A man, charged with attempting to murder his elder brother, has had his charge reduced by Justice Sunil Sharma of the High Court in Lautoka.

He is now charged with act with intent to cause grievous harm.

Accused Vimlesh Goundar is represented by Iqbal Khan and Tevita Kaloulasulasu while the State is represented by Alvin Singh from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP).

Particulars

The alleged incident occurred on June 9, 2017.

The court heard that the day before, the complainant, Nilesh Goundar had gone to Malaqereqere to attend the wedding of his employer’s son with his brother.

The complainant left at about 11.30pm, five minutes before the accused.

He was dropped off at the Uluisila Junction and before he reached his house, a sound made him turn around and was allegedly hit with an iron rod on his neck.

The complainant allegedly punched the attacker and was allegedly hit from the back with a knife.

While on the ground, the complainant was allegedly struck several times on the head with a knife.

He was taken to Sigatoka Hospital and then transferred to the Lautoka Hospital.

The accused had said he saw two strangers jumping out of the drain at the place of the incident and ran away.

He denied the offence.

Justice Sharma said: “In my judgment the inconsistencies that came out during the cross examination of this witness did not shake the basic version of this witness evidence.

“I do not accept that the accused was assaulted or forced by the Police to confess.

“I am satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that the accused was present at the scene of the crime during the early hours of June 9, 2017 and he was the one that assaulted the complainant with an iron rod.”

The sentence is on Friday.

Edited by Ranoba Baoa

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