Yorkshire man released from custody to raise €10k for Corkman he assaulted twice

The accused had already raised €7,000 compensation for his victim

Sentencing was put back until November 15 with the accused on bail.

A Yorkshire man has come up with €7,000 in compensation for the Cork man he assaulted twice in one night in May 2019 and now he has been released from custody to raise another €10,000 for the victim.

Billie Ajayi was extradited from the UK just over two months ago for the double assault and refused bail.

Since then he has signed guilty pleas. Now at Cork Circuit Criminal Court, defence barrister Donal O’Sullivan said the accused had raised €7,000 compensation and wanted to be released on bail so that he could return to Yorkshire, resume work and earn more money to put together a further €10,000.

“The injury is quite severe. He did not realise at the time how serious it was. He does have work available for him in England.

“My client will endeavour to raise €10,000 as a gesture of his remorse,” Mr O’Sullivan said.

Dermot Sheehan, prosecution barrister, said that in the unusual circumstances the Director of Public Prosecutions was now consenting to bail so that the accused man could raise compensation.

Judge Helen Boyle said, “I will admit him to bail. I have read the victim impact statement. €7,000 is only by way of his out-of-pocket expenses. Further compensation will have to be raised. He has been in custody since November 25. To raise further compensation he needs to be able to work.” 

Sentencing was put back until November 15 with the accused on bail. Billye Ajayi of Williamson Gardens, Ripon, North Yorkshire, England, was arrested in November at Heathrow Airport in London on a European arrest warrant by Garda Shane Coakley and brought to Cork.

Assaults

The two assaults occurred in the early hours of May 19, 2019, and the injured party sustained factures to the left and right of his lower jaw.

Garda Coakley outlined the seriousness of the assaults and said the accused had the torch from his phone pointed at the feet of the injured party in Rearden’s at around 1am that morning and there was some altercation.

“It is alleged that the defendant punched him in the jaw and was escorted from the premises,” Garda Coakley said.

The second alleged assault occurred on Washington Street when the defendant – in the company of an unnamed second man – punched the injured party a number of times in the face. In this incident the defendant had his shirt pulled off him and he was later seen in the area with no shirt on him in the early hours of that morning, May 19, 2019.