Attack by drunk cook in Dubai put man in a coma, court hears

A drunk cook attacked a man playing basketball, putting him into a coma that lasted for six days, hears court.

DUBAI // A man was left comatose for six days after being hit with a tool in a random attack by a drunk cook, a court heard today.

Prosecutors told the Criminal Court that RJ, a 41-year-old Filipino, was playing basketball with his salesman friend JT in Satwa at about 2am on July 15 when two drunk men approached and suddenly attacked them.

"I have no idea why they did so, they were not normal," the man told the court, saying that he fell to the ground after one of the men punched him in the eye. "The blow made me dizzy," he said, adding that one of the two drunk men then hit him on the head with a tool.

"I felt the blood slipping down from my head and then fell unconscious," he said.

The two attackers fled the scene and the salesman called a friend who lived nearby before. They took the unconscious man to the friend's flat before calling the ambulance. The unconscious man was taken to the Iranian hospital and his sister lodged a complaint with police.

Medics found that in addition to the loss of consciousness, the man was suffering internal bleeding. A forensics report found the attack had permanently weakened his hearing and memory.

The salesman helped police to identify one of the attackers as the 27-year-old Filipino cook RS. He was charged with assault that lead to a 30 per cent disability, but was not present in court to enter a plea.

The next hearing was scheduled for November 14.