Tip-toeing burglar, XL Bully owner and man who masturbated in front of teens among those in court

A tip-toeing burglar, dangerous dog owner and man who masturbated in front of two teenagers were among the offenders in court last week.As always, it was a wide-ranging few days at Lynn Magistrates’ Court, with a number of people narrowly avoiding jail sentences.Here is everyone who appeared in the dock…

Man avoids jail after his XL Bully punctured woman’s arm in savage attackJames Manning, 51, of Main Road in Terrington St John, was sentenced on Thursday following a brutal dog attack in June last year.He previously pleaded guilty to being in charge of a dog dangerously out of control. The court heard Manning had been using the bathroom when his pet escaped the front garden and attacked the woman. A harrowing victim personal statement outlined the physical and emotional distress the incident has had on her. She believes she would have lost her life were it not for a passer-by who was able to drag the dog from her by placing a belt around its neck.Magistrates handed Manning a 26-week jail sentence, but suspended it for a period of 12 months. Man masturbated in front of 16-year-old girls while they waited at bus stopAt around 6pm on August 19, 2023, two teens had walked from McDonald’s on Lynn’s Hardwick retail park to a bus stop in South Lynn.They spotted Garry Bainbridge, 30, of Hillen Road, looking at them from his home while opening and closing his curtains. He proceeded to masturbate in front of them while pointing and laughing. He originally denied a charge of intentionally exposing his genitals, and appeared for a trial in January. However, part-way through proceedings – after one of the girls had already given evidence – he changed his plea to guilty.Bainbridge appeared at Lynn Magistrates’ Court on Thursday to be sentenced, and was handed an 18-month community order.Man caught with drugs after broken jaw triggered psychotic episodeBryn Ballantyne, of High Street in Downham, was caught snorting ketamine when the police attended his home on November 22 last year for unrelated matters. A subsequent search of the property unveiled two rolled-up lottery tickets containing white powder, and tests revealed it was also ketamine.Ballantyne pleaded guilty to possession of a Class B drug in court, and was handed a fine.Fly-tippers escape with ‘relatively small’ fine due to immigration statusLondon men Hansrajsinh Zala and Hemraj Krishna, both aged 33, were caught red-handed while dumping cardboard, wood and electrical items onto Castle Acre farmland on January 10. They appeared at Lynn Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, where they admitted depositing controlled waste on land without an environmental permit.Their immigration status provided magistrates with a conundrum, as they could not hand the pair large fines due to their means, but community orders could have proven difficult to manage if one or both of them leave the country.They will both therefore pay £80, as well as a £32 victim surcharge, but no court costs.‘Disorganised’ woman crashed BMW while drink-driving Lucy Margetts, 43, of Wilton Road in Feltwell, was driving her BMW in Methwold Hythe on January 11 when she was involved in a single-vehicle collision.The police were quickly called to the scene, and she failed a roadside breath test.After being arrested, checks revealed she had no insurance or valid MOT certificate.In custody, she provided a reading of 100mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood. The legal limit to drive is 80mg. She has been disqualified from driving for three years due to a relevant previous conviction.Burglar, 27, could be jailed after breaking into sleeping woman’s homeViktors Tuhanovs, 27, of St Edmundsbury Road in North Lynn, appeared at the town’s magistrates’ court on Thursday for an offence he committed nearly three years ago.Prosecutors described how on June 18, 2022, he broke into a woman’s home while she was sleeping and stole various items. Police later took finger print samples from the scene, which were used to identify Tuhanovs.He pleaded guilty to burglary without violence at court, and magistrates have asked the probation service to carry out an all-options pre-sentence report before they decide his fate.Tuhanovs will return to court on May 6.Mobility scooter user could be jailed after stealing Buddha statue Barry Pegg, 69, of Highgate in Lynn, pinched the item from Clinton Cards on the town’s High Street, along with a Yankee candle and key chain. Combined, they were worth £29.48.He appeared in court last week, where he pleaded guilty to theft from a shop.The theft meant Pegg breached a suspended sentence handed to him by Norwich Crown Court in February. He had a four-month jail term suspended for nine months.Lynn magistrates opted to send him back to the Norwich court, which will determine his fate.“I won’t get there, sorry – I ain’t got no legs,” Pegg replied.21-year-old attempted to start town centre fight while drunkThe police were called on December 15 last year after receiving reports of London man Joel Scortegagna Valente, 21, shouting and swearing at members of the public along Norfolk Street.He was squaring up to people while drunk, urging some to engage in a fight with him – and despite being told to stop by officers, his confrontational behaviour continued.He pleaded guilty to being drunk and disorderly in a public place, and was handed a fine.Woman caught shoplifting three times – but life is now ‘back on track’Verity Brierley-Nobbs, 27, of London Road in Lynn, pinched products from B&M and Spar stores earlier this month and in February.She appeared at the town’s magistrates’ court on Thursday, where she admitted three counts of theft from a shop.Appearing unrepresented, Brierley-Nobbs said: “I am very sorry for the offences that I have committed. I have definitely learned my lessons now.”Magistrates ordered her to pay a combined £38.85 in compensation to the two stores, as well as a £90 fine, £36 victim surcharge and £40 in court costs.Man with history of dangerous driving caught offending in town centreRaphael Avin, 53, got behind the wheel illegally – as he thought a provisional licence entitled him to do so.He was caught driving on Swaffham’s Market Place on April 20 last year. The Coventry man has a history of traffic offences, and previously served jail time in 2019.Most recently, he was handed a two-year disqualification for dangerous driving. Upon its completion, he was sent a provisional licence to allow him to complete an extended retest.However, having driven while disqualified, he wound up at Lynn Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, where he was handed six penalty points.Man ‘absolutely adamant’ he can turn life around after committing 16 offencesJames Leonard, 58, of Turbus Road in North Lynn, was sentenced for 16 offences at the town’s magistrates’ court on Thursday after a response to supervision report was completed by the probation service.Leonard’s crime spree took place between January and the start of this month, and included multiple counts of theft from a shop, criminal damage, displaying threatening behaviour to cause fear, and breaching bail conditions.Mitigating, solicitor Alison Muir said Leonard – who had 62 previous convictions – managed to stay out of trouble between 2017 and 2023 when he stopped drinking alcohol.Now, he has expressed a willingness to complete another period of alcohol abstinence – and is “absolutely adamant” he can do so.Magistrates opted to revoke Leonard’s existing community order and re-sentence him with a new one lasting 24 months.50-year-old crashed while drink-driving to evade ex-boyfriendLynne Johnson, 50, of Jewels Close in Burnham Norton, appeared at Lynn Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, where she admitted the offence.The court heard she had crashed her Audi into a hedge at Horningtoft on September 21 last year, with tests revealing she had 157mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood – nearly double the legal driving limit of 80mg.In mitigation, duty solicitor George Sorrell described the circumstances around the offence as “somewhat complicated” – stating she chose to drive in an effort to get away from an abusive former boyfriend.Magistrates disqualified Johnson from driving for 18 months, although they offered her a drink-driving rehabilitation course which, if completed, will reduce that term by 18 weeks.