By Latrishka Thomas
A man who struck his boss with a fish hook last week was ordered to pay a small fine to the court after he explained the circumstances under which he wounded the man.
Michael Jonas admitted to wounding a fisherman whose boat he had captained since he was hired last year.
On the evening of May 3, the two men got into an argument at the Fish Market complex which quickly turned violent.
The defendant struck the 42-year-old with a metal hook to the left side of his face.
The complainant had to be transported to the Sir Lester Bird Medical Centre by the EMS, where he was treated and discharged since the injury was not serious.
Jonas was subsequently arrested, charged and brought to court yesterday morning.
He told Chief Magistrate Joanne Walsh that the complainant refused to pay him and the rest of the crew because he believed they sold some of the fish they caught before arriving at the West Bus Station fishing complex.
According to the defendant, his colleagues were paid a day after the incident but he never received his monies.
The victim was then called to the stand to tell his side of the story.
“I don’t know why I got injured,” he said, before sharing that he went to the complex that day to pay the defendant but wanted to pay him in the presence of a police officer since he had been threatened by his other workers for their monies.
He said the incident happened in the blink of an eye and he did not know why he was struck.
The magistrate did not completely buy his story but still did not excuse the defendant’s action.
She instead ordered him to pay a small fine of $200 to the state or spend one month behind bars.
She also reprimanded him saying, “I know you may have been frustrated but you can’t take it out like that.”