TWO men were sentenced yesterday for the part they played in a prolonged and unprovoked attack on another man at a drink-and-drug fuelled party in Belfast.
A member of the public who came to the aid of the injured man later told police 'I thought this male was coming from a Halloween party I was so shocked by his appearance' and described a mouth injury as 'horrific.'
Lee Carlisle (31) from Mossvale Avenue in Ballygowan, Co Down and 27-year old Patrick Francis Delaney, from Galway Place in Belfast both admitted taking part in a sustained attack on the injured party, and of falsely imprisoning him for several hours during the early hours of November 1, 2017.
The pair appeared at Belfast Crown Court, where they were both handed two-year sentences. Carlisle has already spent seven months on remand for the incident and his sentence was divided between seven months in custody followed by 17 months on licence, while Delaney's sentence was suspended for three years.
Judge David McFarland noted Carlisle's criminal record was "more significant" that his co-accused, and said he accepted a third man who meted out the worst violence against the injured party was not before the court.
A previous court hearing was told by Crown prosecutor James Johnston that in the hours before the beating the injured party met Carlisle and Delaney for the first time in the city centre, that they had a drink together, and that the injured party was invited back to Delaney's flat for a party.
Mr Johnston said that drink and drugs were consumed and that at some stage one of the revellers said he had lost his mobile. Carlisle blamed the injured party - who didn't know anyone else at the party - and an attack was launched.
The injured party was subjected to a prolonged and sustained group attack which took place in the living room, bathroom and hallway of the flat. At several points during his ordeal, the injured party tried to escape - but was prevented from leaving and beaten further.
Carlisle was captured on CCTV leaving the flat at around 8.30am on November 1, and after being allowed to leave by Delaney, the injured man was discovered on the street at 9.15am by a member of the public.
The injured man was rushed to hospital and was treated for multiple injuries including a mouth wound that required staples, a broken nose, scores of lacerations and extensive bruising.
Mr Johnston said that around 11.30am on the day in question, police attended the flat and while Delaney was present, Carlisle was not. Whilst at the scene, officers noted "significant amounts of blood in various areas" including the bathroom and living room, and also noted there had been an attempt to clean up.
Following Delaney's arrest, he initially denied involvement in the attack - but later admitted both wounding the injuring party and falsely imprisoning him.
When father-of-two Carlisle was arrested, he made the case that while he invited the injured party back to the flat, he left and didn't see any assault. He later admitted being present and being party both to the attack and detaining the injured party against his will.
Lawyers for both men spoke of their clients' remorse for their part in the assault.
