Dubai: A man suffered head injuries and loss of hearing after being attacked by five men with baseball bats outside a massage parlour in Deira, a Dubai court heard on Thursday.
In May of last year police were called to the incident in Muraqabbat after a 30-year-old Egyptian was physically assaulted in the street by a group of five men.
The victim told prosecutors that he went to a flat with his friend, who is also Egyptian, to celebrate a birthday party and saw five men and two women from Vietnam in the premises. His friend had a dispute with them and both left the flat.
“My friend left to his flat and I went to the supermarket beneath the building,” said the victim. “The five men and a woman followed me and they had knives and bats. They hit me on the head and kept assaulting me,” he said. “I had serious head injuries,” he added.
When police checked surveillance cameras in the area they identified and arrested the five men from Vietnam.
The attackers claimed that the Egyptian man came into the flat, which was used for massage services, and wanted to get his money back so started a brawl.
“He was demanding his money back after paying for a massage and he went to the kitchen and pulled a knife and held it to my throat,” said one of the attackers. “He stole a gold necklace, three mobile phones, plus Dh600 from the flat and he escaped,” added the attacker.
Medical reports revealed the Egyptian suffered 45 per cent permanent disability after the attack.
Five defendants from Vietnam were charged with physical assault and causing disability.
The Egyptian has denied charges of theft and consuming alcohol.
The trial has been adjourned until July 8 in order to organise translation for the Vietnamese defendants.
