A train conductor lost a tooth when a passenger punched him in the mouth – after he asked to see his ticket.
Peter Corley, 62, had asked Finley Seggie, 21, and his friend to get off the York-bound train at the next stop when they failed to provide tickets.
But Seggie verbally abused the conductor before approaching him and punching him in the mouth.
Peter lost his tooth, had £3,000 of dental treatment and had to leave his job following the incident on December 14, 2024.
Seggie later pleaded guilty to ABH and on May 5 he was handed a 16 month suspended sentence at Leeds Crown Court.
Grandad-of-one, Peter, from York, said: “It was very shocking.
“It was a very hard punch. I’m sure he’s done some boxing training, but he hasn’t learned the responsibility that goes with it.
“As a ticket inspector you know there are 2% of passengers who would deck you, but I really didn’t see it coming.
“I saw him walking towards me with a crooked unpleasant grin on his face, then it all happened so fast.
“I just remember watching my tooth fly out of my mouth.
“It happened so fast I had real difficulty processing it.”
Peter, who was a Lance Corporal in the army in the 1980s, had retired from his work as a custody inspector for West Yorkshire police in 2015.
But wanting to work again he started working for Northern Trains in 2018 – and says his voice was even used for the
automated announcements.
He was conducting the afternoon train from Leeds to York, on December 14, 2024.
Peter said the train had a good “pre-Christmas vibe” before he asked Seggie and his friend for their tickets.
The friend told Peter they didn’t have one, before Seggie verbally abused him.
Peter asked them to get off at East Garforth, the next station, and went to assist another passenger, and alerted the driver.
About the incident Peter, who shared the story on Talk to the Press, said: “He grinned, then punched me, I fell back, and he ran.
“My glasses flew off, and as I bent to pick them up my knees just went from under me.
“People on the train were very shocked. I was covered in blood.”
A passenger helped Peter after Seggie punched him, and called the police.
Peter conducted the train on the rest of the journey to York, where he met the British Transport Police, and got in a taxi to York Royal Infirmary.
Peter lost his top-right incisor, and had to have a bridge fitted. Northern Trains footed the £3,000 bill for his dental repair, he said.
But he had to leave the job in May 2025 because of mental-health struggles brought on by the incident, he said.
He works as a supermarket customer team member and delivery driver now.
He said: “They were a very kind and responsible employer. I really miss that job.
“Being a ticket inspector is a very difficult job – there’s a lot to do and you’re really focussed on helping people.
“Often you’re there on your own dealing with all sorts of incidents, including being threatened with knives.
“I spent a lot of my time talking to people and explaining things, trying to make their experience a good one.
“People mind a lot about trains being late, but then you work for them, you become aware of all the reasons why this happens.
“There’s a lot of good on the railways, and lots of people working really hard to make it better.
“It’s a great career for all ages.”
Seggie was arrested on February 18 after being identified from the CCTV and charged with ABH.
He claimed he had punched Peter in self defence but later admitted the charge and was sentenced in May 2026.
During his interview he accepted punching the man but claimed it was in self defence.
Peter said: “Most people operating outside the law are perfectly ordinary good people, who, for a variety of reasons, have chosen a wrong path.
“I bear no grudge towards him.
“I am satisfied with the outcome, but I would have preferred to meet him face to face as restorative justice, to look him in the eye and ask why he did this.”
