Jake Kennedy
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Oct 11/02) - The trial of a Yellowknife man who is accused of attacking another city resident with a lead pipe, began last Friday in territorial court.

Phuc Huynh, a taxi driver who has lived in Yellowknife since he moved here from Vietnam in 1979, is charged with assault with a weapon.

In court testimony, Randy Sutherland said he was at his home near Kam Lake, butchering two caribou in his garage when Huynh and his nephew, Long Huynh, arrived at his house.

Sutherland said he had received threatening phone calls earlier in the evening, but thought nothing of them.

When the Huynhs arrived, he said, they both got out of a white Ford Taurus -- Long carrying a machete, and Phuc carrying a piece of pipe.

Sutherland said they advanced on him, even after he fired a warning shot into the air from his rifle.

He said a short fight followed, and he hit Long over the head with the butt of his rifle, which had no bullets in it by that time.

Sutherland said he then went inside his house, where his brother Ryan, common-law wife Donna Lafferty and three-and-a-half month old son Tegan were.

Shortly thereafter, he said, the RCMP arrived and took everyone into custody.

In cross-examination by defence counsel Kelly Payne, Sutherland admitted that he had been ready for a fight, and had said "come on down, we'll settle this here" during one of the phone calls.

He said that the only association he had with either of the Huynh's, was that his partner, Lafferty, was friends with Long's girlfriend.

In Sutherland's brother's testimony, he confirmed many of the details that Sutherland put forth.

Lafferty also took the stand, but as she was inside the house taking care of her son throughout the fight, she was unable to provide much description of what happened.

"I just don't want any problems like this in my life, or for my child," she said.

The trial has been adjourned to Jan. 16.

The trial of co-accused Long Huynh is set for March 3.