Man fights for life after Fife assault

Police wait to speak to critically injured Cardenden victim

A 23-year-old man is fighting for his life after being found in a Fife street with serious head injuries.

Dante Darko is in a critical condition in Edinburgh’s Western General Hospital after what appears to have been an attack in Lochgelly in the early hours of Sunday.

Police have so far been unable to speak to the Cardenden man and have called for the public’s help to piece together the exact circumstances of the incident.

As Mr Darko’s shocked family, including husband Chris, also appealed for information, Detective Sergeant Kieran Marsh said: “We’ve got to keep an open mind as to all possibilities.”

The Asda worker was found by a member of the public in Dundas street with what has been described as a significant head injury.

A 23-year-old man is in a critical condition after being found with a head injury in a Fife town.

Dante Darko was rushed to Western General Hospital in Edinburgh after a member of the public discovered him lying in a Lochgelly street in the early hours of Sunday.

Police said he had a significant injury to his head.

Officers have still not been able to speak to the married Asda worker, and have appealed for help to piece together the exact circumstances of what appears to have been a serious assault.

Mr Darko’s husband Chris did not want to talk about the incident yesterday but Detective Sergeant Kirk Donnelly of Dunfermline CID said all possibilities were being investigated.

“At this time we have not been able to speak with the man to establish how he sustained his injuries and as such, we’ve got to keep an open mind as to all possibilities,” he said.

“With that in mind, we would ask anyone who believes they have information relevant to this investigation to contact police immediately.”

The injured man’s sister also called for anyone with information to come forward.

Commenting on an official post on the Fife Police Division Facebook page, Danielle Gibson said: “This is our brother and we need to know what happened.

“Anyone that has even the smallest of information please come forward.”

Mr Darko was known to families in Kirkcaldy after a spell working at the town’s Sunshine Nursery some years ago.

He was found in Dundas Street at around 3am and police have appealed for the occupants of a dark-coloured SUV, possibly a Nissan Qashqai, to come forward.

The vehicle was seen to stop near Diamonds pub on Main Street at around the time the clocks went back an hour and officers believe they may have information that could help.

Two men seen walking in the Dundas Street/Main Street area around half an hour before Mr Darko was found have also been asked to get in touch.

The first is described as white with a slim build.

He was wearing a black hooded top with the hood up, black knee-length shorts, white trainer socks and black trainers.

The second is said to be white and of a larger build than the other man.

He was wearing a dark zip-up top with a lighter coloured panel on the chest, dark trousers and was carrying a creamcoloured backpack.

Det Sgt Marsh added: “We know that an SUV and two male pedestrians were within the area prior to the man being found, and all of these individuals are asked to get in touch to assist with our inquiries as they may have useful information that can help us determine what has happened.”

Anyone with information should contact Dunfermline CID via 101 and quote incident number 3709 of October 28.

This is our brother and we need to know what happened. DANIELLE GIBSON