Juraj Hossu will remain in prison. (source: Martin Baumann, TASR)
The District Court Bratislava I has started the hearings of witnesses in the case of the murdered Filipino Henry Acorda. He succumbed to his injuries in late May 2018, after being attacked by Juraj Hossu on Obchodná Street in Bratislava.
The first hearings started on March 19 and continued on March 21. Hossu, who is charged with manslaughter, remains in custody.
Not aggressive when drunk
The court heard the first group of nine witnesses on March 19.
“At first, he was surprised by what he had done,” a woman who witnessed the attack said to the court when describing Hossu’s behaviour, as quoted by the Sme daily. “He then approached him [Henry Acorda] and said ‘It serves you right’. So he probably did not regret it much.”
Subsequently, two more witnesses, who were not present on the spot, were heard. Hossu’s former classmate and his partner’s friend said that he is friendly. They also denied that he would behave aggressively when drunk.
Other witnesses were invited to testify on March 21. A doctor commented on the health of Henry Acorda. Even though, he he had not examined him personally, he evaluated his CT scan that revealed an aneurysm of a brain artery.
“It is common in the case of 1-3 percent of the population of the adult age,” the doctor told the court, as quoted by the TASR newswire.
If the aneurysm broke, it could result in various consequences, ranging from a headache to death. He was of the opinion that the aneurysm was there before the attack.
Policeman spotted a group of screaming people
A policeman who was on duty that night was also heard by the court. As he noted, he saw a group of screaming people at Obchodná Street and one person laying on the ground. They checked the situation.
“We talked most with two foreigners and learnt that the man on the ground was attacked and kicked in the head,” he said, as quoted by TASR. “The perpetrator confessed, I do not remember the details. He said something like the person injured was a pimp and he was only protecting the women. I don’t remember whether the accused man underwent a breathalyser test. We did a security check and found a knuckle-duster in his pocket, I think.”
Disputable aneurysm?
The head of the hospital's law department claimed that a doctor allegedly wrote down aneurysm as the cause of the death but this was unwarrented. However, there are four CT scans and one excludes it.
The preliminary autopsy protocol states that a blunt-force blow caused the death.
The trial will continue on May 14 and 16, 2019. Other witnesses will be heard on May 14 and other experts and doctors on May 16, Sme wrote.
Hossu will stay in custody. The court refused his request to set him free.
