Five-month jail term for Lisburn man who stole from B&M and Tesco
A Lisburn man with 17 previous convictions, who stole from city centre shops, has been sentenced to five months in prison.
He appeared before Lisburn Magistrate Court charged with theft from B&M and Tesco Express in Bow Street.
He was also charged with assault on a police designated officer (CDO) after he threw a glass of water over the CDO who was bringing him his evening meal whilst he was in custody.
The court heard that on April 7, 2026 at 1.45pm police attended Bow Street following a report of theft from B&M.
The defendant, Paul Michael Batsford (45), whose address was given as Grand Street, was stopped by police in Bow Street and was said to have been carrying two bags of goods from both B&M and Tesco Express.
The value of the goods from B&M totalled £26.95 and the value of the goods from Tesco Express totalled £25.50.
The police observed CCTV footage which showed the defendant entering the stores, placing goods in a shopping bag before leaving without making an attempt to pay.
Defence told the court the defendant “admitted theft at the outset”. She continued: “He accepts full responsibility for everything that he did.”
Defence told the court the defendant had 17 previous convictions, but only one for dishonesty in 2010.
She also stated that the defendant has “a history of substance abuse and has been taking drugs since he was 11 years old”.
She added: “He wants to avoid a situation where he goes into custody.”
District Judge Rosie Watters told the defendant she was “totally unimpressed by his behaviour”.
She continued: "He prioritised spending money on drugs and alcohol over food.
"He probably gets more from the taxpayer than the woman he threw water over and she works a 40 hours week to get that money.
"It does make me mad. He’s not a very good role model for his son.”
Ms Watters imposed a custodial sentence of five months on each of the three charges before the court. The charges are to run concurrently.
She also imposed an offender’s levy of £25. Defence sought leave to appeal the sentence.
The defendant was released on his own bail of £500 and ordered to stay out of B&M and Tesco Express in Bow Street, Lisburn,