Man accused of north Belfast stabbing attack pleads not guilty

By David Young (Press Association)

A man accused of a knife attack that sparked rioting in Northern Ireland has plead not guilty to all charges facing him and is set to stand trial in February.

Hadi Alodid, 31, of Duncairn Avenue in Belfast, appeared in the dock at the city’s Crown Court on Friday morning for his arraignment hearing.

Alodid is charged with the attempted murder of Stephen Ogilvie on June 8.

A court previously heard Mr Ogilvie lost his left eye and received deep cuts to his head, face and back.

The attack on Mr Ogilvie, which happened in north Belfast, was captured on video and shared widely across social media.

It sparked serious disorder in several areas across Northern Ireland, which police have said was racially motivated.

The rioting saw masked mobs set fire to homes, cars and a bus, with people targeted based on their race.

Foreign national healthcare workers were also subjected to threats and intimidation.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland has previously said Alodid may originally be from Chad.

He has also been charged with possession of a knife and faces a further count of threatening behaviour linked to an incident in the hours after the attack on Mr Ogilvie.

Standing in the dock with his arms folded and assisted by an interpreter, Alodid listened as details of the three charges were read to him during the short hearing on Friday.

Replying in English, the defendant answered “not guilty” to each count.

Judge Philip Gilpin set his trial for February 1.

Prosecution and defence barristers asked for two weeks to be set aside for the trial but both expressed hope it would not take that long to hear the case.