'Man beaten so severely with a weight-lifting bar he thinks he was in road accident,' court hears
A man allegedly beaten so severely with a weight-lifting bar that he spent a year in hospital thinks he was knocked down in a road accident, a court heard today.
Police fear the victim may never be able to provide an account of the suspected drug-fuelled attack at a flat in south Belfast due to his injuries.
Details emerged as two men charged with involvement in the assault were remanded in continung custody.
William Cuthbert, 36, and Andrew McFadden, 28, both face counts of causing grievous bodily harm, possession of an offensive weapon, and assault occasioning actual bodily harm.
A third defendant, 21-year-old Thomas Connolly, is also accused of taking part in the attack.
Violence is believed to have flared during an ecstasy and cocaine-taking session at the Tollgate House apartment block on Bradbury Place in August 2023.
The victim was attacked with the metal handle of a dumbbell inside one of the flats before security staff were alerted, according to the prosecution case.
Previous courts heard he underwent emergency surgery on a severe bleed to the brain and remained in hospital for up to 12 months before being released to continue his recovery.
It was disclosed that he has lost sight in one eye and struggles to form a full sentence.
At Belfast Magistrates’ Court today an investigating detective described the medical notes in the case as “vast”.
More than 40 pieces of evidence have also been submitted for forensic tests as part of the police inquiry.
“The injured party is the only person who has not given a statement and probably never will be able to, given the severity of his injuries and ongoing issues,” the detective said.
“He thinks that he was knocked down in a road traffic collision.”
The three accused, all of no fixed abode, were arrested close to the scene of the alleged attack.
Although neither Cuthbert nor Connolly made applications for bail, defence lawyers argued they have now spent nearly two years behind bars waiting for the investigation to be completed.
Remanding them in continuing custody until June 18, Deputy District Judge John Rea stressed the case should be given urgent priority.