Car thief locked up after attack on member of public
A car thief who brutally attacked a man after he tried to stop him from stealing a car has been locked up for nearly three years .
Curtis Rudd was spotted by a 34-year-old man removing the number plates of a Vauxhall Corsa in Fleming Road, Beechdale, Walsall.
In an effort to stop Rudd getting away, the man approached Rudd’s car, which was parked nearby, removed the keys and threw them into a nearby garden.
Enraged by the man’s attempts to prevent his criminal actions, Rudd chased him and then kicked, punched and hit him with the metal leg from a bench.
As a result, the man suffered a punctured lung, broken ribs and a gash to his head, during the attack on September 26.
Wolverhampton Crown Court also heard that Rudd, together with an accomplice, stole a council van on October 2 last year and a BMW was stolen by Rudd two days later.
Police caught up with Rudd on October 6, when he rammed a marked police car and mounted a pavement to evade arrest.
He was recognised by an officer, who saw him talking on his mobile phone while driving and was subsequently arrested four days later.
Rudd, aged 20, was convicted of assault, theft of a motor vehicle and dangerous driving at Wolverhampton Crown Court on April 1 and sentenced to two years and eight months.
