‘He hasn’t beaten me, and he won’t - I’m determined’

Jamie Marsh, 61, was working at the Vale Service Station shop on 30 April last year when Richard Clarke walked in.

Mr Marsh was cooking sausage rolls ready for sale at around 3.30am when the attack started.

His memory of what happened is fragmented but he recalled noticing a man in a balaclava in the shop.

‘I thought it was my colleague come in to give me a hand,’ he said.

‘I looked up and that was it. He started kicking out and smashing me up.

‘All he said to me was “I’ve got a knife on me”.’

Mr Marsh could remember opening the safe and taking out money before he managed to run out of the shop.

‘I remember phoning up the emergency services. They kept me on the phone all the time,’ he said.

‘I was hiding behind the garage by Freelance Cars.’

He was taken to hospital but released later that morning after fears that he had a ruptured eye socket proved unfounded.

However, his injuries were more serious than was thought at the time and it was only after he had trouble eating and went to the dentist that he was told he had a broken jaw.

That ended up requiring an operation, which was carried out by a Southampton surgeon who came to the island.

Mr Marsh lost all but two of his bottom teeth and had a denture plate fitted – which has to be replaced soon since his jaw has shrunk – and he also needs work on his upper teeth.

Another indication of the violence of the attack was a visible foot print on Mr Marsh’s chest from where Clarke had stamped on him as he lay on the ground, leaving a mark even through Mr Marsh’s jacket and clothing.

That caused a cracked sternum and cracked ribs. Mr Marsh also sustained a broken left knee in the assault.

He has also had hearing issues in his left ear since the attack and said he might need a hearing aid.

Had he not managed to get away, things could have been a lot worse.

‘If he hadn’t stopped when he had or when I got away, I wouldn’t be here now,’ he said.

After taking the money, about £2,000, Clarke dropped it and ran off.

Despite a search by police he was not found that day.

‘The first time I knew he was captured was virtually a month after, but I think they had a good inkling who it was,’ said Mr Marsh.

It was not until February this year that Clarke formally entered a guilty plea to burglary in the Royal Court.

Mr Marsh was told that CCTV obtained by the police showed the attack in full, but he had never seen it until it was shown in court.

He was expecting it to be screened during Clarke’s sentencing hearing, which he planned to attend, just as he did most of Clarke’s previous appearances – even those where he appeared via video link from prison.

Clarke, 43, was sentenced yesterday to 11 years in prison.

Although Mr Marsh’s physical injuries have been tended to as much as possible, the mental impact of the attack is never going to leave him.

‘Afterwards I didn’t leave the house for months, really, and even the doors are locked. I close the curtains. I’ve had a lot of help from people, I’ve had counselling. It’s just nightmares and headaches all the time.’

But he is very grateful for all the support he has received.

‘I’d just like to thank everybody for their support,’ he said.

‘My family, and the staff at the shop, who have been amazing because they’ve had to cover my shifts, the garage as well. And there’s been a few small companies that have given donations.’

He is still employed by Falles, the company that owns the garage, and he was grateful for its continued support.

He plans to go back to work and has paid some visits to the shop to see how it felt.

‘I’m hoping to get back to work at the end of June but it all depends on what the doctor says,’ he said.

‘I won’t go back until I’m fully fit.’

Clarke has written a letter apologising for the assault and offering to meet Mr Marsh face to face in prison.

‘I’m not going to take up the offer.

‘He’s ruined my life.

‘I won’t get over it, but I’ve got to, and I just want to carry on and enjoy the rest of it.’

One thought is driving him on: ‘I don’t want him to think that he’s beaten me,’ he said.

‘He hasn’t beaten me, and he won’t - I’m determined.’