Penrith brawl: RAF men and locals sentenced over fight

The brawl carried on outside the pub

Six RAF servicemen have been sentenced over a brawl in which a man was kicked in the head as he lay on the ground.

The fight erupted at The Pinny pub in Penrith in September 2020 after the group had been drinking for several hours, Carlisle Crown Court heard.

All six airmen were handed jail terms; one was must serve 10 months in prison while the others had their sentences suspended for 18 months.

Landlord David Mollon described the violence as a "full-scale fracas".

Cyrus Church, 32, and his colleagues were on a break from operations when he had a row with another group in the pub on Burrowgate that included 41-year-old Daniel Edmunds.

Church, who has since left the RAF, showed "violent, belligerent and persistent" conduct which led to the fight, Judge Nicholas Barker said.

He was pulled away several times but repeatedly returned to Edmunds before punching Mr Mollon when he tried to intervene.

After leaving to examine his injury, the landlord returned but was again attacked amid the "full-scale fracas", the court heard.

'A brawl ensues'

The RAF group were ejected from the pub but kicked the door and one, Adam Crozier, smashed a window.

Mark Rowlandson, 36, from Penrith, a friend of the landlord, had initially tried to diffuse the situation but followed the servicemen outside, along with Edmunds and others.

"They approach the RAF group and a brawl ensues," prosecutor Rob Dudley told the court.

Church and Crozier, 23, threw punches, along with Luke Way, 32, Harry-Joe Favill, 27, and Thomas Cross, 31.

Favill and Cross kicked one man as he lay on the ground.

Edmunds punched another member of the RAF group, who fell and was knocked unconscious.

Thomas Forbes, 25, ran across and kicked that man as he lay on the ground.

Alcohol-ban wristbands

Judge Barker described the fighting, which was captured on CCTV, as a "deplorable spectacle of public disorder".

All eight men admitted affray.

Church, of Woodsome Drive, Mirfield, West Yorkshire, was jailed for 10 months with Judge Barker concluding he had been "intent on violence and disorder".

He had suffered trauma while serving and was remorseful for the fight, the court heard.

Crozier and Way, both of Bury St Edmunds; Cross, of Stanton, also Suffolk; Favill, of Retford, Nottinghamshire; and Forbes, of West Mersea, Essex, were all given seven-month prison sentences suspended for 18 months.

They must all wear alcohol-ban wristbands for 90 days - 120 days for Favill - complete unpaid work and each compensate Mr Mollon with £100.

The judge concluded Rowlandson, of Castle Terrace, Penrith, had been "threatening and aggressive" although he had not been violent to a person.

His barrister, Tim Evans, said he had become involved "primarily to protect his mate".

He must also undertake unpaid work and wear a 90-day alcohol abstinence tag.

Edmunds, of Sharow, Ripon, was given a 10-month prison sentence suspended for 18 months, unpaid work, the alcohol abstinence requirement, and told to pay compensation.