TWO Wrexham men have been jailed for a 'cowardly and dangerous' assault on member of the public in the town centre.

Daniel Davies, 29, of West Circle, Wrexham and Dean Pleavin, 31, of Hampden Road, Wrexham, were jailed at Mold Crown Court on Tuesday, January 11 after previously pleading guilty to actual bodily harm after they punched and kicked Richard Cupit on July 6 last year.

The incident came after the pair had been out drinking in the town with friends at Lloyds Bar, in High Street, where they were asked to leave earlier in their night for refusing to comply with Covid-19 regulations.

However, around 11pm, Davies and his friends returned to the bar but became agitated when he was refused service, leading to him pushing manager Gareth Roberts in his chest.

Customers joined staff in removing Davies from the bar, after he grabbed Mr Roberts by the throat and threw the track and trace documentation onto the floor.

When outside, a still-agitated Davies was seen on CCTV – which was shown to Judge R P Rowlands – to be pacing up and down before he punched Mr Cupit, felling him where Pleavin followed up with one kick to the face.

The court heard that Mr Cupit said he had little recollection of the incident but was left with minor facial injuries that had distressed his son, who was autistic.

Defences for both Davies and Pleavin said the pair took responsibility for their actions and both had taken steps to manage alcohol dependency, and called for custody to be deferred.

However, Judge Rowlands told them the seriousness of their actions meant the custodial threshold had been crossed, though he acknowledged steps had been taken to address their issues.

He said: "They were offences that were caused in drink.

"While I acknowledge that some people object to the regulations, they are there for the wider public benefit and not up to the likes of you to decide whether you want them.

"If you don’t want to abide by the rules, then simply stay at home and not go out to drink, throwing your weight around at staff who are simply doing their job.

"It doesn’t help you if your reason was that Mr Cupit was remonstrating with you.

"You, Pleavin, are then seen kicking him on the ground, which is incredibly cowardly and dangerous behaviour."

The pair received 17 months, reduced to 11 for an early guilty plea.