Daniel Winward: Ex-Soldier Avoids Prison After Brutally Attacking Cancer-Stricken Pensioner
A Morecambe pub landlord and ex-commando has somehow avoided prison after he viciously attacked a 70-year-old pensioner suffering from cancer over a disagreement about bins. Local residents have called for a boycott of the Morecambe Hotel following the savage attack and the somewhat shocking sentence.
Defenceless 70-year-old Simon Procter described how doctors thought he had been in a car accident due to the horrific injuries he had suffered at the hands of the landlord of the Morecambe Hotel.
Mr Procter was attacked by the ex-soldier, who has been described by locals as a "vile thug" outside his home, in a savage beating that left the pensioner requiring 20 stitches.
The unprovoked attack occurred after Mr Procter complained to the council that Winward, 44, left bins from his pub, The Morecambe Hotel, outside on the street for three days.
When Mr Procter's terrified wife attempted to stop the onslaught, she told Winward her husband was suffering from cancer, the disgraced former soldier callously replied: "He's going to die anyway."
After beating the pensioner senseless, Winward then entered the couple's home and trashed their living room, causing over £1,000 worth of damage and leaving blood all over the walls.
A court appeared to have taken pity on Winward, who has served three tours of duty with the Commandos, and claimed to be suffering from PTSD at the time, and handed him a mere ten-month suspended sentence after he pleaded guilty to burglary, common assault, and GBH.
The 70-year-old victim said: "I couldn't believe I got beaten up. There is no excuse for what he did. When I went to the hospital, they thought I'd been in a car accident.
"My wife said to him, 'He's a 70-year-old man with cancer'. Winward said: 'He's going to die anyway' and he threw her to the ground.
"He then started punching me again.
"At that time, I was receiving hormone treatment for bladder and prostate cancer. It was very upsetting to get hit and think, 'I can't get up, I can't move quickly enough'. It was horrible."
He added: "I've now got a big cancerous growth which has suddenly appeared in my left kidney. If you have a lot of trauma, then this sort of thing can flare up."
The shocking incident took place on the morning of August 29, 2022. Preston Crown Court heard how Winward had been "pacing up and down" the street before 7am, banging bins and looking for "attention".
Winward launched his attack at around 8.30am when the victim was leaving his home to go on a cycle ride with his wife, he punched him several times in the head.
Simon said: "I was going to go out on a push bike ride with my wife, so we were walking out. I thought, what are you going to do? And then he punched me.
"If I was 10 years younger, I could have defended myself. But I wasn't in the right state. I got hit pretty badly. I got hit quite a lot of times.
"He then came into the house, he followed me in, and pulled a mirror and a TV off the stand and threw it on the floor. He maybe did about £1,000 worth of damage.
"There was quite a lot of blood on the walls - it was mine that all came off his fists."
Daniel Winward was sentenced at Preston Crown Court on May 12 after pleading guilty to burglary, common assault, and GBH.
He was handed a 10-month prison sentence, suspended for 18 months - meaning he will serve no actual prison time.
He was also ordered to complete a total of 30 days rehabilitation activity requirements, 150 hours of unpaid work, and pay £1,000 for the damage he caused.
He was also told to pay Simon and his wife £1,000 in compensation for the attack.
The local Morecambe community has voiced their anger over what appears to be an extremely lenient sentence for a horrific attack.
Many locals have called for people to boycott the Morecambe Hotel, on Lord Street until the convicted thug is removed.
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