A 27-year-old man was sentenced today in Cork Circuit Criminal Court to a year in prison for punching his friend before he himself was stabbed.
The incident occurred near UCC in broad daylight and was witnessed by members of the public who raised the alarm.
27-year old Luke Hayes, of no fixed abode, had already pleaded guilty to a charge of affray before appearing in Cork Circuit Criminal Court today for sentencing.
On the 10th May 2021, Hayes arranged via Snapchat to meet up with his friend on Magazine Road near University College Cork to settle a dispute between them.
However, a row broke out between the friends
Hayes punched his friend to the ground before he himself was stabbed and nearly died due to blood loss.
The incident occurred in broad daylight and was witnessed by members of the public.
Sgt Duggan told Judge Helen Boyle that CCTV showed Hayes striking his friend who fell on to the roadway.
Hayes struck his friend a second time.
That man then produced a knife whilst lying on the ground and stabbed Hayes.
The fight between the two men was captured by CCTV, cameras, dash cam and mobile phones.
The second man, who is serving a two year sentence in relation to the incident, attempted to stab Hayes a second time.
Sgt Duggan said that in trying to prevent the stabbing Hayes ended up injuring his own hands.
Donal O'Sullivan, barrister for the defence, said that his client "came out second best in and is lucky to be alive" and "got a lot more than he bargained for and suffered a significant penalty."
Judge Helen Boyle said that it was an "aggravating factor" that Hayes had punched a friend in "broad daylight" near UCC subjecting onlookers to having to witness an "act of violence."
She jailed Hayes for 18 months suspending the last six months of the sentence.
