Seven Kings shopkeeper who attacked cabbage-throwing drunken clubber with a hammer is spared jail

A Seven Kings shopkeeper who used a hammer to attack a drunken clubber who had thrown a cabbage at him was spared jail today.

Vasikaran Thirunavukarasu, 30, of MK Food and Wine in High Road, flew into a rage and knocked Graham Power out cold with a single blow after the vegetable was launched at him on February 26.

Snaresbrook Crown Court heard today that Mr Power and two friends had enjoyed a boozy night out at the Shannon Centre Nite Club in High Road before they stopped off at the shop.

The trio took turns throwing fruit and vegetables around outside the 24-hour store, which led to a confrontation with the shop keeper.

When Thirunavukarasu’s pleas for the group to stop fell on deaf ears he went in to the shop and returned with a hammer in his hand, to be met with verbal abuse.

After a cabbage was thrown at him, he lashed out with the hammer hitting the victim on the head, according to prosecutor Raj Joshi.

Mr Power, who passed out for around 30 seconds, was taken to hospital and received two stitches to his head after the attack at around 2.40am.

Christopher Draycott, defending Thirunavukarasu, said he had been subjected to numerous attacks by drunken clubbers in the past, including being pistol-whipped and held at knife-point.

He said: “He is deeply remorseful and feels fortunate that things were not worse than they were.”

Sentencing Thirunavukarasu, who is studying to be an accountant, to 150 hours unpaid work, Judge Joanna Korner QC said he was “exceedingly lucky” that Mr Power’s injuries weren’t more serious.

She said there were “sufficiently compelling mitigating circumstances so that imprisonment would not be the proper course to take.”

Thirunavukarasu, of Barking Road, East Ham, admitted assault occasioning actual bodily harm.