Man jailed for six years following taxi driver robbery and brutal assault of woman

Image credit: Cleveland Police

A 21-year-old man has been sentenced to six years in prison following a robbery of a taxi driver and a separate brutal assault.

Owen Harris was sentenced at Teesside Crown Court after pleading guilty to wounding with intent and robbery. His offences included an attack on a taxi driver and a separate savage incident involving a woman.

The court heard how, in the early hours of 8 April last year, a taxi driver arrived to pick up six passengers. The driver lowered his window to confirm the booking with Harris, who was on the street with another man. Harris leaned into the window, grabbed the driver’s jumper, prompting the driver to flee. Harris chased him down, punched him twice in the neck, then stole the taxi.

In a separate incident, Harris also carried out a violent assault on a woman in front of her young child in October 2023. The woman suffered a broken nose, a broken eye socket, and severe bruising after Harris stamped on her head and kicked her in the face.

Harris, from Middlesbrough, was arrested and charged with wounding with intent. He pleaded guilty to the charges on 24 April and was sentenced on 9 July. Alongside his prison term, a restraining order was issued to prevent Harris from contacting the victim.

This case highlights the severe consequences of violent behaviour and the justice system's commitment to protecting victims.

Investigating officer PC Hood from the Domestic Abuse Unit said: “I welcome the sentence that was passed today. The bravery and courage shown from the victim in this case is truly incredible. She has to live with the trauma of what happened every day.

“I’d like to thank the victim for her support throughout the process as well as Middlesbrough Response officers PC Appleton and PC Sell for their help. They both responded brilliantly to this incident initially and obtained all the crucial evidence at the scene.

“Domestic violence is taken extremely seriously within Cleveland Police and this behaviour will not be tolerated. I sincerely hope the victim and her young son can recover from this and the sentence handed today has given them some sort of justice.”