New details emerge in weekend attack
Injured Sudanese man sparked community concern
A Sudanese man hospitalized for four days with a head injury suffered early Saturday morning in the Old Port says he doesn't remember how he was injured and isn't claiming he was assaulted, according to police.
Portland police detectives said they interviewed Najmeldin Arbab, 24, of Portland at Maine Medical Center on Tuesday, where he was still recovering. Police said Arbab was "lucid and communicative" but remained unable to provide key details about what happened early Saturday.
The case created tension in the Sudanese community over the weekend after reports of a "brutal attack" spread. Community leaders have in the past protested what they contend is an historic lack of equal protection from Portland authorities, and Najmeldin Arbab is the brother of a well-known Darfur survivor and activist.
Police still have little to work on.
"He(Arbab) says that he was in the Old Port spending a portion of the evening by himself and was walking back to his car the next thing he knows he is on the ground and Medcu is bringing him to Maine Medical Center," Capt. Ted Ross said Tuesday.
Ross added that Arbab told detectives "he was by himself and didn't see anyone (near him). He said there was no confrontation and is not claiming an assault at this particular time."
Three independent sources, including Arbab's brother who is a community activist, confirmed reports to the Portland Daily Sun on Monday that Arbab was "attacked" and "beaten" during the weekend incident. Although some details of the incident remained hazy, all three were in agreement that somebody struck Arbab in the back of the head while he was walking by himself.
As word of the incident began to trickle out this week, some in the Sudanese community began to question the muted response from both media and authorities. Portland police on Monday said they had no police reports or calls for service from Friday night describing any attacks or beatings.
But as new information became available Tuesday, at least one of these initial sources said it was "misleading" for police to say that Arbab isn't claiming he was assaulted. John Branson, a local attorney who has represented the Sudanese Community Council of Portland, said that phrasing implies that no attack took place.
It's more accurate, he suggested, to say that Arbab doesn't remember who hit him.
The attorney, who had been among those questioning police and media interest in the case, said he was confident that officers were "all over this" Tuesday. He said reporters from both the weekly newspaper The West End News and Channel 13 had shown interest in reporting the incident.
Branson also said discussions with police and others through the day suggested that an anonymous 9-1-1 emergency call identified Arbab as "a drug overdose victim" and that ambulance and hospital workers likely assumed others had contacted police.
Ross said Tuesday the only incident reported late Friday or early Saturday morning involving an injured male came in at about 1:20 a.m. Saturday. He said an unknown caller alerted dispatchers of a man possibly having a drug overdose on Wharf Street near Moulton Street. Medcu paramedics and police were called to the scene, and the male subject was transported to Maine Medical Center
Ross couldn't confirm whether the injured male early Saturday was Arbab.
It's also not clear how reports of an attack spread quickly through the community and family members Monday if Arbab himself can't recall an assault.
Police say they have collected no evidence suggesting an attack or altercation took place. Ross said detectives are in the process of trying track down any bar employees or witnesses from late Friday in hopes of filling in the gaps in Arbab's memory. Police also hope video cameras posted in Wharf Street will provide additional clues.
