A MAN has been jailed for two and a half years for a “horrific” attack in which his victim was struck on the head with a vodka bottle, punched and had fingers pushed in his eyes.

Daniel Pickard had been drinking since the early hours when he carried out the sustained assault at a flat in Keighley on March 16 last year, Bradford Crown Court heard today.

Pickard, 38, of Greystones Drive, Keighley, pleaded guilty to unlawfully wounding the man who suffered nightmares afterwards and was unable to open one eye for two weeks.

Prosecutor Alex Sutton said Pickard struck his victim forcefully to the back of the head with the bottle and followed up the attack by grabbing him round the throat, punching him to the head and pushing his fingers in his eyes.

The victim suffered “obvious and significant injuries” including soft tissue damage to his eye, a cut to his head and bruising and swelling. He was treated in hospital and stayed indoors for a fortnight afterwards.

Miss Sutton said Pickard set about him at 11am at a flat in Oakworth where a friend of his lived. He had been unable to work for some time afterwards, suffered nightmares and did not go out because of the unsightly injuries to his face.

Pickard, who had been remanded in prison for almost a year, had 34 previous convictions for 53 offences. They included common assault, battery, assault occasioning actual bodily harm and a wounding in 2011.

His barrister, Ayman Khokhar, told the court: “Plainly this was a horrific attack.” But fortunately the victim had not suffered any long-term, life-changing injury.

Pickard was heavily in drink at the time and had vowed to give up alcohol in the future.

“He needs to appreciate that he can’t consume alcohol because sooner or later it creates difficulties for him,” Mr Khokhar said.

Pickard’s remand into custody had “coincided perfectly” with the first Covid-19 lockdown meaning that for almost a year he had been confined to his cell for 23 hours a day with no family visits.

Recorder Taryn Turner told Pickard he had an unenviable record, including for offences of violence.

“This is a very serious case,” she said.

Pickard had been drinking spirits since the early hours that day and could give no explanation for the sustained attack on his hapless victim who had been unable to open his eye for two weeks.