A driver has denied breaking a pedestrian’s nose and eye socket by punching him repeatedly in the street with children nearby.

The pedestrian alleged that Ian Shields, 37, told him: “That’s what you get for looking at me” and stood “proudly” over him after the attack.

Shields claimed the pedestrian had made an insulting remark about travellers to him and that he had acted in self-defence.

Both men, who didn’t know each other before the incident in South Bank, denied making the remarks attributed to them.

Today a jury at York Crown Court is expected to retire and decide whether Shields, of Gascoigne Walk, off Scarcroft Road, York, is guilty of causing grievous bodily harm to the pedestrian and of intimidating him a couple of weeks after the South Bank encounter. Shields denies both charges.

Giving evidence, the pedestrian said he was walking from his home towards St Clements WMC at about 3.15pm on April 26 last year. Children were on their way home from school.

After seeing a silver Yaris as he crossed two roads outside the BNT shop in Bishopthorpe Road, he heard running steps behind him and turned to see the Yaris’ driver coming towards him.

He tried to get away from him and the driver grabbed his clothes and hit him four times to the face.

“I could feel my face was in pain, I knew something had happened,” he claimed. “I knew something was broken in my face.”

The driver said: “That’s what you get for looking at me” and was standing “proudly”, alleged the pedestrian.

Doctors later diagnosed a broken eye socket and broken nose.

A 16-year-old boy giving evidence alleged he heard a cry of pain and turned to see the two men at the junction of Scarcroft Road and Scott Road. One had a face with a lot of blood on it and the other ran over the road without looking into an alleyway.

The pedestrian said that he was walking in the same area on May 13, 2023, when he saw the driver and a passenger in the silver Yaris. He alleged the passenger got out and told him to drop the charges against Shields.

Giving evidence, Shields alleged that the pedestrian called him an insulting name used about travellers near the BNT shop and that he has travellers in his family.

He believed the pedestrian was a man called “Chris” who had caused him trouble in the past and ran after him to speak to him.

The pedestrian denied he was Chris or that he knew Shields and got in a boxing stance. Shields claimed he didn’t want a fight and hit him twice in self-defence. The pedestrian went for his pocket and said “Do you want it?”, he claimed.

The pedestrian denied making the remark about travellers and saying “Do you want it?”

Shields denied that he had told his passenger to get out of his car and intimidate the pedestrian on May 13. He claimed he had no idea why the pedestrian got out of the car.

The trial continues.