Thug left victim afraid to enter Warrington after pub garden assault

Mattheu Hopwood, of Hamilton Close in Latchford, appeared at Liverpool Crown Court on Friday after pleading guilty to inflicting grievous bodily harm.

Prosecuting, Joshua Gorst told the court that on May 7 this year, the victim was on a date at a restaurant in Warrington when he received a phone call from Hopwood, 35, at around 1pm.

The pair, who were known to each other due to sharing friendship groups, spoke to each other, after which the victim asked for the bill and left.

The date continued to The Wolves pub where they met another man at around 6pm.

The court heard that the group were all sat outside in the courtyard of the pub, which is on Orford Lane, when 35-year-old Hopwood appeared and punched the victim in the head.

It was also heard that people tried to pull Hopwood off of the victim but that he ‘wouldn’t stop’ punching him.

Eventually, the victim managed to escape inside the pub and was convinced the next day to go to hospital to get his injuries assessed.

There, the victim was told he had suffered a number of fractures to the right side of his face, including near his eye socket and his jaw.

Hopwood was arrested and questioned by police on May 23, during which he answered no comment.

The assault took place at The Wolves pub on Orford Lane (Image: Google Maps)

An impact statement was read to the court by Mr Gorst, which stated that the victim had not been able to attend a friend’s funeral as a result of the assault.

“I now avoid Warrington as I do not want another incident to take place and want to avoid Hopwood’s friends,” the statement read.

The court also heard that due to his injuries, the victim could not work and ended up losing his job, leaving him in ‘massive financial difficulties’.

Defending, Carmel Wild said that Hopwood feels ‘very bad’ about the situation and described it as ‘shameful’, stating that ‘civilised people do not behave like that’.

It was heard that Hopwood felt threatened by the victim and was ‘wound up’ on the day of the assault.

Ms Wild said that since his arrest, Hopwood, who was remanded into custody, has tried to access therapy.

During his sentencing remarks, judge John McGarva told Hopwood that he did not believe that he was scared of the victim.

“That is not for one second the picture I get from what I have seen,” he said.

“You stormed into the pub, and you leathered him. You were clearly the aggressor, and I do not believe you were scared of him.

“I will accept, grudgingly, that you are sorry for what you did.”

Hopwood, who has 10 previous convictions for 21 offences, including three against a person, was deemed a significant risk to the public.

He was sentenced to 27 months imprisonment.