Returned to Portugal to serve jail sentence

Acacio Jorge Nunes, whose address was given as Jervis Street, Portadown, was due to contest a common assault charge.

But his solicitor told the court Nunes would not be present because he had returned to Portugal to serve a lengthy prison sentence. He added that at a previous court the defendant had been convicted and an arrest warrant issued.

The case went ahead in his absence last week with a public prosecutor saying that on October 27 this year police received a report of an assault on a man at 3.45pm in Edward Street, Portadown,

She explained that at the time Nunes had been on court bail at the time with the condition that he did not contact the injured party. Deputy District Judge Oonagh Mullan convicted Nunes in his absence and issued an arrest warrant.