Tema, May 18, GNA - A student, who protested vehemently against the whipping of a five year old boy, had one of his left fingers bitten off by the father of the boy.

Kwaku Nyarku, the father of the boy, who pleaded guilty to a charge of causing unlawful harm, was fined 500,000 cedis by the Tema Circuit Court "A".

Prosecuting, Police Chief Inspector Alice Gyamfi told the court presided over by Mr Charles Asiedu that on May 1, 2004, at about 8pm, the student and his friends saw Nyarko chasing a five-year-old boy with a cane.

She said the student advised the accused to stop, and suggested to him that, that was not the way to discipline a child and this developed into an argument, the accused told the complainant not to interfere with his private affairs.

The student apologised for the interference, and raised his two hands to show that he had backed out, but the accused thought the student wanted to hit him so he bit off one of his left fingers. Chief Inspector Gyamfi said the student was sent to the Tema General Hospital, where he was immediately rushed to the theatre for some stitches to be done and later discharged.