Father-of-four accused of joint enterprise attack that left man with brain damage tells court of his sorrow at what happened

Warren Smith, 46, is said to have joined an "organised search" for Craig Kaye and confronted him before he was punched in the head by a teenage student and left needing life-saving surgery.

Smith, of Hillam Street, Great Horton, Bradford, did not assault Mr Kaye but the Crown allege he helped to surround him in the street and terrorise him.

Mr Kaye, 40, of Great Horton Road, Bradford, was knocked unconscious by the student, who was 16 at the time.

He had emergency surgery at Leeds General Infirmary and is still in hospital nine months later.

Smith. of Hillam Street, Great Horton; Andrew Sibson, 39, of Northdale Mount, Wibsey, and the 17-year-old student, who cannot be named because of his age, all deny causing Mr Kaye grievous bodily harm with intent.

The teenager has pleaded guilty to the lesser offence of causing grievous bodily harm. Smith and Sibson deny that offence.

Smith has pleaded guilty to perverting the course of justice by lying to the police. Sibson denies the charge.

Smith told the jury Mr Kaye slapped and punched another 16-year-old boy at a party on the night of August 31 last year.

He was asked by a relative to go and find Sibson because he was looking for Mr Kaye.

They came across Mr Kaye on Hollybank Road, Great Horton, and Sibson told him to keep away from his house.

The youth pushed Mr Kaye over but he got up and sat on a wall.

Sibson got back into his car and Smith was getting into his vehicle when the student went up to Mr Kaye and hit him. Mr Kaye fell down motionless on the pavement.

"I shouted his name. There was no response. I went to my car for my phone and called an ambulance," Smith said.

He and Sibson put Mr Kaye in the recovery position and covered him with a coat.

"I was scared. I was panicking because we couldn't wake him up," Smith said.

He told the jury: "I am sorry from my heart about what happened. I never intended it to happen."

Earlier in the day, the student told the jury he was "gutted" about what he did to Mr Kaye.

He did not intend to cause him serious injury when he punched him to the left side of his face.

Asked by his barrister, Mark Brookes, how he felt about Mr Kaye's injury, he said: "It is just something I am going to have to live through. I genuinely didn't mean to do that."

He hit him "in the heat of the moment", expecting to cause no more than bruising.

The jury is expected to retire tomorrow to begin considering its verdicts.