Scooter rider tackled by drunken man

Victim left unconscious on city street

A DRUNKEN man who tackled a scooter rider off his bike on a Toowoomba street at night leaving him unconscious and injured has copped a hefty fine.

Anthony George Swan had been walking on Holberton St, Black Gully, on the night of January 28 when he ran onto the road and tackled the man off his scooter.

Toowoomba Murri Court heard the victim had been unconscious but the 24-year-old punched and kicked him before walking off.

A motorist who witnessed the incident contacted police and the Police Dog Squad had tracked Swan to a nearby residence, police prosecutor Sergeant Al Windsor told the court.

The victim was taken to hospital with a dislocated shoulder, abrasions and bruises, Sgt Windsor said.

Swan pleaded guilty guilty to a charge of assault occasioning bodily harm.

His solicitor Michael McElhinney told the court his client was so drunk at the time that he had no recollection of the incident.

His client had since given up alcohol and had a well-paying job in landscaping, Mr McElhinney said.

His client instructed that the Murri Court program he had been on in recent months had also been good for him, he said.

Magistrate Kay Ryan noted Swan had received a favourable report from the Murri Court Program he had been on.

Swan told Magistrate Ryan that he had turned his life around and was no longer mixing with peers in Toowoomba that he had been with at the time.

Ms Ryan convicted and fined him $1200.