Savage thug who stabbed Oldbury chip shop owner faces long jail sentence
A vicious thug has been warned he faces a long jail sentence after being convicted of a frenzied knife attack in a fish and chip shop, which was witnessed by the victim's daughter.
Leon McTaggart stabbed the fish and chip shop's manager Narinder Sidhu at least six times in full view of Mr Sidhu's daughter, who was 16 years old at the time, in an unprovoked assault outside Simply Fish and Chips in Hagley Road West, Oldbury.
The 29-year-old defendant stood inpassively in the dock surrounded by five security officers as the jury returned their unanimous verdict after less than three hours deliberation.
They found him guilty of causing grievous bodily harm with intent to Mr Sidhu, aged 51, outside Simply Fish and Chips run by the victim.
Judge John Warner adjourned sentencing to allow experts to establish the potential danger represented by the defendant.
He told McTaggart: "You are going to get a long sentence but there are different sorts of sentence and I have to consider the issue of dangerousness."
McTaggart from Hagley Road, Edgbaston was remanded until July 13.
Trouble flared after McTaggart walked into the fish and chip shop where he had been served a couple of times before on November 6 last year but this time he was anxious and mumbling incoherently, the court heard.
Mr Sidhu told the jury: "He seemed very agitated, slamming his fists on the counter.
"I did not know what to make of it. I said 'yes please?'
"He kept repeating 'do I look like an idiot?'
"No order was placed and there was not conversation.
"He was frog-marching back and forth. I couldn't work out what was wrong with him."
McTaggart then smashed the glass in the door before walking out of the shop and the manager was stabbed in the stomach, under and in the left arm as well as several times in the back when he went to inspect the damage where McTaggart had gone.
Mr Sidhu explained: "He just launched himself at me.
"He ran, jumped into the air and landed on me, grabbing me round the neck area. I felt frenzied punches in my stomach, back and left side.
"I was crouching down and struggling to breathe when he twice tried to kick me in the face. By that time people were running towards us and he ran off."
Mr Sidhu was left fighting for his life following the attack, and placed in a medically induced coma.
McTaggart was arrested on November 28 at his bedsit, where he was found with a lock-knife in his sock.
McTaggart answered 'no comment' in four separate interviews about the incident. He chose not to give evidence during his trial.
