A passenger assaulted a train conductor in an unprovoked violent assault and still livestreamed some of the attack online.
The attacker Stephen Weldon ended his video with ‘f***ing motherf***er not so tough now’ after using his feet and fists in the frenzied onslaught.
Meanwhile, the 34-year-old tattooed thug had earlier been asked to get off the train for breaking rules by vaping.
How it All Went Down in the Train
The shaven-headed Weldon asked how he could get to work and the conductor told him there might be a bus service or that he could walk it but in any event, the two men ‘fist bumped’ and the train continued on its journey.
While the train remained at Larne station, the victim noticed there was a charger for a vaping device so when the train arrived back at the Magheramourne halt on the return journey leg, he went to hand it back to Weldon but ‘the male attacked him’.
Then the Unprovoked Attack
The officer said Weldon kicked the victim, causing him to fall into the doors behind him before he ‘dragged him off the train and assaulted him on the platform’ using both his feet and his fists.
Court Ruling
Appearing at Court in Northern Ireland, Weldon hurled foul-mouthed abuse at District Judge Nigel Broderick after he refused to grant him bail and prison staff escorted him away to the cells.
The judge said usually he had to take account of the presumption of innocence but that did not arise in Weldon’s case as he made ‘full and frank admissions’.Â
Judge Broderick said the ‘unprovoked, vindictive assault would have been a terrifying experience for the injured party’ and that, given Weldon’s relevant convictions for assault, ‘in my view you are not a suitable candidate for bail’.
The Thug ‘Fouls’ the Ruling
Weldon confirmed that he understood the three charges against him accusing him of attempted grievous bodily harm with intent, criminal damage to the victim’s mobile phone and criminal damage to a bag and mobile phone which belonged to the rail operating company Translink, all committed on May 8 this year.
Objecting to Weldon being granted bail, a detective constable outlined how the defendant was on the train to Larne when the conductor spotted him vaping and told him that he would gave to get off when it pulled in to the Magheramourne halt a few miles outside the harbour town.
