An "infantile" car salesman has been handed a community order for stealing a PCSO's pedal cycle during the height of the coronavirus lockdown.
Hassan Ali, 23, of Spackmans Way, Slough, admitted two charges - theft of a pedal cycle and a section 4 public order offence - when he appeared at Reading Magistrates' Court on Thursday, 6th August 2020.
Prosecutor Christine Lynas outlined the circumstances of the offences, which took place on the town's Godolphin Playing Fields on 4th May 2020.
"Police were called by two members of the public after that had concerns relating to a group of males playing cricket, breaching the COVID regulations", Ms Lynas said.
"PCSO Jones attended on a police pedal cycle, dismounted and went to speak to the group of 20 to 30 males aged between 16 and 30 years. PCSO Jones tried to disperse the group, without luck.
"As he was speaking to them to try to get them to leave the area, one of the males present said to Jones, 'He has got your bike'."
Ms Lynas added that when officers attended Ali's address to arrest him on 6th May, he was further breaching the regulations by having his hair cut.
Video footage of the incident went viral. PCSO Jones was seen trying his best to remain calm and diffuse the situation as Ali, who was clearly very amused by his own behaviour, rode away on the bicycle.
PCSO Jones, in a victim impact statement, said: "I made the decision to engage with a large group playing cricket because they were completely disregarding Government guidelines. They were putting themselves at risk, the wider community as well as not supporting the NHS.
"Previously when I have approached groups to disperse them, they have dispersed without issue. I realised this group were not going to do this.
“The group were very intimidating, circling around me. Some of them had cricket bats with them that they could use as weapons.
"They took my bike to try to goad me into chasing after it and lose my composure. I decided to stay calm and focus more on them congregating.
"I felt embarrassed that they were filming me in this position and I did not like it.
"I was worried that the videos would hurt Thames Valley Police's reputation, as it made me look incompetent. I felt humiliated and angry by the way I had been treated by the group."
District Judge Sam Goozée, sentencing, said: "On 4th May this country was struggling to deal with lockdown. The whole country had restrictions placed upon them and upon their lives.
"You, on the other hand, despite those restrictions went into the park and joined another group of individuals to take part in an activity which the restrictions in place at the time prohibited you from doing.
"When PCSO Jones was doing his job as a police support officer to uphold the Government regulations and disperse you, your behaviour in then taking his bike and then partaking in that public order offence, I fully accept as PCSO Jones says, caused him the ultimate amount of humiliation and embarrassment.
"The only person, in my view, who should be humiliated and embarrassed is yourself. Your behaviour was infantile to say the least."
According to reports Ali was sentenced to a six week community order with an electronically monitored curfew requirement. Six weeks would be an unusual duration for an order, so we suspect it was actually a 12 month order with a 6 week curfew requirement. He was also ordered to pay £95 victim surcharge and £85 prosecution costs.
There is no mention of a compensation order, so we assume the bicycle was recovered in good working order.
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