LAST UPDATE | 11 Jun

THE BYSTANDER WHO used a hurl to intervene in a knife attack in north Belfast has said it “makes no sense” to attack people who “contribute” to society in Northern Ireland.

Maitiu Mág Tighearnán has been widely praised after he stepped in during an attack on Kinnaird Avenue in north Belfast on Monday night.

Stephen Ogilvie, aged in his 40s, suffered serious injuries to his neck and back in the attack, and also lost his left eye.

A 30-year-old man has appeared in court charged with attempted murder.

Mág Tighearnán today appeared on ITV’s Good Morning Britain to discuss his intervention in the violent attack.

It was by "pure chance" that Maitiu Mag Tighearnan chose to take a shortcut on his way to get petrol on Monday night. But by doing so, he helped save the life of a total stranger.

Maitiu bravely used a hurling stick to help fight off a man, allegedly attacking Stephen Ogilvie,… pic.twitter.com/7c7ovUshZE

— Good Morning Britain (@GMB) June 11, 2026

Video from the scene shows Mág Tighearnán striking the attacker repeatedly with a hurl as two other bystanders also intervened.

Mág Tighearnán said that the first person to the scene was his Portuguese friend, Andre.

Mág Tighearnán said that he and Andre, who has lived in Belfast for over a decade, were on their way to get petrol but took a shortcut which led them to the violent attack.

Andre was a passenger while Mág Tighearnán was driving.

They came upon a car stopped in the middle of the road but as they went around it, they noticed a woman in the car on her phone who “looked quite panicky”.

They then saw the attack on Ogilvie but originally thought that it was “just a fight”.

“We just saw two guys but before I’d even stopped the car, Andre is out straight away trying to break up the fight,” said Mág Tighearnán.

“He (Andre) was about two or 3ft away before he realised that’s a lot more than what it was and he saw the knife.”

Andre then ran back to the car in search of something that he could use to put a stop to the attack.

Mág Tighearnán said his son had been at hurling practice that evening, and he got the hurl from the boot and ran to the scene.

When asked about running towards a situation many others would flee from, Mág Tighearnán pointed to his upbringing in west Belfast.

“A lot of people in Belfast have that mentality.

“At the end of the day, there’s a man laying there. I just heard ‘he’s being stabbed’, so that man needs help and it’s a natural reaction for me and most people I know from where we grew up would also do the same.

“And, of course, you have Andre as well.”

Meanwhile, Mág Tighearnán was asked about his reaction to the violent disorder in Belfast.

Rioters set fire to bins and use garden fence as shield against police water cannon at the Sandyknowes roundabout in Newtownabbey Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

There was a second night of rioting across Northern Ireland last night and some 27 families have been made homeless by the disorder.

While he said “everybody’s entitled to the right to protest”, he added that “when it turns violent, then you lose sight of the protest and what it actually stands for”.

He said that in his local area, a person of colour who has run a shop for over 20 years has had their business premises destroyed.

“They’ve been here 30 years, their kids have gone to school here, even their grandkids are born here.

“I think what happened was, someone has seen someone of colour, and then it’s led to that.

“But we have people in our society who contribute towards our economy and our country, so attacking those people makes no sense.”

Mág Tighearnán said he has spoken to one of Ogilvie’s family members and that Andre has also received a message of thanks from his family.

“We both said, ‘if it was any of our family, we would hope someone would do the same’.

“So it’s not that there’s not anything to be thankful for, we’re just glad that we were able to intervene.”

Meanwhile, Mág Tighearnán was interviewed alongside Niall Donnan, who set up a GoFundMe page for Mág Tighearnán – half of the proceeds will be going to Ogilvie and the page has raised more than £29,000 (€34,000).

Donnan said another fundraiser will be set up solely for Ogilvie and Mág Tighearnán said he will donate £10,000 (€12,000) towards this to “kick it off”.