Teenager hit man in group attack

A TEENAGER hit a father over the head with a stick in front of the victim’s wife and son as part of a group attack.

Jake Williams, 19, of Richmond Hill, Macclesfield, started an attack in retaliation, Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court heard.

The victim, who had been drinking, was travelling in a taxi with his family, including his 14-year-old son, when their path was blocked in the Meir area.

He got out of the cab and began to assault a man inside one of the cars but other occupants of the cars - including Williams - started an attack in retaliation.

The attack, which happened on April 10 last year in the Meir area of Stoke-on-Trent, was caught on CCTV and the taxi’s dashcam.

The defendant was the only person to be identified.

Seamran Sidhu, prosecuting, said: “The road was blocked by two cars.

“The taxi driver flashed his lights to ask them to move out of the way, which they did within 30 seconds.

“The complainant had been drinking alcohol and unfortunately - and unnecessarily - decided to take action against the occupants of the vehicles.

He was heard to say,

‘Do you want me to get out and smack them one?’

“Even though they had cleared out of the way, the complainant got out of the taxi and sought a confrontation.”

The victim grabbed a male who was in the back seat of one of the cars, the court heard.

Ms Sandhu added: “The car then reversed away, which appears to knock the complainant to the ground.

“Immediately following that, four males ran from the other vehicle to join in.

“This defendant is present with a large stick, about a metre long.

“The defendant brought the stick down on the complainant.”

The victim was repeatedly punched and kicked by other group members and left with a cut to the top of his head - inflicted by Williams - two black eyes, eight stitches to his lip, a broken tooth and a bruised face and head.

Williams initially denied assault occasioning actual bodily harm, saying it was self-defence, but changed his plea to guilty.

Julian Farley, defending, said: “It was the complainant who was the aggressor.

“The defendant’s group found themselves in a situation where they did not have the maturity to work out what to do next.

“A number of males attempted to stop the complaint attacking the man in the back of the car.

“Mr Williams accepts he should not have struck the complainant.

“There was a significant degree of provocation.”

Williams was given a 12-month community order with 60 days unpaid work and a five-day rehabilitation activity requirement.