Jailed for 14 months on Thailand return

And he made matters worse because he had a flick knife in his luggage when he returned.

Swirlll, 57, who appeared in the Magistrate’s Court from custody, admitted failing to surrender to court custody.

He had been due to face charges including assault, but had left the island after being granted open remand.

He had initially denied the assault, but changed his plea to guilty on the day a trial was due to take place.

Swirlll had admitted being in possession of an offensive weapon, the flick knife.

He was jailed for a total of 14 months.

His advocate, David Domaille, asked Judge Graeme McKerrell to impose a community service order.

The advocate said Swirlll was highly motivated to comply with such an order, which would provide him with a role in the community.

Judge McKerrell said he was not minded to follow this suggestion. ‘Given what I know about you, I’m not confident you would comply with the terms of the order,’ he told Swirlll. ‘You have a terrible record and you are a persistent offender.’

The judge’s summing up was interrupted by Swirlll on several occasions, but the defendant was urged to remain quiet by his advocate.

Prosecuting officer Sarah Watson said that the knife was found in Swirlll’s suitcase when he returned to the island.

He had said that he bought it in Thailand for a friend and had forgotten it was in his luggage. He admitted later that the knife had been for him.

Swirlll also pleaded guilty to behaving in a disorderly manner at South Esplanade in April last year. Miss Watson said this had stemmed from his behaviour towards a group of youths, which had been seen by a police officer.

The officer had approached Swirlll, who continued to shout and swear despite there being young people in the area, so he was arrested.

The assault had taken place at The Terrace Garden Cafe in September.

Miss Watson told the court that Swirlll had been banned from the establishment for a racist remark that he had made in front of a family with a young child.

On returning to the cafe, and seeing the acquaintance he had been with when he made the remark, he challenged him as to why he had not given him his support at that time.

The other man said he had not wanted to condone such behaviour. He turned away, at which point Swirlll hit him on the head. The victim believed that this had been a punch, but the prosecution had accepted Swirlll’s defence that it was a slap.

The defendant had an extensive record of previous convictions and a probation report had noted that these related to all of the offences apart from the knife importation.

But Judge McKerrell said he could recall an assault case from 2003 which had involved Swirlll using a knife, so that conviction was also relevant.

Swirlll had a two-month suspended sentence in place at the time of the offences and Advocate Domaille suggested that since his client had been in custody since 8 April that the sentence be regarded as served.

There was no evidence that the knife had been imported to be used maliciously.

Swirlll was sentenced to two months for disorderly behaviour, one month for failing to surrender to custody, six months for importation of the flick knife and three months for assault, plus the two-month suspended sentence was activated.