(Image: North Yorkshire Police)
A SERIAL thief sprayed a York supermarket worker with an aerosol and threatened to set him on fire, a court heard.
But when the shoplifter appeared at York Magistrates' Court to be punished for his crimes a recent change in the law prevented a judge from jailing him.
Richard Cook, 47, who has a long criminal record for shoplifting and other offences, was before the court for 15 shop thefts, assaulting the shopworker, assaulting a York council worker, possessing cocaine and failure to attend court.
The shop thefts included stealing goods worth £34.24 from a Morrison’s supermarket in York on May 2.
Georgina Fishwick, prosecuting, said on that occasion when the shopworker confronted Cook in the supermarket, he pulled out an aerosol can and sprayed it on the employee.
“He was making threats to set him on fire and burn the place down,” said Ms Fishwick.
The shop employee later told police Cook was trying to frighten him so that he could escape with the stolen goods.
“I am experienced in dealing with shoplifters, but this is the first time I have been threatened in such a manner,” he wrote in a statement.
The court heard he was not injured and Cook did not carry out his threat.
Ms Fishwick said police arrested Cook and found some cocaine on him.
Deputy district judge Imran Hussain said a law passed earlier this year states that all prison sentences of 12 months or less must be suspended unless there are exceptional circumstances.
Cook’s case did not fall into any of the legal categories of “exceptional circumstances”.
“It is quite dispiriting,” he told Cook. “I cannot send you to custody today but that is the will of Parliament.”
He passed a 12-month prison sentence, the maximum sentence in a magistrates’ court and suspended it for 18 months on condition Cook does 20 days’ rehabilitative activities.
Cook must also pay £50 compensation to the shopworker and £100 compensation each to One Stop shops, Tesco and Morrisons.
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A probation officer told the court Cook hadn’t co-operated with the service on his latest community order and had not attended the days of rehabilitative activities it had included.
Cook, of no fixed address, pleaded guilty to all offences. Many of the thefts were committed in the One Stop shop in Acomb Road, York, which the judge said Cook had targeted.
For Cook, Harry Blaza said he had been living on and off the streets for the last five years. He had been homeless for the last five months and was struggling to find accommodation.
He had a chaotic lifestyle and a problem with alcohol that led him to commit offences.