A NIGHTCLUBBER who took part in a vicious attack that left his victim unconscious has been banned from going out at night.Father-of-two Billy Snell, of Shackleton Square, Ipswich, has been ordered to stay at home between 8pm and 6am every day for three months.

A NIGHTCLUBBER who took part in a vicious attack that left his victim unconscious has been banned from going out at night.

Father-of-two Billy Snell, of Shackleton Square, Ipswich, has been ordered to stay at home between 8pm and 6am every day for three months.

The 26-year-old McDonald's shift manager admitted striking club patron Philip Brummitt with a closed fist on November 6 last year.

Ipswich magistrates heard Snell had been with friends at Fire and Ice in Tacket Street when he became enraged at Brummitt.

Mitigating, Nigel Innis told magistrates at South East Suffolk magistrates court that Snell had been provoked into the attack.

He said: "He says there is some provocation in the lines of the gentleman in question being racist towards him.

"He is saying there was some provocation to it but his reaction was wrong in those circumstances."

After his arrest Snell told police that when he went to a bar at the back of the club Mr Brummitt, who was on a night out with friends from work, directed "Hitler signs" at him.

He also claims Mr Brummitt whispered an offensive comment into his ear, which, according to Mr Innis, "got him a bit riled".

The court heard that witnesses saw Snell and an unidentified second man repeatedly punching Mr Brummitt until he fell to the floor, unconscious and twitching.

He was taken to hospital where he was treated for concussion, cut lips, which later became infected, an injured nose, a cut ear, chipped teeth and bruising.

Prosecuting Stephen Colman said: "He was in a significant degree of pain as a result, although the incident appeared to have lasted a few seconds."

Brummitt needed 10 days off work to recover.

Mr Innis said Snell insisted he only struck Brummitt once and the court heard that, while Snell tried to kick his victim, the kick did not connect.

Chairman of the bench Magistrate Diana Hunt said a custodial sentence could have been an option had other magistrates not ruled out such a sentence at an earlier hearing.

She gave him credit for his guilty plea to the charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm and said: "We regard this as a very serious matter. We are very surprised our colleagues ruled out custody."

Instead the magistrates ordered Snell to carry out 180 hours of community service and they imposed the three-month curfew.

They also ordered him to pay £500 compensation to Mr Brummitt and £43 toward the costs of the prosecution.

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