'Acid' attacker found guilty
A man from Solihull will likely face a jail sentence for his attack on 2 drinkers outside The Chalice Pub in July 2017.
CCTV footage of Kelly with the bottle and spraying the 'acid'. Credit: West Midlands Police
Max Kelly was found guilty of 2 counts of common assault, despite denying these charges.
On 18 July, Kelly was seen on CCTV leaving a BMW, brandishing a plastic 'squeezy bottle' and shouting 'I've got acid' at victims Robert Robinson and David Hobson before throwing the liquid over them.
The victims noticed the BMW driving 'erratically' in the residential area earlier that evening. As the vehicle made its first pass of the group, Mr Robinson told the court how he shouted: "Slow down, you t**ts.". A short time afterwards, the BMW stopped in front of the pub and Kelly left the passenger seat with the bottle.
Kelly argued that he was acting in self defense and that Robinson and Hobson were the aggressors in the incident, something the victims denied. He also said the he never shouted 'acid' and that he squirted the liquid to scare the pub-goers. The liquid was found to be a watered-down cleaning solution.
In the recent wake of highly publicised acid attacks, Mr Robinson immediately removed the doused clothing. After the event, local Twitter accounts published advice about acid attacks (see below).
Giving his verdict, District Judge Neil Davison said: "It doesn't alter the fact that when he got out of the car, with a bottle, he wasn't acting with self defence." and called the case "a very serious" offence.
Kelly will be sentenced next month and could face a jail sentence.
