Prosecution shows video of Land Rover hitting man at Höfðatorg

Prosecutors showed footage at the main hearing in the Höfðatorg case of a Land Rover being driven at high speed into a man in a parking garage beneath Höfðatorg, mbl.is reports.

The video shows the man being thrown several metres from the vehicle before two men attack him as he lies on the ground, striking and kicking him. He eventually gets to his feet and runs away, appearing unsteady.

A short time later, another vehicle is driven in front of him. Four people get out and run after him.

The footage was shown while Kareem M. M. Abufarhah, whom prosecutors believe was driving the Land Rover, gave evidence. He was the first defendant to testify at the main hearing.

Kareem completely denies driving the vehicle when it hit the injured party. According to the indictment, he drove the rented vehicle into the man at high speed.

Asked about the events leading up to the confrontation, Kareem said he and his friends had met almost daily for about three months in the parking garage beneath Höfðatorg, which had served as a meeting place for them.

His defence is that three men came to the garage and attacked the group without provocation, forcing those already there to defend themselves.

Kareem said he had not known the other defendants before the confrontation, although he later became acquainted with Mohamed Sayidali Ahmed in prison. He also said he had no connection to the injured party and had never seen the three men whom he said came to the garage and attacked the group.

The prosecutor, however, played audio messages that appeared to show Kareem communicating with one of the men before the confrontation. The recording featured a man who appeared to have a grievance against Kareem and wanted something from him. He sounded angry.

Kareem laughed when the recording was played and said he did not recognise the messages, even though they had been sent to his phone.

Kareem said the group had been in the garage when one of the men who later arrived called them. He said one man was carrying a machete and another a baseball bat. The third had his hands in his pockets, and Kareem said he believed that man was also armed.

According to Kareem, the man with the machete attacked him and two of his friends. Kareem said he was inside the vehicle at the time.

When asked whether he had sold drugs in the parking garage, he denied it but acknowledged that he sometimes used drugs.

Kareem said he had driven the Land Rover into the garage but denied being behind the wheel when it hit the injured party. He said he left the vehicle running when the confrontation began and got out.