TWO men involved in a fatal pub brawl - Alfe Rohan Bakri and Ibrahim Abdul Rahman - yesterday admitted to causing grievous hurt while being in an unlawful assembly.

They were originally accused of murder. The reasons why the prosecution decided to reduce the charges were not given in court yesterday.

On this charge, Alfe, 32, a wharf operations supervisor, received four years' jail and six strokes of the cane.

Ibrahim, 27, a bartender with previous convictions for violence, got 4-1/2 years' jail and six strokes.

Pub manager Eugene Chua, 30, died on April 25, two days after being assaulted outside The Geographer's Bar in River Valley Road.

Apart from Alfe and Ibrahim, four others were involved in the pre-dawn attack on Mr Chua, who worked for the Que Pasa pub on Emerald Hill.

The cases of three women are pending: Ibrahim's girlfriend, Marliana Khamaruddin, 29; Alfe's girlfriend, Nurashikin Mohamed Yasin, 24; and public relations manager Shariah Solahan, 21. The sixth suspect, Shariah's 29-year-old boyfriend Clarence Soh Keng Hian, is at large.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Stella Tan said Mr Chua and Shariah argued after he had accidentally bumped her shoulder outside the toilets within the bar. Both were tipsy.

In the dispute, Mr Chua pointed his middle finger at Shariah, who then angrily went towards him. His friend, sales manager David Ang, 31, grabbed her by the throat to try and push her away.

Nurashikin, a waitress, then punched Mr Ang on the face. Marliana, emerging from the toilet, joined in by punching Mr Ang and kicking Mr Chua on his back. She also punched Mr Chua once.

Security staff then escorted Mr Chua and Mr Ang outside.

But Alfe, Ibrahim and Soh were incensed that Shariah's throat had been grabbed. The three men confronted Mr Chua outside the Clarke Quay bar.

Mr Chua was punched and kicked, and he collapsed. He died two days later of a serious head injury.

DPP Tan, asking for an appropriate sentence, said it was a senseless assault by a group. Defence lawyer Christopher Bridges said it was an unfortunate incident that escalated.

He said Mr Chua's alcohol level was 264mg per 100ml of blood and the offence was not pre-planned.

District Judge Wong Keen Onn said the case involved senseless violence arising from a trivial incident.

Blows were aimed at Mr Chua's head, a vulnerable part of the body.

In a statement, Mr Chua's family said they were still grieving: 'He was a victim of merciless beating...Heartache is an understatement for our loss.'

elena@sph.com.sg