A YOUNG woman has told a court she was dragged from a car, had a handgun put to her head and asked did she want to live or die, at a local picnic spot, Townley Hall Woods in Co Louth.
The 23-year-old also claimed her female friend was attacked with a crowbar and a male friend was also assaulted.
The court heard that the women, Natasha Cluskey and her friend Christina Leslie, were with two men they knew and who they had met in a nightclub in Drogheda earlier that night
On trial at Dundalk Circuit Criminal Court are two men who have been charged with violent disorder. Both Lukas Smalenas (21), Highlands, Drogheda, and Marius Baciulias (21), Clogherhead, Co Louth, deny the charge.
It is alleged to have taken place on March 10th, 2009, at Townley Hall Woods, Drogheda.
Mr Baciulias is also accused of causing damage to a car in the alleged incident.
The court heard the two women and two men – Mark Kavanagh and Gareth Jein – had driven to the woods after leaving a night-club in Drogheda.
Ms Cluskey said they parked the car up on the grass and when they decided to start it again it would not start because “it got stuck in the mud and grass”.
The four decided to get out of the car and try and push it off the grass. She said there had been another car at the woods and the men in it got out and asked if the group wanted to drink with them. They said no to the invitation.
She told the jury “one of the fellas put his hand on Christina and said I will look after you”.
Ms Cluskey said things then happened very quickly and a conflict broke out. She said Mr Kavanagh and Mr Jein “got hit with stuff, it was like crowbars. So did Christina”.
She said that after the conflict broke out she and Ms Leslie jumped into the car and locked it and “all of a sudden the windows came through on top of us”. Ms Cluskey said the car door was opened and “they dragged me out of the car. They stuck a black handgun to my head and said do you want to live or die and I said I want to live”.
She said Mr Kavanagh “was on the grass all busted up”. Ms Cluskey said his “ear was split in two and hanging off. His head was busted open”.
“Christina was getting her face smashed with a crowbar and Mark’s whole head was smashed,” she told the court.
She said Mr Jein “had disappeared. We actually thought he was dead”.
Opening the case for the prosecution, Kevin Seagrave told the jury the men in the other car were described as speaking with foreign accents.
The trial continues this morning before Judge Gerard Griffin and a jury.