A COMPANY director with a “Peaky Blinders” hat bit a man’s nose during a night out in the city centre, York Crown Court heard.

Peter Sinclair and his friends were on a trip to York from their Teesside homes, said Michael Cahill, prosecuting.

In a queue for fast food at 1am in St Sampson’s Square he reacted to a comment about his hat by biting the nose of a man in another group.

Judge Simon Hickey said: "This court is getting rather fed up with people behaving badly in the centre of our city.”

He described the remark as “innocuous” and that he had no doubt both groups of friends had been drinking.

Someone in Sinclair’s position and of his age “quite frankly, should know better,” he said.

Sinclair, 49, who runs his own business, of Aspley Way, Ingleby Barwick near Stockton-on-Tees, had initially denied a charge of causing actual bodily harm.

His barrister Julian Goode asked the judge to give an indication of the type of sentence he may pass.

When the judge said he would not jail Sinclair, Sinclair changed his plea to guilty.

He was ordered to pay £300 compensation to the man whose nose he bit and given a 12-month community order with 80 hours’ unpaid work.

The judge said the offences had happened three years ago and Sinclair had what the judge called a “stable character”.

Mr Cahill said the victim and his friends were also on a night out on November 25, 2018.

As they waited in the queue for a takeaway in St Sampson’s Square at 1am, Sinclair and his group were ahead of them.

Someone from the victim’s group referred to Sinclair’s hat as a “Peaky Blinders” hat.

The company director took it off and put it in his pocket and approached the victim’s group.

Mr Cahill said words were exchanged.

The victim appeared to have tried to defuse the situation, but Sinclair “gets in his face and bites him on the nose,” said Mr Cahill.

The bite left puncture wounds in the man’s nose.

Mr Cahill said the victim’s friends got involved and CCTV “appears to show the defendant throwing a punch”.

The prosecution barrister said after speaking to the victim that he had not suffered psychological or psychiatric harm as a result of the incident.

Sinclair changed his plea to the actual bodily harm charge on the day he was due to stand trial on two charges.

He was also accused of causing grievous bodily harm in further violence towards the man whose nose he bit.

He denied the more serious charge and it was left on file after he admitted actual bodily harm.

Sinclair has a painting decorating and carpet fitting business, the court heard.