Man stabbed by youths

Press, 1 October 1983, Page 1

Man stabbed by youths

The owner of a Christchurch hamburger bar was stabbed in the neck, arm, and leg when he was attacked by six youths last evening. The man, Maurice O’Connell, aged about 30, was reported to be in a comfortable condition in Christchurch Hospital after undergoing surgery. A police spokesman said that the police knew the identities of the offenders and detectives were trying to find them last evening. No-one apart from Mr O’Connell, who owns the hamburger bar, Linney’s Food Bar, at the corner of Linwood Avenue and Buckleys Road, was hurt. The police said that the incident developed just after 7 p.m. when Mr O’Connell intervened in a dispute between a young employee and the six youths.- The matter was not yet clear, but the dispute appeared to be a long-standing one. A man who would identify himself only as a friend of Mr O’Connell’s said that the youths had arrived at the hamburger bar and demanded money, saying that they would “smash up the place” if they did not get it. When Mr O’Connell intervened he was stabbed several times, the friend said. He was attacked outside the shop. He staggered back inside and collapsed unconscious, ;