Boy left injured as man 'waved' meat cleaver around during Leeds house party
A 14-year-old boy was injured after a man waved meat cleaver around while making remarks at a house party about trouble being caused.
Malcolm Johnson caught the shoulder of the teenager causing it to bleed, and left a 3cm “gaping wound” down to the fat, Leeds Crown Court heard this week.
The incident happened at a property in Middleton on July 21 last year. Prosecutor Samuel Ponniah said the boy was attending a gathering at the property when an argument broke out. Johnson then appeared with the weapon with witnesses saying he said was waving it around and making vague threats.
After catching the boy’s shoulder, he immediately apologised, said he did not mean it and tried to help stem the blood from the boy’s injury. It was alleged that 56-year-old Johnson offered the boy money, but this has been denied.
Arrested later, Johnson gave a no-comment interview. He later admitted a charge of Section 20 GBH, without intent. Johnson later claimed he had kept the meat cleaver in separate room from the kitchen, that it was a “tight squeeze” where the group had congregated and he accidentally caught the boy on his shoulder as he tried to get into the kitchen to cut meat.
Johnson, of Langbar Road, Leeds, has seven previous convictions for nine offences including five for violence, although all are over 20 years’ old.
Mitigating on his behalf, Anthony Sugare said: “He realised what he did was wrong and was frightened of the consequences. He disputes in any way that he tried to bribe him.”
Judge Penelope Belcher accepted Johnson’s immediate regret and jailed him for 10 months, suspended for 18 months. He was also given 15 rehabilitation days and 150 hours of unpaid work to complete.