A man who racially abused a US Army veteran on a Manchester tram was today jailed for 24 weeks.
Robert Molloy, whose barrage of abuse towards Juan Jasso was captured on a video which went viral, pleaded guilty to two assaults, one of using threatening words and behaviour and another of racially aggravated assault.
He was also given a Criminal Behaviour Order that prohibits him from travelling on Manchester Metrolink for two years.
His co-accused, Aaron Cauchi, collapsed in court this morning after earlier complaining of stomach pains and was taken to Hospital in an ambulance.
The 19-year-old will now be sentenced later this month on February 21st.
The third defendant, who is 16 and cannot be named for legal reasons, was sentenced to a six-month referral order.
The court told Molloy, 20, that his sentence was doubled to 24 weeks due to the severity of the racial language used in the attack.
Juan Jasso, an associate lecturer at Manchester Metropolitan University and University of Salford, was travelling on the Metrolink during rush-hour when the incident took place.
The lecturer, originally from Texas, was told to “get back to Africa” by the gang.
Onlookers recorded the incident with their mobile phones which shows Jasso asking the men to stop swearing because they were scaring other passengers on-board the tram.
Cauchi and Molloy will also be sentenced for two incidents that happened later that day, when they intimidated a passerby and spat on a cyclist.
The sentencing comes just days after a man and woman punched, kicked and verbally abused two men in a homophobic attack on another Manchester tram, which resulted in them both being taken to hospital.
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