Carried knife after his house was burnt

Steven Cranston, whose address was given as Moira Road, Crumlin, appeared last Friday at Craigavon Magistrates Court via videolink from Maghaberry prison.

He admitted that on September 6 this year he had with him in a public place an article with a point or blade, a knife.

He was sentenced to two months in prison and ordered to pay a £25 offender’s levy.

The court heard that at 3.45pm at the Housing Executive office in Hill Street, Lurgan, Cranston, who had a knife, was involved in an altercation with four other persons.

Police took him to an interview room in the Housing Executive office and he had a black handled kitchen knife with an eight inch blade.

A defence barrister said that the night before Cranston’s house had been burnt out and he took the knife with him on his way to the Housing Executive.

He added that his client saw these people and said that he ‘did not want anything to kick off lads’ and had the knife to protect himself.

He had no intention of using the knife, the barrister said.

The lawyer said that on Sunday night Cranston’s partner’s car had been burnt out and he went to her house which was why he was appearing on the videolink.

District Judge, Mrs Bernie Kelly, said there was a way of dealing with this and it’s not by arming yourself, she told Cranston, adding ‘you have an atrocious record’.