A man from Arnold has been jailed for 16 months after a one-punch attack which left a 17-year-old boy with a fractured skull and a bleed on the brain.
The victim was an innocent passer-by as a group of men were fighting but unwittingly got caught up in the melee. He was punched to the side of the head and the force of the impact knocked him to the floor and he hit his head on the pavement, knocking him unconscious.
The unprovoked attack has set back the career of the soldier, now 18, as he was unable to complete his training as planned later this month.
Because of the injuries he could not undertake any live firing during the current course – and won’t be able to complete training until April next year.
His attacker, 20-year-old Connor Gillan handed himself in for a voluntary interview after seeing the police’s CCTV appeal on Facebook following the assault in Burton Street, Nottingham city centre, on Sunday, February 25 2018.
Gillan, of Killisick Road, who was of previous good character, admitted causing grievous bodily harm when he appeared at Nottingham Crown Court and was sentenced yesterday (Monday, November 12 2018).
Detective Constable Dionne Love, who led the investigation, said: “This incident shows the huge impact a single punch can have on people’s lives.
“The victim, who has been described by his senior officer as one of the strongest recruits he’s ever witnessed, was very seriously injured through no fault of his own and as a result has been set back in his ambition to serve in the Rifles Regiment. Hopefully he will be able to go on to achieve his ambition but it won’t be in line with his peers.
“Gillan is now spending time in custody because of his violent actions. I think it was a shock to him to receive a custodial sentence when he had no previous convictions but it shows how seriously the court takes violence and hopefully it should act as a deterrent to other young men when they go out in town.”
