Man who kicked and spat at police officers in Stafford jailed

Rikki Swift, of no fixed address, was recalled to prison and sentenced for pleading guilty to assaulting an emergency worker.

The 26-year-old was sentenced at North Staffordshire Justice Centre on Saturday. The court heard that Swift was seen drinking at Riverside, in Stafford, at around 7pm on April 2.

During the arrest, Swift struggled and punched an officer – then kicked out and spat. He had to be restrained and a spit hood used.

Officers from Staffordshire Police have also arrested a 42-year-old man, from Stafford, for three counts of assault and assaulting a police officer.

It is alleged that he spat at a police officer during the arrest in Stafford town centre on Saturday at around 9.45pm.

Dillon Wickramasingha, of Newport Road, in Stafford, appeared before magistrates at North Staffordshire Justice Centre on Monday and was bailed to appear before Stafford Crown Court on May 4.

Officers also attended an incident in Metcalfe Road, in the Stanfields area of Stoke-on-Trent, where a man allegedly coughed in a police officer's face. A 31-year-old man from Tunstall has been arrested on suspicion of harassment and assaulting a police officer following the incident on April 3. He has been bailed while enquiries continue.

Staffordshire Police Assistant Chief Constable Simon Tweats said: “We investigated a number of incidents over the weekend and on the whole people complied with government guidelines.

“However, as these cases demonstrate we will take enforcement action when required and put people before the courts. It is simply unacceptable for workers who are in the frontline serving the public to be spat at or threatened.

“We want to work with the public to stop the spread of Covid-19.

“With Easter weekend approaching and the temptation to get out and about the message to the public remains clear: please stay at home and follow the guidelines. We don’t want to make arrests but we will do so if required.

“I want to be clear and open about the steps we are taking to protect the public, but I also want to thank the majority of people who stayed at home last weekend in Staffordshire.”