A MAN was left fighting for life after allegedly being smashed in the head with a five kilogram dumbbell by his brother.
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There were grave fears for the 26-year-old victim, who was flown to The Alfred Hospital in a critical condition after Tuesday night’s incident in Wodonga.
The man’s brother, 25-year-old Robert Ntagayisha, called triple-0 immediately after the altercation at their Schubert Crescent home.
The victim had been in an induced coma with serious head injuries but gained consciousness Wednesday afternoon.
Ntagayisha appeared before Wodonga Magistrates Court on Wednesday charged with five counts of serious assault.
The court heard the victim was Ntagayisha’s foster brother and that his actions had been out of character.
The men had been involved in an argument that had escalated before he allegedly grabbed the dumbbell and struck his brother to the head.
Ntagayisha did not speak during the appearance and sat with his head bowed.
The court heard heard Ntagayisha was a refugee and permanent Australian resident who had lived in the area for two years.
Next door neighbour Martin Wade said both men had migrated from Kenya after growing up in the Congo and were “great guys”.
Ntagayisha had been arrested at the home after the incident.
Mr Wade said the incident was “very unexpected”.
“I didn’t really expect something like that would happen,” he said.
“It was out of the blue.
“Both work at the abattoirs.
“They’re very, very hard workers and great people.”
Mr Wade said both men had left a volatile war zone in the Congo and moved to Kenya as they waited for a country to migrate to.
“We are friends with both of them and we do stuff together quite often,” he said.
“We quite often go to church with them as well.
“They moved here to make a new life.”
Despite fears for the victim, who was in a critical but stable condition late on Wednesday, Mr Wade said he had gained consciousness.
“He’s actually doing quite well,” he said.
“He’s expected to make a full recovery but he will remain in intensive care for two or three days.”
Ntagayisha had been cooperative with police during an interview but had struggled to understand a request for DNA and fingerprint samples.
Defence solicitor Mario Vaccaro raised concerns about his time in custody as his client would be “vulnerable”.
“I would be concerned about his mental state.
“The victim is his brother, a foster brother.
“He may need some help while he’s in custody.”
Ntagayisha will return to court on January 7.
A request to take DNA and fingerprint samples was granted.
