Soccer referee whose jaw was broken in video of viral fight appears in court with a mask covering his entire face – as he is accused of assaulting a woman
Khodor Ahmed Yagi faces court on assault charges after he was beaten up in a viral video while playing at a club
A football referee who received widespread support after breaking his jaw in an on-field fight will have to wait eight months to contest charges he assaulted a woman in a north Sydney pub.
Khodor Ahmed Yaghi, 45, will face a hearing on February 14 charged with causing bodily harm and recklessly causing grievous bodily harm over the March 3 incident at Hornsby’s Railway Hotel while working as a bouncer.
He appeared in Downing Center court on Monday in a black Adidas tracksuit and beanie with a mask covering his entire face when his hearing date was set, having previously pleaded not guilty to both charges.
The Berla man’s jaw was broken in three places during a local football game in Sydney’s south-west on April 28.
On April 28, Khodor Ahmed Yaghi’s jaw was broken in an incident during a local football game in Sydney’s south-west. In the photo, Yaghi is writhing on the ground from his alleged attacker
Yaghi is charged with causing bodily harm and recklessly causing grievous bodily harm over an incident at Hornsby’s Railway Hotel in March while working as a bouncer.
Her alleged assailant, Adam Abdullah, is charged with grievous bodily harm and wounding with intent to cause conflict.
The amateur boxer was granted bail after a new video emerged on May 31, which the prosecution said ‘changed the narrative’ of the incident.
It appeared Yaghi was swinging first, before falling to the ground and sitting on 25-year-old Abdullah.
The veteran referee, who has officiated in Sydney for decades, was overwhelmed with support after the original video went viral.
A GoFundMe set up in his name has raised more than $16,000 in donations during that time.
NSW Sports Minister Stephen Kamper, past-president of the Sydney Olympic Football Club, presented Yagi with a football signed by FIFA Secretary General Fatma Zamora.
Yaghi appeared on the Downing Center court Monday sporting a black Adidas tracksuit and beanie and, oddly, a mask pulled over his eyes.
Yaghi’s alleged assailant, Adam Abdullah (pictured), faces charges of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm and hostility.
‘Volunteers and referees are the backbone of our grassroots sport,’ he wrote on Facebook in May.
‘We have to make sure they are respected and safe!’
Clubs across the state organized a guard of honor for the referees in the round after the incident in solidarity with Yaghi and misbehaving with match officials.
He is on bail.
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