Three found guilty of disabled man attack
Three men have been found guilty for their part in the humiliation of a disabled man who was assaulted and imprisoned in his home for four days.
Nicholas Cutler and his son James Cutler, both of Nash Walk, Smethwick, and Anthony Knowles, of no fixed address, were told to expect prison by judge Marcus Tregilgas-Davey.
The group were found guilty of unlawfully and enduringly detaining the victim against his will, between February 1 and 5 this year, in a frightening ordeal.
A youth, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was found not guilty of the same charge.
Over the course of the week-long trial at Wolverhampton Crown Court, the jury heard that the disabled man was assaulted and had paint thrown over him in a frightening and humiliating ordeal, which was filmed on a mobile phone at his flat in Oldbury.
A video recorded on James Cutler's phone was played to the jury, showing the victim covered in paint and in distress.
It showed him sat motionless before and after the paint was thrown, while Nicholas Cutler, aged 44, left the room only seconds prior.
The prosecution said that the younger Cutler, aged 19, and Knowles, aged 18, went to the flat and were let in by the victim, who considered the elder Mr Cutler a friend.
They then treated the flat like their own and helped themselves to his food and drink, also stopping the victim from eating or drinking.
They told him he wasn't allowed to leave the flat, and Cutler senior arrived and allowed it to continue.
The victim had paint thrown over him and then was pushed over in the shower as he went to wash it off.
He also had his ankle stamped on by Knowles and sustained an injury to his wrist when he tried to block himself from being hit with a piece of metal.
He was stopped from speaking to police when they arrived at his flat, and officers couldn't come to his aid until a later visit, when they had to drill the door down, which Knowles and Cutler junior had barricaded.
The elder Cutler said he 'didn't know' who threw the paint when giving evidence, and said the victim could be a violent drunk and it was 'his own fault' for having people round.
Mr Marcus Tregilgas-Davey told the three: "You three should be under no illusions, for an offence as serious as this you should expect a custodial sentence. "
The three men will be sentenced on September 9. James Cutler was bailed.
Nicholas Cutler and Anthony Knowles were remanded in custody.
