• Home
• /
• Crime

Two students and restaurant manager on trial over fight

Two students and a restaurant manager stood trial on Sunday in the Court of First Instance allegedly for involvement in a fight in a restaurant.

The students, an Egyptian, identified as 22-year-old M.O., and an Emirati, identified as 23-year-old S.M., were charged with assaulting the Lebanese restaurant manager, M.B., 37, and causing him a permanent disability of five per cent in his left wrist. M.B. was accused of assaulting S.M. by pushing him many times from behind until he fell down. He was also charged with threatening S.M.

A police corporal said that they were informed about a fight at a restaurant in Raffa on a day in July last year. It was about 1.40am. When the police reached there they saw a crowd outside the place.

M.B. told the corporal that he was the duty manager at the restaurant when he saw S.M. standing at the ladies rest room. He tried to take S.M. out but he did not want to move. Then they had a fight and M.B. sustained a hand fracture.

S. M. told the officer that he walked in the restaurant heading to the rest room and he was surprised by M.B. pushing him and kicking him out. S.M. alleged that other staff came and beat him and his friend M.O. up.

The corporal added that M.B. was then very angry and agitated. He was screaming loudly and threatening S.M. who was also nervous with torn clothes. According to the corporal, S.M. did not respond to the threat.

An Egyptian guard at the restaurant said that M.O., S. M. and another person had come to the entrance on that night but he did not let them in because there were no tables available. He asked them to wait for some time. The guard added that shortly later, S.M. approached him and asked to be allowed into the rest room. The guard let him in. Minutes later, the guard saw M.B. pushing S.M. out from behind until the two reached outside.

As the two were screaming loudly S.M.’s friends came and assaulted M.B. The guard and another employee separated them.

The guard also said that other staff intervened to stop the defendants from assaulting each other. Another Syrian staff confirmed the statement of the guard.

M.O.’s brother said that he and M.O. saw M.B. pushing S.M. out, causing him to fall down. As they got close to see what was going on, he alleged during the investigation, many restaurant staff got out and gathered around M.B. M.O.’s brother added that they were pushed, assaulted and verbally abused. Then the police patrol arrived. According to the report of the forensic medicine, M.B. sustained a permanent disability of five per cent in his left wrist because of the assault. The other defendants sustained minor scratches or bruises.

mary@khaleejtimes.com