PCSOs attacked with claw hammer after Leeds city-centre NCP car break-in
A thief who was confronted by PCSOs after breaking into a vehicle in a city-centre multi-storey car park then launched at them with a claw hammer.
The patrolling officers heard the window of the Ford Fiesta being smashed in the NCP on New York Street and confronted Ashley Keenan, who pulled out the weapon and raised it above his head before lunging at them.
The 31-year-old avoided jail this week at Leeds Crown Court after admitting multiple charges, including non-dwelling burglaries and making threats with a weapon.
The court heard that Keenan had broken into two premises days apart in December last year. He first forced his way into Bubbleology in Trinity shopping centre on the evening of December 8.
The shutters had not closed properly on the premises due to a technical issue, and he forced his way in after he was seen loitering. He got away with two iPads worth £750.
But he left a water bottle behind and his DNA was found on the mouthpiece.
On December he smashed a window to break into Manor House, and NHS clinic on Robin Lane in Pudsey. His blood was also found on the smashed window.
He then targeted the Fiesta in the NCP on January 19. The alerted PCSOs found Keenan bleeding from his hand and the passenger-side window smashed.
He seemed agitated and pulled out the hammer and lifted it above his head before trying to strike the startled officers, who were able to jump out of the way.
He then fled down the staircase with the officers in pursuit. He made threats telling the officers to stay, claiming he had a Taser.
With back up called, he was eventually taken down and arrested. A pair of sunglasses belonging to the Fiesta owner were found on him.
He was interviewed and made full admissions. Keenan, of Rycroft Court, Bramley, admitted two non-dwelling burglaries, theft from a vehicle, possessing an offensive weapon, making threats and assaulting an emergency worker.
The court was told that he had regularly offended but had managed to curb his brushes with the law. However, he was jailed for two years in 2022 for ABH.
Mitigating for his latest offences, Martin Morrow said that alcohol had been an issue for Keenan and that he had “taken solace in the bottle”.
It was heard that Keenan had child-access issues, had stopped taking medication for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and was drinking heavily.
He said: “He is angry and upset to find himself back to square one. He has not only let himself down but let his young child down.
“He knows that alcohol is not the solution.”
Keenan has been held on remand since his arrest in January.
The judge, Recorder Jeremy Hill-Baker told Keenan he “behaved disgracefully” and added: “In the cold light of day and sober, you are appalled by what you did.”
He said he was “just persuaded” to not keep him locked up, and gave him a two-year community order with 25 rehabilitation days, a three-month curfew order to keep him at home on an evening and a 120-day alcohol abstinence requirement.
This means will be fitted with an electronic tag that will detect the slightest hint of alcohol in his system.
He told Keenan: “This is your last chance now with the record you have.”