A THUG high on cocaine laced with Xanax left a woman covered in blood following a brutal and unprovoked attack outside a Valleys pub.

Ricci Davies, 29, punched Alischa Hoyle in the face when she was on a night out in Abertillery over the summer.

She had first feared she might have gone blind after her eye closed as a result of the blow, Cardiff Crown Court was told.

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Reading out her victim impact statement on her behalf, prosecutor William Bebb said: “It was completely unprovoked and he was so aggressive towards me.

“I thought I would lose my sight.”

Davies had also waved a knife around and was involved in a fight with other customers in a pub toilet.

The defendant, who has a long history of violence, pleaded guilty to affray, assault occasioning actual bodily harm (ABH) and possession of a bladed article in public.

The offences were committed on the night of Saturday, July 16 going into the early hours of Sunday July 17.

Davies, of Somerset Street, Abertillery, had previous convictions for ABH, affray and battery.

Ed Mitchard, representing the defendant, said his client had lost three stone in weight since being held in prison on remand following his arrest.

“He had been drinking on a daily basis and was becoming corpulent,” his lawyer told the court.

“The defendant has a tendency to self-destruct and he was consuming far more drink and drugs for his own safety.”

Mr Mitchard added: “He has shown genuine remorse and had no ill feeling towards this woman.

“The defendant has little recollection of the night itself – he had taken cocaine laced with Xanax.

“He is very contrite and is clearly an intelligent man.”

Judge Shomon Khan told Davies about the assault: “You punched her for no reason.

“The photographs I have seen of her injuries are deeply unpleasant.

“It has really had an impact on her day-to-day life.

“The attack was completely unprovoked.

“Her eye was closed and she was covered in blood.”

The defendant was jailed for 20 months.