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Yeovil man carried out 'brutal and savage attack' on taxi driverFUELLED by alcohol, a Yeovil man carried out a brutal and savage attack on a taxi driver as he waited outside a pub to pick up a fare.
Tom Venus had been drinking heavily when he tried to commandeer the taxi for himself despite another couple having ordered it.
When the driver tried to explain he could not give him a lift he became more and more angry and then dragged him out of his cab knocking him unconscious.
He then rained punches down on the victim as he lay on the ground leaving him with two fractures in his leg and ankle along with multiple bruises and cuts and swelling.
In a victim impact statement read out to the court the victim said he was still unable to work since the incident on June 15 and had suffered extreme financial hardship as he had been self employed and had now lost his business as he was unable to drive.
Venus, aged 21, of Larkhill Road, pleaded guilty to assaulting Ronald Lock causing him actual bodily harm during the attack outside The Red House Inn on Dorchester Road.
Somerset Magistrates were told that Mr Lock had pulled up outside the pub at 1.30am after being booked for a fare and saw the defendant who he did not know.
He leant over into the taxi and started speaking in an aggressive manner and said: “You’re taking me home” but the driver said he was waiting for a couple who had booked him.
Prosecutor Daffyd Paxton said that Venus then slammed the door shut and said “Don’t make me come round the other side” and then ran round to the driver’s door by the open window and shouted “don’t get out of the car or I will have you.”
“The customer waiting for the taxi told Venus to leave him alone saying he had booked the cab but the defendant then opened the driver’s door and grabbed hold of the complainant and pulled him out of the car by his shirt,” he said.
“The victim did not remember anything further as he was knocked unconscious, but witnesses saw Venus drag the driver onto the ground and then began throwing punches while he lay there.
“Someone intervened to prevent any further assault but the victim sustained a laceration to the back of the head and left earlobe and swelling to the jaw and ankle.”
Mr Lock was taken to Yeovil District Hospital and following x-rays was found to have a fractured fibula and ankle bone which had symptoms of a crush-type injury.
In his victim impact statement Mr Lock said that he had not been able to work since the incident, had suffered serious financial hardship and the attack had now cost him his business.
He wrote: “I have bills to pay and a bank overdraft and credit cards which are at their limit.
“My general fitness has also deteriorated as I used to run and had been doing well and was going to enter the Bristol Half Marathon.
“My feelings towards my attacker are negative and my wife has also suffered as a result.
“There is no reason for someone to attack an innocent, hard working man and there is no excuse for this type of behaviour and I hope he realises the financial hardship I have had since this incident.”
Defending solicitor Jeffrey Bannister said that this offence had not been something Venus normally did, but on the night in question he had been drinking at a party and after ordering a taxi someone else had taken it.
“He became more and more frustrated and while they were trying to get another one and unfortunately he lost his temper and took it out on this poor taxi driver,” he said.
“He said he was letting his frustrations out on Mr Lock but admitted he was wrong to have done so.
“And after hearing the injuries the victim sustained he was visibly upset and lost for words.
“He is ashamed of what he has done, but can only say the circumstances got the better of him.”
The magistrates said the offence was so serious that Venus must be committed to Taunton Crown Court to be sentenced.
They adjourned the case until September 12 when the defendant must appear before a judge there to be sentenced.
In the meantime they ordered that a pre sentence report should be prepared by the Probation Service and released the defendant on unconditional bail.
Read more: http://www.westerngazette.co.uk/Yeovil- ... z3Aj4rVGts
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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin
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