A WELLINGTON man who attacked a caller at his house, leaving him with a permanent injury, has been ordered to pay his victim £1,000 compensation.

Daniel Roland, 26, of Penny Close, admitted wounding and was told he would have been jailed for at least two years if he had been convicted following a trial.

Caroline Bolt, prosecuting, told Taunton Crown Court, a neighbour, Gary Bishop, had been talking about a driving incident on September 20 and decided to try and find the car. He had been drinking lager and found the car parked near Roland’s house and knocked on his door.

Roland answered carrying a large black-handled knife down the side of his trousers, and asked what the trouble was. He attacked the caller, stabbing him in the head and arm, and gave chase when he ran away.

An ambulance was called and there was ‘some exchange’ between the complainant’s brother and Roland, who was looking out of his window, she said.

In interview, Roland said he answered the door to a man with blood on his face who had clearly been drinking. When the man moved forward, he hit him backwards over a wall and punched him in self-defence.

The complainant suffered a number of abrasions and cuts, the most serious being a laceration to his right index finger which left permanent nerve damage. In a victim statement, Mr Bishop said said he had lost confidence, was afraid to go out and could not use his index finger properly.

Simon Cooper, defending, said that why he went to Roland’s house may never be known. He appeared to be drunken and aggressive at the door and was mumbling and ‘seemed very drunk’. He was living in Taunton at the time and was now living in Wellington.

Recorder David Bartlett handed down a sentence of 20 months, suspended for two years with 150 hours unpaid work.