Whitchurch thug jailed after attack scarred man

Myles Davies, 22, of Alkington Road, was jailed for 14 months. He initially made threats towards James Fairbanks in messages to Mr Fairbanks' girlfriend via mobile phone app Snapchat, Shrewsbury Crown Court heard.

But when she sent him a picture of the town's police station to indicate they were about to report him, Davies sought out Mr Fairbanks and attacked him.

Mr Robert Edwards, prosecuting, said Davies, using the name "Mental Milo", said "Your boyfriend will be getting his head caved in" after she refused a request to send him indecent pictures of herself.

Mr Edwards said: "The defendant used his right hand to punch Mr Fairbanks to the face, causing him to fall to the floor."

The blow left a "gaping wound". Davies fled the scene but was later arrested.

Mr Edwards said: "He told the police he had been Facebook friends with the victim since 2013. He said he found the complainant annoying and that he lacked respect for the 'firm'.

"He admitted hitting the complainant, in his own words, as hard as he could and said he had no regrets or remorse whatsoever."

Mr Edwards said the victim had stopped going to watch Shrewsbury Town since the assault and had also been left scarred.

Davies had admitted assault occasioning actual bodily harm at a previous court hearing. He appeared on Friday to be sentenced. Mr Stephen Scully, for Davies, said his client was "somewhat of an enigma".

"When he is at work he is an individual who gets on with people," Mr Scully said.

"Unfortunately, when under the influence of alcohol and with a misplaced sense of loyalty towards certain people, he does things that put him before the courts.

"He is almost trying to make a name for himself, to gain some kind of notoriety."

Recorder Nigel Daly sentenced Davies to 14 months in prison.

Jailing him, he said: "I have read letters about you that show you can be a sensible young man, but this behaviour was quite disgraceful.

"It was a pre-meditated attack on a young man, you punched him as hard as you possibly could in the face.

"You showed no remorse whatsoever."

It is not the first time Davies has fallen foul of the law.

In 2013 he was banned from attending football matches for three years after running onto the pitch with a firework in his jacket to celebrate Shrewsbury scoring against Sheffield United.

And the year before that, he was ordered to pay nearly £700 after taunting and abusing police officers at Wellington railway station in Telford while on a protest march with the English Defence League (EDL).