Youth denies attacking customer at coffee shop

abu dhabi — A young man, who was under the influence of drugs, stabbed a coffee shop customer with a kitchen knife after a small quarrel and caused him serious wounds, an Abu Dhabi court was told.

The Arab man in his 20s went on trial at the Abu Dhabi Criminal Court of First Instance, accused of attempting to murder the victim.

Prosecutors said the man, who had taken a lot of drugs, had provoked the customer at a coffee shop, which resulted in the quarrel. The man then pulled out a kitchen knife from his pocket and stabbed the victim in the stomach and the hand before he fled the scene. The victim, also an Arab, was rushed to the hospital where he spent weeks undergoing treatment.

The Abu Dhabi Police identified and arrested the attacker later after investigations. According to the police, the man was found in an abnormal condition during the time of his arrest. A medical report confirmed that he had consumed a lot of drugs.

Prosecutors said the man’s intoxicated condition was partly the reason for the attack. Prosecutors charged the man with consuming drugs and attempted murder.

During the first hearing in the case on Wednesday, the man denied the charges, stressing that he never attacked the Arab man. He said he was surprised when the police officers reached his home to arrest him.

The lawyer representing the victim told the court that his client had gone to the coffee shop with friends when the defendant attacked him.

The lawyer said the victim didn’t know the attacker and they were not friends.

The lawyer also urged the court to compensate the victim for the damage he suffered as a result of the knife attacks. ismail@khaleejtimes.com