Two youths alleged to have beaten unconscious a man who witnessed a sectarian attack on a school bus in Belfast last week were refused bail by Mr Justice Higgins in the High Court yesterday. A prosecution lawyer said that the man was assaulted two days after a 14-year-old pupil at Castle High School in north Belfast was struck on the head with a stone and had to have six stitches.
The lawyer claimed that Mark McCartan (17), from Alliance Avenue, who faces two charges arising from the bus attack, had threatened to slit the throat of the witness. Gerard Ferguson (17), of Knutsford Drive, is also charged with assaulting the witness, who suffered a broken jaw.