Man jailed for attempted murder after driving over soldier’s head in row outside Wetherspoons

Anthony Deeprose ran over two soldiers, leaving one with ‘life-changing injuries’

Anthony Deeprose, 30, drove his Vauxhall Corsa over a soldier’s head (Kent Police )

A man has been jailed after attempting to kill two soldiers outside a pub in Maidstone in Kent.

Anthony Deeprose, 30, drove his Vauxhall Corsa over the head of one soldier and hit the other following an argument with the pair outside a Wetherspoon pub.

Deeprose was jailed for 27 years at Maidstone Crown Court after being found guilty of two counts of attempted murder.

A Kent Police spokesperson told the court that the incident occurred when Mr Deeprose was out with friends at a pub on 12 November 2022. A group of soldiers were also at an event nearby, raising money for the Help for Heroes charity.

Following an altercation at the pub, Deeprose punched one of the soldiers, Alex White, in the head.

Despite being disqualified from driving, he then got into his car and drove it directly at the other soldiers, knocking over Ben Walsh and colliding with George Wilkie.

He then drove off before turning back, deliberately driving over Mr Walsh’s head as he lay in the road.

The two soldiers, Ben Walsh, and George Wilkie, were taken to a London hospital to be treated for their injuries. Mr Walsh “suffered life-changing injuries”.

Detective Constable Mark Butler, of the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate, said: “Deeprose knew he was likely to cause serious harm to those he drove towards and it is only by chance that we were not dealing with fatalities. Nonetheless, one of the victims suffered life-changing injuries and many of those involved would have been traumatised by this appalling incident.

“I would like to commend the victims and witnesses who have supported our investigation throughout and ensured this dangerous individual is now serving a lengthy prison sentence. The staff at the public house and the victims’ friends should also be congratulated for the first aid they gave to the two injured men immediately after the incident, and the subsequent assistance they provided to the emergency services.”