Thugs threw chairs at man who gave them 'attitude' in Yorkshire Greggs

Two men who instigated a brawl inside a Bradford branch of Greggs have been jailed.

Rahan Ali, 30, and Umar Khalil, 38, became involved in the violence because of another customer's "attitude" inside the store on February 3, Bradford Crown Court heard on Tuesday, November 26. Prosecutor Emma Handley said: "It was at around 9.55am when a member of the public parked his vehicle on Bank Street and saw two men running to the shopping centre to the Greggs.

"He tried to open the door but was pushed away by them. He continued to watch them fight. They were hitting and punching each other and picking up chairs and hitting each other with them.

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"He was concerned and called the police. The fight continued and he described watching them hitting each other with broken glass bottles. He said it lasted around 10 to 15 minutes and said there was blood all over. The incident was captured on CCTV and confirms what he said - that the defendants picked up the chairs and threw them."

The court heard Khalil, of Woodview in Keighley, and Ali, of Sunrise Close in Bradford, were fighting with another man who used a chair leg during the violence.

Ms Handley said: "Both defendants wee interviewed on the seventh of April. Rahan Ali denied his part and said he and Umar Khalil were getting food when the man gave them a cheeky remark and gave him attitude. He said his co-accused had a bottle and threatened to hit him over the head and chased him and he said the man hit him over the head. When shown the CCTV he accepted it showed him throwing a chair.

"Umar Khalil gave a 'no comment' interview."

The court heard both men went on to admit affray. Sex offender Khalil also fell to be sentenced for breaching notification requirements after he "forgot" to tell police where he was living following his conviction for sexual assault. Ali also fell to be sentenced for three theft offences.

Mitigating for Ali, Ayman Khokhar said a pre-sentence report had been carried out and he had been remanded into custody since the theft matters in July. He said he had sustained "the worst of the injuries" during the Greggs incident. Mr Khokhar said: "He has made the most of his time in custody and has completed course in food allergies and hygiene and has been working on his English and maths."

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For Khalil, Gerald Hendron said: "This is the longest time he has spent in a custody environment...Between 2007 and 2020, between the ages of 21 and 34, he didn't trouble the court, That clearly shows you that something has gone drastically and tragically wrong in his life and that was the breakdown of his marriage in 2019. He hasn't seen his two children.

"He turned to hard drugs as a coping mechanism and in a very short space of time became dependant on them. He has spent the last four years homeless on the streets. His life has turned upside down from what it was. He wanted to get his next fix."

His Honour Judge Burn jailed Ali for 13 months and Khalil for 11 months.