Basher faces court
HIS victim was airlifted to John Hunter Hospital, Newcastle, with broken ribs, a dislodged tooth and extensive bruising to the face after being punched and kicked to the ground on a rural road at Coomba Park on the Mid North Coast.
Mark Boyd-Skinner, 35, of Clarenza pleaded guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm over the matter and his two co-accused, including one young person, were dealt with at Forster Local Court.
The outcomes of these cases are unknown.
Police facts tendered to the court described how the victim of the assault had been warned by his former de facto partner that a group of people were on their way to his location to "bash" him about 7pm on February 22 last year.
The man drove away from the house along Coomba Rd, the only road available from the home, and a short time later a car coming from the other direction pulled over in front of him, blocking his path.
Police said the man got out of the car and was "set upon" by the three co-accused, including Boyd-Skinner, who punched and kicked him several times before he fell to the ground where the assault continued.
Independent witnesses watched the assault from nearby, police said.
As the attack subsided the man managed to get to his car and drive to a friend's home nearby where an ambulance attended.
He was airlifted from that address to John Hunter Hospital.
Police later went to a Boomerang Beach address and established a crime scene around a car found to have blood stains and a blood-soaked shirt inside it.
A co-accused was arrested on the night but Boyd-Skinner, who was not at the address, was charged several weeks later.
Police evidence did not specify the reason for the assault but mentioned that the victim had had a telephone conversation with Boyd-Skinner's mother.
The matter was finalised in Grafton Local Court on Monday where Boyd-Skinner was placed on a 12-month Intensive Correction Order which involves regular reporting to the Grafton Corrective Service office and various measures implemented by an appointed supervisor, including up to 32 hours of community service per month, house searches, curfews and the placement of monitoring equipment in his home.
The conviction meant a breach of Boyd-Skinner's previous good behaviour bond for the theft of $3400 worth of copper wire at Trenayr in November 2009.
