A 44-year-old Armagh man with more than 200 previous convictions has been jailed after breaching a restraining order, assaulting police and stealing from a bargains store.
Stephen Peter Henderson, of Dobbins Grove, Armagh, appeared before Armagh Magistrates’ Court, sitting in Newry, charged with theft, breach of a restraining order, assault on police and assault on a police designated person.
Outlining the background to the court, the prosecution said that on Sunday, July 13, police received a report from B&M Bargains in Armagh of a theft which had occurred at approximately 5pm.
Staff observed a male enter the store and became suspicious of his behaviour. CCTV was used to monitor his movements and he was seen placing multiple food and household items into a bag before attempting to leave without paying.
He was challenged by staff at the exit but walked past them, refusing to return the goods or make any payment. The items were valued at £49.86. A description was passed to police who attended, reviewed the CCTV footage and recognised the suspect as Henderson. He was later spoken to while detained in Magilligan Prison, cautioned and offered a voluntary interview which he declined. He was subsequently reported to the PPS.
In relation to the breach of the restraining order, the court heard that on Thursday, October 30, police received a report from the complainant that Henderson had been calling her numerous times over the previous two weeks.
She described reaching “the end of her tether” when Henderson arrived at her apartment block, ringing the doorbell loudly in the communal area before aggressively knocking on her door. When police arrived, the complainant was visibly upset and provided officers with call logs and messages as evidence.
While police were inside the flat speaking with her, Henderson reappeared in the communal area and was detained and cautioned. As he was being transported away, he shouted towards the complainant’s window, threatening to “get her back”. This was heard by an officer still inside the flat.
Police established that Henderson was subject to an active restraining order and he was arrested for breaching it. During the arrest he became aggressive, shouting and swearing at police. He had to be handcuffed to the rear and at one point was heard to spit in the direction of an officer, requiring physical restraint.
He was taken to Dungannon custody where he continued to behave aggressively and assaulted both a police officer and a custody detention officer.
During interview Henderson claimed he had rung the complainant by mistake, believing he was contacting someone else, and denied deliberately breaching the restraining order. He said he was worried about her wellbeing and had gone to check she was okay. He also denied making the threats heard by police, explaining that he had been drinking heavily and could not remember his actions.
Defence barrister Aine Doyle said her client’s offending was “underpinned by an alcohol dependency” and that he could not recall much of the events but accepted he was present and accepted guilt.
She added that Henderson maintained he was not aware of the restraining order at the time, saying his focus had been on his custodial sentence rather than the additional conditions imposed.
Ms Doyle also told the court that Henderson had received a phone call from a friend who claimed the complainant was under stress and had asked him to check in on her.
Deputy District Judge Natasha Fitzsimons said Henderson had an “appalling” criminal history.
“It’s a record with 218 entries. He’s in breach of four suspended sentences,” she said.
“You have 29 previous thefts and there appears to be multiple previous incidents where restraining orders have been imposed. You only received this restraining order in July of this year and you have already breached it within a number of months.”
For the breach of the restraining order Henderson was sentenced to five months’ imprisonment. He received five months each for the assault on police and assault on a police designated person, and two months for the theft charge.
He was also ordered to pay a £25 offender levy.
The judge activated his suspended sentences, bringing the total sentence to eight months in custody.
