Peter Corley, 62, had asked Finley Seggie, 21, and his friend to get off the York-bound train (Image: SWNS)
A fare dodger who punched a train conductor in the mouth after he was asked to show his ticket has avoided jail. Peter Corley, 62, asked Finley Seggie, 21, and his friend to get off the York-bound train at the next stop when they failed to provide tickets.
But Seggie hurled a volley of abuse at the army veteran before squaring up to him and punching him in the mouth. Peter lost his tooth, needed £3,000 worth of dental treatment and had to leave his job after the attack on December 14, 2024. Seggie later pleaded guilty to actual bodily harm. He was given a 16 month suspended sentence at Leeds Crown Court on May 5.
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Peter lost his tooth, needed £3,000 of dental treatment and had to leave his job (Image: SWNS)
Peter, from York, said: “It was very shocking. It was a very hard punch. I’m sure he’s done some boxing training, but he hasn’t learned the responsibility that goes with it.”
He said that he really didn’t see it coming, adding: “I saw him walking towards me with a crooked, unpleasant grin on his face, then it all happened so fast.
“I just remember watching my tooth fly out of my mouth. It happened so fast I had real difficulty processing it.”
The grandfather, who was a Lance Corporal in the army in the 1980s, had retired from his work as a custody inspector for West Yorkshire police in 2015.
He started working for Northern Trains in 2018 and says his voice was even used for the automated announcements.
Peter said the train had a good “pre-Christmas vibe” before he asked Seggie and his pal for their tickets. The friend told Peter they didn’t have any.
Peter told them to get off at East Garforth, the next station. Recalling the attack, he said: “He grinned then punched me. I fell back and he ran.
“My glasses flew off and as I bent to pick them up my knees just went from under me. People on the train were very shocked. I was covered in blood.”
A passenger helped Peter after the attack and called the police. Peter kept working for the rest of the journey to York where he met officers from the British Transport Police and got in a taxi to York Royal Infirmary.
Peter lost his top-right incisor and had to have a bridge fitted. He said Northern Trains footed the £3,000 bill for his dental repair.
Seggie was arrested on February 18 after being identified from the CCTV and charged with ABH. He claimed he had punched Peter in self defence but later admitted the charge.
Peter said he had to leave his conductor job in May last year because of mental-health struggles brought on by the incident. He now works as a supermarket customer team member and delivery driver.
On his former job, he said: “Being a ticket inspector is a very difficult job – there’s a lot to do and you’re really focussed on helping people.
“Often you’re there on your own dealing with all sorts of incidents, including being threatened with knives.”
Peter said: “Most people operating outside the law are perfectly ordinary good people, who, for a variety of reasons, have chosen a wrong path.
“I bear no grudge towards him. I am satisfied with the outcome, but I would have preferred to meet him face to face as restorative justice, to look him in the eye and ask why he did this.”