A PUBGOER was violently assaulted by a man he had confronted over ‘cat calling’ his girlfriend and her friends, a court heard.

Jack Wilson, 25, punched his victim to the face and then kicked him as he lay on the ground, before storming out of The Well pub in Workington on March 24 last year.

He was sentenced to six months in prison, suspended for 12 months, when he appeared before Workington Magistrates’ Court on Monday.

Outlining the case, prosecutor Pamela Fee said the victim had been stood at the bar and was waiting to be served when he heard a male voice make ‘inappropriate comments’ to the group of women. He was ‘cat calling them’, the court heard.

Wilson was there with three others. The victim turned round and asked who had made the noises. Wilson had replied, ‘f*** off, I know them’. The victim had responded, ‘what are their names, then?’

Wilson then ‘got in his face’ and the next thing the victim could remember was the doorman calling an ambulance. He was taken to the West Cumberland Hospital.

CCTV footage played to the court showed the victim being punched to the face by Wilson, before falling to the floor.

A witness who saw the incident said the victim had fallen backwards and was lying near the door when Wilson had run over to him and kicked him to the face, before running out of the pub.

The victim sustained a cut to his top lip and due to the severity of the cut, had to be transferred to the Cumberland Infirmary to be stitched the next day.

The victim said he was now concerned about going out in town when there were people capable of such an assault.

Wilson was interviewed by police and said he was ‘sincerely sorry’ for what he had done. He said he had been ‘very intoxicated’ and his actions were ‘over the top’ and ‘reckless’.

Mike Woolaghan, defending, said: “It was 16 months ago. There’s no suggestion of any criminality prior to that date or since.

“It’s an entirely isolated incident and entirely out of character.

“There appears to be some element of challenge prior to the use of unlawful violence.

“The defendant concedes his actions on that day were inappropriate and unlawful. He enters his guilty plea at the first opportunity.

“The violence was limited in scope. It was a relatively brief incident.”

Mr Woolaghan said Wilson had a diagnosis of ADHD and a possible diagnosis of autism was pending.

Wilson, of Garnet Crescent, Salterbeck, Workington, pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

Passing sentence, Jennifer Wilkinson, chair of the magistrates’ panel, said custody was justified because there was a ‘significant injury’ and the victim had been kicked while he was on the ground.

However, magistrates felt there was a realistic prospect of rehabilitation and suspended the six-month prison sentence for 12 months.  

Wilson must complete 20 rehabilitation activity requirement days and was ordered to pay £250 in compensation to his victim.

He must also pay £85 costs and a £154 victim surcharge.