Christchurch Police investigating a serious assault on cricketer Jesse Ryder in Merivale last night are now reviewing CCTV footage from around the time of the incident.
Police are also continuing to call for witnesses, and for those involved in the incident to come forward and contact Police.
Detective Senior Sergeant Brian Archer says Police have been speaking to witnesses throughout the day to put together a picture of what has happened and to identify the persons involved.
He says at around 12.30am this morning Ryder and a group of his Wellington team mates were at Aikmans Bar in Merivale.
"As Jesse was leaving the premises an altercation has taken place in the outdoor courtyard and on the footpath outside Aikmans, involving Jesse and a group of at least two other males," he says. "This was a relatively brief incident and was over quite quickly.
"Following that incident Ryder, accompanied by two other people, walked across the road towards McDonalds, where his Wellington team-mates had earlier gone to purchase food.
"We believe one or two people from the group involved in the initial altercation have followed Ryder across the road, and a second incident has taken place at the entrance to the McDonalds carpark, involving one of the males from the earlier group.
"In that incident it appears that Jesse has been the victim of a serious assault and has suffered significant head injuries.
"Ambulance and police were called at around 12.44am, and Jesse was taken to hospital where he remains in intensive care."
Christchurch Hospital advise that Ryder is in a critical condition, in an induced coma as a result of suffering multiple injuries, says Detective Senior Sergeant Archer.
Police have completed a full scene examination at Aikmans and at the McDonalds car park.
"At least 10 or more people are likely to have witnessed at least some of the events, and investigators have interviewed a number of witnesses today.
"There are also CCTV cameras in the area, and inside the bar, and we are now going through the process of downloading and reviewing that footage.
"At this stage we have not identified the people involved in the incident, but we do have positive lines of enquiry and we will be focusing on identifying and locating those people and speaking to them as soon as possible."
Detective Senior Sergeant Archers says that although the Wellington players had been at licensed premises during the evening, there is no indication at this stage that alcohol was a contributing factor to the assault.
Police are asking for any witnesses to the incident to contact police, and calling for the people involved to come forward.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Christchurch police on (03) 3637400.
Alternatively, to provide information anonymously contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
ENDS
NOTE:
No further updates or briefings are expected at this stage, unless there are significant developments. Any developments or updates will be advised by media release on the NZ Police website.
Media contact:
Police National Headquarters, Public Affairs after-hours pager: 026 101-082