A Warwick man has admitted punching and cursing at officers over the weekend, saying he wasn’t sure they were police.

Raymond Raynor, 24, pleaded guilty in Magistrates’ Court to using offensive words, violently resisting arrest, escaping lawful custody and assaulting police.

All of the charges related to a single incident, which took place on Saturday.

The court heard that officers were on patrol when a member of the public alerted them to a disturbance on Inglewood Lane. They pulled into the roas and saw Raynor leaning into a car window, yelling at the driver.

The officers approached, but Raynor shouted at them that it was a personal issue between him and his girlfriend, telling them to “f*** off”.

The officers warned him about his language but he continued to curse, using a derogatory term towards the officers.

Police then went to arrest Raynor but he pulled away his hands. During the ensuing struggle, Raynor punched one officer in the face before fleeing down South Road.

He was eventually detained after officers used a taser.

In court, Raynor appoligised for his actions claiming that the officers had not identified themselves and, due to the lack of lights in the area, he didn’t know they were police. As a result, he said he had lashed out in self defence.

“I think it was a misunderstanding on both parties,” he added.

Magistrate Khamisi Tokunbo ordered a social inquery report on Raynor, releasing him on $3,000 bail. He is set to return to the court for sentencing in August.