Man attacked in violent video is 'hard working, polite, family man' says friend
A man seen being attacked in a video of an incident in Anfield is a "hard working, polite, family man" his devastated friend has said. Police descended on Lower Breck Road, at around 4pm on October 22, after reports of men, armed with weapons, fighting.
Footage shared online showed the moment two men, reportedly armed with what appeared to be metal poles, allegedly struck another man on the floor in the road. A friend and local developer in the area, said both victims in the footage were builders who had been working on an apartment project for him, on nearby September Road, when the attack took place.
The man, who did not want to be named, claims his friend, named Joseph, was violently attacked on the pavement and remains in hospital, in the major trauma unit and has suffered severe injuries.
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Speaking to the ECHO he said: "I have known him for 20 years and I can vouch for him. He is a hard working Kurdish man. Both the men in the video are hard working, polite, family men.
"He [Joseph] was finishing a job on September Road for me and he had been working on it for three months. He had been really excited to finish it [the job] and was just doing some finishing painting touches on the apartments when he was attacked."
Merseyside Police confirmed three men were taken to hospital and were in a stable condition as of October 23. Joseph's friend said he has visited him in hospital and he is "in a very bad state".
He added: "We don't know what the outcome will be. He is in hospital in the trauma unit with internal bleeding and he is being kept in. His family in Iraq are devastated and want to come over. The hospital have had most of the Kurdish community turning up to visit him in hospital.
"He is a local man and I can vouch for him. Even the local pizza shop guy messaged me earlier to say how he [Joseph] sweeps up outside his shop everyday and makes sure that no rubbish is left outside from the building work."
Merseyside Police have now charged three people, each with two counts of section 18 wounding with intent and possession of an offensive weapon in a public place. These men are; Neil McGovern, 36, of September Road, in Anfield, Alan McGovern, 41, of September Road, in Anfield and Michael Lawal, 45, of Lower Breck Road, in Anfield.
A 27-year-old man from Kensington who was arrested on suspicion of section 18 assault has been released under investigation.
Detective Chief Inspector Steve Ball said he wanted to tell people to not speculate on what happened as it can be extremely dangerous in fuelling community tensions.
In a statement, he said: “An investigation into this incident is ongoing and three men have now been charged. I want to again remind people of the dangers of spreading misinformation on social media because it can be extremely dangerous in fuelling community tensions.
“I would therefore urge people not to speculate as we continue with our ongoing inquiries. We will provide further updates on our channels and to media when appropriate.”