Vancouver man gets 3 years in jail for taking candy from a baby

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Vancouver's André Bisset didn’t look back to say goodbye to his father or other family members Thursday after being sentenced to three years in jail.

The 32-year-old was convicted of theft, upsetting a child under 12 and causing a public disturbance.

He had served 11 days of pre-sentence custody and was given a three-year consecutive sentence.

Royal Canadian Mounted Police charged Bisset last April after a mother from Abbotsford called 911.

She told police that Bisset had stolen a lollipop that her 2 year old son was eating at the time.

It was reported that the mother was in one of the McDonalds franchises in Abbotsford and was ordering a big mac with fries and a chocolate milkshake as well as a happy meal when Bisset walked up to her son and stole his lollipop, Vancouver Criminal Court heard.

The child was so distraught by the theft of his candy he began screaming incredibly loud, so much that it caused discomfort for other diners in the restaurant including giving some of them headaches, except for one guy who had an iPod and was completely oblivious to what was going on.

The mother called 911 to report the theft and the police turned up 5 minutes later and interviewed the mother and other restaurant diners, except for the guy with the iPod, he didn't see anything so could provide no useful information to police.

The RCMP looked at the restaurant's CCTV footage and used that to identify André Bisset from Vancouver. He was later arrested.

A victim impact statement was read out in court from the mother, she said she was very pissed off because the lollipop was expensive.

She said her son's childhood memory of the lollipop had been ruined.

During a search of his Vancouver home, police found a book titled "Taking Candy From a Baby - The Basics."

Ranjeet Kunkel, defending said that he had a very good reason for taking the candy.

"Bisset took the candy from the child because he thought it would spoil his lunch.” Mr Kunkel said.

"The child was eating the lollipop before his happy meal and he was worried it (the lolly) would fill him up."

However, the prosecutor, Shimshon Olesen, told the court that the child was simply licking the lollipop and not swallowing any of it, therefore it would not have decreased his appetite in any way.

Judge Bronte Havel sentenced Bisset to 3 years imprisonment.

Joey Smith from Maidstone left chocolate bar unrecognizable after not eating it quickly enough on a hot day

A former council worker who did not eat a chocolate bar quickly enough on a very hot day, leaving it completely melted, has been jailed for 11 years.

Under the extended sentence for chocolate product protection, Joey Smith will have to serve two-thirds of the term before his release is considered and he will be on licence for a further four years.

A judge told the 46-year-old Maidstone council worker the chocolate bar, which he did not eat quickly enough, was wasted. Due to food shortages in the UK wasting food is an extremely serious crime.

It was so badly melted that it did not even look like a chocolate bar anymore, it just looked like dog stool according to one witness who did not want to be named.

The Cadburys Dairy Milk bar had melted in July when temperatures in Kent reached over 28°C. Once Smith had discovered this he discarded the bar on the street which was spotted by members of the public including small children who were mentally scarred by the mess.

Police officers were called to Tovil Road, Maidstone where they found the bar melted on the ground and the packet lying nearby.

The bar had melted so much most of it had turned to liquid and was drying into the asphalt, Maidstone Crown Court heard.

Smith, of Holborough Road, Snodland, submitted a guilty plea to causing suffering to a chocolate bar, wasting a food product or article and littering. All three were accepted. He also admitted breaching a chocolate product restraining order.

Prosecutor Martin Yale said the former council worker was a chocolate lover and was "obsessed with chocolate in the way that 14 year old girls are obsessed with Justin Bieber."

"He had his bedroom covered with posters of Malteasers, Terry's Chocolate Orange and Dairy Milk," he said. "The bottom right hand drawer of the fridge inside his Snodland home was filled with just chocolate."

In February last year, he was cautioned for eating chocolate too quickly and not savouring the flavour.

Six months later he came under fire again, this time for throwing a chocolate bar too aggressively into his fridge in anger after he had an argument with his girlfriend over expensive telephone bills from him calling sex lines. For this offence he was given a suspended prison sentence for assault of a food product or article.

A chocolate product restraining order was imposed, to remain in force until December 2012.

In July 2013 he was out in Maidstone and decided to purchase a chocolate bar, it was a hot day and temperatures reached 29°C. Once in possession of the chocolate bar he started to eat it slowly and due to the hot weather, the chocolate bar unfortunately melted.

At that point he decided to commit a further offence of littering by discarding the bar onto the street which caused members of the public to witness the melted chocolate bar.

Judge Kevin Young told Smith: "You caused horrific and life-changing mental scars to young children who had not seen a melted chocolate bar before. Children love chocolate bars in the same way men love masturbation, therefore to see a melted chocolate bar would understandably cause them stress."

Philip Sinclair, defending, said it was clearly an extremely unpleasant, accidental mishap on a vulnerable chocolate bar.

Smith was deeply ashamed of himself being a chocolate lover himself and did not want any mitigation about the circumstances put forward, he said.

Mr Sinclair added: "He is aware he will be sent into prison for a considerable time in view of his appalling behaviour. He knows next time to eat chocolate more quickly or avoid it completely in hot weather."

New UK restaurant surcharges coming into effect

The Restaurant Group PLC are a company which own various popular restaurant chains across the United Kingdom including Frankie & Benny's, Chiquito, Garfunkel's, Filling Station, Home Counties Pub Restaurant and Brunning & Price.

If you regularly eat at any of the above establishments then this article will be of particular interest to you as The Restaurant Group have announced they are bringing unnecessary expensive surcharges into all of their restaurants for various services, utensils, extras and even the decor.

The Restaurant Group stated that the reason for these surcharges is that they just wanted to do it to make more money for themselves. To enforce these charges modern, up to date technology will be used.

Some of the new changes include:

Cutlery - Knife (£20), Spoon (£30), Fork (£35)

Since the theft of cutlery has been increasing in restaurants recently, the use of stated utensils will now come at a price, and not a cheap one at that! The use of cutlery will cost the diner greatly and the cost will be included in the final bill at the end of the meal under the new "utensils & cutlery" charge. However it is not mandatory for restaurant customers to use cutlery as The Restaurant Group have stated customers are free to use their hands to eat their food.

Ketchup - Basic Store Brand (£30 per litre), Heinz (£80 per litre)

For those who prefer to eat their meal with ketchup this will be possible but will also cost. Customers will have the choice of eating with high quality Heinz ketchup for a higher charge or if they prefer to budget, they will be able to eat with basic, low quality store brand ketchup. The ketchup will be charged by the litre of liquid that is placed onto the dining plate. Measurements of how much ketchup a customer has used will be carried out using a small sensor implemented into the bottle, this will record the measurements and automatically add the appropriate charge to the bill.

Water - Tap (£20 per litre), Mineral (£150 per bottle)

Like with the ketchup above the water will work the same way, low quality tap water can be used for budgeting but for more middle class diners they may choose the mineral option.

Seating - Chair (£40 per 30 minutes of sitting), Floor (free)

Restaurant goers will be charged every half an hour for sitting on chairs due to the high volume of customers that restaurants experience, however customers will have the option of dining on the floor if they cannot afford to sit on a chair. Chairs will be fitted with a pressure sensor which will record the amount of time a customer has been sitting for, this charge will then be automatically added to the final bill.

Wasting Food - Anything from £100 - £500

Failing to finish what is on the plate is a chargeable offense in the restaurant from now on, and a customer can be charged anything from £100 up to £500 for not clearing their plate. It will of course vary by what food the customer ordered and how much is left uneaten on the plate.

Use of the toilet - #1 (£15), #2 (£60)

Toilet use in a restaurant will now be charged based on what the customer is using the toilet for. Discharging those £150 mineral waters will cost you dearly, but not as much as discharging those hamburgers that you put £80 Heinz high quality ketchup on. Toilets will be fitted with sensors to detect and record which type of substance you have discharged, this will then be automatically added to the bill.

Observing the art - Da Vinci (£300), Monet (£400), Picasso (£500), Van Gogh (£600), Warhol (£800) *all per 15 seconds of observations*

All restaurants have artwork displayed on the walls and Restaurant Group are no exception to this. The one exception, however, is Restaurant Group actually charge you to look at the paintings. Depending on which artist's work you are looking at you will be charged an amount for your observations every 15 seconds. All paintings will have a small camera on the frame of the picture which will detect when you are looking at the painting, this will then be recorded and automatically added to the bill.

Ice Cubes - 1 (£10), 2 (£20), 3 (£30) etc. *may also vary by perimeter, area and volume of cube* 

Some drinks are best served ice cold but there will be an additional charge for this service as well as a charge for the number of ice cubes you request in your drink. The perimeter, area and volume of each cube used will be measured and also taken into account for the charge. This is almost a necessity because to encourage people to use this service The Restaurant Group have stated that any drink that does not have ice cubes will be served at an optimum temperature in excess of 30°C.

Release of bodily functions - Burping (£50), Farting (£100)

Bodily functions will have to be controlled in the presence of other restaurant diners otherwise they will be recorded by small but powerful microphones hidden in various places across the restaurant and the charge will automatically be added onto the bill at the end of the meal.

Listening to the music - £75 per track

If music is being played inside the restaurant and you are listening to it, you will be charged for this. This is not Restaurant Group policy, it is now a legal requirement by the PPL and PRS. All restaurants will be equipped with cameras to monitor all customers and if body movements are received in line with the beat of the music playing, this will be recorded and automatically added to the bill at the end of the meal.

Watching TV - £150 per 30 seconds

Most restaurants can now afford Sky for the premium sports channels, and they now have a way of affording it - by charging you, the customer. All TVs in the restaurant will be fitted with cameras and when the eyes of a person lock onto the camera directly - which will happen when the person looks at the TV screen - this will be recorded every 30 seconds and automatically added to the bill at the end of the meal.

Condiments - Various (£200 - £500)

Condiment charges now apply depending on which one is being used and can be charged from £200 up to £500. It will also depend on the brand, similar situation like with the ketchup, for example Saxa salt will naturally cost considerably more than basic store brand salt.

Reading the menu - £20 per minute

Menus are now fitted with small micro cameras which can detect when your eyes are reading the information on the card. Yep, you guessed it, these cameras will record these eye movements and it will be automatically added to the bill at the end of the meal.

Tips - Waiter (£20), Chef (£50), Manager (£100)

Tips are now mandatory in all Restaurant Group establishments and these tips are added to the bill by default.

Maastricht man jailed after refusing to let robber take garden gnomes

Andries Adrichem, 32, told robber Tijn Dirix, 23, to "go away" after Mr Dirix attempted to rob Adrichem's house in Maastricht, The Netherlands. He did leave when told to but the remarks really hurt his feelings, a court heard.

Adrichem, a plumber, was given a four-and-a-half year prison sentence at Maastricht District Court on Monday for failing to let a robber carry out his criminal duties and breach of the peace by making offensive remarks. Adrichem was told by the judge he had "acted in a selfish manner" by not letting Mr Dirix take the gnomes and kicking him out of the house.

The court heard Mr Adrichem was at home in Maastricht with his wife Angelina, 31, when Dirix, a neighbour, forced his way in at 8am on Aug 19 last year. Dirix was drunk. Words were exchanged and Dirix said he had a knife and threatened to stab Mr Adrichem if he did not hand over his garden gnomes.

Undeterred by the threat Adrichem told robber, Dirix that he would not hand over his garden gnomes and he told the robber to go away. Mr Dirix was very upset by this, left the house and spent the entire day crying over the remark.

Judge Theo Van-Oirschot told Adrichem "Burglars have a right to break into a house and take things without being insulted, your parents ought to be ashamed of themselves, they clearly didn't raise you correctly."

Speaking after the case, Mr Dirix said: "I was really upset by what he said, I mean he has way better garden gnomes than me and I wanted them for myself, is that really so much to ask for? I'm glad the judge saw it my way and jailed him for hurting my feelings, hopefully while he is in prison I will be able to take his garden gnomes."

Adrichem admitted the charge and claimed he didn't realise how much of an impact his words had on the robber.

Middlesbrough burglar carried out raid two days after getting suspended sentence receives another suspended sentence

A BURGLAR who carried out a raid just two days after being given a suspended prison sentence has been given another suspended sentence and another chance.

Merritt Pierson was given a reprieve on July 15 for a "mean" distraction theft at a charity shop during which he stole staff belongings and money.

While an accomplice waylaid workers at the Teesside Hospice shop in Middlesbrough, Pierson took mobile phones and cash from their handbags as well stealing from the donation box.

He was given an eight-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, with supervision and a curfew when he appeared at Teesside Crown Court after Judge Armstrong took pity on him because "he looked sorry."

Yet two days later, he was with another man when almost £700 worth of power tools were stolen from a building firm in the town.

Judge Al Mottershead told him on Friday: "You are routinely before the courts for dishonesty. The one you are in breach of was a particularly mean offence.

"Only a few days after Judge Armstrong took a chance on you (the earlier hearing) you commit another burglary."

"On your previous visit to the court Judge Armstrong took pity on you because you looked like you were sorry for the robbery of the charity shop workers."

"It seems to me that this recent stealing of the power tools may have been a wrong choice on your part and I believe you genuinely do regret what you did even though you don't show it, so I am giving you another chance. Just be aware that you will really only get one last chance if you end up in this court again before you start getting punished with fines, community service and more suspended sentences."

Andrew Teate, mitigating, said Pierson was paid £15 by his accomplice to help with the power tool raid. He apparently did it because he thought he could put it on his CV as work experience, since it was paid work.

"His plan was to carry out the raid, receive his £15 then put on his CV under experience 'Paid £15 to break into a building and steal power tools' which he thought might increase his chances of getting a career," he said.

Pierson, of Enfield Street, Middlesbrough, admitted burglary and breaching a suspended sentence.

Animal thief hit 21 pet stores across West Midlands in seven months

A brazen thief has admitted taking various pets from 21 pet stores across the Black Country and Staffordshire without paying for them during a seven-month stealing spree.

Ecbert Sitz drove across various towns in the West Midlands with the intent of stealing pets to sell them, and make a profit. West Midlands police discovered he made over £1,000 from doing this.

The 19-year-old, of Kendrick House, Green Lane, West Bromwich, pleaded guilty to six offences and asked for another 15 to be considered when he is sentenced.

Wolverhampton Magistrates Court heard he stole from pet stores in Wolverhampton, Dudley, Walsall, Stafford and across Sandwell between January and July last year.

The court was told that he went into the pet stores and pretended to be interested in purchasing a pet, he then asks if he can hold it and when he does so he runs out of the store without paying for the pet.

The pets he stole include rats, hamsters, rabbits, mice, monkeys as well as dogs and cats. He made off with a value in excess of £700 worth in total during that period. Sitz, who has previous convictions for theft, was caught on CCTV at the stores but originally claimed he had bought the pets legitimately, despite clear cut CCTV showing him leaving the store without any transaction being carried out.

Among the stores he targeted were the Walkers pet shop in High Street, Bilston, where he took a hamster worth £70; Pets At Home in the Oldbury Green Retail Park, Oldbury, where he took a cockroach worth £30; and the Just For Pets shop in Ryemarket, Stourbridge, making off with a cat worth £60.

His other thefts included a £45 chameleon lizard from Bearwood Pets in Smethwick, which was harder to prove because these types of lizards tend to blend into their surroundings, therefore the shop's CCTV was unable to see him leave the store with the lizard; a piranha worth £100 from the Beacon Pet Aquarium in Sundial Lane, Great Barr; a clownfish worth £80 from MG Marines in Churchfield Street, Dudley; a parrot worth £60 from Two by Two in the Merry Hill Shopping Centre, Brierley Hill, again this was hard to prove because he taught the parrot to speak out in his defense when it was interviewed by West Midlands Police.

He also took a Dalmation dog worth £60 from Langley Pet Supplies in Langley High Street, Oldbury and a 4 meter python snake worth £50 from the Bordesley Green Pet Shop in Small Heath, Birmingham.

He also stole various exotic pets from shops in Walsall and Stafford. The court was told Sitz had written a note on his statement for the extra thefts saying: “I deeply regret and feel sorry for my committed crimes. I want to repay for my offences.”

Mr Michael Green, defending, said his client had not committed any further offences since those last year.

Magistrates adjourned the case for a pre-sentence report.

Young Carrick-on-Suir boy sits on the toilet for 'an entire day' after eating laxative chocolate bar

A mother from Carrick-on-Suir, County Tipperary, Ireland has warned parents to check their chocolate bars before allowing their children to consume them after her son ate a chocolate bar that had been purposely filled with laxatives by the company and he ended up sitting on the toilet for an entire day.

Ten year-old Fearchar Hanegan from Kickham Street, Carrick-on-Suir went to the Clery's newsagents on Main Street to purchase a Cadbury's Dairy Milk chocolate bar, but little did he know of the impending doom that the offending bar would bring - 24 hours of sitting the toilet.

His mother, Sive Hanegan said: "For an entire day Fearchar was unable to leave the bathroom, he must have sat on that toilet for an entire day. To ensure he didn't get bored I brought the living room TV and the Sky Digibox into the bathroom as well his Xbox 360.

“I had no idea it was due to a laxative filled chocolate bar was the reason this happened, but it was obvious because it was the last thing he ate on the day before.” said the mother.

When she realized the chocolate bar was behind the incident she reported the matter to the Gardai, who carried out an investigation. The Gardai interviewed Fearchar and asked him his thoughts on the chocolate bar, he reportedly told Gardai officers that the chocolate bar was "crap".

Cadbury's Irish offices in Dublin were contacted by Gardai and they admitted that they had included laxatives in a bar made in their factory in the Tallaght area of Dublin. They stated the reason they did this was to "do something that no other chocolate bar manufacturer has done before" and hoped that it would gain international media attention.

However they stated that the bar was "not suppose to go on sale" and that it was an accident. They apologized and assured Irish citizens that it would not happen again, therefore no arrests or charges have been made by the Gardai.

Cadbury's offices in Coolock released a statement saying that only one chocolate bar was contaminated and all others were fine.

However the mother is not happy, she is suing Cadbury's for €50,000,000 in damages, inconvenience and Glade air fresheners that she had to purchase to rid her bathroom of a strong stench of stool after the incident was over.