A WOMAN pushed, punched and challenged a man to fight her “one on one” in the street before racially abusing him.

Chantelle Bennett, 32, confronted Baljinder Singh in Kings Lane, Newport, when her victim was on his way to work last September.

Mr Singh and Ericka Bailey had been walking when they encountered the defendant who refused to leave them pass.

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He was punched to the left cheek by Bennett who then asked him to fight her before she used an offensive racist term to abuse him.

Talia Keskin, prosecuting, told Cardiff Crown Court how Mr Singh had made a victim impact statement in which he revealed he felt “sad” about the unpleasant incident.

Bennett, of Itchen Close, Newport, was found guilty in her absence of racially aggravated common assault at the city’s magistrates’ court.

This put her in breach of a suspended prison sentence for a hammer attack on a man in Newport city centre in 2019.

She also pleaded guilty to two counts of failing to surrender.

Bennett has 21 previous convictions for 38 offences which include wounding and assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

Neil Evans, representing the defendant, said in mitigation that although the use of one racist word was completely unacceptable “it wasn’t a volley of profanities”.

The court was told Bennett was working to deal with mental health problems and was a carer for her partner.

Judge Richard Williams told Bennett: “You confronted, pushed and punched the complainant before you racially abused him and challenged him to fight you.”

He said he was able to suspend her prison sentence because he believed she was capable of being rehabilitated.

Bennett was sentenced to a 24-month community order and told she has to complete 27 sessions of an accredited programme and complete a 10-day rehabilitation activity requirement.

The defendant was also ordered to pay £200 towards the prosecution’s costs, a £100 fine and a £95 victim surcharge.

She was also made the subject of a restraining order not to contact Mr Singh or Ms Bailey.