A man who stabbed his former friend in the abdomen with a butcher’s knife, causing him to lose a kidney, has been jailed.
The “unprovoked” stabbing occurred in north Belfast in April 2022.
Anthony James Harrison (32), from Hillside View in Newtownabbey, will serve half his nine and a half year sentence in jail.
Co-accused Jamie Andrew Parke (31), from Rosemount Gardens in Belfast, threw an oil burner at the injured party’s head prior to the stabbing.
He received a two-year suspended sentence.
Crown barrister David McNeill told Belfast Crown Court the injured party was attacked as he walked along Cliftonville Road.
At that time, Parke lived at a flat on that road and both he and Harrison has been drinking there.
After seeing the injured party on the street, Harrison exited the flat. With a knife concealed up his sleeve, he then confronted him.
At this stage, there was no physical contact as the injured party placed his bicycle between him and Harrison to defend himself.
Parke also left his flat and on the way out, he lifted a ceramic oil burner from the communal hallway and threw the item at the injured party, which struck him on the forehead and broke his skin.
Mr McNeill said the injured party ran a short distance to behind a tree, followed by Harrison, who produced a knife and stabbed him in the abdomen “with full force between five and ten times with what witnesses at the scene described as a butcher’s knife”.
Both Harrison and Parke then ran away and the injured party was assisted by members of the public who helped to stem the bleeding.
An ambulance was called and during the journey to the Royal Victoria Hospital, he named Harrison as his attacker.
The injured party lost a kidney and had to have part of his intestines removed.
He remained on life support and a ventilator for a period.
Mr McNeill said that whilst Harrison and the injured party knew each other, Parke “had never met him before” and was unaware Harrison had a knife.
He added that it was accepted by the Crown that Parke didn’t intent to cause the injured party serious harm, nor did he “intent to assist or encourage Mr Harrison to stab the injured party.”
Harrison, who has 74 previous convictions, was arrested the following day approaching police on the Cliftonville Road and saying “I’m the one you’re looking for”.
Both Parke, who has 12 prior offences on his criminal record, and Harrison admitted their guilt.
Stephen Toal KC, representing Harrison, said his client was remorseful for what he did and has expressed a wish to meet the injured party and apologise to him.
Acknowledging the men had been friends but there was a “falling out”, Mr Toal said Harrison now accepts he was “in the wrong”.
Parke’s barrister Eilis MacDermott KC spoke of a “distinction” between her client and Harrison and said that when he threw the oil burner, he was acting in “defence of another” as he felt Harrison was “under attack”.
Ms MacDermott said the pair had been drinking in Parke’s flat, that the offence arose “spontaneously” and that he was “sickened” by the injuries sustained.
Jailing Harrison, Judge Crawford told him the attack was “unprovoked and sustained” and that he acted with an “indifference to the seriousness of the injuries” he inflicted.
She added: “Such were your actions that it is fortunate indeed that the injured party survived. At his young age, he has suffered life-changing injuries.”
Speaking afterwards, PSNI Detective Inspector Michael McDonnell said “we see that justice has been done”.
“They have been held to account for their actions and we’d like to thank the public who responded to our appeal for information at the time,” he said.
“We will work tirelessly to bring offenders before the courts so that that victims receive the justice they deserve.”