Dad’s jaw broken in front of young son during one-punch attack outside Leeds Cash Converters

The incident was captured on CCTV outside Cash Converters on Roundhay Road, Harehills, which showed Ladislav Hamrozy squaring up to the dad, who had his arms by his side at the time.

Hamrozy was then captured throwing the left-handed punch and standing over the stricken man on the floor before being dragged away. It happened early afternoon on October 24, 2010.

Prosecuting at Leeds Crown Court, Mark Thomas, said that 37-year-old Hamrozy, formerly of Bayswater Grove in Harehills, had been out with his partner and another woman – who was the victim’s partner.

When the victim told his partner to return home, words were exchanged between him and Hamrozy. It was claimed that the man made a derogatory comment towards Hamrozy, who then lashed out with the punch.

The victim required surgery at the Leeds General Infirmary to put plates in his jaw and was on a liquid diet for five months. He later had to have a second operation due to an infection.

Following his arrest, Hamrozy claimed it was self defence. A Czech national, he has seven previous convictions and is serving a 39-month jail sentence for cruelty. He was on bail for that matter when he punched the man. He admitted a charge of actual bodily harm.

Mitigating, Lauren Smith conceded that a fresh custodial sentence was “inevitable” but said: “There was some provocation from the victim, both parties were ‘in each other's faces’.

"The victim called him a derogatory term and he struck out. It does not justify what he did but it’s important context. It was a spontaneous and short-lived assault and he accepts he overreacted completely. It was a momentary lapse of self control.”

Judge Simon Phillips KC told him: “It all happened in front of this man’s young son who was visibly distressed. There was no justification whatsoever for your violence towards him.

He handed him eight months’ jail, which will begin once he completes his existing sentence. He was also given a five-year restraining order to keep him away from the victim.