A MAN has been jailed after a street attack left his victim needing surgery to repair multiple fractures to his face.

Bradford Crown Court heard today how Anthony Fountain had to have metal plates inserted in fractures to both his eye sockets and also suffered breaks to the left side of his jaw and nose when he was punched by Ian Smith during the incident in Keighley 18 months ago.

The court heard submissions that there had been “a history” of animosity between to two men and that on the night of the violence Smith, aged 43, had been calling Mr Fountain out of the Albert pub for a fight.

Prosecutor Michael Greenhalgh said while Smith was talking to a taxi driver he was punched by Mr Fountain and chased away from the area. Mr Greenhalgh said CCTV footage captured co-defendant David Bennett, 37, pushing one woman and striking another female during the disturbance before Smith is shown punching Mr Fountain.

The court heard that the emergency services were called to scene in December 2014 after Mr Fountain was knocked unconscious. A CT scan in hospital later revealed the facial fractures he had suffered in the attack.

Both defendants were originally charged with offences of wounding with intent to do grievous bodily harm and affray, but at a court hearing in March, Smith admitted a lesser offence of inflicting GBH and Bennett pleaded guilty to affray.

Yesterday Smith, of Higher Row, Hainworth Shaw, Keighley, was jailed for two years and three months while father-of-three Bennett, of North Dean Road, Braithwaite, Keighley, had his nine-month jail term suspended for a year.

Roofer Bennett will also have to do 150 hours unpaid work for the community and pay £500 costs.

Barrister Ken Green, for Smith, said there had been a history between his client and the complainant and that perhaps explained why Mr Fountain had struck Smith at the beginning of the incident.

Mr Green conceded Smith had a previous conviction for wounding from 1996, but argued the latest incident was still out of character. Bennett’s barrister Ann-Marie Hutton said he had been subjected to violence that night, but he accepted by his plea that his behaviour had been unlawful. Jailing Smith Recorder Duncan Smith said he was not making a judgement about the history between him and Mr Fountain, but independent evidence corroborated the fact that the complainant struck the first blow. “What I am dealing with are four individual fractures to that man’s face and he is left to his fate unconscious on the bonnet of an Astra car,” the judge told Smith.