Jury to decide fate of man accused of brutal Isle of Wight attack

Felix Hetherington, of St Edmunds Walk, Wootton, denies causing grievous bodily harm with intent during the early hours of February 21, 2021.

The 28-year-old’s trial has been taking place at the Isle of Wight Crown Court this week.

UPDATE: Hetherington found guilty, click here

Tim Moores, prosecuting, told the court the victim and Mr Hetherington lived in the same building as one another, off Caesars Road in Newport.

So, too, did several witnesses called to give evidence.

He said on Febuary 21, the victim sustained a catalogue of serious, life-threatening injuries, and was nigh-on unconscious when paramedics arrived.

He suffered a bleed between his skull and brain, fractures to his jaw, a misalignment of his lower spine, and a significant bleed in his abdomen.

The court heard, had he not had surgery, he would have died of blood loss.

Mr Moores said the victim’s first memory was of waking up at hospital, but some CCTV footage was available, including audio.

There were two primary witnesses who saw some of what happened, and neither had an axe to grind with Mr Hetherington.

He said they had no reason to make up or exaggerate what they saw.

Mr Moores said Mr Hetherington, the victim, and Mr Hetherington’s girlfriend, Emily – who the crown did not regard as a credible witness – had been in Mr Hetherington’s room together on the night in question.

The court heard all three had been drinking, and the victim – an alcoholic – had been particularly drunk.

One of the witnesses had been on a video call with Mr Hetherington’s girlfriend when a commotion started, and asked for the camera to be turned around.

She said she could hear a hysterical Emily shouting at Mr Hetherington to “get off him” and “you can’t do that to him”, and from a view from a phone facing into the room, she saw violence.

Mr Moores said the second witness was seen on CCTV heading to Mr Hetherington’s room around this time.

He said the door couldn’t be opened, and she entered through a window.

Looking into the room, Mr Moores told the court the witness saw Mr Hetherington kick the victim in the face while he was supine on the floor, unconscious.

She described Mr Hetherington as angry and shouting that he wanted the victim out of his room.

The witness claimed, as she attempted to drag the victim toward the window with a view to take him outside, Mr Hetherington stamped on his abdomen.

The court heard Mr Hetherington attempted to kick out at the victim again on the flat roof, and tried to humiliate him by touching him while he was still unconscious and waiting for an ambulance to arrive.

Mr Moores said one of Mr Hetherington’s hobbies involved kickboxing.

Christopher Pix, defending, called on the jury to transport themselves into a world where the landlord felt it necessary to set up CCTV in the building.

He said the footage was consistent with Mr Hetherington’s version of events, and he was candid and honest when he gave evidence.

Mr Pix said the jury could be certain the victim was seriously injured, but how he came by his injuries was a separate matter.

The victim, giving evidence, said Mr Hetherington was not his mate, but they were acquaintances who had beers together and would visit each other’s rooms from time to time.

He described Mr Hetherington as a “bit of a hard man who sometimes tried to belittle people”, but prior to the incident, they had a good relationship.

Mr Hetherington told members of the jury he helped the victim get up off the sofa and saw as he fell face first into his television stand.

He denied kicking him in the head, and said, while he did nudge him with his foot to wake him up, he at no stage stamped on his stomach.

He described the victim as someone who could be “a bit of a liability”, and someone who had broken things in his room in the past.

He said he wasn’t angry, but he was stressed out about his television being smashed and the noise.

He said his girlfriend had been screaming because he kept trying to pick the victim up and dropping him.

The trial continues.