A police officer has told court of sprinting up a Civic street, screaming at a man to stop bashing an unconscious victim in the head with a baseball bat, before crash-tackling him to the ground, wrestling with him, and putting him in handcuffs. The constable gave evidence in the Supreme Court trial of Srbko Borovina and Petar Dimic, both aged 29, who are accused of an attack in Civic in the early hours of January 22, 2011, that left the victim unconscious and with serious head injuries, which required about 30 stitches. The alleged victim claims he did not know his attackers, and had done nothing to provoke the attack. That is contested by the defence team - barristers Jack Pappas and Anthony Hopkins - who say the complainant and a friend were out in Civic for revenge, after a fight that hospitalised one of their friends earlier that night. Constable James Michael Kelly, then attached to the City Police Station, was dealing with a separate disturbance outside Academy Nightclub, when a friend of the alleged victim ran up to him. Constable Kelly said the friend was ''extremely frightened'' and ''visibly shaken'', and warned police that his friend was being badly hurt around the corner, near the Tongue and Groove bar. The officer looked to his partner, who yelled at him to run, the court heard. Constable Kelly said he rounded the corner onto Genge Street to discover a series of separate brawls involving about six people. He said he saw Borovina hitting a man in the head with a baseball bat, while Dimic punched and kicked him. He sprinted up the street, yelling at the pair to stop, but, he told the court, they didn't react. ''I was screaming the whole time 'Police! Stop! Police! Stop!','' he told the court. He said a blow from the bat knocked the victim off his feet, and he then curled up in the foetal position, trying to protect his head from the repeated strikes. Constable Kelly crash-tackled Borovina, wrestled with him, and put him in handcuffs. He said Borovina was covered in blood, but said he did not appear to be injured in any way. The court heard Borovina abused the officer, calling him a ''dog c---'', among other things. The officer will continue giving his evidence on Wednesday, when the trial continues. Earlier on Tuesday, the court heard from the friend of the alleged victim, who first alerted police. He told the court he had run from the scene when he and the alleged victim were surrounded by a group of men near Tongue and Groove. As he looked back, he saw his friend being beaten with a baseball bat, the court heard. The man told the court he found police, and returned to the scene to see his friend on the ground with the men still assaulting him. ''He was just lying there. I wasn't sure if he was unconscious or dead,'' the witness said. In cross-examination by the defence, the friend was quizzed over calls made from his phone to a number listed as ''Slim'' before the incident. Mr Pappas suggested to the witness that he and the alleged victim were organising a revenge attack on the group in response to a fight outside Holy Grail earlier that night, which left their friend with a broken jaw and loose teeth. The defence said the revenge attack had gotten out of hand when the witness's friends had turned up with baseball bats. He accused the witness of lying to the court. ''You are fabricating your evidence. ''You're making it up,'' Mr Pappas said.
A police officer has told court of sprinting up a Civic street, screaming at a man to stop bashing an unconscious victim in the head with a baseball bat, before crash-tackling him to the ground, wrestling with him, and putting him in handcuffs.
The constable gave evidence in the Supreme Court trial of Srbko Borovina and Petar Dimic, both aged 29, who are accused of an attack in Civic in the early hours of January 22, 2011, that left the victim unconscious and with serious head injuries, which required about 30 stitches.
The alleged victim claims he did not know his attackers, and had done nothing to provoke the attack.
That is contested by the defence team - barristers Jack Pappas and Anthony Hopkins - who say the complainant and a friend were out in Civic for revenge, after a fight that hospitalised one of their friends earlier that night.
Constable James Michael Kelly, then attached to the City Police Station, was dealing with a separate disturbance outside Academy Nightclub, when a friend of the alleged victim ran up to him.
Constable Kelly said the friend was ''extremely frightened'' and ''visibly shaken'', and warned police that his friend was being badly hurt around the corner, near the Tongue and Groove bar.
The officer looked to his partner, who yelled at him to run, the court heard.
Constable Kelly said he rounded the corner onto Genge Street to discover a series of separate brawls involving about six people.
He said he saw Borovina hitting a man in the head with a baseball bat, while Dimic punched and kicked him.
He sprinted up the street, yelling at the pair to stop, but, he told the court, they didn't react.
''I was screaming the whole time 'Police! Stop! Police! Stop!','' he told the court. He said a blow from the bat knocked the victim off his feet, and he then curled up in the foetal position, trying to protect his head from the repeated strikes.
Constable Kelly crash-tackled Borovina, wrestled with him, and put him in handcuffs.
He said Borovina was covered in blood, but said he did not appear to be injured in any way.
The court heard Borovina abused the officer, calling him a ''dog c---'', among other things.
The officer will continue giving his evidence on Wednesday, when the trial continues.
Earlier on Tuesday, the court heard from the friend of the alleged victim, who first alerted police.
He told the court he had run from the scene when he and the alleged victim were surrounded by a group of men near Tongue and Groove.
As he looked back, he saw his friend being beaten with a baseball bat, the court heard.
The man told the court he found police, and returned to the scene to see his friend on the ground with the men still assaulting him.
''He was just lying there. I wasn't sure if he was unconscious or dead,'' the witness said.
In cross-examination by the defence, the friend was quizzed over calls made from his phone to a number listed as ''Slim'' before the incident.
Mr Pappas suggested to the witness that he and the alleged victim were organising a revenge attack on the group in response to a fight outside Holy Grail earlier that night, which left their friend with a broken jaw and loose teeth.
The defence said the revenge attack had gotten out of hand when the witness's friends had turned up with baseball bats.
