POLICE IN NORTHERN Ireland have denied rumours that they were looking for a second suspect who took part in a knife attack on Monday night that left a man without an eye.

The attack, which occurred in north Belfast, was partly caught on video. A clip that was widely shared showed a man straddling the victim while shouting and holding a knife, at one stage against the victim’s head.

No apparent accomplice was seen in the video.

A suspect has been arrested and appeared in court today, charged with attempted murder.

However, some social media posts have wrongly implied that a second suspect was still being sought by the police.

“It’s not just one, there was two of them jumped him,” a woman says on a livestream broadcast on Tuesday by far-right activist Philip Dwyer. “But the news hasn’t gave it out yet.”

The woman says that she heard that from someone who she doesn’t identify or describe as a witness.

“The two of them moved into the flat. One of them was the one of that was arrested, but the other one hasn’t been mentioned on the news yet.”

“But he was involved in the attack, allegedly,” Dwyer asks.

“This is what she says,” the woman replies.

Dwyer’s livestream was views more than 12,500 times on X, though snippets of the exchange were also reports on other social media sites.

“Allegedly there could be a second suspect” reads a caption on a clipped version of Dwyer’s livestream. That version has been viewed more than 339,000 times since being posted to Instagram in the early hours of 10 June.

These claims are false. There are no reports of a second suspect in reliable news media. The video does not show a second attacker. And the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) have denied that they are looking for a second culprit.

The PSNI released a video on 9 June where they clarified some aspects of the attack.

“The suspect — a man in his 30s, who we now understand to be Sudanese — was arrested at the scene on suspicion of attempted murder,” a constable in the video says. “He’s in custody, and at this time we are not seeking anyone else in relation to this investigation.”

The PSNI confirmed on 10 June that they still were not seeking a second attacker.

“Police are not seeking another suspect at this time,” the PSNI said in response to The Journal’s inquiries. “The man has been charged and appeared in court today.”

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