A Porsche driver who broke a man's leg in a road rage attack on the hard shoulder of the M62 has been spared jail. David Molloy, 51, of Macclesfield Road, Alderley Edge, admitted inflicting grievous bodily harm without intent and was handed an 18-month community order with 200 hours of unpaid work and a rehabilitation activity requirement of up to 20 days.
Attack on the hard shoulder
Liverpool Crown Court heard that the victim was driving his Nissan Navara on the Rainhill Stoops roundabout at junction seven of the M62 at around 9.30am on September 2 last year. Molloy, travelling in his Porsche on the inside of the complainant, cut across in front of the other vehicle.
The victim sounded his horn and pulled alongside Molloy at a set of traffic lights, where there were words between the two men. They then set off down the link road to the M62, with the victim in front and the defendant behind.
Punching victim
Dashcam footage captured Molloy moving onto the hard shoulder and signalling for the victim to follow. After the pickup truck had stopped, the victim got out of his car and walked towards the defendant. Prosecuting barrister Derek Jones said: "The defendant was clearly angry. He appeared to be on the bounce. He got out of his car, walked towards the victim and, very soon after, started punching him. I counted around six punches to him around the head area."
The victim fell to the floor, and Molloy drove off onto the motorway. The victim suffered bruising to the back of his head and a fractured tibia, which required surgery, a three-day hospital stay, and two weeks off work.
Mitigation and sentence
Molloy has seven previous convictions for 12 offences, but none since 2006. His defence barrister, Paul Becker, said: "He is a successful businessman. He is the managing director of his company. They have 411 employees. The business does very well, with a quarter of a million pounds given to charity since covid. He is a family man."
Judge Dennis Watson KC said: "Rather than just shrugging your shoulders and getting on with it, what you did was quite appalling really." He noted Molloy's remorse and rehabilitation over the last 20 years, saying: "In your case, I can step back from imposing a prison sentence." Molloy was also ordered to pay £1,000 in court costs and banned from driving for two months.
