A 19-YEAR-OLD under court orders not to enter licensed premises has been fined £500 after he was spotted at a pub wearing an England shirt ahead of the World Cup quarter-final on Saturday night.
Joshua Cole told police officers he was “ordering a glass of water” because “his mouth was dry” after being seen standing in Bacchus Bar just fifteen minutes before England’s knockout clash against Norway was due to start.
Cole was subsequently charged with breaching an exclusion order preventing him from entering licensed premises and appeared at the Magistrate’s Court yesterday to be sentenced.
Crown Advocate Luisa Stuart, prosecuting, said that Cole was initially seen on Mulcaster Street by a police officer who “recognised him from previous dealings”.
The court was told he was spotted entering a licensed premises and had been seen “standing at the bar” when officers attended.
“He was arrested at the scene and said at the time, after being cautioned, that he had been ordering a glass of water.”
The prosecutor added that Cole “was wearing an England shirt” at the time of the breach, which occurred “fifteen minutes before the football was due to kick off”.
Advocate Estelle Burns, defending, insisted that the defendant had been at the premises because he “had wanted a glass of water.”
“He is well aware he shouldn’t have been there and wishes to apologise to the court, and wishes to reiterate that he will not enter licensed premises going forward,” she noted.
Assistant Magistrate Bridget Shaw, presiding, asked Advocate Burns why it was that her client “needed to order a glass of water”.
“That I didn’t ask him,” she responded.
After pausing to speak to her client, Advocate Burns added: “Ma’am, quite simply, Mr Cole was thirsty, his mouth was dry, and there was nowhere else to get a glass of water.”
Turning to sentencing, the Assistant Magistrate told Cole that the court would deal with his offending by way of a fine of £500.
“I strongly suspect that this had something to do with the football – you going out and going into a bar just before the game started wearing an England shirt,” she stated.
“There could have been other people getting overexcited, other people drinking, and a general heightened atmosphere, and you decided to put yourself in the middle of it.
“Fortunately, the police acted very quickly and removed you before anything happened.”
In addition to the £500 fine, Cole was also ordered to cover prosecution costs totalling £150.
“You are on your best behaviour now,” the Assistant Magistrate told him. “You are on court orders and you have to comply with them, or else the court will deal with you in a serious way.”
