Weed-smoking one-man crimewave from Hextable turned up at Sevenoaks Magistrates’ court puffing on joint and then urinated up side of building
A weed-smoking thief turned up at court puffing on a joint and then urinated on the side of the building before his case was heard.
One man crime-wave Joe Hutchings, from Swanley, was also still using his phone when he walked into the dock at Sevenoaks Magistrates’ Court.
Unimpressed, District Judge Stephen Leake immediately told him his case “was being put back” because he had shown such disregard for the court process.
The 31-year-old had been charged with 13 counts of shoplifting, possession of an offensive weapon, two counts of failing to surrender to custody, threatening behaviour, breaching a community protection notice and breaching a conditional discharge.
Hutchings of Mildfield Avenue, Hextable, had admitted some of the offences in November last year.
He pleaded guilty to most of the shoplifting offences when he appeared in court again in January this year.
He returned to Sevenoaks Magistrates’ Court on February 19 to be sentenced and also admitted two other shoplifting charges and a failing to surrender offence as well as possession of cannabis.
Before entering the building, Hutchings was seen smoking a joint outside and walking around the side and urinating up against a wall, which was spotted and photographed by a court security guard.
As he came into the courtroom with his solicitor, he had his phone in his hand and seemed to be talking to someone, but immediately Judge Leake told him to get out.
He heard several other cases before Hutchings was brought back into court.
The judge asked him if he knew why he’d been asked to leave.
Hutchings replied: “Because I was being rude, I am sorry.”
Judge Leake accepted his apology and then heard how Hutchings’ first shoplifting offence was on March 10 last year when he stole a bottle of wine from Morrisons Daily in Hextable.
On June 6, he walked into a Co-op petrol station in Swanley and took food items of an unknown value and on June 17 returned and stole more food.
Then throughout July, he went back to the petrol station to shoplift on another five occasions, including twice in one day.
On July 26, he went to the Morrisons Daily in Hextable and stole washing powers valued at £114, before again targeting a Co-op in Swanley on September 24, when he walked off with a £6 meal deal.
On September 27, the court heard he was found with a black-handled kitchen knife at Sevenoaks Railway Station and was arrested and later bailed.
Then on October 5, he went back to the Morrisons Daily and took two sandwiches, valued £6, and walked out without paying.
He also got into trouble in Lewisham on October 16 when he verbally abused and threatened someone.
In doing so, he had failed to comply with a community protection notice which banned him from swearing in front of children or causing a nuisance or annoyance to anyone.
However, Judge Leake heard Hutchings was out thieving again on October 20 when he stole Lynx shower gel, costing £1, from Poundland in Swanley.
Later the same day, he walked into the Iceland store in the town and took two packs of bacon and one syrup sponge pudding, which cost £5.85, and left without making an attempt to pay.
By committing the theft offences, he was in breach of a conditional discharge he had been given in February last year.
He was arrested later the same day and was found with a small amount of weed on him.
The court also heard he was also due before Sevenoaks magistrates on October 30 last year but did not turn up.
When he was arrested and found with the cannabis on October 20, he was bailed from Tonbridge police station to return on January 17 but again did not show up.
The court also heard it was the second time Hutchings had been found with an offensive weapon as he had a previous conviction for having one.
The defendant was also said to have been displaying some “manic behaviour” last year and had been sectioned for a period of time as a result.
Judge Leake decided to adjourn sentencing and ordered a pre-sentencing report on Hutchings.
He was bailed until April 22, when he will return to the same court to hear his fate.