Greenwood told the cyclist to “shut your f***ing mouth or I’ll smash your face in”, before kicking the bicycle away.
A Co Antrim man who stabbed a ‘Good Samaritan’ after he intervened to stop an attack on a woman was handed a 66-month sentence on Tuesday. Judge Gordon Kerr KC told Karl Robert Thomas Greenwood that he will spend 33 months in custody with a similar period on licence on his release from prison. Greenwood (25), of Rosetta Way, Belfast, had previously pleaded guilty to a charge of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm. He further admitted possessing an offensive weapon, namely a knife, and assaulting a female. In written submissions to Belfast Crown Court, prosecution lawyer Lauren Cheshire said that on September 27, 2024, just after 5.30 pm, a man was turning his car into Joy Street in Belfast City Centre. He saw the defendant and his female partner in a verbal altercation. He was screaming in her face, and began to push her. The witness went to drive on, when he saw that the defendant now had a hold of his girlfriend who was on the ground and he was “dragging her around” and “slapping her about”. The defendant was seen pushing her to the ground before punching and kicking her repeatedly. Ms Cheshire said the witness turned his car around, and got out to intervene. By this stage, a male cyclist came upon the scene at Joy Street, and he witnessed Greenwood “punching and kicking” his victim and described “the girl getting her face plastered off her”. The ‘Good Samaritan’ intervened and told the defendant to stop, pointing out there were children on the street playing football who witnessed the assault. He said the defendant had white powder residue on his face.
Greenwood told the cyclist to “shut your f***ing mouth or I’ll smash your face in”, before kicking the bicycle away. It struck the cyclist, and Greenwood started to scuffle with him before raising his right hand up in what the cyclist thought would be a “haymaker punch” The ‘Good Samaritan” pulled his arms up to his face to block the blow, and the defendant stabbed him in the left forearm as he was shielding his head and neck with a knife described as a ‘Swiss army’ style small lock knife. The victim went to hospital where it was discovered that the knife had gone through his forearm, with a 3cm entrance wound at the little finger side and a 1cm exit wound at the thumb side.He required antibiotics and a tetanus vaccination. Greenwood immediately ran off towards Ormeau Avenue and was subsequently located by police at the junction of the Ormeau Road and Agincourt Avenue at 6.15 pm. He was described as being under the influence of intoxicating substances, and almost immediately became aggressive with police. The lock knife was found in the pocket of his hoodie, and a small amount of blood was seen on the handle. At police interview, the defendant said he had had an argument with his girlfriend when he was attacked by three men with dog chains. He said “there was a knife produced, and someone, a man got injured”. When asked who produced the knife and whether it was him, he replied, “No comment.” He was shown CCTV of a verbal altercation and identified his girlfriend in the footage but refused to make any comment to answer the allegations put to him.
Ms Cheshire said the aggravating factors were the offences were committed under the influence of intoxicating substances. The knife attack was on a ‘Good Samaritan’ who was attempting to protect Greenwood’s girlfriend. The assaults took place in the presence of passers-by including young children. In a statement to the court, the victim said that as a result of the knife attack, he had to give up work as a chef. Judge Kerr agreed with the Probation Board that Greenwood was not a danger to the public but was assessed as a high likelihood of reoffending.
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