Tawera Johnson, 23, appeared before the Parole Board for the first time this month after being jailed for five years one month following a bloody attack in central Dunedin.
Johnson was drinking in the Octagon in September 2023 and was waiting for a taxi to return home, the court heard at sentencing.
Three passers-by struck up a conversation with the man, which led to an invitation back to their flat to continue the revelry.
However, the mood soured when one of the group caught Johnson huffing hairspray under his shirt, and he was asked to leave.
While he left without issue, he remained bent on retribution.
Johnson called his partner and requested she bring him his Japanese-style katana sword — a weapon he had previously used during an altercation in Gore, he confirmed to the Parole Board.
Once he had the weapon, he used the intercom to speak to the victims, claiming he had left his vape in their home.
They refused to let him in so Johnson challenged them to a fight.
When they arrived to confront him, he pulled the sword from its sheath and said: "I’m going to cut your f...... neck off ... I’ll kill you c... , I don’t even care".
The victims urged him to put down the katana, but instead he swung at them, first connecting with someone’s shoulder, causing a laceration.
His second swing connected with the face of another man, resulting in a large gash from ear to cheekbone.
The wound caused scarring, nerve damage and impaired hearing for the victim, the court heard.
The Parole Board heard Johnson was about to be transferred from Invercargill Prison to Christchurch to undertake intensive alcohol and drug treatment.
He was also scheduled to enter a medium-intensity programme, but panel convener Martha Coleman questioned whether that would address his needs, "given the seriousness and unusual nature of this attack".
"The board considers it is necessary to get a full psychological report that looks in more detail at the nature of this offending, provides an assessment as to Mr Johnson’s risks and sets out a treatment pathway that is clear from the outset," she said.
Johnson will see the Parole Board again in October. His sentence expires in October 2028.
