Repeat offender who assaulted police officers and tried to use stolen cheque book while on community sentence is jailed

A prolific repeat offender who assaulted two police officers and tried to use a stolen cheque book while serving a community sentence has been jailed for 16 weeks.

Stefan Jakeman – who is 26 and of no fixed address – also fraudulently used someone else’s debit card in Stevenage, stole an iPhone and sunglasses in St Albans and broke into a Volkswagen to take items including two DVD players and a TomTom sat nav.

The cheque book used by Jakeman to try to write out fraudulent cheques was also stolen from the car in St Albans last month.

Jakeman assaulted the two police officers on February 1, in two separate incidents – one in Stevenage and the other in Wheathampstead.

And appearing before St Albans magistrates last week, he pleaded guilty to three counts of theft, two of fraud, two of assaulting police officers, and a charge each of resisting an on-duty constable and using abusing words or behaviour.

He also admitted criminal damage, having broken the Wheathampstead police officer’s wristwatch while resisting arrest.

Chairman of the bench Sandra Caldwell jailed Jakeman for 16 weeks, noting his ‘repeated record of offending’ and the fact that all these crimes had been committed while he was subject to a community sentence.

In addition to the jail term, Jakeman must pay a total of £1,292.29 in compensation.

The bench did not order him to pay costs or a victim surcharge, deciding that compensation should take priority.