A man accused of smashing a bottle over another man’s head and then brandishing the broken glass at a woman who tried to intervene, was in Ireland illegally after he “circumvented the immigration process,” a court has heard.
Balkioosn Gujudhar (33) is charged with assault causing harm to a man and producing an implement capable of inflicting serious injury on Talbot Street in Dublin on September 10th.
The court heard that while Mr Gujudhar claimed he was a tourist, the Garda National Immigration Bureau, the accused had come without a visa and had no status here.
He came to Ireland where he “circumvented the immigration process” and entered illegally, after he had been due to leave the UK, Gardaí said.
Mr Gujudhar, of no fixed address, is originally from Mauritius. He is charged with assault causing harm to a man and producing an implement capable of inflicting serious injury.
Garda Diarmuid Foley, objecting to bail, outlined how, at 12.12am on September 10th, gardaí were notified of an altercation on Talbot Street on Dublin’s Northside. When they attended the area, close to Connolly railway station, they found a man bleeding heavily from the face who said he had been hit over the head with a glass bottle.
CCTV footage from the Ripley Court hotel viewed by gardai showed the man and woman standing outside, with the accused allegedly seen walking up to the man and hitting him over the head with a glass bottle.
In the footage, the man can be seen collapsing due to the impact of the bottle smashing, before the accused allegedly drags him across the street.
The attack happened on the same street which made headlines around the world in July, when a US tourist was attacked there. It was later described as a “no-go” zone by Dubliners, with others speaking out about other frightening attacks taking place on the city centre street. Many took to social media in the wake of the incident to share their experiences of seeing open drug dealing, gangs of youths, violent rows, and homelessness on the street.
Garda Foley further alleged that the accused was captured producing the broken bottle in the direction of the woman when she attempted to intervene. Garda Foley described the footage of being of “excellent quality” – with parts of the broken bottle later being recovered from the scene.
The court heard that the man is a flight risk, and had told the guards that he was a tourist who had only been in the country for a month.
Representing the accused, applying for bail, solicitor David Bassett said the accused maintains he and a friend were victims of an assault and robbery just moments before the alleged incident. The accused also disputed the description given of the CCTV footage, while his lawyer said that his client would stay with a friend if granted bail, and provide the address for bail.
Mr Gujudhar’s passport was surrendered, with Garda Foley saying it would be checked.