Jail for member of town drinkers’ club

TRACTORS of all types and sizes took to the roads for a charity fundraising event.

A Huddersfield-built David Brown tractor led the way as 56 vehicles dating from the late 1950s to the present day featured in the second annual Calderdale Charity Tractor Run to raise well over £1,000 for Calder Valley Mountain Rescue and the Yorkshire Air Ambulance.

Members of the mountain rescue team provided marshals for the event, which drew admiring crowds along a 26-mile route.

This started and finished at Craggs Country Business Park at Hebden Bridge and took in Mytholmroyd, Luddenden Foot, Sowerby, Greetland, Rishworth and Ripponden.

The event was organised by Graham Mellor, of Ripponden, who led the parade with his David Brown 990 Implematic, a machine which rolled off the alone.

Prosecutor Richard Blackburn told Kirklees Magistrates’ Court that on September 1 Ryan was spotted by a Police Community Support Officer (PCSO) outside Byram Arcade at 6pm.

He said: “He was holding a can of lager and when questioned about it he replied: ‘It’s not mine – I’m just holding it for someone else.’

“The officer took it away from him and he was arrested.”

The second offence occurred on September 21 when shortly production line at the firm’s Meltham Mills plant in January, 1963 – the same month and year in which Graham was born.

Graham, a trained mechanic, said: “I was brought up at Cartworth Moor and everyone when we were kids went to a farm and saw the tractors. I found this tractor advertised on eBay. It was in Norwich. I checked the details and found it matched my criteria.”

Graham, a member of the after 8pm Ryan was again seen by a PCSO.

This time he was holding a can of lager outside Yorkshire Building Society on New Street, Mr Blackburn said.

He told the court: “When challenged the defendant started shouting and swearing that he was not drinking.

“He threatened to knock the officer out.”

The court was told that Ryan had 74 convictions for 108 offences on his record.

Most of these related to his David Brown Tractor Club, paid £1,600 for the machine and spent five months restoring it before taking it to shows.

Members of tractor clubs and farmers driving “working” tractors were among those taking part in the weekend’s charity run.

“There were a lot of people out and about, “said Graham.

“There were people all the way round the route. There will definitely be another one next year.” court orders and included an occasion when he ignored a ban on entering St Peter’s Gardens – which he claimed he used as a short cut as he was desperate for the loo.

He pleaded guilty to two charges of breaching his CBO.

Fazaila Kauser, mitigating, said: “Mr Ryan is 59 and turns 60 this Friday.

“He is extremely ashamed and sorry – he said he should have known better.”

Judge Fanning told Ryan: “You have a pretty poor record and are associated with the Huddersfield town centre nuisance drinkers’ club.

“The local authority and police are trying to break this up and a number of you have orders to prevent you being a drunken nuisance.

“That’s why you cannot have an open can in the town centre and efforts have been made by the court and probation to address your underlying problem.

“But if it cannot be addressed in the community, my only option is to send you to jail.”

Judge Fanning jailed Ryan for a total of 10 weeks.