Threatened to petrol bomb council offices

A MAN facing eviction threatened to petrol bomb a council office and kill four council officers.

Nathan Nelson, who shouted accusations at his solicitor when he appeared in court, also tried to bite a police officer.

The 27-year-old was being supported by Charnwood Borough Council after being given a court order that required him to move out of his home, Leicester Magistrates’ Court heard.

During a meeting in Loughborough with a council antisocial behaviour officer on Friday, January 4, he punched a security screen after threatening the officer.

Another meeting was held five days later with council officers and Nelson, who was told again that he would have to leave his home.

He threatened to kill all four of them, firebomb his own home and firebomb the council offices.

Nelson was invited to return to the council offices in Loughborough for a third meeting on Friday, January 11, but when he arrived he was arrested and taken to Keyham Lane Police Station, in Leicester. There, he threatened to bite a police officer, who later felt Nelson’s teeth on his hand but managed to prevent him from biting down.

He also called one of the police officers “a gay”.

Nelson was sentenced at the city’s magistrates’ court last week, having previously pleading guilty to using threatening words or behaviour, threatening to damage property, making threats to kill and beating an emergency worker.

Prosecutor Kwok Wan told the court: “On January 4, Mr Nelson met with his support worker and an anti-social behaviour officer to discuss an injunction served on Mr Nelson.

It meant Mr Nelson would be unable to live at his address in Quorn.

“Mr Nelson launched himself at the officer, putting himself nose to nose with him. The meeting was moved to a secure room and Mr Nelson punched the dividing screen and said, ‘Remember this face. Remember this face if you ever see it on the street’.

“The officer thought Mr Nelson would assault him if he saw him in the street.”

Mr Wan said the second meeting involved two antisocial behaviour officers as well as a housing officer. During the meeting, Nelson said: “I’ll petrol bomb this place.”

Mr Wan said: “He also threatened to petrol bomb his house.

“On January 11, Mr Nelson attended Charnwood Borough Council for another meeting and was arrested on suspicion of threatening to commit criminal damage.”

During the hearing, Nelson, of Unicorn Street, Thurmaston, interrupted Mr Wan to complain that he had not threatened to firebomb the council, but then accepted he had pleaded guilty to the charge.

However, he told the magistrates he had only pleaded guilty to avoid the chance of him going to prison if he were found guilty after a trial, and said his solicitor had guaranteed him he would not go to prison.

Describing the assault and homophobic abuse at the police station, Mr Wan said: “The officer saw him try to bite his hand. He felt Mr Nelson’s mouth around his hand.”

Mr Wan asked the magistrates to increase whatever sentence they gave Nelson for the attack to reflect the homophobic insult.

The court heard that Nelson was already subject to probation intervention after another incident in which he assaulted a police officer who went to arrest Nelson during an argument he was having with his mother in April this year.

Nelson also has a previous conviction for assaulting a member of staff at Turning Point, the alcohol dependency charity in Leicester.

Rashpal Singh, representing Nelson, said his client was not seen as a threat by the antisocial behaviour officer he threatened.

He said: “He saw him as someone whose bark was worse than his bite.”

Commenting on the second meeting, at which Nelson threatened to firebomb the council offices, Mr Singh said: “He was told he had to leave his house. He blows up and makes the threats.

“He wants to get out of the situation he is in and get some control over his life.”

Urging the magistrates to keep his client out of prison, Mr Singh said: “He has complied with probation and probation has said he’s someone they can work with.”

But the magistrates jailed Nelson for 28 weeks and also ordered him to pay £130 compensation to the police officer he tried to bite.

Before they announced the sentence - as the security guards entered the back of the courtroom ready to take Nelson into custody – Nelson shouted at Mr Singh: “Prison? What? You guaranteed me none!”

Nelson told the magistrates as he was taken down: “This person guaranteed me no prison or I would have gone to trial.”