A homeless man who stole dummies out of the mouths of babies in a bizarre crime spree has been jailed for more than a year.
Josh Guilder, 23, approached parents with babies in a series of random incidents around Harlow in Essex, and in one case he assaulted a child.
Chelmsford magistrates court heard Guilder was living rough in a tent, and used the dummies to “soothe himself”.
He was convicted of five counts of theft, three counts of common assault, and a public order offence, and last week received a sentence of one year and two months in prison.
“I know these incidents caused concern in our community and I’m pleased we’ve been able to identify the person responsible and hold him accountable”, said Chief Inspector Paul Austin from Essex Police.
“It can never be acceptable that people in Harlow feel concerned about going about their daily lives or with their children and my officers have worked hard to get this result.”
Guilder admitted taking dummies from babies over the course of almost six months between February and August last year.
The incidents took place at the Staple Tye Shopping Centre and in the streets around Harlow.
During the hunt for Guilder, Essex Police had released a CCTV image of a hooded man they believe to be the dummy snatcher.
Police said the dummies had been snatched directly out of the mouths of the babies in some instances.
When he was arrested in August last year, Guilder told a police officer: “If my stuff gets broken, I swear I will kill you.”
