A 25-year-old man who armed himself with a hammer during a disturbance at a Manchester Road car wash last year has avoided an immediate prison sentence.

Mohammed Hassan, of Thornton Lodge Road, Huddersfield, admitted charges of assault and possessing an offensive weapon over the mid-afternoon incident last May, but a judge decided that his 15-month jail term could be suspended for two years.

Prosecutor Joanne Shepherd told Bradford Crown Court that Kurdish man Sarkawt Saeed Ahmed had been visiting a friend at the Wash and Go premises when he became involved in an argument with Hassan whose father owns a carpet shop across the road.

After Hassan went back to the carpet shop he armed himself with a hammer and returned to the car wash with three or four men.

During the violence which followed Mr Ahmed suffered a broken nose and the police had to be called to the scene.

The court heard that Mr Ahmed had to undergo two operations on his injured nose and he still suffered headaches as well as difficulty breathing and sleeping.

Hassan’s barrister Imran Khan conceded that his client’s behaviour had been “appalling and stupid”, but the court heard the defendant had no previous convictions and people who had written testimonials for him described him as kind and caring.

Mr Khan highlighted Hassan’s work in the local community and said his client should never have reacted in the way he did that afternoon.

The Recorder of Bradford Judge Roger Thomas QC said he was dealing with the case as a “one-off event” which would not be repeated.

He said he did not really understand what started the argument that day, but Hassan had armed himself with a hammer and violence had ensued.

The judge said it wasn’t clear whether the broken nose was caused by a direct blow or falling to the ground, but it was a nasty injury and he ordered Hassan to pay £500 compensation within the next three months.

Hassan will also have to 150 hours unpaid work for the community and he will now be subject to a restraining order which bans him from going to the car wash or contacting his victim and another man.

Judge Thomas said Hassan had come very close to going to prison and he needed watch himself in future.