Footballer Jailed For Punching Wheelclamper

Hot-head footballer Leon McDowall – whose promising career has been ruined by a series of bust-ups – has been jailed again for violently punching a wheel clamper, fracturing the victim’s eye socket.

The 27 year-old Whyteleafe FC striker, (pictured) of Burnell Road, Sutton was sentenced to nine months imprisonment at Croydon Crown Court and branded a “risk to the community.”

He denied, but was convicted by a jury of assaulting Ibrahim Jallah, causing him actual bodily harm, in Eldon Park, South Norwood on June 30, last year.

McDowall was a rising star who played for Surrey schools and was a YTS trainee at Fulham FC before going on to play for Croydon Athletic and AFC Wimbledon.

The court heard McDowall’s rental car was clamped in a car park and the defendant’s claims of having a valid permit were dismissed.

McDowall jumped in the clampers’ van to prevent them driving away without releasing his vehicle, but flew into a rage when Mr. Jallah snatched the keys from the rental car’s ignition.

He confronted the victim and landed a single punch – fracturing the victim’s eye socket – but when quizzed by police claimed he was acting in self-defence after the clamper grabbed him around the neck.

“Some time you are going to realize only you can control your anger,” Judge Simon Pratt told McDowall. “You cannot look to others to stop you.

“You have to learn how to control your temper, once you have done that you may become a good and useful person, but until then you remain a risk to the community.

“The offence is an example of you flaring up and losing your temper,” added the Judge. “You got angry because the car you rented was clamped and you thought the victim was a jobsworth because he would not unclamp you.

“You then hit him hard enough to break the bottom of his eye socket and that has had long-term effects on Mr. Jallah.

“When you are released go and play football, go and help youngsters,” added Judge Pratt.

The court heard McDowall has already paid £500 compensation to the victim and his football agent conceded his client has “a short fuse at times.”

He has previous convictions for robbing premiership footballer Anton Ferdinand of two mobile phones following a bust-up at a Croydon nightclub and also drove over a police officer’s foot when stopped with cannabis in his car.