A blundering yob was caught on camera riding a motorbike on a high street hitting a shopper – and then falling off.
Teenager Sergiu Stanciu, 18, threatened to stab the pedestrian in the crash at a town centre shopping street.
A court heard that the father-of-one believed he was a ‘big man’ in a gang – but the judge said in reality Stanciu was a ‘very small person.’
Prosecutor Emily Bennet said the pedestrian was walking in Port Talbot town centre to meet his wife.
Teenager Sergiu Stanciu, 18, threatened to stab the pedestrian in the crash in Port Talbot
Stanciu coming off his bike after the confrontation with a man in the centre of town
Stanciu was travelling ‘at speed’ along Station Road when the man saw him coming towards him and gestured with his hand for him to slow down.
Instead, CCTV showed Stanciu racing past the man and striking the victim’s hand – before losing control and falling off his bike onto the wet road.
The biker then got up hurled abuse at the injured man – swearing and threatening to knife him.
Cafe staff nearby heard the commotion and went to check on the injured man while Stanciu and other yobs tried to push tables as they walked away.
Swansea Crown Court heard that the injured man went to Neath Port Talbot Hospital with a cut and swollen wrist.
An X-ray showed that he had a hairline fracture of the scaphoid bone – and his wrist was plastered up and needed two months of medical care.
Stanciu was travelling ‘at speed’ before striking the man’s hand and hurling abuse at him
Police identified Stanciu through CCTV and spotted him on a bike on November 1, but he sped away when police officers approached.
He was arrested at home later that afternoon and in a police interview accepted being involved in the collision and said he was sorry.
The court heard Stanciu has eight previous convictions for 14 offences – which include threatening with a bladed article, affray, burglary, sexual assault, possession of cannabis, public order matters, criminal damage, and possession of knives.
A month after being arrested and questioned by the police about the incident, Stanciu was sentenced to five months detention in a young offenders institution for another offence – for possession of an offensive weapon, an extendable police-style baton.
He had been pictured posing with a group of friends holding weapons in an underpass in Port Talbot town centre.
He was still serving this sentence when he appeared in the dock for the new charge.
Stanciu pictured in the centre posing with friends covering their faces and making gang signs
The court heard that Stanciu struggled to adapt to life in the UK after arriving in 2018.
There were also concerns previously raised about his ‘sexualised behaviour towards young girls.’
Kate Williams, defending, said Stanciu’s ‘low level of maturity’ played its part in the incident and custody had been a ‘sobering experience’ for him.
Judge Huw Rees said it was clear that Stanciu had been ‘showing off’ to those with him and that he ‘could not have cared less’ about the safety of others.
He told Stanciu if he continued to ‘play Jack the lad’ he would face longer and longer sentences.
Sergiu Stanciu, of Sandfields Road, Port Talbot, was sentenced to 14 months in a young offenders institution.
He was also disqualified from driving for 19 months and must pass an extended test before he can get a licence.