‘Role model’ rugby player jailed after unprovoked attack
ADRUNK thug knocked out a man outside a busy pub in an unprovoked attack, a court heard.
Liam Vaughan Fitzpatrick then followed up with eight more punches to his defenceless victim, and had to be dragged away by a bouncer.
The man he attacked needed stitches to a gash to the inside of his mouth, and has been left with ringing in his ears and occasional blurry vision.
In a reference from his local rugby club which was read to Swansea Crown Court, Fitzpatrick was described as “an excellent role model for young players” – but sending him to prison a judge said it was clear that when in drink, the 31-year-old’s behaviour was “crazed”.
Ashanti-Jade Walton, prosecuting, said the assault took place outside the Golden Lion pub in Carmarthen in the early hours of September 7 last year.
She said Fitzpatrick approached a man in the smoking area, and asked him for a cigarette – the man told him he did not have any spare.
The man turned away from the defendant and with that Fitzpatrick delivered a heavy blow to the side of the victim’s face which caused him to crash unconscious to the floor.
The court heard witnesses then described how Fitzpatrick set about the stricken man, punching him another eight times to the head as he lay defenceless on the floor.
A bouncer intervened and pulled the attacker off his victim.
Miss Walton said other customers outside the pub found a police officer nearby, and the Pc detained Fitzpatrick as he walked away.
The court heard the victim was taken to Glangwili Hospital where he underwent a CT scan, had stitches put in a deep gash inside his mouth, and had a fractured ankle put in a cast.
In an impact statement the man said the assault had left him with a large lump of scar tissue inside his mouth, ringing in his ears, and occasional bouts of blurry vision. He said he now found it difficult to socialise and to trust people, and gets flashbacks to the incident.
The self-employed greengrocer added: “It has changed me to the point where I don’t really recognise myself.”
Fitzpatrick, of Pretoria Buildings, Bancyfelin, Carmarthenshire, had previously pleaded guilty to inflicting grievous bodily harm when he appeared in the dock for sentencing.
The court heard he has 10 previous convictions for 12 offences including common assault, being drunk and disorderly, criminal damage, assault occasioning actual bodily harm (ABH), affray, and four public order matters.
One of the public order offences, from 2016, had seen him strip naked and jump into the fountain in Swansea’s Castle Square while watching an England v Wales match.
James Hartson, for Fitzpatrick, said the people who knew the defendant described him as reliable, hard-working, polite and friendly.
He said the self-employed bricklayer was an active member of Llanybydder rugby club whose chairman said he was an “excellent role model for young players”.
The barrister acknowledged the assault outside the pub had been an “appalling incident”, and he said the defendant’s problem was binge drinking.
Judge Geraint Walters said he had no doubt the people who had written personal references to the court on behalf of the defendant – including a retired magistrate – had meant what they said, but he said it was clear once Fitzpatrick consumes too much alcohol he becomes “crazed” in his behaviour.
Giving the defendant a one-third discount for his guilty plea the judge sentenced the defendant to 16 months in prison. Fitzpatrick will serve up to a half of that period in custody before being released on licence to serve the remainder in the community.