Queenstown bouncer Jonathan Dixon says CCTV video footage will prove he did not assault the man who was put in an induced coma following an altercation at a nightclub in the resort 10 days ago.
Dixon yesterday indicated he would plead not guilty to charges of assault and causing grievous bodily harm to two men outside Subculture bar.
The 40-year-old appeared in the Queenstown District Court yesterday and was granted bail. He will reappear on February 13.
Jordan Sinke, of Queenstown, was put in an induced coma in hospital after the incident outside the nightclub.
Dixon was also charged with assaulting Thomas Beatson, of Queenstown, that same night.
Judge Michael Turner turned down duty solicitor Sonia Vidal's application for name suppression, saying the case had already received national publicity.
Ms Vidal said Dixon had received "some notoriety in the media" and the application for name suppression was to try to "achieve some damage control".
Ms Vidal said Dixon was "anxious to tell the court" he had not been drinking that night and had been trying to help Mr Sinke.
Dixon was remanded for a postcommittal conference date to be set and to allow time for him to seek legal aid and advice.
Under his bail conditions, he is forbidden to drink alcohol, is not to enter licensed premises except for supermarkets, or while working as a bouncer, and he is not to associate with the complainants. He is under curfew between 9pm and 7am.
If working as a bouncer, Dixon must also advise police as to where and when.
Dixon is already on bail after appearing in court on charges of accessing a computer system and dishonestly obtaining video surveillance footage of England rugby player Mike Tindall and a woman in a bar in September, during the Rugby World Cup.
Tindall is married to the Queen's granddaughter, Zara Phillips.
Outside the Queenstown District Court yesterday, Dixon held up his hand to the waiting media and initially refused to comment. But pressed further, he said the video footage from outside the nightclub would prove he had not assaulted Mr Sinke.
"Wait until the evidence comes out," he said.
Dixon said it was his high profile as a result of the Tindall case that had led to the latest charges.
