AssetID: 55539288
Headline: Moment drunk thug smashed school bus with screaming children inside after being refused a lift
Caption: This is the moment a drunken thug attacked a packed school bus after the driver refused to let him on. Paul Fuller demanded to board the school service while it was stuck in traffic in Sittingbourne, Kent. The 42-year-old, who was “extremely intoxicated” at the time, became violent and punched the windscreen when he was denied entry to the Travel Masters vehicle. Fuller then picked up a brick and smashed the driver’s window until it shattered, leaving shards of glass all over the driver’s seat. The incident was caught on a passing motorist’s dashcam. Fuller had also threatened to “smash the driver’s f****** head in”, but as traffic started to move with the children onboard screamed in terror, the brave driver managed to get back into his seat and get himself and the children to safety. Fuller, of Hythe Road, Sittingbourne, was later arrested and charged and admitted assault and criminal damage when he appeared in court in November. He returned to Medway Magistrates’ Court on March 3 to learn his fate. Prosecutor Victoria Aked, told the bench Fuller committed the offence on April 22 last year. She said: “He started banging on the closed door, saying, ‘Let me on’, which was odd because it was a school bus.” “He banged on the door again and said to the driver, ‘I will smash your head in, f*** you and your tattoos’.” Magistrates were then told that Fuller walked to the front of the bus and punched the windscreen, but didn’t smash it. The prosecutor added: “There was no damage. The driver informed one of the children to dial 999 and call the police. “It was aggressive. The driver’s window was struck with a brick and he was shouting, ‘You’re not going home to your family’. “The driver thought he’d be harmed with the brick, and the children were screaming, ‘he’s got a brick’.” Fuller then walked round to the door of the bus again and squared up to the driver in an aggressive manner. Ms Aked added: “The traffic started to move and the driver got back in his cab and drove off, but shards of glass went into his skin. “He had no choice (but to get in the back seat and drive) as he didn’t want the children to be injured.” Magistrates were also told the driver didn’t stop the bus again until it was safe to do so and even finished his school run. Afterwards, he went to the hospital where the glass splinters in his thighs were removed with tweezers, but months later shards are still popping out. In a victim impact statement he said he didn’t want to go to work after the incident and that his anxiety, which he took medication for, was made worse. The driver added: “It was a school bus, and it was full of children, but he was willing to smash me round the head. “I look over my shoulder when I’m out, as I am worried I might see him.” Fuller told police he regretted his actions and felt bad about what he’d done. Ms Aked added: “He was convicted of criminal damage a month before this incident, and a month later, he goes and does this. He’s also got an ABH on his record. “The driver had to protect the children as there was a lunatic outside threatening them, and he damaged the bus.” A probation officer who interviewed Fuller before the hearing said he’d admitted to being extremely intoxicated on the day of the attack and had since referred himself to the Forward Trust, a support service for drug and alcohol users, and was doing quite well to stay off the drink. The officer also said Fuller was now taking medication for his mental health difficulties and was at a low risk of reoffending. The probation officer added: “He doesn’t meet the threshold for our services, and he’s better off with outside agencies, as otherwise there will be further risk of offending, but he’s fit and healthy and can do unpaid work.” Defending himself, Fuller said he’d been struggling over the last year or so because of a relationship breakdown and had been drinking more. He added: “I’ve had lots of problems and stress. I lashed out. I’ve been a fool. “This year, I’ve been trying to bring it all back together. I am disappointed in myself. I have a son, a mortgage, and I am disappointed and not proud. “The Forward Trust has been good, I’ve been engaging with it. I gave up (alcohol) before for 11 or 12 years, so I sorted my life out. “I’ve just had a lot of bad luck, I am sorry for my behaviour.” Magistrates also heard that Fuller was working for an agency in a factory and earned £550 a week. He added: “I’ve got three cats and I have been worried about what would happen to them (if I went to prison). “I am a soft guy, really, and I am ashamed of myself. I do have a brain injury, my brain doesn’t work (properly), but I am ashamed.” Magistrates jailed him for 18 weeks for the offences, but suspended the term for 12 months. He was also ordered to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work and pay a victim surcharge of £154 and £85 court costs. Fuller was also ordered to pay the bus driver £300 compensation and the bus company £150 for the repair of the window. After the case, Travel Masters boss Tim Lambkin said: "The most important thing was that no passengers were hurt. "Bus drivers are responsible for the safety of the passengers, and our driver decided the man, who was totally out of control, was not coming on because of that. "The driver got a lot of praise for the way he handled the situation. He was stuck in traffic and had nowhere to go. It must have been frightening for him."
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