Men who threw disabled man off bridge jailed

Two men who threw a disabled man off a bridge into a river and laughed at him struggling, have been jailed.

A judge told Wesley Tucker, 44, and Daniel Stamp, 32, the "brutal attack" in Truro, Cornwall, was "an appalling act of violence which could have ended so much worse".

Fire prevention worker Tucker, of Truro, was convicted by a jury at Truro Crown Court of causing grievous bodily harm (GBH) with intent and was jailed for six years.

Stamp, of HMP Exeter, admitted causing GBH with intent and was jailed for four years and six months.

The court heard Tucker and Stamp had been drinking when they got involved in a minor verbal exchange with the victim outside a Truro nightspot in July 2022.

The row escalated and the victim decided to walk away over a bridge crossing a small tidal river 15ft (4.5m) below, which is either filled with water or with rocks and stones.

The pair lifted the victim up by his legs and flipped him over the bridge railings and he landed in 6ins (15cm) of water.

Judge Simon Carr said the victim was saved by a security guard who climbed down scaffolding and held the injured man's head above the water as his attackers laughed.

Police said at the time his injuries were "quite significant" and could have been even more serious "considering the mechanics of the attack".

The judge said the defendants could have faced more serious charges, but added: "This was a brutal attack on a completely innocent man."

He said footage caught on CCTV showed the attack was as "inexplicable as it was chilling" and branded it "an appalling act of violence which could have ended so much worse".

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