The criminal case against MP Mike Amesbury – who was suspended from the Labour Party for sucker-punching a constituent – has moved a step forward after police handed a dossier of evidence to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).
The CPS today confirmed it had received a file from Cheshire Police.
Due to his role as an MP, it will be handled by their special crime division who will now decide whether he should be charged with a crime.
Mr Amesbury, elected Labour MP for Runcorn and Helsby but suspended over the incident in Frodsham, voluntarily met with police but has not been arrested.
CCTV footage showed the politician laying into father Paul Fellows, 42, in the early hours of Saturday morning.
CCTV footage showed the politician laying into father Paul Fellows, 42, in the early hours of Saturday morning
Mike Amesbury MP for Runcorn and Helsby seen out in Yorkshire after being suspended by the Labour Party
It is not clear what the pair were talking about – although Mr Amesbury claimed he was ‘threatened on the street following an evening out with friends’.
They had been rowing in the taxi queue over Labour’s plans to means test the winter fuel payment and the closure of the Sutton Weaver swing bridge moments before the fracas.
Cheshire Police said a 55-year-old man was voluntarily interviewed under caution and ‘released pending further enquiries’.
Mr Amesbury released a statement on Saturday, saying: ‘Last night, I was involved in an incident that took place after I felt threatened on the street following an evening out with friends.
‘This morning, I contacted Cheshire police myself to report what happened during the incident.
‘I will not be making further public comment but will, of course, cooperate with any inquiries if required by Cheshire police.
‘I remain fully committed to working hard for the people of Runcorn and Helsby, and am determined to remain an open and accessible MP for our community.’
In July last year, a 56-year-old man was convicted of stalking Mr Amesbury at his constituency office.
Prosecutors said he was seen staring through the glass and asked guards about their level of security.
Paul Fellows (pictured), 42, was attacked while he was waiting for a taxi in Frodsham, Cheshire, at 2.15am on Saturday
Amesbury is pictured here on the campaign trail with Deputy Prime Minister, Angela Rayner
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer described the CCTV footage as ‘shocking’ and insisted the Labour Party had moved ‘swiftly’ to suspend the MP, who will now sit as an independent.
Suspending the Labour whip in the Commons, a party spokesman said: ‘Mike Amesbury MP has been assisting Cheshire Police with their inquiries following an incident on Friday night.
‘As these inquiries are now ongoing, the Labour Party has administratively suspended Mr Amesbury’s membership of the Labour Party pending an investigation.
Previously revellers waiting in a nearby carpark revealed they intervened and forced Amesbury and the constituent apart.
One of the Good Samaritans was a woman who had been in the taxi queue with her partner.
She spoke to Amesbury following the attack and told MailOnline: ‘There were people shouting at him that he’d lost his job and abusing him for hitting the other guy.
‘I had a quiet word with him afterwards and said ‘mate, what have you done. You’ve messed up everything.’
‘He replied, ‘No I haven’t, he was on at me constantly and wouldn’t leave me alone – what was I supposed to do? Was I not supposed to snap?’
The woman said she waited with Amesbury until her cab arrived.
Amesbury (pictured outside Downing Street) became MP for Weaver Vale in 2017 before the constituency was renamed as Runcorn and Helsby, and was in the Shadow Cabinet until 2022
She said Mr Fellows got up off the floor around 20-minutes later and tried to confront the MP again.
The eyewitness continued: ‘ He was grinning like a Cheshire cat. I asked the man if he knew who Mike was and he said he did.
‘He seemed intent on confronting him again but we pushed him away. I asked the staff in the taxi office if they could let Mike in because he was getting grief and they agreed.
‘The man who was punched didn’t have a mark on him. I felt that maybe he was milking it a bit.
‘He seemed to have a friend with him who was filming him talking to Mike but who did absolutely nothing when he was punched except continue filming on his mobile phone.
‘I think the man had antagonised Mike and he bit. But you cannot go around hitting people. Especially if you’re in a position of power like an MP.’
One woman, whose sister was waiting for a taxi at the same time, told The Times Mr Amesbury was ‘just drunk and beat someone up.’
She said: ‘He is trying to get out of it now. He was trying to beat him to a pulp. My sister tried to intervene and pull him off. You have seen the video of how drunk he was.’
Hugo Deynham, a Tory councillor on Chester West and Cheshire Council, whose ward covers Frodsham, told the Mail ‘single punches kill people’ and such acts of violence should be condemned in the strongest terms.
‘From what you can see on the video it looks pretty brutal, there is no condoning it,’ Mr Deynham said.
‘We need to send a message that single punches do kill people and the full force of the law must come down on those guilty of such offences.
‘We don’t know what led up to this and we need to wait for the police to complete their investigation. But if Mike Amesbury is found to be guilty of an offence, then I believe he should be forced to stand down and a by-election should be called.’