Marco Pierre White Jr has been sentenced to jail for 18 months after being charged with several offences, including shop theft and racially abusing a Tesco security guard.
White Jr, who is the son of celebrity chef Marco Pierre White, pleaded guilty to 14 offences which were committed between January 2021 and April 2022 around Bath.
These were offences of shoplifting, possessing a knife, possessing heroin and a racially aggravated public order.
On Monday, Judge Mark Horton at Bristol Crown Court sentenced him to an 11-month jail stint, with 32 weeks of a previously suspended sentence to run consecutively – it’s reported that White Jr breached three suspended sentences.
Ieuan Callaghan, for the prosecution, told the court that White Jr, 27, stole clothes totalling £2,496 from Wadswick Country Store, with police finding him counting money in a car in Bath, although the clothes were not present.
White Jr, a former Big Brother contestant, also pleaded guilty to racially abusing a security guard at a Tesco Express in the area, prompting the store to ban him. He is said to have stolen bottles of alcohol from Waitrose, a credit card holder from the luxury Mulberry store and Ray Ban sunglasses from Jollies.
Other shoplifted items included dishwasher tablets, toiletries and booze and food from Co-op and Star News.
Catherine Flint, defending White Jr, said he was struggling to cope in jail while on remand.
‘His dad is well-known and known to be wealthy. He [White Jr] has suffered bullying, intimidation, extortion, threats of violence and actual violence,’ Miss Flint told the court according to the Mail Online.
‘He is finding it incredibly difficult in prison. He is terrified at the thought of ever having to go back.’
According to his solicitor, White Jr has battled heroin addiction since he got into a car accident at the age of 18. Despite reportedly being offered drugs in jail, Miss Flint said White Jr has detoxed from substances during his time on remand so far.
She insisted White Jr is ‘deeply ashamed’ of his offences, including hurling racist language at the security guard.
‘He would very much like an opportunity from this court for another chance to try and get his life back on track,’ Miss Flint said, adding that White Jr has been offered a chef position at his father’s restaurant upon his release.
Judge Mark Horton noted: ‘It is addiction that causes intelligent people, from good backgrounds, who had every prospect, to cheat, lie and steal on a regular basis with a complete incapacity to stop doing so.’
White Jr has had several legal issues in the past, including a conviction and fine in January after he hurled racist and homophobic slurs at police officers, calling them ‘f*****s’ and ‘n*****s’ when they tried to arrest him for being drunk and disorderly at a train station.
He is perhaps best known for appearing on reality series Big Brother in 2016, but was evicted on day 11.
Need help?
The NHS recommends Drinkline, the national alcohol helpline. If you’re worried about your own or someone else’s drinking, there is a free helpline you can call in complete confidence. Call 0300 123 1110 (weekdays 9am to 8pm, weekends 11am to 4pm).
Or you can use Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), a free self-help group with a 12-step programme.
Source: Read Full Article
