These are the three men jailed for the parts they played after armed gangs staged a running battle through Nottingham city centre. Dureece Smith, Chris Gerald and Tionne Loftman were each part of groups, some of whom wielded knives, during the violence which began after they left the Fusion nightclub in St James’s and spilled out into Old Market Square.
Nottinghamshire Police has now released the custody images of the trio after a trial and separate sentencing hearing at Nottingham Crown Court.
Footage played in court showed weapons brandished and punches thrown as the rivals ran amok in front of other early morning revellers. The CCTV shows 27-year-old Smith flee from a pursuing gang down Exchange Walk where his friend Gerald “blindsides” one of the other men with a savage punch leaving him hospitalised with fractures to his face.
Jailing the heavily-convicted St Ann’s 29-year-old, who was once sent to prison for six years for possessing guns and ammunition, for 33 months, Recorder Mark McKone said: “This was a large-scale disturbance in Nottingham city centre in the early hours of June 22. A number of men were fighting and many of them had knives which the police recovered.
“Your case is that you were holding a lighter in your hand when you blindsided the victim.
“I regard it as unlikely it was lighter seeing as the others used knives and you have a history of carrying knives. But (with no other evidence) I sentence you on the basis you were holding a lighter.
“You approached him from behind and struck him, leaving him with serious injuries – a fractured eye socket, fractured by his nose and a 2cm injury to his left eye socket but thankfully they were not life-changing.”
An earlier trial heard how the groups came together in the Market Place following a disagreement in Fusion Nightclub, in St James’s Street. Prosecutor Luc Chignell played footage of the melee which showed knives being produced and swung and punches thrown.
On the clip Smith, of no fixed address, runs from the square down Exchange Walk being chased by a man who has not been prosecuted. Gerald is then seen to follow them both and aim a punch at the victim while holding an item he says was a lighter, in his hand.
That defendant, of Hungerhill Road, pleaded guilty to assault occasioning grievous bodily harm and to an unrelated charge of possession with intent to supply cannabis from October 15, 2021, when he was caught carrying the drug while riding an e-scooter in Lincoln Street in the city centre. He has 15 previous convictions for 25 offences including the gun charge, robbery and affray.
Dominic Shelley, mitigating, unsuccessfully urged the judge to impose a suspense sentence order saying his client has become “an enhanced prisoner” since being remanded seven months ago.
Smith, was cleared of affray but found guilty of possession of a bladed article at a trial and was jailed for 18 months. 23-year-old Loftman, of no fixed address, denied any involvement at the disturbance and also took his case to trial where he was found guilty of affray and possession of a bladed article.
He was sent to prison for 27 months.