‘Power drill attack on woman was homophobic’
IT is suspected that a vicious weekend assault in which a woman had a hole bored in her head with a drill in Co. Tyrone was a homophobic attack.
Brenda McLaughlin, 38, sustained a circular hole in her skull during the horrific attack, police have told a court.
The victim told officers she believed she was targeted on Saturday because she is gay, and the incident is being treated as a hate crime.
The alleged male assailant, who is 17, and victim were at Ruby’s nightclub in Strabane early on Saturday morning. There was no evidence a drill bit was in place when the power tool was later recovered or after police checked security camera footage, a Police Service of Northern Ireland detective told Omagh Magistrates’ Court.
The detective said: ‘It is my understanding that the victim has since told medical staff that she heard the noise of the drill and felt her head being twisted.’
She is in a high-dependency unit at Altnagelvin Hospital in Derry. The detective added: ‘There does appear to be some sort of hole in the skull but I cannot say how severe it is.’
The arrested teenager was accused of having an offensive weapon, a power drill. He is also alleged to have unlawfully and maliciously caused grievous bodily harm to Ms McLaughlin or intended to do her GBH, and is further accused of stealing a power drill belonging to the nightclub.
A police patrol was alerted by members of the public that a woman was lying injured on the ground with blood coming from her head and
‘It was grossly, inexplicably violent’
lapsing in and out of consciousness. She was also having fits and seizures.
District Judge Peter King said it was a ‘grossly violent, inexplicably violent incident’.
The detective added: ‘The victim said she believed it was in relation to her homosexuality.’
The accused told police he had gay relatives and did not bear any ill will, his solicitor Ciaran McGuinness said. The victim was taken to Altnagelvin Hospital where her condition was initially described as life-threatening but later downgraded.
The officer said no damage had been caused to her brain but there was some form of ‘circular’ hole in her scalp. ‘However, it does not appear to be deep,’ he added.
Judge King said there was a risk to public protection and therefore he remanded the teenager in custody, to appear by video-link at Strabane Magistrates’ Court on May 18.
The accused, wearing a tracksuit, appeared emotional and hugged his mother in the public gallery afterwards.