Pair thought "severe beating" was "a bit of a laugh", court told

Tuesday 03 October 2023

A man wept as he described in the Royal Court how he was allegedly knocked to the ground, beaten and had his shoes stolen after a night out – before the pair he claims were responsible filmed him and laughed while he lay on the ground.

The alleged victim was giving evidence on the first day of the trial of Mark Christopher James Goodchild (36) and Addison Thomas Mazurke (29), who both deny grave and criminal assault.

He cried as he recalled the attack, saying: "They jumped on my head, my ribs and my legs.

"My collarbone was broken. After two days I had surgery in the hospital. There were scratches everywhere."

The court was shown numerous clips of CCTV footage which show the incidents, in Bath Street and King Street. The victim is seen running away from two men before he is pushed to the ground, punched and kicked.

The CCTV showed the two men returning to King Street afterwards and each picking up a trainer.

A later clip shows the victim walking slowly along King Street with no shoes.

The court was also shown a video taken on Mazurke's phone where the man is lying unconscious on the ground with his arms over his head, and the two attackers can be heard laughing.

Crown Advocate Matthew Maletroit, prosecuting, described the attack as "a serious and sustained assault involving multiple blows" but said: "They took it as sport. They thought it was a bit of a laugh to give someone a severe beating."

Mr Mazurke was identified by CCTV but Mr Goodchild denies that he was there.

However, the Advocate said Mr Goodchild had been arrested by police the following night for a separate incident and appeared to be wearing the same clothes as the other figure in the CCTV.

The victim admitted he had been drinking on the night of the assault and Advocate Greg Herold-Howes, defending Mazurke, said to him: "It's fair to say your recollections are not good. Is that right?"

He replied: "I don't know."

The advocate suggested: "You snatched a bag from two younger men and Mr Mazurke approached you to get the bag back."

He said: "I don't remember."

The trial also heard from forensic medical examiner Dr Deryn Evans, who said the alleged victim's fractures were similar to those caused by a car crash.

She said she had noticed multiple abrasions and bruises to the alleged victim’s head, shoulders, back, upper arms and knees consistent with being punched or dragged on the ground. But she added that his collarbone had sustained “comminuted fractures”, where a bone is broken in three or more places and is unlikely to heal as readily as other fractures.

She said: “They are caused by quite significant trauma. You normally see comminuted fractures after a road traffic collision or an assault.

“You don’t see these fractures very commonly. You don’t see them from a simple fall or trip.”

And she added: “I think a punch is unlikely to break a bone.”

Mr Goodchild denies being there at the time of the alleged attack, but Christopher Le Sueur, a former States police officer, said he recognised Mr Goodchild from the footage.

He told the court: “I was at primary school with him, and I interacted with him through the police.

“Mark is very tall and slim. The manner of his walk made me believe it was Mark Goodchild. Everyone’s got their own individual gait.”

Advocate Chris Baglin, defending Mr Goodchild, asked him: “Do you have expertise in this area? Are you a podiatrist?”

He said: “No.”

The advocate said: “You accept this is an unclear image.”

He replied: “Yes.”

The trial is expected to last two more days.