Dubai: Two waiters have been accused of trying to kill a man, who was trying to defend a friend over stalking a woman in a lift, heard a court on Sunday.

A Filipino man and his two countrywomen were said to have visited their friend at his residence in May one night where they spent some time and departed at around 4am.

Shortly after their departure, the three Filipinos returned back to the flat and claimed to their friend, according to records, that their two countrymen waiters, aged 32 and 33, had assaulted them in the lift.

The Filipino man accompanied his three friends outside and when he tried to ask about the assault, the two waiters assaulted them again.

Then the 33-year-old waiter cornered the man meanwhile the 32-year-old took a knife and stabbed him twice although he had tried to protect himself with a bottle.

Police headed to the building in Al Muraqabat and arrested the Filipino waiters. Meanwhile the injured man was rushed to hospital.

Prosecutors accused the Filipino waiters of attempting to murder their countryman.

According to the charges sheet, prosecutors said the 33-year-old cornered his countryman meanwhile the 32-year-old stabbed him in his shoulder and belly.

The duo pleaded not guilty when they showed up before the Dubai Court of First Instance on Sunday.

“I acted in self-defence. He attacked me first and I defended myself,” argued the 32-year-old as he refuted his accusation before presiding judge Mohammad Jamal.

The stabbed Filipino testified to prosecutors: “My friends came to visit me and when they walked out at 4am, they returned few minutes later. They told me that the two suspects had assaulted them. When I went out with them to check what had happened, I had a fight with them. They stabbed me with a knife and tried to kill me.”

The Filipino man [who was visiting his friend] claimed to prosecutors: “I fought with the suspects and they assaulted me because they had stalked and harassed my girlfriend [one of the two women who accompanied him] at the elevator.”

Presiding judge Jamal will hand out a judgement on November 13.