The victim was left feeling fearful and anxious
The case was heard at Grimsby Crown court(Image: Donna Clifford/GrimsbyLive)
A man was confronted by a neighbour with a knife as he unloaded the luggage from the boot of his car at the end of a holiday.
The incident started with “a look” and flared into threats with the knife and verbal abuse towards the returning holidaymaker and his wife. At Grimsby Crown Court, Ethan Newton, 19, of Victoria Drive, Barton admitted threatening his neighbour with a blade on September 13 last year.
Prosecuting, Mollie Briggs said the holidaymaker and his wife were unloading luggage from their car when they were confronted by two men. “They looked at each other. They started a confrontation in the street. He pulled out a kitchen knife from his bag so it was in full view and said he was going to cut him up. He called the woman scruffy and threatened to smash his house up,” told the prosecutor.
She added the complainant told the pair: “You haven’t got the bollocks.” Miss Briggs said the woman began filming the confrontation from the window of her kitchen. Newton told her to stop filming and threatened to injure her husband. “He called her a scruffy sl*g and walked away,” she said.
She said the victim felt fearful and was anxious about going to work the next day. He said he did not want to leave his wife, dog and car in case the culprits returned. “I didn’t want to leave her,” he said.
For Newton, Katherine White said her client was smoking less cannabis since the knife offence which was committed just after he turned 18 years. “He needs support with some structure in his life. He is extremely young. There is immaturity.” Newton had no previous convictions.
Judge Richard Woolfall told the teenager: “The public are worried about people carrying knives. Someone can easily get stabbed and die. It can be any part of the body. An artery gets cut and they bleed out. Sometimes it is the person who pulls out the knife who gets injured. One puncture with a knife and someone like your mum is standing over a coffin.”
He added: “You behaved like an idiot. You were lucky not to get filled in. I am pleased you have reduced your cannabis use. Drink and drugs makes people behave like idiots. I expect you were showing off pretending to be a big hard man.”
He imposed a nine-month prison sentence, suspended for 12 months. He also imposed a 12-month community order in which he will perform 15 Rehabilitation Activity Requirement days. He ordered Newton to do 100 hours of unpaid work. The defendant said to the judge he promised he would not see him again, as he left the dock.
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