A Spalding man entered a Long Sutton home in the middle of the night and threatened to stab the inhabitants and their pet dog, months after being released from jail for another knife offence.
Robert Barnes of Double Street was jailed for 12 months after he pleaded guilty to using threatening or unlawful violence and of being in posession of a knife at an address in Anfield Road.
The latest case held online via Lincoln Crown Court today (Thursday, August 13) heard that at 11.30pm on July 9, Barnes attended the property where Matthew McKay and Stacey Goff were in bed upstairs.
Mr McKay heard someone shouting his name and asking him to come down, Victoria Rose of the prosecution outlined.
After realising it was the defendant who he told prosecutors was ‘an acquaintance rather than a friend’, Mr McKay threatened to call the police after Barnes had ignored pleas for him to leave.
He went upstairs to get his phone and came downstairs to find Barnes had let himself into the home and was brandishing what was described to the court as a knife with a six inch blade.
Prosecuting Miss Victoria Rose told the hearing: “It was at this time that Mrs Goff came down.
“Barnes repeatedly told them he was going to ‘slay them’ andpointed the knife while threatening both of them.
“He then picked up their chihuahua cross pet dog called Peanut and threatened to stab it.
“Miss Goff grabbed the dog and said they would not name him to the police if he left now.
“But he lunged at McKay and continued to approach and threaten them.”
The court heard that neighbours watched on as the incident spilled out into the road.
Witnesses said they had heard Barnes had threatened Mr McKay saying he would “chop his fingers off” and Miss Goff by saying he would “knock her teeth out”.
The hearing was told one neighbour was so traumatised by the event it left her in tears and led to her suffering panic attacks.
Another neighbour filmed the incident, though the footage was not used in court due to the low quality of the footage.
The incident ended “suddenly” Miss Rose said, with Barnes walking away.
He was detained by police half a mile away drinking cider with both witnesses having described him as drunk at the time of the altercation.
Miss Rose said the defendant was abusive to officers and repeatedly banged his head on the cell door after being apprehended.
She continued: “He denied the offence and provided his mother as an alibi.
“She’d seen him at 7.45pm that evening and not again until midnight when they’d had a conversation at the window where he’d told her to say that if anyone asks, she’d not seen him.”
Defence solicitor Michael Cranmer-Brown told the court that Barnes had turned up at the Long Sutton house to confront Mr McKay over an alleged window breaking incident.
Mr Cranmer-Brown, said: “He didn’t take the knife to threaten anyone, he took it in case things got nasty.
“When the threats to call the police came he became angry and upset.
“There’s no justification and not much of an explanation.
“His sister had twins but lost one, his father is ill with liver failure and he has problems with anxiety and depression.
“He’d been drinking too much this particular day and it all came together to make him behave the way he has.
“In many ways it may seem out of character. I know there’s the previous knife charge, but not much of a record of violence.
“It was a lot more posing and it was all bluster quite frankly.”
Judge John Pini gave Barnes 12 months imprisonment for the affray and six months imprisonment for the bladed article to run concurrent.
A five year restraining order not to go near Anfield Road was also issued.
At a hearing earlier in the week Barnes pleaded not guilty to a charge of attempting to inflict grievous bodily harm on Miss Goff with prosecution offering no further evidence in relation to that charge.
