Father-of-four launched unprovoked attack on teenager

Rowan Winter had been on his first ever night out in Accrington in April 2022 when Chris Hodgkinson approached him from behind and smashed him over the head with the weapon.

In a victim impact statement read out by prosecuting barrister Paul Cummings at Preston Crown Court, Mr Winter described how he had been severely emotionally affected by the attack.

Chris Hodgkinson (Image: Lancs Police)

His statement read: “He hit me to the side of my head with a metal bar, fracturing my skull which had to be glued back together.

“I now have a scar and spent a few days in hospital and three weeks off work.

“Emotionally, I need to know what is going on around me all the time and who is around me.

"I can no longer stand in the middle of rooms and have to stand on the outside.

“It has made me very jumpy and if anyone comes up behind me to tap me on the back to say hello it frightens me.

“I was sleeping ok at first but then I had dreams about what happened.

“The assault happened when I was on the street in the dark and now I don’t really like going out in the dark anymore.

“It happened on one of my first nights out in Accrington. I am a young person who should be able to go out in my own town but now I can’t.”

Mr Cummings said Mr Winter has been robbed of his confidence, doesn’t know why the attack happened and will probably never know.

The court heard how on the night on April 2, 2022, Mr Winter had been out in Accrington town centre with a group of friends.

Hodgkinson, who was unknown to his victim and almost twice his age, had latched onto the group, although towards the end of the night he left, but soon returned to Warner Street armed with a metal pole, and while heavily intoxicated, approached Mr Winter from behind and hit him with the weapon.

Recorder Sophie Cartwright said: “The first he knew was when he felt a clink of metal to the side of his head and felt a wound.

“He returned home and went to sleep but the next morning when his mother saw his injury she took him to hospital where a CT scan showed he had a fractured skull.

"It's of particular concern to me that you committed an unprovoked assault on a young man who was a stranger to you.

"You used a metal bar to strike him to the head when he was unable to defend himself.

"You were under the influence of alcohol and there was some premeditation in this as you left and then returned."

Hodgkinson denied causing grievous bodily harm with intent but was found guilty of the offence at a trial earlier this year.

He was also convicted of possessing an offensive weapon in a public place.

Hodgkinson, of New Lane, Oswaldtwistle, was jailed for five years.

Following his conviction, DC Vicky Heys, of East CID, said: “This was a cowardly attack committed against a completely innocent man who was just trying to enjoy a night out with friends.

“I welcome the sentence handed down by the court. Violence of this nature will not be tolerated on the streets of East Lancashire and we will do everything in our power to put those who choose to engage in it before the courts.”