Ex-Royal Marine locked up for throwing holiday camp guest off a balcony because he thought he was a paedophile
A FORMER Royal Marine is behind bars after throwing a man who thought had groped a 14-year-old girl off a balcony.
His victim was left with multiple fractures top his face and skull, and lost the hearing in one ear, after landing head first on the ground.
Christopher Tatlow threw the man off the 13-foot high balcony after he thought he had groped the breast and bottom of a 14-year-old girl, as he chatted to her outside his holiday apartment in Ilfracombe, north Devon.
The balcony was above a tarmac car park and Tatlow claimed he had dropped his victim feet first, after giving him a bear hug.
Tatlow, a former Marine and French Foreign Legionnaire, said he was just trying to get rid of the man and had no intention to hurt him.
Builder Tatlow, 31, of Bulkington, near Nuneaton, Warks, denied causing grievous bodily harm with intent but was found guilty by a jury at Exeter Crown Court.
He was jailed for four years and six months by Recorder Philip Mott, QC, who told him:"I am satisfied this did not involve you carefully dangling [him] with his feet downwards so he would land on them.
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"You bundled him over the balustrade in a way which gave him no chance to save himself of break his fall.
"That is clear from the evidence and his injuries.
"I have to consider if there was some element of provocation and I sentence you on the basis you believed there was sexually inappropriate behaviour by [him] towards the girl.
"It caused you to lose your temper and lose your self control at that time and that puts your behaviour into a lower category of culpability.
"You have no previous convictions for violence and have given military service in this country and France. You have a good work record.
"In most circumstances you are an upstanding and good member of the community."
In an unrelated case, four senior Marines have been court martialled for failing to stop junior ranks bashing each other’s bare bottoms in a barracks game.
Up to 50 men took it in turns to be “reefed” with “Big Red”, a 2ft gel keyboard wrist support kept behind the bar.
And earlier this year three Royal Marines were jailed for humiliating a new recruit in an initial ceremony described as “40 minutes of depravity and naked humiliation”.
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