Man Gets Jail for Continual Breaches of Behaviour Order

Published on: 2 Nov, 2018
Updated on: 4 Nov, 2018

A Guildford man has been jailed for a year for continual breaches of his criminal behaviour order (CBO).

Ben Etherington, 37, admitted two breaches of his five-year order at Staines magistrates’ court on Monday, October 29.

The CBO was granted in March to tackle his persistent drunken and anti-social behaviour particularly targeting local hospitals.

Etherington committed the breaches after being given a suspended sentence on October 18 for another CBO offence, all three involving being drunk and behaving in an anti-social manner.

At the March hearing, Surrey Police gave magistrates more than 400 pages of evidence outlining Etherington’s threatening and abusive behaviour over several years, mainly against ambulance and hospital staff.

The court heard Etherington would visit Frimley Park Hospital, Royal Surrey County Hospital, Farnham Road Hospital and St Peter’s Hospital, Chertsey, sometimes several times a day, acting abusively and in a sexually inappropriate manner towards staff. Frequently, he would refuse to leave after treatment.

Since March, Etherington has been arrested for being drunk and disorderly several times in Guildford, Manor Court in Weybridge and Spelthorne.

In October, the CBO was extended to bar Etherington from these places. It had also barred him from:

Attending or loitering outside Frimley Park Hospital, Royal Surrey County Hospital, Farnham Road Hospital or St Peter’s Hospital Chertsey unless he requires emergency medical treatment or has an appointment confirmed in writing;
Remaining inside or loitering outside the above hospitals after being discharged and asked to leave by staff or a police officer;
Entering or loitering at the Community Centre, Guildford at any time while issued with a formal banning letter from Guildford Action.
Entering Manor Court, Elmbridge, at any time;
Being drunk in public in Guildford town centre;
Possession of and drinking alcohol in public in the centre; and
Behaving or inciting others to behave verbally or physically in any way likely to cause, alarm, harassment or distress to any person in Surrey.

Lucy Lumsden from the Anti-Social Behaviour Team at Surrey Police said: “I hope this sentence will give much-needed respite to the local community, the emergency services and NHS staff from Etherington’s abusive and threatening behaviour.

“We will continue to work with partner agencies to ensure Etherington is given every opportunity to turn his life around.”