Graphic CCTV footage of forty-four years old Strabane man stamping on the head of another man and kicking and punching him as he lay prone on a footpath outside a bar, was played to Derry Crown Court yesterday.
Judge Philip Babington said the footage showed John Anthony Graham, an unemployed scaffolder from Melmount Mews in Strabane, stamping on the victim's head twice and possibly three times, kicking the forty-five years old victim five times to the head and punching him to the head seven times.
At the time of the assault outside the Oak Grove Bar in Bishop Street in the early hours of February 9 of last year, the victim was Graham's life long friend.
The victim declined to provide a statement to the police about the assault and also refused permission to the police and prosecution to access his medical records.
The footage, which is five minutes long, showed the victim prone on the footpath outside the bar during a snowfall. Graham is seen carrying out the sustained assault on the victim as well as dragging him along the footpath.
A prosecution barrister said that Graham, who pleaded guilty to a charge of attempted grievous harm with intent, was arrested at the scene by police officers who had been alerted to the assault by two women who worked in a nearby fish and chip shop and by a taxi driver who had stopped at the scene.
The prosecutor said one of the women confronted Graham who continued to attack his victim as he appeared to be unconscious on the footpath.
"She describes the sound of the kicks landed by the defendant as a sickening sound. She says the defendant then jumped full force onto the victim's head, although that is not shown on the CCTV, causing her to scream -'you are going to kill him'.
"The defendant replied -'that is what I intend to do-' and he then commented he was going to get the boys from Strabane to deal with him", the prosecutor said.
The barrister said when the women told Graham to stop, he replied to her 'it's none of your business, it's nothing to do with you, you don't know him'. He then told the woman 'wait until I get him back to Strabane and I'll get him done by the right boys'.
After his arrest Graham said his victim had earlier attacked him, but when he was then shown CCTV footage of the incident he said he was ashamed and shocked by his actions.
Defence barrister Eoghan Devlin said Graham knew he was going to jail and he knew that when he admitted the offence.
He said an earlier incident inside the bar had sparked an "over reaction and inexplicable behaviour" by Graham.
"He deeply regrets that it happened to his friend. He has lost a friendship of thirty years, he behaved terribly towards a friend", Mr. Devlin said.
Judge Babington remanded Graham in custody and said he would sentence him on Friday.
