Man jailed for attacking Santa Claus on Christmas Eve
A drunken reveller who beat up Santa Claus and then punched a man unconscious on Christmas Eve has been jailed.
CCTV cameras caught Shane Waterman, aged 23, launching two violent and unprovoked assaults on two men, one dressed as Father Christmas.
Northampton Crown Court was shown footage of Timothy Harris walking in his Santa outfit from The Penny Whistle pub, when he was set upon at the top of Abington Street at 11.15pm on December 24.
Rebecca Wade, prosecuting, said it was as police officers approached Abington Street that they were alerted to the first assault by Mr Harris, just as Waterman attacked his second victim.
Security staff at the CCTV control room had been asked to follow Waterman, and were recording video as he attacked Alexander Whittaker, who was punched unconscious as a result.
Miss Wade said: "Your honour can see that these were without warning or provocation."
Waterman, of Holdenby Road, Kingsthorpe, Northampton, pleaded guilty to actual bodily harm and common assault and was sentenced to a year's imprisonment by Judge Richard Bray.
He said: "I have to sentence you for unpleasant violence here in the centre of Northampton, on Christmas Eve. You attacked two separate individuals minding their own business.
"The first you punched in the face; the fact he was wearing a Father Christmas outfit does not entitle you to use violence towards him. You then attacked another man rendering him unconscious by your actions and he had to go to hospital.
"This is yet another case of drunken violence, at night, in the centre of this town. As I have so often said, the public are sick and tired of such violence. There must be a custodial sentence."
Tony Davis, mitigating, said: "The defendant is in difficulties, because you will not be impressed by the nature of his actions in the town centre at night when it was unprovoked."
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Friday 10 February 2012
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