Daniel Morgan, 35, had been drinking at The New Inn in Cefn Rhigos before he stole a bulldozer from his father’s farm and drove it into the building after being taunted over his marriage
This is the moment a boozed up bloke rammed a bulldozer into his local village pub. Daniel Morgan, 35, had been sinking pints at The New Inn in Cefn Rhigos, Rhondda Cynon Taf, before he lost his temper and drove the machine straight into the front of The New Inn in Cefn Rhigos.
Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court heard how Morgan, a regular at the pub, “saw red” after being teased about his marriage falling apart. Morgan had become increasingly paranoid as he “mistakenly suspected” his ex-partner of playing away following their recent split, the court was told.
On Thursday, Judge Celia Hughes handed Morgan a 40-month sentence and banned him from driving for three years and three months. The court heard Morgan, who had taken to drinking around six pints a day and taking cocaine since the break-up, stormed out of the pub in December last year after being taunted about his failed relationship.
Morgan sent a text to the landlord, Christopher Common, warning “be careful, you can’t stop a dozer” and “it will be a drive-thru”, before nicking the vintage Hanomag d600 from his dad’s nearby farm and heading back towards the pub.
Judge Hughes said: “Your father, quite heroically in my opinion, reached the pub before you did and warned the publican to get his customers out.
“You deliberately drove it into the front porch of the pub, causing significant damage and, more importantly, great fear to those who had been inside.”
The court was told that Morgan caused over £22,000 worth of damage to the building before heading towards his estranged wife’s home, driving straight over another vehicle along the way.
His rampage was only brought to a halt when his father, Phillip Morgan, who had already attempted to cut the diesel pipe, climbed onto a digger and used the bucket to smash the dashboard.
Morgan was bleeding from his head when he was arrested in the cab of the bulldozer, and later confessed to police that he was “really drunk” and “just saw red”.
Morgan, from Aberdare, had previously admitted to aggravated vehicle taking, dangerous driving and criminal damage recklessly endangering life.
Judge Hughes stated: “What you did on the night of this incident will have grave effects on you and others close to you for the rest of your life.
“You are extremely fortunate that no one was seriously injured.”
The court heard that Morgan had been heavily drinking and using drugs following the breakdown of his marriage, and was living with his father at the time of the incident.
Stephen Thomas, defending, said those who knew Morgan were “genuinely shocked” by his behaviour, having known him as a “trustworthy” and “hard-working” man.
He added: “This was a relatively young man who was undergoing a breakdown, a man who did something that was so truly out of character.
“This defendant is genuinely remorseful for his behaviour.”
Ryan Randall, from the Crown Prosecution Service, stated: “Daniel Morgan showed a complete disregard for the safety of other people who could have been in the pub.
“This wasn’t an accidental collision, but a threatened action which was then carried out, not only damaging a building and vehicles, but stopping a business from trading and impacting on the livelihoods of the landlord and farmer.
“Strong evidence presented by the Crown Prosecution Service resulted in guilty pleas.”
Detective Sergeant Jenna Herbert, of South Wales Police, commented: “This was a thoughtless and targeted attack on a pub.
“Morgan has caused substantive damage to both the pub and multiple vehicles, it’s lucky that no-one was seriously hurt in this incident.
“Morgan will now serve time in prison where he can think about his actions.”