A MAN who turned violent after years of drug abuse has been jailed for six years.

A court was told that Derek Crompton was suffering from schizophrenia brought on by excessive use of amphetamines.

Crompton, aged 31, of Fernstead, Blackshaw Lane, Deane, appeared at Bolton Crown Court to be sentenced for one count of grievous bodily harm and two of assault occasioning actual bodily harm. He asked for three similar cases to be taken into consideration.

Judge Gillian Ruaux jailed Crompton for a total of six years because of the violence of the attacks and his past record.

Crompton had been assessed by a psychiatrist at Ashworth secure hospital where he had spent the last 11 months.

He was in Forest Bank prison when a prison officer went to his cell where he was being treated by a nurse after he claimed he was diabetic.

Crompton asked for medication and became agitated and the prison officer told the nurse to leave. Crompton head-butted him as he put his key, attached to him by a chain, into the door.

While the officer was still attached to the door by the key Crompton left his cell and punched the warder until he was dragged off by other officers.

The warder suffered a broken nose.

About a week later Crompton activated his alarm button in his cell in the health care unit in the prison and asked a deputy manager why he was being treated there.

The manager undid the small flap in the cell and because Crompton appeared calm he opened the larger flap and was punched on the nose. The man suffered a broken nose which had to be corrected.

A third attack took place in July last year when newsagent Ray Bromley saw Crompton take a newspaper from the rack outside his shop in Newport Street.

He followed Crompton and confronted him in Victoria Square and told him he had not paid for the paper. Crompton punched Mr Bromley in the face.

He suffered a severely broken nose which had to be re-set with corrective surgery. A witness to the attack later saw Crompton asleep in a town centre underpass and called police.

The court heard he had many previous convictions, including a three-year jail sentence for wounding with intent and several assault charges.