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Man jailed for attack on
Rail Staff member at Station
A Liverpool man has been jailed for 21
months after a violent attack on a member of Rail Staff, in Widnes,
following a British Transport Police investigation. Stephen Cunningham, aged
43, from Seaforth, Liverpool, pleaded guilty to ABH at Chester Crown Court
on Thursday, 7 January 2016, and was sentenced to serve 21 months in jail.
Cunningham admitted assaulting the staff member at Hough Green Station, on
Sunday, 20 April, 2014, shortly after 10pm. CCTV at the Station showed the
victim leave the booking office. He and Cunningham, who was sitting in the
booking hall, are seen to exchange words before Cunningham follows him out
of the Station where the assault took place. A British Transport Police
investigation resulted in Officers tracing the cab that had earlier dropped
Cunningham at the Station and identifying his pay as you go mobile number
which led them to a search of his address. Cunningham was arrested and at
1st denied the assault in Police interview initially claiming he had not
been to Widnes, before saying that although he was the man in the CCTV he
had not followed the victim, but had simply left the Station. Cunningham
changed his plea at a later hearing and admitted the assault.
Detective Constable Jeff Preston, who led the investigation said:-
"This was a vicious and unprovoked assault on a man who was simply doing his
job and cleaning up before closing up the Station. Cunningham's victim has
been left scarred both physically and mentally by what happened to him that
evening and the sentence handed down to him reflects the severity of his
attack. Assaults and violence towards Station staff will not be tolerated.
Those who work on the rail network should be able to do so without fear of
violence and intimidation. As in this case, we will use all means available
to bring offenders to justice."
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