Chelmsford: Man jailed for unprovoked attack

A man who carried out an unprovoked attack on a stranger in Chelmsford has been jailed following work by our officers.

The victim, a man in his 50s, had been walking up Duke Street towards Rainsford Road to meet his wife at around 9.50pm on 15 November last year when he walked past a group of people outside Home Foods.

One of the group, 38 year-old Darryl Bright, attacked the victim from behind, punching him to the back of the head, causing him to fall to the floor unconscious.

On regaining consciousness, the victim called his wife who, on seeing his injuries, took him to hospital.

He was left with amnesia and a fractured thumb.

Due to his memory loss, he believed he had fallen over however his wife returned to Home Foods on 26 November to make enquiries with them and established he had been assaulted and the incident had been captured on CCTV.

The attack was then reported to us and images of the attacker circulated. Bright was identified by one of our PCSOs and an officer on 28 November.

He was arrested in January and later charged with GBH without intent.

Bright, of Ben Wilson Link, Chelmsford, pleaded guilty on 1 February and at Chelmsford Crown Court on 1 March he was sentenced to two years and three months in prison.

Investigating officer PC Connor Kerrell said:

“Darryl Bright carried out a horrific, unprovoked attack.

“The consequences of this assault have been significant for the victim who has been left with memory loss.

“I want to pay tribute to his courage and the tenacity of his wife who identified he had been assaulted.

“Bright is a dangerous individual and I am glad he has been removed from our city for the foreseeable future.”