Former soldier pushed off bus
Jul 2 2008 by Neil Mckay, The Journal
AFORMER soldier is fighting for his life in hospital after being pushed off a bus after asking passengers to stop swearing.
Stan Dixon, 60, suffered a serious head injury when he landed on a pavement at Horden, near Peterlee, County Durham.
Mr Dixon, and his partner, Anne, 41, a home help, decided to get off the 243 Arriva Hartlepool to Peterlee bus a stop earlier than they had intended due to the argument.
But police said as Mr Dixon began to alight in front of Beech Terrace, on the Coast Road between Hartlepool and Horden, two men rushed forward and he was pushed from the bus. He was taken by ambulance to Sunderland Royal Hospital and then transferred to Newcastle General, where his condition was described yesterday as “critical with life-threatening injuries” following the incident at around 10.15pm on Saturday.
Detective Sergeant Cliff Down of Peterlee CID said he believed Mr Dixon, of Eden Vale, Horden, had become involved in an argument with two men and a young woman passenger on the bus and asked them to calm down and stop swearing.
“There was a row between two males and a female at the back of the bus and a gentleman interjected and asked them to calm down and stop swearing.
“The man got off the bus and ended up unconscious on the pavement.”
Police are understood to be studying CCTV footage from the bus, But DS Down appealed for any passengers, or witnesses who were near the bus stop, on Saturday night to contact them.
He said officers are particularly keen to talk to two elderly women passengers who got off at Blackhall, before Mr Dixon sustained his injuries.
Yesterday, neighbour Rosemary Patterson, 59, said: “It is shocking what has happened to him. He lives quietly and he doesn’t cause anybody any harm.
“If he was attacked simply for asking somebody to stop swearing then that is despicable.”
Another neighbour said: “Stan is not the sort of person to go looking for trouble. We all hope he pulls through.”
In Horden Legion Club, where Mr Dixon pops in occasionally for a drink, steward Salim Haif said: “He is a very quiet man who tends to sit on his own, or with a lady. He is a very polite and nice man.”
Anybody with information should contact Peterlee CID on 0845 606-0365 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.
