Matthew Mellow claimed his neighbour’s children were playing too close to his caravan before he made the threats
A vile man said ‘I’ll cut your head off’ and ‘this is my country, not yours’ to a neighbour in a racially aggravated attack.
Matthew Mellow, 36, made the threats in front of the victim’s children and even held up a circular saw.
Mellow was reportedly angry that his neighbour’s children were playing near his caravan. CornwallLive reports Mellow, of Minorca Lane in Bugle, Cornwall received a suspended sentence after appearing at Truro Crown Court on Friday (April 24).
He pleaded guilty to one count of possession of an offensive weapon in a public place and one of racially or religiously aggravated fear or provocation of violence. The court heard how, during the altercation, the defendant had shouted at the victim’s children when they got close to his vehicle.
The victim then asked Mellow what his problem was, to which he picked up a circular saw, started it running, and shouted for the complainant to ‘go back to Bulgaria’, adding, ‘this is my country, not yours.’ He also said that if the man did not stop talking, “I’ll cut your head off”.
The dad and his children then retreated back to their caravan. The victim explained that he remained courteous throughout the transaction, but following the incident, they were unable to sleep and were stressed about the situation.
“We did not want anything to happen to us. We just want to live in peace and be safe,” he said in an impact statement. “Not to be afraid in our own home because of potential repercussions.”
As part of his defence, it was heard that Mellow “deeply regrets” how he acted this day and that it was a result of him feeling a need to protect his wife and that he pleaded guilty at the first opportunity. In his sentencing remarks, His Honour Judge Simon Carr said that while being presented with a circular saw would be terrifying, he would not impose a custodial sentence.
“Confronted by somebody who was doing no more than keeping an eye on their children, you produced a circular saw, threatened to cut his head off and made a racially unpleasant comment which would have been extremely frightening for the person involved,” he told Mellow.
He sentenced Mellow to six months suspended for two years. He will need to complete a mental health order and ten rehabilitation activity days.
A restraining order was also made.
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