Man, 49, jailed after stealing man’s wallet and assaulting him in Basingstoke

A man has been jailed for 45 months after he stole a man’s wallet, assaulted him and threatened him with a screwdriver in Basingstoke.

Officers were called at 3.47pm on Monday 23 September to reports of an altercation at the Co-op on Wallingford Road.

A man in his 30s said that his wallet had been stolen and that his bank card was being used at the shop.

He travelled to the store to confront the man who was using it. He was then threatened with a screwdriver and bitten by the man inside the shop.

Officers attended the scene and found multiple bank cards, a bag of suspected Class A drugs and more than £1,400 in cash. All items – including the screwdriver – were seized at the scene.

Carl Phillips, 49, of Weaste Road, Salford, Greater Manchester, was arrested and later charged with a number offences.

He pleaded guilty to assaulting a person thereby occasioning them actual bodily harm, threatening a person with an offensive weapon in a public place and burglary other than dwelling.

He also pleaded guilty to three counts of fraud by false representation and attempting to escape from lawful custody.

Phillips was jailed for a total of 45 months at Winchester Crown Court on Friday 25 October.

A/Detective Sergeant Drew Wright, from CID North, said: “This was a terrifying incident for the victim, who felt in fear for his life after being threatened with what he thought was a knife.

“There is simply no place for violence in society, particularly at the scale shown by Phillips, and he will rightly now suffer the consequences of his actions.

“I would like to thank the victim for reporting this to us and for his support throughout the investigation.

“Hopefully this result enables him to move forward, knowing that Phillips has been jailed for 45 months for what he did.”