A bank worker has been jailed for one year for attacking his then-partner in their home nine years ago.
Chakib Baddaoui (40), a Dutch national, had pleaded guilty to assault causing harm on November 14, 2015 at the apartment they shared on Parnell Street in Dublin.
Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that he left Ireland for a new job in Amsterdam days later and has since married and become a father. He travelled from Dubai for the sentencing and brought €10,000 to court in compensation.
Judge Elva Duffy heard that Baddaoui and the injured party had not been in a relationship for long when they moved in together due to a difficulty with the woman’s accommodation. It was his first time to live with a partner.
In the days leading up to the offence, the relationship had become strained, with Baddaoui asking her questions about men she had dated previously. That night, they argued from about 9pm until 3am or 4am, with Baddaoui hitting her sporadically in the head and body during that time.
After Baddaoui fell asleep, the victim managed to text a friend and asked her to call her brother. When he woke up, the argument resumed, with Baddaoui kicking her in the ankle and shin.
The woman’s brother arrived a couple of hours later with another man, who had a metal bar. The woman started crying and showed her brother her bruises.
Her brother approached Baddaoui and said: “I told you not to hurt my sister anymore.” He told his sister to call the gardaí and she did.
She heard Baddaoui crying and saying not to call the gardaí. She then took the metal bar and hit him with it three times before packing her belongings.
When the gardaí arrived, the second man was holding the accused down on the bed and the woman was advised to leave the apartment.
She went to a garda station to make a statement six days later, by which time the accused had left his job in Dublin and moved to Amsterdam. A European Arrest Warrant was issued by the High Court.
While living in Amsterdam, Baddaoui travelled to Spain on business. He was arrested entering the country on foot of the warrant and spent six weeks in custody there.
He consented to return to Ireland in 2022 but was granted bail and has been living in Dubai with his Belarusian wife and their child. He has no previous convictions.
The court heard that the injured party did not wish to make a victim-impact statement.
Nicola Cox BL, defending, handed in a letter of apology from her client. She explained that he had worked in the banking sector in the IFSC, Dublin, but was due to leave to take up another job in Amsterdam at the time of the offence, and that had added to the stress on their relationship.
She said he is currently the sole earner for his family, who had travelled from Dubai for the hearing. She handed in a letter of apology from his wife of four years, who was waiting outside court with their young child.
Counsel said that he had brought €10,000 for the injured party, which a garda witness said “would be of great assistance to her”.
Ms Cox described the offence as a “very serious and grave error in judgment”. She said that he was under significant pressure to take up the position in Amsterdam. She added that he was never in trouble before or since and that this was very out of character for him.
She also noted that, as he is the sole earner for his family and his wife is from Belarus, her visa to remain in Dubai was through him.
“Nine years have passed,” she said. “He’s contributing to society.”
“That nine years is due to his absconding,” remarked the judge.
“Violence resumed the next morning,” she added. “He went to bed and didn’t think better of his actions but got up the next morning and continued.”
Judge Duffy noted that gardaí had made him aware on November 15 that they would be in touch.
“When they went looking for him on November 20, he had left his job and the jurisdiction,” she said.
The court heard that he had called to a garda station twice before he left, but that it might have been the wrong garda station.
The judge noted that there would be a potential impact on his family were he to be taken into custody.
She imposed a sentence of two years on him.
“The question is whether I can suspend it in full,” she said. “I find I can’t.”
She suspended the final 12 months for two years and backdated it to take into account the six weeks he spent in custody in Spain.
Baddaoui became emotional when the sentence was read out. His wife, who had entered the courtroom, also became emotional and covered her face.
“I’m sorry,” he said in her direction before leaving to begin his sentence
