Friday, 15 July 2022 | 17°C Belfast
Gainsford was charged with causing the elderly man grievous bodily harm with intent
A Co Down man who allegedly assaulted a 80-year-old pensioner while on a three-day drinking binge was today freed on High Court bail.
M r Justice Colton warned John Frederick Gainsford that he must not go within a mile of his victim’s home or he would be returned to custody.
Gainsford (54), of Woburn Drive, Millisle, was charged last week with causing the elderly man grievous bodily harm with intent.
Prosecution lawyer Iryna Kennedy said that at 6.30pm on Wednesday, July 6, Gainsford made a 999 call to police saying he had “just stabbed somebody”, after he woke up to find a person in his house.
While holding the knife, he told the operator: “I am going to f***ing do him in. I am going to get in so much trouble because I have done him damage.”
Gainsford was arrested by police and the injured party was found in the kitchen, lying on his side with “significant bruising to his face. His left eye was badly swollen and there was a large pool of blood on the floor”.
The lawyer said the victim shouted: “See that b***ard that did this to me, he tried to kill me.”
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The injured party told police that Gainsford had asked him to bring a bottle of gin to his Woburn Drive home.
“He noticed Gainsford was already heavily intoxicated and told him he had been on a ‘three-day bender’. They sat at the kitchen and drank a gin and tonic. The injured party can’t recall anything else until he woke up in hospital.”
The victim sustained cuts to his hand, a broken rib, extensive bruising to his face and neck and needed stitches to his lip.
Gainsford told police that he had no recollection of the pensioner being in his house, as he had been drinking for three days.
He claimed to have blacked out and when he came into the kitchen he saw the male, but didn’t know who he was.
Ms Kennedy said police were objecting to bail on the grounds of reoffending and interference with the elderly witness.
“A seven-inch knife was recovered from the property covered in blood. This applicant can’t recall what happened. Police believe he is a risk of reoffending due to his alcohol dependency.”
Defence barrister Sean Mullan said no stab wounds were found on the victim apart from a “small cut to his hand”.
He added that Gainsford worked as a farrier with horses and police could know of whereabouts at all times.
“He has never been in custody before and so waking up in a cold cell in Maghaberry is a real wake-up call to his system.”
Granting bail of £500, Mr Justice Colton told Gainsford he must not contact the injured party “directly or indirectly” and to not come within one mile of his home.
“And that is the most fundamental condition of his bail: any contact with the complainant will result in an immediate revocation of [Gainsford’s] bail and he will not be released from custody pending the outcome of the charge.”
Gainsford must also abide to a 9pm to 7am curfew, be electronically tagged, report to police once a week and is not to enter licenced premises or consume alcohol.
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