Elland man in drink-fuelled attack on takeaway driver who was subjected to racial abuse

A 23-year-old Elland man has been jailed for a series of serious offences including a drink-fuelled attack on a takeaway delivery driver who was subjected to racial abuse.

Regan Townley was sentenced to a total of two years and eight months in prison by a judge for a variety of crimes including an overnight burglary at an Elland takeaway during which he crawled through a roof space and stole the CCTV equipment, cash and a hospice charity box.

Bradford Crown Court also heard that in March last year Townley, of Whitwell Grove, pinned down his then partner and squeezed her throat before punching and headbutting her.

Barrister Ian Hudson, for Townley, said his client had kept out of trouble for 14 months and was now working and trying to turn his life round with the support of his new partner.

But Judge Neil Davey QC said there were too many offences to be dealt with for anything other than an immediate custodial sentence.

Prosecutor Paul Canfield described how Townley and three others had confronted the delivery driver outside premises in the Highfield Road area of Brighouse in the early hours of January 7, 2018.

He said the group shouted racist abuse at the man and Townley punched him several times resulting in damage to his teeth.

In a victim impact statement the man questioned why he had been targeted by the group and said he had never been so scared in his life.

The court heard he had lost three teeth, suffered flashbacks of the attack and couldn’t go back to doing his job.

As the defendant left the scene of the attack he shouted:”This is my estate.”

Townley pleaded guilty to charges of racially aggravated assault, burglary and possession of cannabis and he was found guilty after a trial of assaulting his former partner.

Judge Davey said the delivery driver was much older than Townley and it was plain that the offence was driven by drink.

He said Townley had played the “leading role” in the offence against an innocent man who had been left devastated by the incident.

The judge explained that if he had imposed consecutive sentences for each offence Townley would have been jailed for three years and five months, but he said he had to consider the offending overall and pass a “just and proportionate” sentence.