Mothers with prams fled a Warrington shopping centre in terror at the sight of a man covered in blood and wielding a knife. Neil Howarth wandered "aimlessly" through a busy town centre while armed with the weapon after apparently being kicked in the head and stamped on by another man.
His drunken actions left several shoppers "visibly distressed" and sparked other mothers who were pushing prams to turn and run. But he was freed from prison yesterday as a judge warned him: "If you do not change direction for the better now, either the alcohol will kill you or you will end up in custody serving longer and longer sentences."
Incident at Golden Square Shopping Centre
Liverpool Crown Court heard on Wednesday afternoon that police received several calls at around 11.30am on May 18 this year from concerned members of the public, who reported that Howarth was walking around Golden Square Shopping Centre in Warrington while "covered in blood" and holding a small knife in his right hand. The 54-year-old was said to have approached several passers-by during this time, with CCTV footage having shown some running away from him and security guards moving others out of his path.
Bethany Leigh, prosecuting, described how a "number of people were visibly distressed" as a result, adding: "Some women pick up their children and run away and there are prams being pushed away. The defendant's behaviour appeared, from the outside, calm. He does not approach anyone aggressively. He wanders somewhat aimlessly through the shopping centre. That, in itself, is somewhat frightening."
Arrest and background
Howarth, of Leonard Street in the town, eventually sat down on a bench in the shopping centre, at which stage he was surrounded by security before a police officer attended the scene and disarmed him. The defendant was subsequently taken to hospital after supposedly being assaulted himself prior to the incident, with the attack having "accounted for his injuries and the blood on his clothing".
When interviewed the following day, Howarth told detectives that he "had no memory of the incident" and "believed he was having a seizure or some sort of medical episode". He has a total of 17 previous convictions for 39 offences, including possession of a bladed article in a public place in 2018, possession of an offensive weapon in a public place in 2019 and public order matters in 2021, 2022 and 2025.
Court remarks and sentence
Gary Lawrenson, defending, told the court that another man had been charged with wounding without intent against Howarth in relation to the alleged assault and said: "They stamped on his head. He was kicked in the the head a number of times. That explains the profusion of blood. He was covered in blood. That might go some way to explain the state that he was in. I am sure, that morning, that he did not wake up and decide to frighten people. He went into a mobile phone shop to try and get some help. This is clearly a frightening incident."
Mr Lawrenson stated that Howarth broke his foot and was knocked unconscious days later when he was hit by an e-bike and added on his behalf: "He has done a fair amount of suffering during these proceedings. He is a walking example of the harmful use of alcohol. He is clean and sober. He is very polite. He is very old school when in sobriety. He has been in custody for a lengthy period of time. He is at a moment in his life where he desperately needs assistance. With just that bit of cooperation from Mr Howarth, he might be at a crossroads in his life. If he carries on drinking, it is going to kill him."
Howarth admitted one count of affray. Appearing via video link to HMP Liverpool wearing a grey prison issue jumper, he was handed a two-year community order with a rehabilitation activity requirement of up to 20 days, a 12-month mental health treatment requirement and a six-month alcohol treatment requirement.
Sentencing, Judge Charlotte Crangle said: "This was a busy public area. It could have caused widespread public unrest. There were a large number of people affected. I do accept that your remorse is genuine and that you have acknowledged your problems and expressed a desire to deal with issues that are underlying your offending behaviour.
"In a nutshell, I could impose a short custodial sentence which would serve to punish you but would mean you would serve only probably a few more months. While that would serve to punish you, serve to keep you away from the public and reduce the risk to them, in my judgement, the better protection for the public would be the imposition of a community order with those conditions, which will compel you to obtain this help.
"In some ways, it would potentially be easier for you to do those extra months in custody and be released. But, no doubt, you would be back to square one. It is up to you now to put in the hard work."
With Howarth having replied "thank you very much for that opportunity, your honour" upon being freed from jail, Judge Crangle told him: "Thank me by complying with it and sorting yourself out for the better of everybody in the community."
