A 34-year-old man has appeared in court accused of stabbing another man in an IPAS centre in Kerry.
The man, who cannot be named, of Linden House, Killarney, was granted bail by Judge David Waters at Tralee District Court, on one charge of assault causing harm.
During his bail hearing, his solicitor Brendan Ahern said his client has admitted there was a physical altercation, but denies stabbing the other man.
The defendant is charged with assault causing harm to another man at Linden House, on Tuesday (25th November).
Gardaí allege he stabbed the other man in the upper thigh with a knife, and objected to the accused being granted bail.
Gardaí say they have strong evidence including forensic evidence, CCTV, eyewitness accounts, and a statement from the alleged injured party who identified the defendant.
They also believe the accused, who is Algerian, would not turn up to court and is a flight risk, having left Algeria in 2015 and travelling between Turkey, Germany, Italy, and England, before coming here in 2022.
Garda Jason Sheehan told the court the defendant has applied for asylum in multiple countries including Ireland, and enquiries are ongoing with Interpol to determine if he has previously used any aliases.
The accused’s solicitor, Brendan Ahern, said his client made admissions that these are two men in shared accommodation, that he got into a dispute with the other man and was involved in a physical altercation, but he denies using an implement or stabbing him.
Garda Sheehan agreed in cross examination that, in relation to the evidence, no forensic evidence would be analysed at this stage, and CCTV only shows the hallways of the buildings and not the bedrooms themselves, where the alleged incident happened.
Mr Ahern put it to Garda Sheehan that the third party eyewitness account also makes no reference to a knife, and Garda Sheehan agreed.
Mr Ahern said his client had been frank and outlined all of his movements for the last ten years, and his instructions are that his client has ever only used one name.
Judge Waters granted him bail, but said he must turn up to court in Donegal to answer a separate public order matter or his bail will be revoked.
