Warrington man spat on stranger outside Red Lion pub in Chester

Barry Heaton, of Princess Avenue in Fairfield, will have to complete 120 hours of unpaid work as part of a 12-month community order.

It comes after the 67-year-old admitted to assault by beating, having spat on a woman outside a pub in Chester.

James Fawson, chair of the bench, said: “This was a pretty nasty and unpleasant event.

“Imagine if this was your partner, you would be upset on their behalf."

Jessica Pridding, prosecuting, explained that Heaton was seen pacing around outside the Red Lion pub in Chester shortly before 10pm on Sunday, February 4.

He eventually approached the victim, a woman, and stood behind her.

The victim recalled hearing the noise of someone gathering saliva before Heaton spat on her back.

When the victim went back into the pub, she was told Heaton had referred to her as a “f**king foreigner”.

Heaton handed himself into police after being made aware of a press release featuring CCTV images of him (Image: Cheshire Police)

Cheshire Police issued a press release on March 11 and Heaton handed himself in the following day, claiming he had been so drunk he could not remember the incident.

Heaton pleaded guilty on June 11 and returned to Chester Magistrates Court for sentencing on July 3.

A probation officer told the court how Heaton, who previously worked for Heinz for 34 years, lives in Warrington but spends every weekend at his caravan in Chester.

Every Sunday he goes out and drinks around ten pints.

As such, he said he could not remember the offence at all.

“He is extremely ashamed of his actions,” said the probation officer.

“This is a vile offence. No doubt it caused distress to the victim, but whether it crosses into the ‘impossible to recover from threshold’ – I would doubt it does.

“Sending him to custody would have a dramatic effect on him and his partner and I worry about the impact on his mental health.

The officer added that Heaton’s childhood was “not positive in any way, shape or form” and that he had left school without the ability to read or write.

Taking all of this into account, the magistrates opted to hand Heaton a 12-month community order, as part of which he must complete 120 hours of unpaid work.

He will also have to pay the victim £200 in compensation, along with a surcharge of £114 and £85 in costs.

Mr Fawson added: “You are obviously very sorry for your actions even though you can’t remember it.

“You do appear to binge a bit on Sundays, this is what it can lead to if you’re not careful.

“Go forth and sin no more, your future is in your own hands.”