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Wales Online
Wales Online
National
Jason Evans

Man threatened to kill shop worker after being caught 'pleasuring himself' in the aisles

A man caught masturbating in a newsagents returned to the store and threatened to kill a worker who saw him.

Last October, David Rhys Hall was hauled before a judge after outraging public decency.

The 29-year-old was seen pleasuring himself at a shop in Neath- before a worker gave evidence against him.

But despite being fined £273 and made the subject of a 12 month community order, a few weeks later Hall was back at the store.

Hannah George, prosecuting, said the defendant returned to the shop on the evening of December 1 and confronted the employee.

Miss George said Hall began shouting before flicking a lit cigarette at his victim - which hit the woman on the leg - "lunging" at her and calling her a "slag", and then threatening to kill her.

Swansea Crown Court heard another customer intervened, and police were called.

When he was interviewed, the defendant claimed he had been the one being intimidated by the female shop staff and he called his victim a liar.

Hall, formerly of Whittington Street, Neath, and now of Ffordd y Eglwys, North Cornelly, had previously pleaded guilty to battery and to threatening to kill somebody who had assisted in the investigation of an offence when he appeared in the dock for sentencing.

The court heard his only previous conviction is for the outraging public decency matter in October 2019, and that he has two previous police warnings for similar offending.

Dan Griffiths, for Hall, said his client was working for timber and joinery business.

Judge Huw Rees said a probation report into the defendant had concluded his sexual offending in public was driven by "narcissistic reasons", and he told Hall such behaviour "needs to stop".

Giving the defendant a 25 per cent discount for his guilty pleas, Hall was given a prison sentence of six months, which was suspended for 18 months.

Hall was also ordered to complete a rehabilitation course and to complete 180 hours of unpaid work.

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