A crazed shoplifter attacked two women as he launched as rampage inside a charity shop in east Manchester.
Lee Jarvis punched one of the women who was working in the Sue Ryder shop in Openshaw before ripping a stereo from the wall and launching it at her, a court heard. The 45-year-old also threw a plug socket at another worker as he and an accomplice tried to help themselves to donated items in the aisles on November 5 last year.
The court was told how he said 'I'm gonna smash the shop up and then I'm gonna smash you' when the two women confronted him. Jarvis was arrested outside the shop on Ashton Old Road after he ran out.
The damage he caused was estimated at around £300. Hannah Nicolson, prosecuting, told Tameside Magistrates' Court: "One of the complainants was working at the Sue Ryder charity shop on Ashton Old Road in Manchester when she saw the defendant and another person come into the shop and started to pick up clothes from the racks.
"She saw the accomplice start to stash the items away in their jacket and she approached the pair. She said that she would call the police on them and at this point, the defendant started to become aggressive towards her.
"He shouted in her face that 'he was going to smash the shop up and going to smash her'. He then pulled a plug socket at the wall and threw it at the complainant. It hit her but caused no injury.
"At this point, another worker came over to try and calm the defendant down but as she tried to intervene the defendant punched her in the face. The defendant then pulled a stereo off a nearby shelf and threw it at her before running out of the shop where he was arrested soon after."
In a statement, one of the women said: ''I was in a sense of shock at this man's sudden violent outburst." The court heard how Jarvis had 83 previous offences on his record.
The most recent was for a racially-aggravated criminal assault dating back to June 2, 2015. The court was also told how whilst in custody, Jarvis blocked the toilet causing a flood and also spat at the cell wall.
In mitigation, defence lawyer Colin Davidson said: "At the time, he was in the shop with another person and both of them were trying to take things from the shop. However, he was the one who was singled out by the staff.
"He explains his anger as arising from when a shopper standing behind him pulled his jacket over his head in an attempt to confuse and apprehend him before he had even engaged with the staff member.
"This meant that his jacket was taken off of him for the duration of the incident. When he ran out of the shop he was immediately arrested, as was seen on the CCTV footage.
"Later, when in the holding cell, he was withdrawn and unhappy about his position and he flushed paper down the cell toilet, causing minor flooding to the room, and spat on the walls. He has had issues with drug addiction for the last few years and unfortunately, this has led to extensive self-harm.
"His past history is one that has been blighted by abuse. In 2006 his six-year-old sister was run over in the street across the road from him and tragically his mother died shortly after."
Jarvis avoided jail after being charged with assault and criminal damage. He was ordered to complete a nine month drug rehabilitation requirement and a further 15 rehabilitation activity days.
He was also ordered to pay £200 in compensation to Sue Ryder, £100 to Greater Manchester Police and £75 to each victim plus £85 costs. JPs told him: "It was a totally unacceptable performance on that day and what you did on that day was not an isolated incident.
"This is a very concerning case and only you know the exact reason why it happened. If there’s anything you can take away from this is that you should never again place your hand on another lady as you did.
"It is not a gentlemanly thing to do. Please don’t bury your head in the sand, this isn’t going to go away."
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