Burnley man jailed for knuckle duster attack

Lee Green assaulted the man twice in the space of four days in Burnley.

As part of a police investigation, a facial injury expert from the National Crime Agency was asked to study the injuries sustained by the victim in the second assault.

His report concluded that the injuries could only have been caused by a knuckle duster type weapon.

Green (35) of Berridge Avenue, Burnley, pleaded guilty to section 20 wounding, a section 39 assault and possession of an offensive weapon in a public place.

He was jailed for 27 months by a judge at Preston Crown Court, his guilty pleas having been entered on the day he had been due to stand trial.

The assaults happened in August 2021, the first outside Burnley Football Club on August 7th where the victim had taken his two children to watch a friendly match.

He had come out of the shop when Green saw him and started shouted abuse. Green then pushed the man in the face, causing reddening.

On August 10th, the victim was walking his dog in Lockyer Avenue Park when Green approached him.

After shouting abuse, Green was seen to reach in his pocket and take out a metal object.

Green ran towards his victim and struck him in the face with the object in his right hand, immediately causing two open wounds above and below his eye.

He suffered a fractured eye socket and damage to facial muscles, with him having to attend several hospital appointments.

The knuckle duster was never found. However, Dr Hugo Haines, a facial injuries expert from the NCA, concluded that the injuries could have only been caused by a knuckle duster-type weapon.

DC Gemma Anderson of Lancashire Police, said: “A challenge we faced in this case was not being able to retrieve the weapon used.

“Undeterred by that, we carried out an expeditious investigation, with Dr Haines providing his expert professional opinion.

“The victim has expressed his gratitude for the effort and time we put into the investigation, which resulted in him being able to move on in his life without living in fear of the defendant Lee Green.”