‘Sadistic’ thug jailed for stamp attacks in men

A ‘Sadistic’ thug who caused horrific injuries to two men in separate attacks by kicking and stamping on them in the street has been jailed for 14 years.
Daniel SmithDaniel Smith
Daniel Smith

Daniel Smith left one victim partially blinded and deliberately humiliated him by stripping him and leaving him unconscious in freezing cold weather.

While on bail for that offence Smith attacked a second man, Ryan Murgatroyd, and left him with part of his jaw hanging off.

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Mr Murgatroyd had to undergo three operations and was on a liquid diet for weeks after the attack during a night out in Leeds city centre to celebrate Halloween.

Leeds Crown Court heard Smith attacked his first victim in the early hours of the morning outside the Oceana nightclub on Woodhouse Lane.

The victim knew Smith and had spoken to him inside the bar during the evening.

Chloe Hudson, prosecuting, said the victim left in the early hours of the morning and saw Smith chase after a man and begin to attack him.

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The victim tried to intervene as he thought Smith was going to kill the man but he then aimed his violence towards him.

Miss Hudson said the victim remembered receiving kicks and stamps to the head before losing consciousness.

He next remembered waking up in hospital after receiving head and facial injuries.

It was then discovered that he had suffered damage to the optical nerve in one and eye and is likely to have suffered a permanent loss of vision.

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Smith was arrested but released on bail awaiting trial after denying the attack. He then struck ten months later - in October last year - just yards away from his first attack.

Mr Murgatroyd had been out celebrating Halloween with his partner Lorraine and other family members at Yeats’s Wine Lodge.

Mr Murgatroyd, who was dressed in an orange boiler suit and a mask, was attack when he tried to intervene following a disturbance outside the pub.

The mental health nurse was punched from behind before Smith and an unknown second man repeatedly kicked and stamped on his head as he lay unconscious. He fractured his jaw in three places and has been left with permanent numbness in his gums and teeth. He also faces extensive dental work to stop him from losing his teeth.

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The court heard 18-stone Mr Murgatroyd was hoping to become a professional bodybuilder but was unable to go to the gym because of his injuries. Smith, of Thorn Grove Gipton, pleaded guilty to one offence of causing grievous bodily harm with intent and was found guilty of a second offence following a trial.

Det Con Andy Smurthwaite, of Leeds District CID, said: “Smith is a sadistic thug who launched appallingly violent and unprovoked attacks on the victims leaving them with very serious injuries that have had lasting consequences on them both physically and mentally.

“Both these attacks took place in the city centre night-time economy and we hope the significant sentence he has received will send out a clear message to others about how seriously the police and the courts will treat violent offences committed in these circumstances.” After the hearing, Mr Murgatroyd said: “I am pleased that Smith get such a long sentence. What he did was cowardly.”