Neighbour ‘drove car at OAP, threatened to slit his throat & hurled roof tiles at his crying wife in long-running row’

A MAN drove his van straight astatine a pensioner and past threatened to slit his pharynx successful a run of harassment, intimidation and abuse, a tribunal heard.

David Greenwood, 69, and Janice Turner, 65, were near surviving successful fearfulness of violence, a assemblage was told, aft being progressive successful a lengthy neighbour dispute with Mark Coates, 56.

Coates had repeatedly sworn astatine the mates erstwhile they were successful the garden, had thrown stones astatine their chamber model and astatine their car and had near them feeling intimidated successful a three-month campaign.

The tribunal heard connected erstwhile juncture helium went Mr Greenwood's spot of enactment and drove his VW van straight astatine the pensioner who had to get retired of the mode “briskly” to debar being hit.

Later erstwhile the pensioner was successful his garden, Coates allegedly said: “Slit maine throat” earlier making a cutting question crossed his throat.

The alleged run ended erstwhile constabulary were called aft Coates climbed onto the extortion of their semi-detached location and began removing and throwing extortion tiles down astatine them.

Lewes Crown Court heard some sets of neighbours had been progressive successful a seven-year neighbour dispute.

The ongoing enactment was sparked erstwhile a obstruction sheet fell down astatine their adjoining semi-detached homes,

As portion of the dispute, Coates had incurred a ineligible measure and Miss Turner and Mr Greenwood had been fixed a possession bid by the tribunal implicit their neighbour’s three-bedroom home.

But conscionable days aft the possession bid was granted Coates embarked connected a run of abuse, harassment and intimidation again them.

Coates allegedly swore astatine them, threw stones astatine their chamber model and their car and drove astatine Mr Greenwood.

The tribunal heard Coates drove his VW van to the store deterioration Mr Greenwood worked arsenic a mechanic.

As helium was carrying retired diagnostics connected a car extracurricular the garage, Coates drove consecutive astatine him.

The assemblage was told that conscionable days aboriginal Mr Greenwood was successful his garden, which adjoined his neighbours, erstwhile helium heard Coates say: “Yellow” and curse astatine him.

Then arsenic helium looked towards him Coates allegedly said: “Slit maine throat” earlier making a cutting question crossed his throat.

On a 2nd juncture Mr Greenwood was walking down towards his greenhouse erstwhile Coates again swore astatine him and said: “You’re taking the f***ing p*ss.”

The tribunal heard the dispute culminated connected June 10 this twelvemonth erstwhile Coates clambered onto the extortion of the 2 houses and began removing each the extortion tiles.

He past began throwing them down towards his neighbours who instantly called the police.

Miss Turner told a tribunal she was near terrified erstwhile Coates began hurling tiles from the extortion of the adjoining semi-detached homes.

She said: “There were a assortment of large noises coming from wrong his house, banging and clattering.

“I went up the plot and Mr Coates was wrong and helium was smashing a spread from the wrong of his attic abstraction and helium was cutting the batons and knocking the tiles disconnected the roof.

“He was picking immoderate of them up and throwing them into the plot and towards me. I was lasting by my greenhouse I felt debris from the extortion spell past my face.”

She said erstwhile the spread was large capable to ascent done Coates clambered retired onto the roof.

Miss Turner said: “He continued to region everything from that extortion and past breached the enactment partition area and wholly removed the champion portion of the extortion astatine the rear of my property.

“I couldn’t judge what I was seeing. I was highly distressed and I was precise frightened and I was crying. I felt very, precise frightened.”
Prosecutor Rio Pahlavanpour said Coates was arrested by constabulary and taken into custody and questioned by officers.

“During the interrogation helium was asked questions astir the pharynx slitting comment, making his neighbours consciousness arsenic if they were being harassed and throwing tiles from the roof and helium answered: ‘No comment.’”

The tribunal heard the lone remark helium made astir the bid of incidental was to impeach his neighbours of being “compulsive liars” and claiming and helium had been “victimised by Sussex Police”.

Coates was yet charged with 2 counts of harassment and 2 counts of criminal damage. He had pleaded not blameworthy to each charges,

The proceedings continues.