Drunk man 'punched date he thought was a burglar'

A drunken romeo attacked a barmaid he’d taken home when he woke up and mistook her for a burglar. Ian Campbell, 45, went home with a woman in the early hours of Christams Day after a night’s boozing in Coventry. They both fell asleep - but when he woke up and saw the woman collecting her things to leave he assumed she had broken in and ‘‘repeatedly punched her in the face’’. He then went back to sleep before later realising what he’d done.

Coventry Crown Court heard that Campbell, of Eden Street, Paradise, had met the woman - who he already knew - on the way home from a pub and he had asked her to come back with him for a drink. Coventry Crown Court heard that the couple “became intimate” before Campbell had asked if she wanted to stay. She declined, suggesting instead that they meet up later on. But after saying she had to leave the pair fell asleep.

When Campbell woke up to find the woman collecting her things he mistook her for an intruder and punched her six or seven times in the face before throwing her out. He then went back to sleep, but when he woke up for the second time he realised something was wrong because his fist was sore. Campbell handed himself in to police on December 27 after writing a letter of apology to the barmaid and posting it through her door.

He previously pleaded guilty to one count of assault occasioning actual bodily harm before appearing at court on Wednesday. Sentencing him to 150 hours unpaid work as part of a 12 month community order Recorder David Herbert said: “Quite what you thought you were doing when you assaulted this woman I don’t know. But it appears that you are very embarrassed by this offence and quite frankly you should be. It’s clear though that everything that has happened is out of character.”