A SOUTH TYNESIDE FORMER SOLDIER HAS BEEN JAILED FOR SEX ATTACKS ON TWO WOMEN AT NEWCASTLE CENTRAL STATION – ONE AN OFF-DUTY POLICE OFFICER.
Dylan Thompson, aged 34, defended his recent offensive behaviour by claiming that his act of slapping a woman's bottom while she was on an escalator was simply intended as a joke.The court was told that the officer recognized Thompson, who resides on Anderson Street in South Shields, and held him until assistance arrived.
Earlier, he had also committed a similar assault on another woman at a ticket machine.
Additionally, he spat at a police officer who later apprehended him at the train station, almost hitting her face.
This incident occurred just three months after Thompson was sentenced to prison for attacking Emma Lewell-Buck, South Shields’ MP, and a coffee shop employee.
Thompson received a new six-month jail sentence after admitting to the recent assaults during a hearing in South Tyneside Magistrates’ Court.
Prosecutor Jonathan Stirland stated that the first victim was at a ticket machine when she felt someone slap her bottom.
She turned around and saw Thompson, who had been standing behind her.
He explained that the second victim was on the escalator when he similarly touched her with his hand and told her it was “just a bit of fun.” The second woman identified herself as a police officer and detained Thompson at the top of the escalator.
He became aggressive and spat at an officer during the arrest.
The first woman described the experience as "horrendous" and said she felt violated, emphasizing her disbelief that a man could behave like that openly.
The off-duty officer also expressed her distress, highlighting her vulnerability as a lone female and her refusal to let her sense of security be undermined by Thompson.
Thompson admitted to two counts of sexual assault, a common assault on an emergency worker, and failure to surrender to custody.
He is a repeat offender with 37 prior convictions, having served 22 weeks in prison earlier this year for other offences, including spitting at a police barrier and damaging property at MP Lewell-Buck’s office.
He was additionally convicted of attacking a security guard during an attempt to steal a £4 drink from a Darlington coffee shop.
During sentencing, defense attorney David Forrester argued that Thompson's actions were unintentional and did not reflect his character, describing him as vulnerable and without a history of such crimes.
District Judge Zoe Passfield sentenced him to 26 weeks for spitting, 12 weeks each for the sexual assaults, to run concurrently, along with seven days for breaching supervision and failure to surrender, also concurrent.
Thompson was ordered to register as a sex offender for seven years and pay £100 in compensation to each of his three victims.
