A ‘cowardly bully’ who punched a woman with so much force that she was knocked unconscious has walked free from court despite the serious injuries which he caused to his victim.
As well as knocking the female out, the thug also broke her collarbone and cracked her skull in the attack.
On the evening of 20th May 2020, a court heard how a group of young people were walking along North Cray Road in Sidcup when they were approached by a male who was acting aggressively.
Billy Hibberd, 31, of Frobisher Road, Erith, had previously approached the group in a nearby park where he confronted them about comments he believed they had made about a relative.
When the victim, who was just 19-year-old when she was attacked, asked Hibberd to leave them alone, he became even more aggressive and punched her in the face.
She immediately fell to the ground after being knocked unconscious by the blow.
Her friends took her home, where relatives then called an ambulance.
She was taken to A&E and found to have suffered a broken collar bone and a cracked skull.
After sharing images of the suspect, police received information regarding the identity of the male and Hibberd was arrested.
The suspended sentence comes at a time when the government claim that they are taking violence against women seriously/
Detective Constable James Steel, from the local policing team in Bexley, said:
“Billy Hibberd is a cowardly bully, who used his size to intimidate a group of young people.
“He then punched a young woman who had the bravery to ask him to leave them alone, causing a serious head injury. Fortunately, her physical injuries have healed but the mental effect of this attack will stay with her much longer.
“In order to bring this case to court, we put out a media appeal, which then resulted in a number of witnesses coming forward and the suspect being identified.
“To make the victim feel comfortable enough to give her statement, and avoid having to come to a police station, we conducted a Video Recorded Interview at her home.
“We then made a submission to the court which allowed her cross-examination to be pre-recorded and heard without her having to attend in person.
“We will do everything we can to support victims of violent crime.
“The Met is committed to tackling violence against women and girls and bringing violent bullies such as this defendant to justice.
“I would like to praise the bravery of the victim in this case who had to go over her ordeal during the trial, as well as her friends who have supported her throughout this process”.
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Surely the CPS will appeal this over lenient sentence or are they and the courts still banned from sending people to out over crowded prisons due to the government selling off prisons and not replacing them?
Agree with Norman sentence should be reviewed.