Brute loses appeal over vicious attack

An Oldham man who brutally attacked a woman outside a nightclub, kicking her in the head as she lay helpless on the ground, has failed to win a cut in his sentence on appeal.

Azhar Iqbal (25), received a total two-year term at Manchester Crown Court last August after admitting affray in relation to the February, 2009, attack in Market Street, Stalybridge.

The sentence included the activation of a previous suspended sentence imposed for common assault and witness intimidation against his 16-year girl friend.

Lord Justice Pitchford, sitting in London’s Appeal Court with Mr Justice Owen and Judge Peter Beaumont QC, said the attack on Sarah Holden represented a “serious escalation” in his offending towards females.

Miss Holden was attacked by Iqbal and an accomplice as she tried to get into a cab following a late-night confrontation outside the club.

Iqbal’s accomplice pushed her against a wall and Iqbal kicked her three times as she tried to protect herself while helpless on the ground.

“He was about to kick her a fourth time when he was prevented by others,” the judge added. His previous offence of common assault and witness intimidation stemmed from an incident in March, 2007, in which he kicked his teenage girl friend after dragging her to the ground.

Iqbal, of Savoy Street, challenged his sentence on grounds that it was too severe, but had his case rejected.

Given his violent record and the brutality of his attack on Miss Holden, there was nothing excessive about Iqbal’s sentence, the judge concluded.