A DANGEROUS thug who subjected his carer younger brother to a savage metal baseball bat attack after a row over a dog, has been jailed for six years.
John Hoban (53) hit Stephen Hoban (51) repeatedly to the head while the victim was sitting on the couch on the phone to police. Officers heard the onslaught on the 999 call and arrived at the Burnley home the brothers shared to find Hoban sitting on the wall outside. He calmly told them: “You will need to get an ambulance. I don’t know why I have done it.”
The town’s crown court heard how inside the property they found Stephen Hoban badly injured, with his head and face covered in blood and blood splattered all over the ceiling.
He had a deep, gaping wound to his head, a gash over the front of his head and when he was taken to hospital was found to have suffered a smashed left jaw and cheekbone as well as eye and shoulder injuries.
The defendant had offered himself up for arrest to the police.
The hearing was told the victim had been the carer for his brother, a shooting victim described by his solicitor as having “all sorts of issues, physically and mentally.” He had been struck by him earlier in the evening in the Bees Knees pub. In his victim personal statement, Mr Stephen Hoban said he feared his brother would kill him.
The defendant, a former engineer, of Padiham Road, Burnley, admitted causing grievous bodily harm with intent and common assault on April 26th. He was also given four years’ extended licence.
Miss Sarah Statham (prosecuting) said on April 25th, the brothers went into the town centre. They had been drinking in a bar, but neither was drunk. They began to argue about the victim’s children and dog and John Hoban punched his brother in the face, knocking him to the floor and splitting his lip. Mr Hoban left, began to walk home, received a phone call from the defendant on the way and words were exchanged. When he arrived home, he could not get in as Hoban had locked the door and left his keys in the lock. The defendant opened the door, pushed his brother onto the sofa and Mr Hoban decided to ring the police. As the victim was calmly telling police he had been assaulted, the defendant picked up the metal bat, hit his brother on the shoulder and then delivered three or four hard blows to the head and face. Hoban then went outside and waited until the police arrived. The victim remained in the lounge, badly injured, bleeding profusely and possibly drifting into unconsciousness. The next thing he recalled was the police and ambulance arriving.
Miss Statham said Mr Hoban was taken to the Royal Blackburn Hospital, where he had 32 stitches to his wounds. His cheekbone was plated, he would be permanently scarred and because of the size of the wound at the back of his head he later developed an infection and had to have further surgical treatment at the beginning of June. Hoban had 19 offences on his record, including three convictions for GBH and had been to jail in the past.
Mr Peter Turner (defending) said the defendant still had a very substantial number of lead pellets in his chest, around his heart, from when he was shot with a home-made gun. A man was serving time for attempted murder over the incident.
Mr Turner said: “The defendant is distraught at the thought he has lost contact with his brother and he’s distraught at the thought his brother has suffered the injuries that he has. I think I can say this is a truly tragic case.”
Sentencing, Judge Beverly Lunt said: “You have now caused your own brother physical and psychological harm and you are going to have to live with that.”