Man battered debt collector after pet threat

Feb 3 2010 by Andy Newport, Paisley Daily Express

A FURIOUS pet owner snapped when a man threatened to cut his dogs EARS off and send them to him in the post.

A court heard the chilling threat was issued by unofficial debt collector David Herron during a row over money owed by Paisley man David Newman.

But it was 52-year-old former boxer Newman who ended up being arrested by cops after he lost the plot and battered Mr Herron over the head with a wooden pole.

Last night, Newman who boxed at amateur level told the Paisley Daily Express that the thought of his pet pooch Zack being mutilated led to him lashing out.

He said: When this guy said he was going to cut my dogs ears off, I just lost it and the red mist came down. I know I should have called the police but I snapped. Ive had Zack for a year and I love the wee fella. When he was threatened, I lost the rag.

I ran downstairs and laid the guy out. I know how to throw a punch and that was the best one Ive ever thrown.

Paisley Sheriff Court heard that Mr Herron had been hired by Newmans former business associate, Michael Adams, to recover a sum of £250 that was owed.

Self-employed mechanic Newman, of Neilston Road, Paisley, argued that the amount owed was a paltry £20.

On October 16, last year, Newman was drinking in his local pub when he received a phone call from a friend to warn him that Mr Herron had been sent to retrieve the cash.

Newman then spotted Mr Herron in the bar and left to go to another nearby watering hole, checking to see if hed been followed.

He later returned home, thinking that his friend had got the situation wrong.

However, after he had taken Jack Russell terrier Zack for a walk, Newmans buzzer went several times and, when he looked outside, Mr Herron was standing near his door.

Terry Gallanagh, representing Newman, told the court: There was a conversation and Mr Herron told him that he was there to collect the money.

My client told him that he wasnt owed any money but Mr Herron said he was there to collect the money, no matter what.

The court heard that events then took a more sinister turn as Mr Herron said he knew when Newmans dog got walked and who would be walking it.

Mr Gallanagh added: He was able to describe two young girls who are relatives of one of Mr Newmans friends who walk the dog at weekends and could even describe what they had been wearing.

He told my client that he would take the dog off them and that Mr Newman would recieve the animals ears through the post.

The court then heard how first offender Newman flipped after hearing the sadistic threat.

He ran out of his home and started beating Mr Herron with a wooden hammer shaft.

The attack left Mr Herron with cuts and swelling to his head and face and he was taken to the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley for treatment.

Newman was arrested and, when he appeared in the dock at court, he pleaded guilty to assaulting Mr Herron with a wooden pole to his injury.

Mr Gallanagh told the court that his client regretted his actions.

Sheriff Colin Pettigrew accepted there had been a relatively high level of provocation and spared Newman from a spell behind bars.

He told the accused: Where I am coming from is not to in any shape or form condone Mr Herron.

There was an element of provocation and, as a human, I can understand your reaction to the threat but you were in a place of safety.

You came out of a self-defence situation and attacked him with no real thought of what his injuries were likely to be.

Newman was fined £270, to be paid at a rate of £10 per week.