A couple hurriedly fled their central Hamilton flat and paid double-rent for a month after abuse and threats from their neighbour, who they also claim tried to ram them in his car.
The pair, who Newshub has agreed not to name, left their Hillcrest rental in January following a clash with a fellow tenant that kicked off in the shared carpark of their apartment complex.
They're adamant they did nothing to provoke the man, who they were living in fear of until they made the difficult decision to up sticks and move somewhere new at substantial cost.
The couple reported the incident to police, but have been disappointed by what they perceive as a lack of commitment and interest in taking action on their complaint.
'He tried to ram her'
The initial altercation unfolded just after 8am on Monday, January 10.
In CCTV footage from the housing complex supplied to Newshub, the woman can be seen exiting the carpark onto Greensboro St in a green Ford Falcon just as the neighbour is pulling in at speed.
The neighbour accelerates into the carpark before suddenly braking, jumping out of his car and hurling abuse at her.
He then got back into his car and began to aggressively reverse towards her vehicle. While it's not clear what his motivations are from the footage, the couple believe he was trying to ram her.
Footage shows the woman pulling out onto the road just before the neighbour's car makes contact. She then pulled up alongside her partner, who was getting into his car parked on the street just off-camera.
But the neighbour wasn't finished. In the footage, he can be seen pulling into the carpark and getting to his front door, where he turns to yell once more at the couple.
"I'm telling him that he needs to 'calm down, it's a two-lane road' - but it doesn't really seem to help calm him down or anything at all," the woman's partner says.
The neighbour told him to "stay there, I'm coming," before hurriedly getting back into his car and pulling out onto the road to chase them.
The couple told Newshub the neighbour's reaction wasn't provoked in any way, and they believe he was just "upset that he couldn't use both lanes of the road" when he pulled in.
CCTV cameras didn't capture what happened next, but the man would later tell police the neighbour tried to cut him off and get him to fight him.
"And then, as my partner tried to drive away, he boosted ahead and tried to ram her," the man recounts.
"We both took a left turn to try and get away and he went ahead straight. At that point, we regrouped at my work, which was not too far away, and started talking to the police."
'Waiting for him to harm someone'
After calling the police on their 105 non-emergency number, they were encouraged to go to their local police station and make an official complaint that day, which they did.
But things worsened shortly after that. Just two days on from the incident, the neighbour confronted them again when he saw them pull into the carpark after work.
In a video provided to Newshub he can be heard goading them, asking: "Where's the police? Where's the police officers? I'm scared."
While not a direct threat, the man says "it was certainly a taunt" and was threatening in the context of what had happened a few days prior.
Adding to their anxiety was the fact the neighbour's altercation with them was not the first he'd had while living at the housing complex. About six months prior, he was involved in a fist-fight with a fellow tenant that culminated in one of them being thrown onto the bonnet of a car.
The couple say the neighbour has a reputation for antisocial behaviour and a "bad attitude", but only became afraid for their own safety after the carpark incident.
"As you can see in the video, it wasn't just that he had a momentary lapse in judgement to try to back into my partner," the man said.
"I mean, he did that, then got out of this car, then went back to his car and left the property to chase us down. So that's what obviously made us a bit more concerned."
The pair contacted the police again to notify them of the second incident and ask for an update on the investigation, but were told no officer was available for a callout.
They felt the police's inaction had left them with no choice but to leave.
"When we were basically told that the police wouldn't be able to do anything about it, we thought, 'Well, no one's even spoken to him about it yet, so we can't really wait around,' - because we're essentially waiting for him to actually harm someone, right?
"We couldn't enter or exit the building without giving him the opportunity to attack, because his door is just to the right of the only entrance to the building."
By the end of the week, they'd moved out of their Hillcrest home and tracked down a new rental elsewhere in Hamilton. But they were forced to pay double-rent for a month due to the sudden nature of their exit.
"It was an extra $325 a week. Fortunately, we're pretty good savers, so we were able to take that loss," he explained.
"It's not fun losing about $1200, and that's one of the reasons we'd kind of like a response [from police] - we'd like to have the costs recovered. But we were fortunate in that we were in a position that we were able to make that choice and leave."
Police response
Police were unable to provide a fulsome response to Newshub's enquiries, alluding to complexities of the case they were unable to speak about further.
However they could confirm the case remains open and is actively being worked on.
It's understood the man is already under investigation by the authorities for other alleged offences.
But the couple are disappointed, saying police have told them they don't plan on pursuing charges and instead will just issue him with a stay away notice.
They said they were in shock and disbelief when the police told them they'd take no further action, describing it as "very disappointing".
"It's not like they've been ignoring it, but we feel jaded because we feel like they haven't done anything," the man said.
They've been told they will be given the opportunity to speak to the investigating officer to understand the police approach thus far.
They are considering taking the case to the Independent Police Conduct Authority or civil court to get costs back, but for now they're left with "a lot more questions than answers".
