FRIGHTENED regulars hurled chairs at a thug who charged into a Bury pub wielding a chainsaw, a court heard.

But 21-year-old Leon Price, who had been drinking, used the tool to cut through the furniture before brave customers managed to force him back outside the Old Crow pub in Bell Lane.

Price later returned to the pub with three friends and attacked a group of innocent bystanders, fracturing a man's skull with a machete and hitting another with an iron bar.

At Bolton Crown Court, sitting in Bury on Monday, Price, of no fixed abode, was jailed for a total of five-and-a-half years.

The court heard he had been drinking at the Old Crow with his partner on July 12 last year, when he saw an old acquaintance Clifford Heyes outside.

Mr Phillip Andrews, defending, said Price felt that Heyes was looking at him and his partner in a way he found unacceptable.

Price then disappeared, and Heyes, being concerned for his safety while talking to the drunken Price, went to collect a set of numbchucks from his vehicle parked near the pub.

The defendant returned to the pub after a few minutes with a machete and attacked Heyes with the weapon. Heyes managed to chase off Price.

The court heard how people sitting outside the pub were disturbed by a noise sounding like a motorbike nearby. Price then reappeared wielding a chainsaw.

Mr William Staunton, prosecuting, said: "People drinking outside were in sheer panic and tried to get inside the pub to safety. The doors were too narrow for all the people trying to get through. When they got inside, Price followed them in with the chainsaw still working.

"Members of the public threw chairs at him to deter him, but he used the chainsaw to cut through the furniture."

Customers attacked Price and drove him outside, where Heyes managed to disarm him before Price ran off.

But two hours later, Price returned once again to the pub with three friends to find Heyes, but he had left.

Instead, he attacked a group of four people who had been at the pub, but had played no part in the earlier incident.

James Cockroft was struck on the head with a machete, fracturing his skull and Stephen Edgar was hit with an iron bar.

Mr Andrews said: "He has had the courage to face up to his responsibility and pleaded guilty. He had also had a considerable amount of alcohol."

Price broke down in tears as his sentence was read out. He was given five years in prison for causing grievous bodily harm with intent to James Cockroft and 18 months for causing grievous bodily harm to Stephen Edgar, which will run concurrently. He also received six months imprisonment for affray, which will run consecutively.

Judge Rumbelow QC told him: "It is serious that the second two offences occurred nearly three hours after you had gone away and had the opportunity to cool off."