Neighbour grabbed man by throat in row over noise coming from wooden floors

AN APARTMENT resident, who complained of “horrendous” noise coming from a neighbour’s home, gripped the man by the throat in an “eyeball to eyeball” confrontation.

Mark Somers (52) assaulted the man who lived in the fourth-floor apartment above him, then claimed in court the victim was a “neighbour from hell”. The man, David Glynn, denied he had believed Somers was an “arrogant, imperious” English man who was “telling him how to live”.

He said they had never had heated words before the row on August 28, 2015.

Somers pleaded not guilty to assaulting Mr Glynn at the Metropolitan Apartments in Kilmainham, Dublin.

Judge Bryan Smyth found him guilty at Dublin District Court and adjourned the case for a victim impact statement.

After he moved in, Mr Glynn said Somers asked if there was a carpet on his floor in a “passing comment” because he could hear noise coming through.

He said Somers later began complaining about footsteps, or things falling on the floor.

On the morning of the assault, Somers asked about him getting carpets.

Mr Glynn told him he did not think it was appropriate for Somers to bang on the ceiling with a brush. Somers became very annoyed and abusive and Mr Glynn told him to back off.

“I shouted that he had shown his true colours,” Mr Glynn said. “I said he was an ignorant ‘expletive’. He thought I said he was an English ‘expletive’ and he became more enraged.”

The accused got out of his car and “came at” Mr Glynn. “He grabbed me by the throat,” Mr Glynn said.

They were face to face for about three seconds and Somers backed off and returned to his car.

Somers claimed in evidence there had been continuous loud music from Mr Glynn’s apartment and said he had been “incredibly polite with these people” despite a “huge amount of anti-social behaviour”.

“They were basically the neighbours from hell,” he said.