Man punched Fleetwood shop security guard who tried to stop his girlfriend

Aiden Riches, unemployed, aged 22, of Station Road, Fleetwood, pleaded guilty to assault.

He was sentenced to a four weeks community order, put on a four weeks tagged curfew from 8pm to 8am and ordered to pay £50 compensation to the guard and £90 victims’ surcharge.

Prosecutor, Sazeeda Ismail, said a security officer at the One Stop store on September 1, at about 4.45pm, heard a woman in the shop say: “You can’t do anything while I’m in the shop.”

The guard saw the woman standing by the door of the shop and told a colleague not to let her out.

Without warning, Riches punched the guard in the face and left with the woman. The guard was not injured.

Riches had 17 previous offences on his record including two for violence.

Patrick Nelligan, defending, said his client accepted he had been wrong and apologised for his behaviour.

Without Riches knowledge, his girlfriend had got involved with security staff at the store. When they wanted to detain her he lost his temper.