Dramatic moment pub manager Tony Morgan thrown into air by reversing car at Poachers Pocket in Walderslade
Pub manager Tony Morgan
lies on the floor after being hit by a reversing car
by Dan Bloom
This is the dramatic moment a 22-stone pub manager was
thrown into the air by a car when he tried to stop what he claims
was a drug deal.
Tony Morgan is seen following the vehicle - before it reversed
into him at speed, throwing him across the car park.
But the licensee of the Poachers Pocket, in Walderslade,
Chatham, is defiant - declaring: "I'm not having drugs
near my pub."
Police have released CCTV footage of the attack, which
happened at lunchtime in the pub's staff car park.
CCTV footage of Tony
Morgan being hit by a car outside the Poachers Pocket
Mr Morgan was having a cigarette when he saw a man get into the
passenger seat of a dark grey Peugeot 307.
"I said 'that's a drug deal, I'm not having that,'" he
claimed.
"I approached as the passenger got out and said 'don't come here
to buy your drugs, do it somewhere else'."
According to police, it is alleged the driver then punched the
dad-of-three, 44, through the partly-open window.
Mr Morgan held onto the glass until it broke off in his hands,
he said, then the car reportedly reversed at high speed into the
pub manager.
The moment pub manager
Tony Morgan is hit by the reversing car
He said: "I heard the wheels spinning and the next thing I knew
I was up in the air. It knocked me 15 or 20 feet across the car
park.”
"I suffered bruising and a few cracked ribs. The doctors said I
was lucky - if I had been a smaller guy things would’ve been a lot
worse."
The car, believed to be a hire vehicle from a London firm, was
then driven off at high speed down Walderslade Road towards
Chatham.
The driver is described as black, in his mid-20s, slim build
with black short hair and a fine moustache. He was wearing a green
checked shirt and spoke with a West Indian accent.
The publican, of Gorse Avenue, Walderslade, was treated for
broken ribs at Medway Maritime Hospital, but is defiant.
He said: "I have caught people doing drug deals before. People
say I should leave it to the police but I can't just leave it.
“I would do the same again. This is my business for my customers
who want to come here and enjoy themselves."
Tony Morgan was was
thrown into the air by a car at the Poachers Pocket
The incident happened at about 12.45pm on Saturday, September
29.
Police are appealing for witnesses and are particularly keen to
speak to the man who was in the passenger seat.
DC Mark Silk said: "This is a serious incident where the
injuries could have been a great deal worse.
"Any information will be treated in the strictest confidence and
we are interested in speaking to a white man in a brown tracksuit
who left the vehicle prior to the incident."
Anyone with information should call DC Silk on 101, quoting
reference XY/029479/12, or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800
555111.
A 21-year-old man from Peckham was arrested followed the attack
and released on bail until tomorrow, Tuesday, November 13.
12/11/12
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