Court correspondent

A Redditch shopkeeper suffered a broken arm after a drunken roofer kicked him during a violent incident at the premises.

Matthew Williams broke a window at the Fisherman's Catch in Unicorn Hill but a friend of his was grabbed and brought inside by staff.

Williams went in and confessed before he began throwing punches and shouting racial abuse, Worcester Crown Court heard.

He broke proprietor Baldev Badham-Gill's arm with a kick and headbutted Pc Julian Smith as he tried to arrest him, said Adam Western, prosecuting.

Williams, who was working in the area but lived in St James, Newmarket, Suffolk, pleaded guilty to racially aggravated assault causing actual bodily harm, common assault and criminal damage.

Jailing the 25-year-old for 18 months, Recorder Barbara Carter said shopkeepers and policemen had to be protected by the courts.

Society was concerned that violence fuelled by drink was on the increase, she added.

A struggle broke out at the chip shop on November 27, 2003. At Redditch police station, Williams warned he wanted to get a baseball bat and take the shopkeeper's head off, said Mr Western.

Mr Badham-Gill told police the injury had caused him a lot of inconvenience.

He also said it highlighted the vulnerability of people working in shops late at night.

Stuart Clarkson, defending, said ironically the father of Williams' best friend was black and he was sorry for his foolish and derogatory language.

The offence was caused by anger and alcohol, stemming from the defendant's bleak background when his family were "torn apart" by tragic events. Mr Clarkson said he did not want to explain further in open court.

Williams had a number of ongoing problems, he added, which included drug abuse and depression.