A PENSIONER lost his leg after a bus driver drove over him following a violent row, a court has heard.
Allan Thomson, 64, is accused of losing the plot when Michael McFadyen, 74, fell asleep on the single decker and refused to get off.
NewslineAllan Thomson has been accused of running over an OAP passenger[/caption]
NewslinePensioner Michael McFadden lost a leg following the alleged incident[/caption]
AlamyThomson is a driver with First Bus[/caption]
Jurors were shown footage of the driver pushing the grandad off the First vehicle in Aberdeen and later dragging him along the floor by his jacket.
Mr McFadyen said he had little memory of the incident because of the catalogue of horrific injuries he suffered.
He said: “The only thing I remember is the wheels going over my legs. The pain was something else.
“I remember there was a woman who put a coat over me and told me not to move because an ambulance was coming.
“My right leg was amputated. They said there was too much damage to try and recover my leg.
“My wife and son were called to the hospital. My wife said she didn’t recognise me.”
Retired engineer Mr McFadyen told Aberdeen Sheriff Court that he’d gone out to meet his brother in a pub.
He reckoned he had probably supped as many as four pints of his favourite IPA and was “merry” but not drunk.
The court heard he fell asleep and missed his stop in the Dyce area of Aberdeen.
He claimed he then approached the driver and asked him if he would drop him off on his return to the city centre.
Mr McFadyen said: “I realised that I had missed my stop. That had happened on numerous occasions. I’ve never had any bother with the drivers.
“The bus goes back into town and passes my house. The driver said ‘no you’re going off the bus’. I did explain but he wouldn’t listen.”
The court was shown CCTV footage of the incident back in October 2018.
A juror gasped at the moment Thomson shoved the pensioner off the bus.
The clip then goes on to show the driver knocking Mr McFadyen to the ground three times.
The pensioner denied he was the one who started the incident. And he hit back at claims that he intensified the row by trying to take photos of Thomson so he could report him.
Mr McFadyen said: “I am not a violent person. He was definitely the agitator. He wanted me off that bus by hook or crook.
“I tried to reason with him. There was no reasoning with him. It’s nice to be nice. You get someone that’s angry and not seeing your side of it.”
The grandfather revealed he had joined an amputee group but struggled to get over his injuries.
He said: “It’s been hard to take.
“I’ve got grandchildren in Sweden. I used to go skiing with them. I can’t do that now.
“I used to walk my dog. I depend on my son to do that now.
“Maybe six months after it I was having nightmares. They have definitely gone away now. I’m just trying to get on with my life.”
Witness Stewart Wyness, 47, told the court he saw the incident unfold close to an Asda store.
He said: “I saw a gentleman get pushed off a bus.”
The court heard he told cops he reckoned the victim was “ a bit drunk”.
Alexander Duthie, 38, was driving home from rugby practice when he ended up at the scene.
His dashcam captured the horrifying moment that the bus drove over the top of Mr McFadyen.
Sheriff Miller warned jurors: “This might be quite graphic and upsetting to watch.”
Prosecutor Paul Roger asked what was shown lying on the road after the bus went over the victim.
Alexander said: “It was pretty bad. It was blood. It looked like his leg had been dragged along the road. It was flesh and blood as far as I could see.”
Mr Duthie swore at the driver as he said the grandad’s leg was hanging off.
He told cops about a brief conversation he had with Thomson at the scene.
Alexander said: “He said he didn’t see him. And that the male had punched him on the bus.”
Thomson denies assaulting Mr McFadyen causing him severe and permanent disfigurement and putting his life in danger.
The trial before Sheriff Andrew Miller continues.
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