Street brawl preceded man's knife death, inquest told
A young Chinese man died after he was stabbed in the heart during a massive brawl between two rival gangs on Dublin’s main street, an inquest heard tonight.
Qui Hong Xiang, 22, who was a student in Dublin and living in the Castleknock area, died after a confrontation between two factions erupted on O’Connell Street over several matters including prostitution.
The Dublin City Coroner’s Court heard that a massive row involving up to 40 young Chinese men broke out at around 1.30am on July 10, 2002 after there had been an event in a nearby public house.
A statement from taxi driver Anthony Shields, who failed to turn up to the inquest, said that he saw between 30 and 40 young Chinese men cross over Dublin’s O’Connell Street to stop outside the Eircom building near the Parnell Square end of the street.
Closed circuit television footage shown to the inquest showed a man, who had been standing near the deceased, walking across the road with a blade flashing behind his back towards a rival gang. He pulls it out, only for the rival group to each brandish a weapon in retaliation.
The explicit footage, which the Coroner Dr Brian Farrell warned might upset some jurors, showed three rival gang members then waving blades and attacking other young men. One of the men brandishing a blade moved towards the deceased, who had also crossed over the road.
Det Insp Nicholas McGrath of Store Street Garda Station said: “There was an indication suggesting that there was a dispute between two rival groups over a sort of territory type of thing towards females who were under their control.”
The detective inspector said that some of the people caught on closed circuit video tape had been known to the gardaí prior to the incident.
“It was a spontaneous affray between two rival groups,” he said.
Insp McGrath told the court that over 200 statements were taken from people, including those drinking in a public house before the incident.
“Four were charged with matters arising out of this, and given sentences from 18 months to five years,” he said.
It was stated during the High Court case that the brawl was believed to have developed over one of the men’s refusal to pay money owed to a brothel. One of those jailed for their part in the row, and who had part of his scalp cut off in the altercation, was also in Ireland on a student visa.
However, the court heard the DPP directed that no charges be taken over the actual killing due to a number of factors.
Det Gda Martina Shields, who described the CCTV footage for the six jurors, said the fatal stabbing of the 22-year-old was obscured behind a telephone box, however, she pointed out the man suspected of the stabbing.
She said: “The deceased actually runs away, he collapses at the entrance to the Rotunda Hospital, where the consultants’ car park is.”
Garda Anthony Brady from Mountjoy garda station described seeing a man lying in a pool of blood on O’Connell Street, and another sitting in handcuffs after the row on July 10.
The court then heard the garda was alerted to the third injured man lying outside the Rotunda Hospital. He said the deceased had a slight nick to his forehead but no other visible wounds – he was rushed to the Mater Hospital where he was later pronounced dead.
A passer-by, Patrick Flannery, who stopped to help the deceased, said he asked Chinese people coming out of a nearby pub to help him speak to him, however, they said they did not want to get involved.
Former State Pathologist Prof John Harbison told the court that the deceased had died from a single stab wound, which pierced his heart, causing litres of blood to pool in his chest.
He also described two other superficial knife wounds to his forehead and just over the fatal chest wound.
There were none of Mr Hong Xiang’s family in court, however, a member of the Chinese Embassy was present.
The inquest, which passed a verdict of unlawful killing by a person unidentified, heard that, Wang En Qing, an uncle of the young man had travelled over to formally identify the student’s body on 23 August, 2002.
