Booze-fuelled thug threatens woman and her son with knife

JON MACPHERSON

AMAN threatened a woman and her son with a large kitchen knife after binging on two bottles of vodka.

Michael Adrian Talbot, of Atherton Street, Stacksteads, damaged Elizabeth Lee’s van in Bacup before brandishing the knife shouting ‘I’m gonna kill you’, a court heard.

A court was told that Talbot’s brother had been in a relationship at the time with Mrs Lee’s daughter and that the incidents arose out of a ‘misplaced perception’.

Around 45 minutes later Talbot then went round to her son Dion Shepherd’s home in Bacup and screamed ‘I’m going to kill you. Just you wait. I’m going to kill you’.

Talbot, 30, pleaded guilty at Burnley Crown Court to affray, threatening a person with a bladed article and two counts of criminal damage. He was jailed for 15 months.

Jack Troup, prosecuting, said the first incident involving Mrs Lee happened at around 5.45pm on September 23 this year.

The court heard how she parked her works van outside her nephew’s home in Bacup and a few minutes later heard banging.

Mr Troup said Mrs Lee looked outside and saw Talbot ‘dressed entirely in black’ and using an eightinch kitchen knife to damage her van. When she went outside, Talbot raised the knife and Talbot ‘threatened to kill her’.

When Mrs Lee tried to record Talbot on her mobile phone he pulled up his hood and said ‘You won’t know it’s me’ before fleeing the scene.

The court heard that Talbot then went round to Mr Shepherd’s home in Bacup at around 6.30pm the same day and was still holding the kitchen knife.

Mr Shepherd left the house armed with a small bat ‘in self defence’ before Talbot screamed ‘I’m going to kill you. Just you wait. I’m going to kill you’.

Talbot threw two bricks towards Mr Shepherd’s property, with one striking a portable cabin.

Jane Dagnall, defending, told the court: “The defendant doesn’t take any issue at all with the prosecution facts.

“He was drunk. He was a complete idiot and he stands by his guilty pleas.

“He has no real recollection of exactly what took place.”

Miss Dagnall said Talbot had a ‘very positive presentence report’ which included an ‘awful lot of good remarks’. She said that he has responded well to his first time in custody on remand by stopping smoking and starting to go to church. ●● Michael Adrian Talbot