The jury in the trial of a man accused of stabbing another man heard an audio tape of the defendant saying he only had the knife for work purposes.

The Crown, represented by Robert Welling, contends that Marekco Ratteray, 23, inflicted a two- to three-centimetre wound on Shawn Bascome, 35, during an alleged incident in Rambling Lane, Pembroke on September 13, 2006.

Ratteray, of North Shore Road, Hamilton Parish, denies wounding Mr. Bascome with intent to cause him grievous bodily harm. He is represented by defence lawyer Rick Woolridge.

An audio tape of Ratteray's Police interview was played for the seven-man, five-woman Supreme Court jury yesterday in the second day of the trial.

The jury heard Ratteray tell two detectives that his occupation as a drywaller, at TCC Drywall Ltd., required him to carry the knife in question.

"The knife I had that day was my work knife, because I have to cut drywall, ceilings and things like that," Ratteray said on the recording.

A detective was heard asking Ratteray if his boss at the time, James Todd Weaver, owner of TCC Drywall, would corroborate that claim.

"He'll confirm I use that knife every day to a degree," Ratteray responded.

Earlier in the proceedings, Mr. Weaver, said in a statement which was read out to the court, that the knife in question, was not what his workers use on the job.

One part of the statement quoted Mr. Weaver, having looked at a photo of the knife, stating: "In the picture I saw a three-inch blade. This knife would not be used in accordance of cutting dry wall." He also denied ever seeing the knife.

Detective Constable Rhonda Pitt, who was present during the taped interview and helped to arrest Ratteray later at Par-La-Ville Park, held up a photo of the knife on the stand, describing its dimensions.

"It was approximately four- and-a-half inches long with a silver blade — it did appear to have a brown stain on it — it was a retractable blade in the closed position," she said.

Ratteray denies possessing a folding knife on the date of the stabbing and possessing the same knife a week later when detained by at the Hamilton park.

Det. Con. Pitt said that the arresting officers found the knife "on his right side of his cargo pants pocket".

Under cross-examination, Mr. Woolridge suggested because she wasn't the officer that carried out the search, she did not notice a buckle or holster on the belt of Ratteray and other work paraphernalia he had.

"It's true to say that on the day of the arrest, my client had on his work clothes?" asked Mr. Woolridge.

"I remember his cargo pants... I saw (the other officer) search his pockets but I didn't see which side," the detective recalled.

She insisted the knife had been recovered from inside Ratteray's pocket.

Mr. Woolridge also suggested that Ratteray had a tape measure on his waist, which the detective denied ever seeing.

Mr. Welling claimed at the start of the trial that Ratteray stabbed Mr. Bascome in the lower back, causing a wound that put him in hospital for four days.

Mr. Welling said the two men had exchanged angry words but that Mr. Bascome attempted to walk away. When he turned, he felt a jab in the back.

However, Ratteray claims Mr. Bascome threatened him, leading him to pull out the knife in self defence.

He said Mr. Bascome punched him in the face and a wrestling match ensued, resulting in the wound accidentally being inflicted on Mr. Bascome.

The case continues today, with lawyers expected to give closing speeches before Puisne Justice Carlisle Greaves.