Linisei Mohenoa sentenced for one-punch attack on GP at Labrador

A Gold Coast dad has learned his fate after a brutal one-punch attack on a GP outside a pub, with his victim revealing the true consequences of the life-altering act of violence.

Mohenoa sentence

A doctor whose life was “destroyed” when he became the victim of a one-punch attack outside a Gold Coast pub says he holds no animosity towards his assailant.

An argument broke out between Linisei Sitini Mohenoa and Dr Dinesh Silva at a taxi rank outside Labrador’s The Grand Hotel in the early hours of July 30 last year.

Southport Magistrates Court was told both men initially walked away but soon turned around and came back, with Mohenoa landing a punch to the GP’s face within seconds.

Police prosecutor Senior Constable Matt Thompson said the 52-year-old’s victim was immediately knocked out and hit his head on the concrete footpath as he fell to the ground.

Senior Constable Thompson said the hotel’s duty manager and security workers rushed to the doctor’s aid as Mohenoa left the scene.

Linisei Mohenoa (right) leaving court after his sentence. Picture: Jessica Paul

The court was told Dr Silva woke from a coma in hospital with several head injuries and no memory of the attack.

He now suffers from reduced cognitive ability, vertigo, blurred vision, and the loss of his senses of taste and smell, it was heard.

An at-times emotional Dr Silva read out a victim impact statement to the court, revealing he spent close to three weeks in hospital and months unable to drive or work.

He detailed the ongoing physical, financial, and emotional fallout of his injuries, from losing his business and ability to enjoy the basic pleasures of food and drink to the breakdown of his marriage and contact with his children.

“The crime committed against me was not only an act of violence – it was an act that destroyed my life, and part of me feels as though I am still in a coma or dead,” he said.

“It has shattered my sense of wellbeing and my perception of the world, reality, and the future.

“However I have no animosity whatsoever towards the perpetrator and I hope that the knowledge of the real-life consequences and the impact of his actions will result in remorse and self-reflection, and he will not choose the destructive path of violence in the future.”

Dr Dinesh Silva outside court. Picture: Jessica Paul

The court was told Dr Silva had been evicted from the pub earlier that night but remained out the front, repeatedly “interacting” with security guards and other patrons.

Mohenoa’s lawyer Siobhan French said the doctor could have mistaken her client for a security guard and approached him, suggesting her client had “got in first” by throwing the punch.

Ms French said Mohenoa was a father and volunteer without any history of violence, and wanted to offer compensation to his victim as a further show of his remorse.

Acting Magistrate Steve Wettenhall said he was confident Mohenoa – who completed an anger management course and was supported in court by his family – was a low risk of reoffending.

“It certainly happened without any degree of planning – it happened in an instant and was over in an instant,” he said.

“That is precisely why the community – through, for example, the One Punch Can Kill campaign – tries to get the message through to people … that losing your cool and employing violence in these or any other circumstances is unacceptable and dangerous.”

Mohenoa pleaded guilty to one count of assault occasioning bodily harm.

He was ordered to complete 150 hours of community service and pay $5000 in compensation. No conviction was recorded.

Originally published as Linisei Mohenoa sentenced for one-punch attack on GP at Labrador