An Argentinian man has been charged with recklessly causing grievous bodily harm to an Irish man in a one-punch attack in Sydney.
Jason Cierans (29) was left unconscious after 1am on Saturday morning outside the Tea Gardens pub in the eastern suburb of Bondi Junction.
Mr Cierans, from Cork, is in an induced coma in St Vincent’s hospital. He is in a critical but stable condition.
Adrian Gabriel Martinez (30) appeared in Parramatta bail court in western Sydney on Sunday over the alleged assault. He did not apply for bail and it was formally refused by magistrate John McIntosh.
The Sydney Morning Herald newspaper is reporting police will allege Mr Cierans was initially involved in a fight with a friend of Mr Martinez, and after this ended, Mr Martinez hit Mr Cierans with a single punch to the head, causing him to fall to the footpath.
Mr Cierans suffered a serious head injury, causing a swelling of the brain.
Footage from the scene shown on local television shows Mr Cierans being treated by paramedics. It understood he has been in Australia since 2012 and works in construction.
The Tea Gardens bar is popular with the large Irish population that lives in Bondi Junction and nearby suburbs. Mr Cierans had been in the bar with friends.
One witness told reporters: “I don’t know, my friend just walked and this guy punched him – and that’s it.”
A 27-year-old man was charged with affray over the incident and was granted conditional bail to appear in Waverley local court on September 24th.
Mr Martinez was arrested outside the bar and questioned by police on Saturday before being charged.
He is due back in court on Thursday.
