A violent thug kicked a man when he was down on the ground for "sheer pleasure" after watching him take a brutal beating from his friend.
Daryl Leighton didn't know the victim, had no grudge against him and had just seen him savagely attacked by Patrick Kelly, who videoed himself kicking him in the face and put it on Tik Tok. Kelly is awaiting sentence for the serious violence he used.
Newcastle Crown Court heard Leighton delivered five or six kicks to the victim's side as he lay on the ground in Whitley Bay town centre on a Saturday morning. It was on April 2 this year around 9.15 am when the victim was on his way to the gym that he bumped into the pair.
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He knew Kelly as he used to go out with his sister and he believed they were on good terms but Kelly didn't share that view. Liam O'Brien, prosecuting, said: "Kelly smiled at him and the victim walked towards him to greet him and extended his hand to shake his hand but rather than shaking it, Kelly struck him forcefully in the face.
"It was a powerful blow which sent him stumbling backwards. He continued to hit him to the face and head until he fell to the ground.
"Once he was on the ground he began to kick and stamp on his head and body. He went into a foetal position and tried to shield his head with his hands and arms.
"He said he can't remember how many times he was kicked and stamped on but he said they were hard, heavy and relentless kicks and stamps. He pleaded with him to stop, saying 'What are you doing this for, I'm meant to be a mate'.
"Mr Leighton was there and he decided at this point, when the victim was unable to defend himself, he would take a cowardly decision to involve himself in the attack, with five or six kicks to the side of the body, which were less powerful that those of Kelly."
After a time the violence stopped and the victim heard footsteps and thought his ordeal was over. "But unfortunately a TikTok video recorded by Kelly vividly shows that was not the case.," Mr O'Brien said
"He films himself staring into camera then it pans to the ground, showing the victim cowering in a ball with his hands around his head. He remains watching him until the victim lifts up his head, at which point Kelly kicks him forcefully in the face." He posted the footage with the caption 'chat s*** get banged'.
The victim was taken to hospital and found to have injuries includindg multiple fractures to his jaw and cheekbone. He needed an operation and had two metal plates fitted. Those serious injuries were attributed to Kelly rather than Leighton.
Leighton, 35, of Whitley Road, Whitley Bay, who has 71 previous convictions, pleaded guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm and was jailed for 20 months.
Judge Penny Moreland told him: "Patrick Kelly had some disagreement with the victim and set about beating him until he was on the floor, having been beaten into submission.
"At that stage, after Kelly had kicked and stamped on him on the floor, you decided you would involve yourself for no reason I can understand except for the sheer pleasure of kicking a man when he was helpless on the ground. You took advantage of Kelly's assault to launch your own."
Shaun Routledge, defending, said: "The defendant joined in at some stage and kicked him five or six times. It was a cowardly thing to do. He regrets doing what he did.
"There appears to have been a realisation that the petty and nasty behaviour is something that has to come to an end. He is the father of a young child and his mother is not in the best of health." He added that he has made good progress in prison and is trying to rehabilitate himself.
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