Sandwell pub stripped of licence over ‘horrific’ baton attack involving unauthorised bouncer

Sandwell Council has revoked the licence for the Prince of Wales in West Bromwich High Street after the incident involving door and bar staff and patrons in November.

The local authority’s licensing committee stripped 69-year-old owner Rajinder Singh, who has run the pub for more than two decades, of his licence over the “horrific” incident saying “serious crime and disorder” had taken place.

West Midlands Police said one of the pub’s bouncers involved in the violent disorder did not hold a valid SIA licence and two of its bar staff did not have the right to work in the UK.

Door staff had used “excessive force” and “physically assaulted” customers using an offensive weapon on November 19 according to police.

The force said a ‘police-style baton’ was passed to bouncer by bar staff and that it was used in view of Mr Singh who did not call 999 “for a considerable time after.”

Officers called to West Bromwich High Street over ‘three members of the public bleeding from the head’ said they ran into difficulties with the venue and it took ‘around 40 minutes’ to find out what had happened from Mr Singh and his staff.

CCTV footage of the alleged attack was shown in private but was described as “horrific” and “horrifying” by both police and licence committee member Cllr Richard Jeffcoat.

The pub had its licence suspended on November 19 ahead of the full review on December 11.

West Midlands Police, which called for the pub’s licence to be revoked, said the violent disorder was a “preventable situation.”

“Nobody in that premises attempts to do the right thing,” the force said during the hearing on Thursday (December 11). “Nobody seems concerned [about the weapon]. Nobody seems worried.”

Duncan Craig, representing Mr Singh, even admitted the CCTV footage of the attack made for “unpleasant viewing.”

But he said the pub owner had been “misled” by ‘casual’ staff over their right to work as well as the unauthorised door man who had worked at the pub for ‘some time’ and who he believed held a licence.

Mr Craig blamed Mr Singh’s “old fashioned and outdated” methods for allowing the violence to break and his declining health on the lack of intervention.

“It’s very easy to be critical of somebody who has been running something for 24 years without anyone coming to him and telling him he needs to do something differently,” he said.

“As far as [Mr Singh] was concerned, he was running a venue in a challenging part of the borough, doing his best. What else is he supposed to do? The police weren’t coming to him saying they have concerns.

“It’s wrong to characterise him over one evening and the mistakes that were made that night.”

'We can't have that on our streets'

Cllr Jeffcoat said: “My concern is, is he a fit and proper person to [run the pub] now? I’d like to be clear in my head that [Mr Singh] is going to step back from this business completely … because you will agree the [CCTV] was horrific and we can’t have that on our streets.”

Mr Craig said if the pub was allowed to stay open, a “more professional and appropriate setup” would be put in place. He asked the committee to remove Rajinder Singh as the designated premises supervisor and for the licence to be suspended for a further week to allow the pub owner to “get his ducks in a row.”

He pleaded with the committee to reject calls for the licence to be revoked.

“There’s no crime in somebody running a business recognising that they need extra help – particularly in an increasingly challenging night-time economy,” he said.

“This is somebody who has served this borough for over two decades… Nobody should consider taking this business away lightly.

“It’s unfair and not proportionate to not give him a chance to learn from this and make his business better and safer. He deserves that chance.”

Anil Grover, who had been working at the pub for a few months and Gurdev Rai, who had previously run the pub while Mr Singh was ill, had been primed to take over if the Prince of Wales remained open.

However, committee member Cllr Jag Singh asked whether Mr Rai and Mr Grover had checked whether the door man’s paperwork was legitimate and up-to-date as documents submitted for the hearing showed it had expired in 2023 – yet he was still allowed to work on the door that night.

Both admitted to the hearing they had not checked the paperwork or identification themselves – with Mr Rai saying he “wrongly presumed” the checks had been carried out.

'A responsible pub'

West Bromwich BID supported Mr Singh saying the Prince of Wales was a “responsible pub” that has continued to promote the licensing objectives – adding that the boozer was a “big part of the West Bromwich community.”

Several desi pub owners from West Bromwich and the surrounding Black Country had written positive testimonies of the Prince of Wales and Mr Singh and attended the hearing in support.

The pub had its licence suspended on November 19 ahead of the full review on December 11.

West Midlands Police said it had received a call from a member of the public because “three people were bleeding from the head” after an incident at the Prince of Wales at around 12.30am on November 16.

The force said the incident started inside the High Street pub, which opens until 11pm and 12.30am at weekends, and spilled out onto the street.

Officers reported a section 18 wounding with intent, section 20 assault and section 47 assault causing actual bodily harm (ABH) and were investigating the possession of an offensive weapon.

The minutes from the private hearing on November 19 said the incident involved the pub’s door staff who had “physically assaulted” customers and used a weapon.

Security had thrown punches and used “excessive force,” the report continued.

West Midlands Police said it was clear from CCTV footage that the incident had “escalated unnecessarily.”