A Leeds bouncer has spent his 30th birthday in the dock after he held a customer in a "chokehold" for throwing doughnuts in a nightclub.
A judge told Samir Hussain his "30th birthday present" was a suspended sentence as he let him leave the dock following a hearing at Leeds Crown Court on Thursday. The court had heard how Hussain, of Parkwood Way in Leeds, was working as security at The Old Red Bus Station in Vicar Lane, Leeds, on November 25 last year when the man was ejected by other staff members for throwing doughnuts at the bar area.
Prosecutor Bashir Ahmed said: "Earlier that night, the victim had attended a birthday party at a friend's where he had been drinking. The party then seemed to move on to where it [the incident] happened. It is right to say he went there, he was with a friend and recalled an incident of joining the queue to get into the club and then being treated differently to others and was put back in the queue a couple of times."
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The court heard the man managed to get in, but was ejected after starting to throw doughnuts. Mr Ahmed said: "He was - in his own words - 'tipsy.'"
It was said that around ten to 15 minutes later, the man was helped by others as he climbed over a metal fence to get back into the club. He was seen by staff who had ejected him earlier, who went to eject him a second time.
Mr Ahmed said: "It was at that point that the defendant - while the victim was held by two other security attendants - grabbed him by the neck from behind. The victim recalls the word 'b******' being used at some time as he was grabbed and also said that he felt suffocated to the point of almost not being able to breathe and was in considerable pain."
The court was shown CCTV of the incident.
After he was arrested, Hussain told police the man had subjected him to racial comments as he was being ejected. He told police he "didn't act too aggressively" but "simply pushed him out of the way." Mr Ahmed said: "He accepted that was in the form of a chokehold but only to move him."
It was said that the police were not able to contact the victim for a victim personal statement.
Hussain has no previous convictions, the court was told, and is the breadwinner for his family home where he lives with his mum, aunt and uncle who all have problems with their health. It was said he had pleaded guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm at an earlier hearing.
The court heard from a probation officer who had carried out a stand-down report and said Hussain had suffered a "loss of confidence" since the incident and had not gone back to work in security, but instead had taken up a post with the Royal Mail. He had told her he had followed the "correct protocol and acted in the correct manner as the victim arrived without being checked for weapons and drugs."
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It was said he had showed a great deal of remorse and is able to recognise the impact on the victim.
Mitigating, Simon Huftler told the court a number of references had been provided and that the only criticism Hussain had had during his time working as a doorman was from his boss that is he is "often too friendly with the clientele." Mr said: "He gets a similar reference from a man who he has worked with for seven years."
Recorder Gordon made Hussain the subject of a 20 week sentence suspended for a year and told him he must undertake 15 rehabilitation activity requirement days and 100 hours of unpaid work. He said: "I ask myself whether there are factors that increase the seriousness...it seems to me the only factor which increases the seriousness is that there is an abuse of power."
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