A man who punched a co-worker after a dispute over a banana peel has been fined and ordered to pay the victim’s medical expenses.

Eardley Simons, 48, pleaded guilty in Magistrates’ Court last November to a single count of assault causing actual bodily harm.

The court heard that on the morning of August 7, police received a report of an assault at Webb’s Body and Paint Shop in the Well Bottom area of Warwick. The complainant told officers that he had disposed of a banana peel in a bin the previous day, but that Simons had removed it and thrown it on the street. He later returned the peel to the trash but Simons again removed it, placing it in the pocket of a pair of pants belonging to the victim.

Shortly after arriving at the shop on the morning of August 7, he said Simons punched him on the left side of his face, saying: “I’m tired of you.”

As the matter returned to the courts for sentencing, Simons apologised for his actions, adding that he and the victim have “coexisted” at work since the incident.

Delivering his sentence, Magistrate Khamisi Tokunbo expressed concerns about the defendant’s anger, saying: “This was an act of violence, and clearly you were not able to contain your emotion or anger. It’s going to be a test whether you can survive that emotion.”

He fined Simons $500 and placed the defendant on 12 months’ probation, with conditions including that he participate in an anger management programme and pay $541 in restitution to the victim to cover his medical costs.

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