A man has been fined $700 and $130 court charges for racially abusing an Indian family at a popular tourist spot last year.
The man admitted to using racist slur claiming it was intended to be light-hearted but was in bad taste and offensive to the family.
An Indian family- an elderly male, two parents and their child were at Signal Hill lookout in Dunedin on December 28, when they were approached by a 25-year-old man.
The man identified as Dean Branden Rowe approached the family and offered to marry the woman so she could obtain New Zealand residency and then went on to suggest the same to one of the men.
The police summary noted that the family tried to ignore Rowe's comments, but soon a heated argument ensued.
In a fit of rage, Rowe shouted at the family calling them the N-word.
Otago Daily Times reported that the court heard Rowe told the victims to "f... off back to their own country" and called them "black n.....s".
The Signal Hill Lookout in Dunedin
The family fearing physical attack left the area after the verbal abuse.
'Disgusted' by the incident, members of the public at the scene reported the matter to the police who were able to locate Rowe shortly afterwards and questioned him about the incident.
Rowe's defence counsel said his client disputed some of the specific allegations against him but admitted to the charge as he wanted the matter to get over as early as possible and move on.
Appearing at the Dunedin District Court last week, Rowe pleaded guilty to offensive behaviour.
The court documents read that Rower admitted to making racist comments but believed it was made in a light-hearted manner and did not intend to upset anybody.
Rowe's counsel told the court that he accepted the incident began with a joke but was in an 'extremely bad taste'.
The court also heard that the victims of the incident had not yet been identified and therefore, no restorative-justice could be taken.