Let off with just a caution, thug who knocked a pub landlord out cold
LYING face down, unconscious on the pavement, this was landlord Jason Monks moments after being punched in the head by a thug outside his pub.
Although the blow was caught on CCTV, police decided to let off his attacker with a caution.
Officers claimed it was the ‘appropriate course of action’ after Ian Jackson, 47, who has no previous convictions, admitted guilt and showed remorse.
Mr Monks and his wife posted footage of the incident online. Incredibly, the police then called him to ask him to remove the video, claiming Jackson had been receiving death threats. The landlord refused and is now taking legal advice.
Last night Mr Monks, 46, criticised the police and justice system for letting him get away scot-free. ‘ He could have killed me,’ Mr Monks said last night, adding: ‘Police didn’t even look at the CCTV before they gave him a caution. It speaks for itself. I know police are struggling with cuts, but I expected them to charge him and then for it to go to court. We were really angry and devastated to be told that he wasn’t going to be charged.’
The attack happened three weeks ago after Mr Monks stepped in to remove Mr Jackson’s drunk girlfriend, who had been throwing glasses at a band performing in his pub, the Jolly Nailor, in Atherton, Greater Manchester. Jackson, a father- of-three who runs an arts centre café, had been drinking with his girlfriend and followed her out. Footage from the pub’s CCTV clearly shows him throwing a punch, which struck Mr Monks behind his left ear, as they made their way outside.
The force of the blow knocked Mr Monks clean out and sent him sprawling face first onto the pavement. His tearful wife of ten years, Nicola, 47, said: ‘In that moment my entire marriage went before my eyes. I thought he was dead.
‘I’ve worked behind bars for the past 30 years and I’ve seen firsthand the damage a single punch can do. We’re not happy about the way it’s been handled by police. I’ve not been sleeping since it happened, I keep seeing Jason on the floor, it’s a miracle he wasn’t killed.’
Last night Jackson, who claimed he had drunk up to eight pints before the assault, admitted he made a ‘massive mistake’ and said he was ‘ashamed’ of his actions. However he went on to insist that he had simply been trying to protect his girlfriend when he punched the pub landlord.
A spokesman for Greater Manchester police said: ‘All the circumstances of this specific case were considered. On this occasion a caution was issued. This was deemed an appropriate course of action.’