The jury will continue its deliberations on Monday in the trial at Leeds Crown Court of two men accused of attacking a hairdresser in his Lindley salon and starting fires at the premises.
Joshua Gibbon, 25 of Quarmby Road, and Aaron Holroyd, 24 of Briarlyn Road, Birchencliffe, each deny causing grievous bodily harm with intent to Marcus Sewell-Fletcher on February 18 this year.
They also both deny arson being reckless whether the lives of others were endangered at the premises in Acre Street.
The jurors were sent home on Friday night after a couple of hours considering verdicts following the summing up of the evidence by the Recorder of Leeds, Judge Peter Collier QC.
He told them: “Please while away from court over the weekend put all of this out of your mind. What you must not do is seek any other information, you only reach verdicts, when you do, on evidence you have heard in this court.”
He asked the jurors to try and make it to the court for 10am on Monday, the rail strike permitting.
During the two week trial the jury has heard Mr Fletcher, now 51, was found with a broken eye-socket, facial injuries and multiple broken ribs in his salon. Two fires using hairdressing gowns were no longer burning but the salon was full of smoke.
Gibbon and Holroyd admitted going there with him in the early hours of the morning for a drink. Gibbon said he punched Mr Fletcher after he allegedly made a sexual advance to him and claimed both of them fell down stairs to the basement where he told the jury Holroyd then kicked the injured man.
Holroyd said in evidence only Mr Fletcher had fallen down the stairs after Gibbon punched him. He denied he had ever kicked or stamped on Mr Fletcher. Both defendants denied starting any fires.
