A New Zealand woman holidaying in the Cook Islands has returned with a broken jaw after she was allegedly assaulted by four people, including an off-duty police officer.
While the woman did not lay an official complaint with Cook Islands police, the authorities are investigating after members of the victim's family posted about the incident on social media, NZ Herald reports.
The woman was at Rehab nightclub in Avaru, Rarotonga, last Thursday when she was allegedly assaulted in an unprovoked attack by two men and two women.
"I could feel their fingers on my skull and [they] just kept punching me in the face,'' she told Pacific Radio News.
"I could feel some mean punches from the back of my head, all around the side.
"I felt like they were already angry - like I literally was in the wrong place at the wrong time."
The woman returned to New Zealand the following day, where x-ray images revealed her jaw was broken in two places.
The woman spoke to New Zealand police, but the Cook Islands authorities are expected to complete their investigation by the end of the week.
Cook Islands police say they were made aware of "scuffles" at the bar on the night in question, but say were largely managed by security staff.
"Claims made against police in terms of assaulting anyone have still not been substantiated,'' police said.
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