Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Fined for assault on lottery winner
A MAN assaulted a £10 million lottery winner in a Forfar pub.
Marshall Baer, 61, attacked John Bowman — who scooped the huge National Lottery jackpot last April — at the Burns Bar on January 8.
Baer, of Archies Park in Forfar, first assaulted Kirsty Skinner — a friend of his girlfriend — by pushing her in the pub.
Mr Bowman stepped in to try to calm the situation down but Baer grabbed him, pulled him to the ground and punched him on the head.
Baer previously pleaded guilty to two charges of assault before his trial at Forfar Sheriff Court, after an initial claim of self-defence was dropped.
Depute fiscal Jill Drummond said Baer had stormed into the town centre pub to confront his girlfriend, Janette Fyfe.
She said: “The accused approached the group while shouting.
“He pushed Miss Skinner, causing her to stumble.
“Mr Bowman intervened and told him to stop what he was doing.
“The accused grabbed him, pulled him to the ground and punched him on the head.
“The accused was pulled away and ejected from the bar.”
Defence solicitor Nick Markowski said Baer had gone to the bar to speak to his girlfriend after receiving a number of text messages and a phone call from Miss Skinner.
He said: “He was at home and feeling unwell and his girlfriend had gone out with her pal and was well under the influence of alcohol.
“For whatever reason they started texting him when he wasn’t in great fettle and his girlfriend’s friend called him which was enough for him to go and see what was going on.
“He goes and sees his girlfriend and friend speaking to the gentlemen.”
He added that Baer knew Mr Bowman because they had previously worked together.
Afterwards he drove off, came across a deer on the road and had to swerve and subsequently crashed his car, which was written off.
“He has since been reconciled with his girlfriend,” Mr Markowski added.
“The whole thing was handbags at 10 paces and was over within seconds.”
Sheriff Gregor Murray fined Baer £400.
Father-of-two Mr Bowman — also known as Jake — celebrated with a pint in his local pub after scooping his big win.
The 59-year-old later said that he would not be returning to work with Ramsay Ladders in Forfar.