Man jailed over "nasty" baseball bat attack

Friday 28 May 2021

A man was left needing surgery and dental work after being attacked with a baseball bat in a row over the price of a remote-control car shell sold on Facebook.

Scott Andrew McLean Sumner (39) was sentenced to two years and nine months behind bars by the Royal Court this morning (Friday 28 May) for the grave and criminal assault described as “nasty” by Police.

The Court heard that, in June 2020, a young man bought a remote-control car shell from Sumner for £75 at his apartment, after Sumner had advertised the item for sale on Facebook.

However, Sumner had forgotten to hand the young man some bolts for the shell, and got back in touch to meet the following day. 

During the intervening period, the young man discovered the item was available online for less than half the price, and demanded his money back, claiming he’d been scammed in a series of messages.

Following this exchange, the young man told Sumner he was coming to his flat. He then proceeded to go to the flat with his step-father (Mr A) and another man (Mr B). 

Mr A shouted at Sumner, referring to the messages he had exchanged with his step-son, to which Mr Sumner shouted back. 

A brief scuffle then took place between Mr A and Sumner, with it seeming that Mr A grabbed Sumner first, telling him he wanted the money back or another shell.

After he let go, Sumner turned and walked back a few steps, before pulling out a wooden bat he had concealed in the waistband of his trousers, and hitting Mr A in the face -  the blow left Mr A injured, bleeding and dazed. 

Sumner then waved the bat towards Mr B and said “come on then”, before striking a lamppost and going back inside his flat

Following the altercation, Police were called and Sumner was arrested, with officers finding the bat in a black plastic tub behind a barbecue. 

The following day, Mr A was assessed by a doctor, who identified a serious injury to his right eye. 

The blow had also caused fractures in two places which needed surgery - early the following month, Mr A was given that surgery, followed by further surgery in May to remove the plates inserted to assist with the healing of fractures. 

On his first Police interview in July 2020, Sumner provided "no comment" responses to questions.

However, in a further interview in September 2020, he said he did not accept that the young man had been over-charged and did not understand why he had changed his mind. 

He added that, when he agreed to meet them, he was concerned they might cause problems, and so brought his wooden bat in case he was attacked.

Furthermore, Sumner claimed he had been attacked from behind. He pulled away and took the truncheon out, and then used it.

He denied intending to hit Mr A with force, stating he wanted to warn the men off. He claimed he did not believe he had hit the man, but accepted the injuries shown to him must have been from the incident. He answered "no comment" when asked the whereabouts of the bat. 

Sumner appeared in the Magistrate’s Court last December and pleaded guilty, with the case being referred onto the Royal Court. 

He then entered a guilty plea in the Royal Court in March, and was remanded in custody. 

He was sentenced by the Royal Court to two years and nine months in prison today. 

The Lieutenant Bailiff was presiding, sitting with Jurats Steven Austin-Vautier and Jerry Ramsden, and the Attorney General appeared for the prosecution.

Commenting on the incident following the sentencing, Police noted that “the victim has suffered considerably as a result of this attack and is still receiving on-going support.”

They added: “Sumner has, to this day, shown no remorse.”