A THUG has been jailed after two separate attacks on ambulance staff.

Bosses at the East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust have hit out at the actions of Philip Wheeldon after the pair of despicable assaults.

The first incident occurred in Colchester in March where Wheeldon, 34, set upon an emergency medical technician and a police officer.

Then last week, Wheeldon assaulted another ambulance worker - this time a paramedic.

He was also caught with a small amount of heroin.

During a Colchester Magistrates’ Court hearing, Wheeldon admitted three counts of assaulting an emergency worker and possession of a Class A drug.

The bench, which was chaired by Robert Clubb, sentenced Wheeldon, of Greenfinch End, Colchester, to 18 weeks in jail for the latest offences.

They said his actions were aggravated by his previous convictions and his failure to comply with court orders.

He was also on bail at the time which was another reason given for his immediate custodial sentence.

Wheeldon was given a 12 week jail sentence for the March assaults which will run concurrently.

The drugs will be destroyed.

He will also be forced to pay £75 in compensation to each of the people he assaulted as well as a £115 victim surcharge.

East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust chief executive Dorothy Hosein welcomed the jail term handed to Wheeldon and said her staff never deserved to be attacked in their line of duty.

She said: “No-one should have to face abuse as part of their job, but when ambulance crews, call-handlers and other blue light staff – who are there to help people – are assaulted or abused, it’s totally unacceptable.

“We welcome the seriousness with which the court has taken these incidents, and will continue to support our staff in reporting abuse and pressing for the strongest penalties.

“Our Don’t Choose to Abuse campaign reminds everyone that, although we often deal with people under difficult circumstances, they still have a choice in how they behave and the consequences of abusing our staff can be serious.”