail conditions by drinking.
Five weeks earlier, on September 29, Tarapi had been driving after work, accelerated heavily and crashed into a telephone pole on Stevenson Rd.
He also hit two cars and a caravan, and ended up coming to a rest down an embankment.
Tarapi had a breath alcohol reading of 600mcg - more than twice the legal limit.
He was sentenced to eight months' home detention and banned from driving for eight months.
The judge imposed $2881 reparation and 140 hours' community work to clear the defendant's fines bill.
Tarapi's employer was in court and confirmed a job was available for him as soon as he was cleared for work.
