A man in his early 20s appeared in court this morning in connection with the assault of a tourist in the Temple Bar area of Dublin last week.
Darragh O’Brien (22), of no fixed address, was charged with assault causing harm related to the attack in the early hours of last Thursday, August 21st.
He was arrested by gardaí yesterday evening and brought before Judge Monika Leech at Dublin District Court on Saturday morning.
The court was told he is no longer welcome at his family home and is “couch surfing with friends”, causing difficulty in establishing bail conditions.
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It is alleged Mr O’Brien kicked the victim in the head during the attack.
The court heard the victim, a man in his 40s and originally from England, left a Temple Bar pub and engaged in a verbal altercation with the accused.
A physical altercation followed in which Mr O’Brien allegedly launched four kicks towards the victim, one of which hit his stomach and chest area, the court heard.
The victim was then allegedly kicked in the head and knocked unconscious upon falling to the ground.
He was initially taken to St James’s Hospital on the night of the assault but was later transferred to Beaumont Hospital to undergo emergency specialist surgery.
The court heard the victim remains there in an “unstable and critical condition”, in an induced coma.
The court was told Mr O’Brien has no previous criminal history and “understands the seriousness of this offence”. He was remanded in custody with consent to bail subject to obtaining an address.
He was asked to appear at Blanchardstown Garda station daily and to “stay out of the Dublin 2 area”. He was further told to not renew his passport or any travel document.
