Claims man assaulted to get his PIN code

Prosecutors claimed he was also locked in a room at his home in Lurgan, Co Armagh for hours after an attack which left him with a broken eye socket.

Details emerged as one of two men accused of carrying out the assault mounted an application for bail.

Peter Klasovsky, a 35-year-old Slovakian national of Tavanagh Gardens in Portadown, faces charges of inflicting grievous bodily harm, false imprisonment and theft.

It was alleged that the two defendants attacked the man at the Dill Avenue property after they all returned from a trip to a cash machine on January 28.

Crown lawyer Iryna Kennedy claimed they punched him repeatedly about the head, inflicting further blows and kicks when he fell to the ground.

The man was brought upstairs after refusing to provide his banking details, according to the prosecution.

Mrs Kennedy contended: “He had his head dunked into the bath in an attempt to make him divulge his PIN number.”

He was then allegedly locked in an upstairs room for several hours before managing to escape by climbing out a second storey window and dropping to the ground below.

A neighbour contacted police who arrested both suspects in the William Street area of Lurgan.

During interviews Klasovsky said “we beat him up”, claiming the incident was over a pair of stolen sunglasses discovered in the injured party’s bathroom, the court heard.

He admitted slapping and kicking the man, but denied imprisoning or forcing him into a bath.

Mrs Kennedy added: “He said that he put his head under the water tap in the kitchen to revive him after the assault.”

Damien Halleron, defending, argued that Klasovsky was not responsible for the most serious injuries.

“He had been at the complainant’s house before Christmas and left a pair of very expensive sunglasses,” the barrister said.

“He thought he had lost them, but when he attended again an argument arose over how those sunglasses came to be there.”

Mr Justice Colton was told Klasovsky has been in Northern Ireland for the last two years, working as a baker until his arrest.

Adjourning the bail application, the judge said he wanted confirmation about another job offer to the accused.