Belfast Crown Court heard that the theft of the doctor’s scooter, which was his only means of getting to work, resulted in him losing his job
Two Belfast men who stole a scooter from a doctor in an early morning hijacking in the south of the city were handed 30-month sentences today.
After stealing the scooter in July 2021, both William Stanton Hinton, 31, of Cliftonville Avenue and 30-year old Daniel Lee Eric Rhodes from Ormeau Road drove it dangerously before they were arrested.
Their 30-month sentences were divided equally between custody and licence by Judge Gordon Kerr KC.
Belfast Crown Court heard that the theft of the doctor’s scooter, which was his only means of getting to work, resulted in him losing his job.
At around 3.30am on July 26, 2021 a male was leaving a party on University Avenue with his sister.
As he opened the front door, he was confronted by Rhodes who asked if he could come in. Rhodes was told ‘no’ but despite this, he pushed his way in – then left after being told to go.
Around 4.20am, a doctor was leaving his home on Palestine Street for this shift in the Ulster Hospital.
As he was moving his Lexmoto Diablo from the front garden, he was approached by both Rhodes and Hilton.
The pair engaged the doctor in conversation and after they told him they were homeless, the doctor gave them some food.
They then asked if they could go into his house and the doctor refused, telling them he was going to be late for work.
As the doctor started up his scooter, Rhodes put his hand on it to prevent it moving then grabbed the doctor in a headlock and pulled him off the scooter.
Rhodes then got on the scooter, Hinton pushed him up the street and almost immediately Rhodes crashed it into a pavement.
Following this Rhodes got back on the scooter, Hilton jumped on the back and they drove off.
Police were alerted and a short time later officers observed two men on the scooter coming out of University Square.
Officers activated blue lights and sirens but the scooter failed to stop for police.
The scooter was seen driving on the wrong side of the road and narrowly missing parked cars on the Lisburn Road.
Around 4.40am police saw two men on a scooter in Windsor Avenue and when they arrived, officers saw Rhodes standing on the pavement and he was arrested.
At this stage Hilton was driving the scooter and after he failed to stop for officers, a police dog was deployed and he was subsequently located and arrested.
Whilst being taken into custody, Rhodes kicked and smashed a window in the police vehicle. Following his arrest, Hilton displayed signs he was under the influence and he failed a breath test for alcohol.
During his interview, Rhodes denied being in Palestine Street, hijacking the scooter and driving it dangerously. He accepted he kicked in the window which he attributed to his anger management issues.
He subsequently pleaded guilty to four offences – namely assaulting the male leaving the house party, hijacking the scooter, aggravated vehicle taking driven dangerously and criminal damage.
When he was interviewed, Hilton said that whilst he was in the area, he denied taking the scooter and claimed it was driven by a third male.
Hilton later pleaded guilty to five charges. As well as admitting hijacking the scooter and aggravated vehicle taking driven dangerously, he also admitted driving with excess alcohol and driving without both insurance and a licence.
During today’s sentencing, Judge Kerr said he had read a Victim Impact Statement made by the doctor.
In it, the doctor spoke of how his life changed “significantly” after the incident and revealed that as his scooter was his only means of transportation to and from work, he lost his job.
He added that the incident “has left a deep mark on my life financially, personally and emotionally.”
Noting Rhodes has 85 previous convictions and Hilton has 86, Judge Kerr said the case was aggravated by their criminal records.
He also noted that after reading pre-sentence reports on both men, there were “some positive signs.”
Judge Kerr handed both men a 30-month sentence and they were also disqualified from driving for 15 months. An additional three-month sentence was imposed upon Rhodes for damaging police property.
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