Violent Sutton man butted police officer and shouted obscene racist abuse

Two officers were called to West Hill, on July 30, 2020, after reports of a domestic disturbance and saw a distressed woman running down an alleyway and shouting she had been assaulted.

Prosecutor Lottie Tyler described how a ‘clearly angry’ Mark Bell appeared behind the woman and told her not to say anything.

Seeing the woman had blood on her wrists and red marks on her face and neck, the officers pushed 46-year-old Bell into his back garden as he tried to get to her.

He shouted: “Well done, you have lost me my job. Don't tell them anything. This is all your fault – you have got me arrested.”

Bell tried to shoulder-barge an officer out of the way in order to escape and continued to resist, but was struck with batons.

As handcuffs were applied to him, Bell launched his head backwards and butted one officer above his right eyebrow.

He was escorted to the police car, making more threats, and said: “You won’t provide a statement. This is my house.”

After he was put in the car, he spat on the door and in the footwell. He shouted obscene racist abuse as a spit-guard was put over his face.

The court heard Bell, a windscreen technician, has 38 previous convictions for 83 offences between 1996 and 2016, and was last in court for battery, when he was jailed.

His solicitor said: "These offences are almost two years old and he hasn’t committed any offences since.

“There has been a significant de-escalation in the number of offences he has committed.”

Bell, aged 46, of West Hill, Sutton, denied assaulting a police officer, but was found guilty after a trial, and admitted making racially-aggravated threats.

He has been jailed for 12 weeks, suspended for one year, given 120 hours of unpaid work and 15 rehabilitation days, fined £400 and ordered to pay £250 compensation, a £128 surcharge, and £620 court costs.