Dubai flatmates end up in court after drunken brawl

The fight broke out when one of the Tunisian defendants arrived home drinking from a bottle of vodka with a woman on his arm

DUBAI// Two Tunisian men appeared in court accused of beating up their flatmate after he protested when one of them returned home drunk at 7am in the morning. The misdemeanours court heard that on May 10 last year M A, 19, arrived at their apartment in Sheikh Zayed Road carrying a bottle of vodka and with a woman on his arm.

The alleged victim, S P, 31, from Cameroon, said: “They were smoking and laughing so loud so I went out to them and asked him to leave the apartment but he called the other flatmate, M B, who’s his friend and compatriot, and both of them assaulted me.”

SP said one of the two restrained him while the other punched him repeatedly. “I didn’t hit them back,” he said.

He said that there were four people who witnessed the assault.

Y Q, a Moroccan woman who shared the apartment, said: “He told them that it’s early and that the rest of us wanted to sleep while they were making loud noises so they assaulted him.”

M B insisted he did not assault anyone.

“A fight erupted between my friend and S P so I tried to break it up, then S P grabbed me from my neck and I pushed him.”

At the Dubai Court of Misdemeanours both men denied a charge of assault and said that they are trying to reach a settlement with SP.

The next hearing was set for later this month.