The accused was charged with aggravated assault after striking a taxi driver with a metal rod and kicking him while he lay unconscious after being punched by a co‑accused.
The defence claimed the taxi driver attacked first with a baton and that the accused neither struck nor kicked the victim.
The court rejected the accused’s testimony and that of the co‑accused, finding it inconsistent with physical evidence and the credible testimony of three independent eyewitnesses.
The court held that hitting the victim on the head with a metal rod and kicking him while unconscious created objectively foreseeable bodily harm and formed part of a joint assault with the co‑accused.
Although the permanent loss of smell was attributed to the co‑accused’s punch, the accused’s participation made him a party to the aggravated assault under s. 21(2) of the Criminal Code.
