Man bit police officer on leg and told him he had Covid - judge blasts ‘disgraceful’ assault

The case was heard remotely at Antrim Courthouse

After hearing that 29-year-old Richard Savage is currently serving a three year sentence for serious assault, District Judge Nigel Broderick ordered that this sentence is to be served consecutively, describing the offences as “disgraceful”.

“This was a disgraceful assault on a police officer in the middle of a pandemic,” declared the judge at Antrim Magistrates Court, “and to say that you have Covid is an aggravating factor.”

“Whether you had it or not it certainly put the officers in fear,” said DJ Broderick.

Savage, who appeared at court by videolink from prison but who has an address at Blackcave Park in Larne, pleaded guilty to a total of 11 charges across two indictments including assaulting and resisting police, burglary, theft, assault and criminal damage committed on two dates, 16 January and 1 May last year.

Taking the cases in chronological order, a prosecuting lawyer told the court how Savage went into a stock room at the Wineflair off-licence on the Old Glenarm Road and walked out with Buckfast and cigarettes.

When Savage was arrested, he was handcuffed “to the rear” but despite that, he was able to get his hands to his front and produce a cigarette lighter which he then lit and held up to the interior light of the police vehicle.

Turning to the incident in May, the lawyer outlined how Savage was in the Spar shop on the Old Glenarm Road when a member of staff “asked him to keep his distance”.

That only resulted in Savage “becoming aggressive” and storming out with a trolley load of groceries worth £145, said the lawyer adding that police were called and found Savage sitting on the pavement.

It was when officers arrested him that he began to lash out, landing on top of a female police officer who he refused to let go, spitting on her uniform.

As officers sought to restrain Savage, he bit one of them on the leg, biting so hard that he drew blood and they eventually used CS spray to bring him under control.

“Police suspected that he had Covid so they asked him and he replied ‘yeah I f****** so have it and now so do you’,” said the lawyer.

Defence counsel Paul Bacon said it would be “no surprise” to hear that Savage suffers from “significant mental health issues a d significant difficulties with drugs.”

“This was utterly disgraceful and there’s no explanation other than he was taking drugs,” conceded the lawyer.