Man died after intervening between two women outside grocery store

An Auckland man died after being attacked when he intervened in a confrontation between two women outside a grocery store.

Well-known Glen Eden local Andre Wickliffe was punched in the face multiple times and later died from pneumonia in hospital.

Pauline Cullen appeared at the High Court at Auckland on Wednesday where she admitted assaulting Wickliffe in September.

According to court documents released to Stuff, Wickliffe, 65, regularly socialised with retailers in the Glen Mall area.

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At about 9.30am on September 24, Wickliffe was at A1 Groceries when Cullen yelled and swore at people inside the store, from inside a vehicle.

Cullen was angry about an earlier altercation, but she yelled at a woman inside the store, “what the f… are you looking at!”.

She got out of the car and approached the woman in an intimidating manner, again yelling in the woman’s face.

Wickliffe was fearful Cullen was going to assault the woman so stepped between them.

He was punched in the face, and retaliated by grabbing her hair and pulling her back towards him.

Cullen pushed her hands against Wickliffe’s face and grabbed hold of his clothing around his upper chest.

She pushed him back against the front of the shop.

The pair grappled and wrestled outside the store and during the scuffle both fell to the ground. Wickliffe landed on the concrete footpath.

Cullen punched Wickliffe several times, the summary said.

Her associates had to physically pull her off Wickliffe before she fled, running out of Glen Mall.

Wickliffe was left on the ground struggling to breathe and bleeding from the face.

He was found to have broken ribs and a punctured lung and while in hospital contracted pneumonia.

“Treatment in hospital was unsuccessful and he subsequently died 11 days later as a result of the injuries he received in the altercation with the defendant,” the summary said.

Cullen had a bleeding nose and scratches on her face after the incident.

When spoken to by police, Cullen said she was already angry about something else.

“When she got there, she took her anger out on someone who didn’t deserve it,” the summary said.

Justice Sally Fitzgerald remanded the woman on bail and ordered the sentencing back to the District Court.

Justice Fitzgerald cancelled the May 2024 trial date.