A MOTHER has praised a 15-year sentence handed to a thug who left her son for dead in a brutal attack after a night out.

Sam Ganatra was left unconscious in an alleyway with a string of ‘horrific’ injuries after the unprovoked attack in Bicester’s town centre on June 11 last year.

AS IT HAPPENED: Police cordon off town centre after vicious attack 

His assailant, Ellis Rodney, 30, of Bourne Close, Bicester, had repeatedly kicked him in the head, Oxford Crown Court heard at his sentencing yesterday for inflicting grievous bodily harm with intent.

The ‘vicious’ assault, the court heard , saw Mr Ganatra put into an induced coma and his injuries have left him scarred and without a sense of smell.

Oxford Mail:

The Causeway cordoned off shortly after the attack

Detailing events, prosecutor Matthew Walsh told the court that Mr Ganatra had been out in Bicester before joining a group led by Rodney, who he did not know and who was drunk.

It was as the night was drawing to a close and Mr Ganatra was on his way home that Rodney launched the brutal, unprovoked attack near the John Paul Centre, Causeway.

During the onslaught he repeatedly rained blows on Mr Ganatra which left him with numerous facial fractures as well as a bleed on his brain and deflated lung.

He was put in an induced coma and while he is now recovering he has been left with permanent scarring and sensory loss.

Rodney, who has a string of convictions for violent offences, had denied the attack, and when police seized his mobile phone they discovered a message sent to a friend who had asked about the fight which read: “Can’t remember, lol [laugh out loud].”

See original story: Man in hospital as police cordon off Causeway in Bicester after attack

He later admitted the offence days before his trial and the court heard yesterday that the attack occurred six months after release from a 30-month jail term for GBH.

In mitigation, Clare Wade QC, defending, said that her client was ‘sorry’ for the attack.

Speaking after the sentence Mr Ganatra’s mother Kate Hayle said ‘justice had been done.’

She told Oxford Mail: “I feel relieved, happy, ecstatic, emotional.

“When I heard the words ‘I could impose a life sentence’ [from Judge Nigel Daly] I got ahead of myself.

"I wanted double figures so we have got what we wanted. I didn’t think it was going to feel like this but it feels like justice has finally been done.”

She added: “Sam is very quiet, very caring and would not harm a fly.

"He says he wants to live his life like he used to do.”

Rodney was jailed for 11 years and 10 months and will serve a further three years and two months on an extended licence period.

In a statement released this morning the investigating officer, Detective Constable Mark Wray, said: "The evidence is that this was a sustained attack where the victim was kicked repeatedly to the head and body, causing damage to his brain, face and head.

"It was obvious that the level of force used was intended to cause as much injury as possible.

"I would like to thank the victim for his support throughout the investigation.

"This sentence sends a strong message that the courts will deal robustly with alcohol-fuelled violence and reflects the severity of the life-changing injuries that the victim has sustained."