Knifeman made threat to ‘poke’ staff at supermarket
DEFENDANT HAD BEEN ASKED TO LEAVE
A knifeman threatened to “poke” staff in a supermarket when he was asked to leave, a court heard.
The shocking event happened when Kyle Barefoot pulled a kitchen knife from his waistband in the Tesco Metro store in Melton Road, Syston, at 12.30pm on Wednesday December 2.
The 21-year-old appeared at Leicester Crown Court to also be sentenced for throwing a bowl of excrement over a woman prison officer at HMP Nottingham, on Sunday, September 6.
Lynsey Knott, prosecuting, said the incident in the supermarket occurred when staff spotted Barefoot in the store and “due to previous incidents” asked him to leave.
She said: “He claimed he was waiting for his mum and when they asked him to leave again he became angry.
“He said ‘I will poke you’ and produced a knife but accidentally dropped it.
“A quick-thinking member of staff kicked it out of the way and he was pushed out of the shop.
“Following a brief disturbance, he left but was arrested the next day.”
No-one was injured, said the prosecutor.
Barefoot, of Pevensey Road, Loughborough, admitted possessing a knife in public, which put him in breach of a 16-week suspended detention sentence.
In September, Barefoot was serving a 12-week sentence at HMP Nottingham, for shoplifting, when he approached a female prison officer, in an office doorway, while carrying a bowl covered by a towel.
He said: “Here Miss, have this.” Miss Knott said: “He threw the contents, excrement and urine, which covered her body and splattered on to her face and eyelid.
“She later described feeling ‘shocked, degraded, violated and disgusted.’”
Barefoot admitted administering a noxious substance with intent to injure, aggrieve or annoy.
The court heard the defendant had 38 crimes to his name, including dishonesty offences, battery and three assaults on police officers.
During the hearing, Barefoot told the judge, via a live video link from prison: “I’m really sorry for what’s gone on.
“I don’t want to lose my flat, it’s the only thing that I’ve got.”
Judge Philip Head said he accepted the defendant, who spent his childhood in care, had been through a “tragic” upbringing.
Barefoot also suffered from a diagnosed mental health condition, for which he had stopped taking medication and was drinking to excess, which were contributory factors to his offending.
However, the judge said Barefoot formed an intent to “degrade and humiliate” the prison officer before throwing excrement over her – but may have been influenced by another inmate who was with him at the time.
Judge Head said: “People who attack prison officers must understand they will serve sentences for that; prison officers have to be protected and it would have been a lot longer but for your medical circumstances.
“Stay on the (prescribed) pills and off the booze.”
James Horne, mitigating, said the defendant was genuinely sorry for his actions.
He added: “He’s still a young man and emotionally immature, probably from the inadequacy of his upbringing and poor mental health.”
Barefoot was jailed for a total of 18 months.