Yob jailed after he’s found with blades 3 times
THUG PULLED ONE KNIFE FROM AN EMPTY TUBE OF PRINGLES
A THUG has been jailed after being caught in Huddersfield town centre with a weapon for the third time.
Aiden Arthur told police that he armed himself after getting stabbed previously.
But magistrates said they had no choice but to send him to prison because of the severity of the offences.
During one incident frightened staff at the Mission Cafe were forced to call police after the 24-year-old produced a knife from a Pringles tube.
He was on a suspended sentence for that offence together with possession of a metal bar when he was caught with a blade again.
Alex Bozman, prosecuting, said that the town’s CCTV operators alerted police to an incident at 2am on June 15.
There was a man in Kirkgate armed with a bottle and drunk Arthur was with him.
Mr Bozman said: “Police were dispatched to investigate and Arthur was in company with the person with the bottle.
“He was loud, swearing and shouting, and in drink. He was warned to leave off but didn’t respond to that and was swearing at nobody in particular.
“He was arrested for being drunk and disorderly, a search was carried out and he had a Stanley knife in his left pocket.
“He told police: ‘I’ve been stabbed a few times and this is for my protection’.”
Arthur continued to swear as he was transported to Huddersfield Police Station.
Then on September 4 he was excluded from an area in town due to his vagrant behaviour which was attracting attention of members of the public.
He was instructed by police to leave and not return to the town centre for 48 hours but was later caught in St Peter’s Gardens.
At the time of these offences Arthur, of Edgerton Guest House in New North Road, was on a suspended prison sentence for two weapon offences.
On August 8 last year he was witnessed in the town centre waving an object about aggressively.
This was a black metal bar which Arthur said he was using to protect himself against a person he was angry with.
The second incident happened at the Methodist Mission Cafe on August 24.
Mr Bozman said that he pulled out a Stanley knife after being approached by another individual.
He told Kirklees magistrates: “He was challenged about this then put the knife inside a Pringles tin in a bin.
“When he was asked about it again he reached for the knife and showed the other person what it
I’ve been stabbed a few times and this is for
my protection
was. Members of staff alerted police and he was arrested.”
Arthur pleaded guilty to possession of a knife, being drunk and disorderly in public and failing to comply with an exclusion direction.
Mohammed Arif, mitigating, said that the new knife offence occurred after his client woke up at 1am after consuming a bottle of vodka.
He was struggling to sleep, went out and found the knife.
He picked it up, put it in his pocket and then went into town to meet a friend, Mr Arif said.
He told magistrates that his client suffers from mental health difficulties as well as issues with drugs and alcohol. Mr Arif said: “He associated with like-minded people who live a very similar lifestyle to him.
“In this instance he chose to pick up the knife, it was a bad choice and he should have left it where it was.
“He says he hasn’t been stabbed - it was no more than a bravado comment towards the officers.”
But magistrates said they couldn’t ignore his third conviction for possessing a weapon and jailed Arthur for 29 weeks.
He will have to pay £115 victim surcharge upon his release and the knife seized will be forfeited and destroyed.