A MAN who threatened to burn a man’s face off at a Weston bar before punching the man who tried to protect him has been handed a community order.

Benjamin James Craddock, aged 28, of Palmers Elm, Hewish, had been sentenced for possession of cocaine and cannabis with intent to supply at Bristol Crown Court on Friday.

He appeared in North Somerset Magistrates Court three days later, on Monday, charged with public order offences relating to threatening one man and punching another in Dragon Kiss in Regent Street.

Police were called to the bar between 7.30-8pm on January 22 after Craddock threatened to ‘stab and finish’ Dominic White.

The court heard how Craddock told Mr White: ‘I am going to burn your face off, stab and finish you’ because Mr White had allegedly assaulted his mother.

Another man, Peter Kerwin, then told Craddock to stop threatening Mr White.

The court heard how Craddock pushed Mr Kerwin and then floored him with a punch to the face, which left a 2.5cm cut.

Mr Kerwin later told police in a statement that Craddock saw him after the incident and apologised, and that he accepted the apology and did not want Craddock to get into trouble.

But Mr White told officers in his statement he had been ‘afraid’ for his life due to the ‘unprovoked’ attack.

Craddock pleaded guilty to using threatening words/behaviour with intent and also admitted charges of failing to surrender to court bail after turning up late for a hearing on February 25, and to breaching the conditions of a conditional discharge.

David Bird, defending, told the court Craddock accepted there was ‘no good reason’ for the incident. He said: “The offence itself speaks for itself.

“There was a sense of righteous indignation fuelled by alcohol and he apologises for that.”

Chair of the magistrates Peter Searle said: “We consider this a most serious offence.

“You punched and injured an innocent person when under the influence of alcohol.”

Magistrates handed Craddock a community order, added to his existing one, for 250 hours’ unpaid work and fines, costs and victim surcharges totalling £292.

He was told he would need to repay the money at a rate of £10 per fortnight.

Craddock had already been handed a 21-month suspended sentence at Bristol Crown Court on Friday, with an 18-month supervision order and a 12-month exclusion requirement banning him from pubs and clubs in Weston.

He was also given a nine-month drug rehabilitation order and a £300 confiscation order.

Craddock had been listed as living at Palmers Elm, Hewish, Weston, but said he had not yet fixed an address as he had only been released from custody on Friday following the end of his Crown Court proceedings.