A Court of Queen’s Bench Justice will decide today the fate of a man charged in the beating, confinement and extortion of a Red Deer man last summer.
Justice Sterling Sanderman told court Wednesday he needed time to issue a verdict for Tor Thon Bul, 29, of Calgary, who is charged with forcible confinement, extortion with a knife, robbery, assault with a weapon and assault causing bodily harm, assault with a hammer, assault with a cigarette and assault with an electrical cord.
Two other men are also charged in the incident alleged to have happened at an apartment at 4721 55th St., in Red Deer late on Aug. 7, 2009.
The victim was allegedly beaten in a bathroom and his debit card stolen.
Bul, testifying through a Dinka translator, denied he had any knowledge of the beating of Yasir Ali Malik, 35.
Bul said he came to Red Deer that day with two other men including his brother and Gabriel Kuereng, 28, of Calgary. They met Red Deer man Elia Dominic, 24 also referred to as “ice” and “Kevin” earlier in the trial.
The trio went to the apartment and started drinking but Bul said he passed out around 10 p.m.
Bul, who emigrated to Canada from his native Sudan in 2004, said he never saw any injuries on Malik nor did he assault him with a gun, knife, electrical cord or hot water. He did admit Malik was present but was also drinking.
Malik, testifying in broken English and Nubian (another Sudanese dialect) through a translator, said he was hit in the head with a hammer, burned with a cigarette, cut with a knife, burned with hot water and had an electrical cord with the bare wires at one end thrust into his body while plugged in.
He said his body had been burned in several places.
Malik said the attack was misguided because the alleged attacker believed he was a police informer for drug trafficking allegedly conducted by Dominic.
Defence lawyer Michael Scrase asked Malik why wouldn’t he give his attackers his bank card PIN number when he knew he only had $3 in his account.
Malik said his attackers wanted the bank card so they could get the money without it being attributed to them.
Lucille Howard, a branch manager at a Red Deer CIBC branch testified that on the weekend in question a $700 deposit was made then withdrawn from Malik’s account.
She said there was nothing in the deposit envelope.
A Red Deer doctor testified Tuesday that Malik had head bruises, one burn mark on his cheek, a bloodshot eye and a tender side.
Dominic and Kuereng also face several charges each and have trials set for later this year.
jwilson@www.reddeeradvocate.com