A Kingston man who was involved in a fight with his neighbour, whom he claimed was his lover, told the court that the fight started after someone asked the woman about their secret love affair.

Gary Kelly appeared in court on Tuesday on charges of malicious destruction of property and assault occasioning bodily harm, along with his neighbour Dorette Cameron, who was charged with unlawful wounding.

Cameron, who was first to address the court when asked what was her relationship with the accused, said that Kelly was her neighbour and that the dispute started over a sex argument.

Cameron told the court that on the day of the incident she went outside her house to sell a customer a finger of plantain when she heard Kelly saying that every 2:30 and 4:30 she “come knock him up”.

She said she turned to him and said, “Is serious thing or a joke thing you a tell people?”

Cameron said Kelly then threw a bottle at her and hit her on her right hand and she threw it back at him and hit him.

The following day, she said she was carrying her child to school when Kelly attacked her and she reached for a piece of block, hit him, and during the fight her stall was destroyed.

Kelly, when it was his turn to speak, told the court that Cameron was his lover but that he was forced to end their relationship because of her jealousy.

“Your Honour, me and she did in a sexual relationship. She live with her man and me live on my own, but everytime a woman come to me she a fuss, so me try to break it off,” he told RM Judith Pusey.

Giving his version of what happened on the day of the incident, Kelly said: “Somebody ask her about the relationship and she rush inna me workshop, and mi ask har to come out several times and we ended up in tussle and it caused her stall to mash up.”

The magistrate asked Kelly if he was going to fix the stall and he indicated that he would. The magistrate then told him to go and fix the stall and extended both their bails for them to return on October 26.

However, before they left, RM Pusey told Cameron: “Talk the truth. When I ask you what was your relationship you said you were neighbours, but I knew there was more to that story.”