A Paget man charged with seriously injuring a lifelong friend was more concerned about avoiding arrest than calling an ambulance, according to prosecutors.

John Wardman denies charges of causing grievous bodily harm to Alexander Doyle while driving over the legal blood-alcohol limit, driving while impaired and failing to provide Mr Doyle with the necessaries of life early on December 27, 2010.

Tow-truck driver Keith Richardson told the court he happened upon two men — the defendant and his brother Christopher — standing next to a heavily damaged car on Manse Road, Paget around 2.30am and stopped to help.

The men asked him to tow the car to a property near the Fourways Inn but he examined it and immediately called Police when he saw an injured man in the back seat.

“I spoke to them,” he said. “They wanted me to move the car. They wanted me to take it up by Fourways. I forget the name of the estate.”

“I just took it on myself (to call Police),” he said. “I just dialled when I saw the blood pouring from the guy’s head.”

Asked to describe how the men’s behaviour, Mr Richardson said: “Anxious. They just wanted to get this car out of here.”

Under cross examination by defence lawyer Mark Daniels, representing the defendant, Mr Richardson said only around 30 seconds had passed between when he stepped out of his truck, examined the car and noticed the injured man.

And asked if one or both of the men had asked him to tow the vehicle, Mr Richardson said he couldn’t recall.

Earlier, Director of Public Prosecutions Rory Field told the jury that in the early hours of December 27, 2010, Mr Wardman had been celebrating the holidays in Docksiders in Hamilton with his brother and Mr Doyle.

Mr Field alleged that around 2am, the defendant began to drive the trio home with his brother in the passenger seat and Mr Doyle in the back seat.

Mr Field said the car was travelling along Harbour Road in Paget when the defendant attempted to turn onto Manse Road and lost control of the vehicle, crashing into a wall on the edge of the eastbound lane.

“The crash made such an impact that it not only caused extensive damage to the car but it woke everyone in the house on the opposite side of the road,” Mr Field said. “It also seriously injured Mr Doyle.”

Mr Field said the car was driven further onto Manse Road, making it around half way down the road before crashing into another wall on the side of the southbound lane.

“[Mr Richardson] was looking at the damaged car,” Mr Field explained. “And saw Mr Doyle sit up in the back seat — badly injured and covered in blood, clearly needing medical attention.”

Emergency personnel tore off the vehicles’s right rear door, rushed Mr Doyle to King Edward VII Memorial Hospital.

Mr Doyle was later air lifted to Johns Hopkins Hospital, suffering from extensive bleeding and bruising in the brain and fractures to his skull among other injuries.

Mr Field said the brothers were both arrested on suspicion of driving while impaired and photographed at Hamilton Police Station.

He told the court small fragments of broken glass were seen on the defendant’s eyebrow and sweater, consistent with him being the one behind the wheel. The trial continues