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Lee Moriarty |
Clash left ‘violent’ man dying in street
A TEENAGER’S trip to the shops for a disposable fork resulted in the violent death of a drunken man, a court h
as heard.
Lee Moriarty, 27, died following a row with teenagers in Queen’s Crescent, Gospel Oak, in June last year.
Mr Moriarty received fatal head injuries as he fell to the pavement after coming to blows with Christoph Jaworski in the street.
Jaworski, 20, of Sycamore House, Maitland Park estate, Chalk Farm, now faces up to five years in jail if he is sent to crown court for sentencing. He pleaded guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm before Highbury Corner Magistrates Court. Sentencing was adjourned pending reports.
Jaworski, who was 19 at the time of the assault, told the court he had met friends, aged between 14 and 19 at Maitland Park estate on June 10 last year, and decided to go to the Queen’s Crescent shops after a friend gave him a curry but no fork.
He said that, as they approached Queen’s Crescent, they saw Mr Moriarty trying to smash the window of a Costcutters shop with a crate. “The owners said he tried to nick a big box of sweets and all the sweets were on the floor,” he told the court.
They went on to pick up a plastic fork and later encountered Mr Moriarty again.
Jaworski said: “I was standing outside eating. I heard someone shouting: ‘Come on you Pakis, come on’. He had no T-shirt on, was wearing jeans, white trainers and had a crate in his hands.
“I did shout out to the man: ‘Are you off to finish your job, mate?’ and he shouted: ‘No, I’m going to finish off you.’
“He walked over to me. He said: ‘I’m going to knock you out right now. I’m going to kill you, you Paki.’ He grabbed me and, as he does, he threatens he’s going to stab me with a needle.”
He said he did swing at Mr Moriarty but claimed it was a glancing blow. His friend, Mwiinga Kayanda, who gave evidence in court, admitted punching Mr Moriarty.
He fell to the ground, smashing his head on the pavement, resulting in fatal brain damage. Although four witnesses testified to seeing Jaworski kick Mr Moriarty while he was lying motionless on the ground, Mr Jaworski denied this.
After a two-day court hearing, District Judge James Henderson said that Mr Moriarty had been intoxicated by drink and probably by drugs.
“We were informed he had had a fight with his girlfriend earlier in the day and suffered some cuts,” he added.
The judge said that when Mr Moriarty had fallen to the ground, Jaworski was “unaware at that time he’d struck a fatal blow and from that moment he was dying”.
He added: “Lee Moriarty was clearly angry and acting in a violent manner. Once on the floor and unable to defend himself, the defendant punched him at least twice. The defendant kicked him at least once.”
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