Four men have been charged in Ashburton in relation to an assault that left a police dog-handler requiring stitches to his face.
Police said the dog handler was brought in to break up a crowd that had gathered in the centre of Ashburton in the early hours of Sunday morning, in what they were calling alcohol-fuelled disorder.
Three men, aged in their twenties, have been charged with the aggravated assault of a police officer, and a 19-year-old has been charged with assaulting a member of the public.
Senior Sergeant Scott Banfield said further charges may yet be laid.
The four men will appear in the Ashburton District Court on 23 February.
