Wrexham man jailed for attack after argument at Rhos' Railway Pub

William Jones, of Rhosddu Road in Wrexham, appeared at Caernarfon Crown Court on Monday for sentence.

The 56-year-old had previously admitted wounding without intent, assault, making threats with a weapon and possession of cocaine.

Emmalyne Downing, prosecuting, told the court that on December 31, Neil Carter and his partner Sonya Goodwin were out at the Railway Pub in Rhos for the evening.

The defendant was also there, and at some point in the evening his coat was taken.

He raised the issue with the landlord, claiming there had been a bank card and money in it.

CCTV footage showed Mr Carter had "handled" the coat, leading Jones to confront him - shouting and demanding his money.

But Mr Carter showed that his pockets did not contain the defendant's property, and he left the premises.

Jones then approached Ms Goodwin and asked her to take him to Mr Carter's property so he could ask where the money had gone.

Around half an hour later, Ms Goodwin arrived at her partner's address with Jones, who immediately started to hit the victim in the face around six times.

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He then dragged him into the kitchen and pinned him against the wall, taking up one of Mr Carter's knives and putting it to his throat.

The blade was a veg peeling knife, the court heard, and Mr Carter could "feel the pressure" on his neck.

As Ms Goodwin tried to intervene and get hold of the weapon, Jones assaulted her and told her: "If you don't f****** stop it, I'll stab you as well."The Railway in Rhos (Image: Google) (Image: Google)

Jones continued to strike Mr Carter, with what he estimated later to be 20 or more blows.

He was left with multiple missing teeth, a fractured eye socket, bruising and swelling.

Ms Downing said that when police attended, he "had significant facial disfigurement and couldn't open one of his eyes."

Jones was apprehended by police at around 2.20am, telling them: "Two more minutes, and I'd have got away with it."

He was found to be in possession of cocaine.

In a statement read to the court, the victims said the offences had left them feeling unsafe in their own home.

James Coutts, defending, told the court that the defendant and victims were not known to each other, adding: "There was a clear trigger - the impression that the complainant had stolen money from him.

"Whether that's right or wrong, it's a genuinely held belief having watched the CCTV.

"He might have been justified in that conviction, but what was not justified was how he reacted."

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Mr Coutts said his client is a "hard worker who can still play a useful role in society," asking Judge Timothy Petts to bear in mind the two months the defendant had already spent in custody since the incident and asking him to consider the possibility of a suspended sentence.

He added: "He does regret his reaction that evening, and is genuinely sorry for the injury he caused."

Judge Petts told the defendant: "When you spoke to the author of your pre-sentence report, you gave a very different account of what happened.

"You denied using the knife, when you had already pleaded to it.

"You said he was coming with a dog to assault you.

"The report demonstrates your inability to take responsibility for what you did."

The Judge handed down an overall sentence of two years and six months, as well as a 10 year retraining order to protect the victims.