A MAN who scaled York Minster and caused more than £19,000 of damage to a spire and masonry should avoid jail - provided he returns to the cathedral and apologises to the Dean for his actions.

A York Crown Court judge deferred sentence on Joshua Webster until next April, when he said he would suspend a prison sentence if Webster keeps to a series of conditions, including making a personal apology to the Acting Dean, the Reverend Michael Smith, which must be coupled with an offer to volunteer his services to the Minster.

The 31-year-old, of Langdale Avenue, Burnholme, who had pleaded guilty to causing criminal damage, must also remain sober and free of drugs, keep his mental health appointments and avoid getting arrested again, said Judge Sean Morris.

The court heard that the incident began when Webster was spotted by a Minster police officer outside a compound below the cathedral late on November 23 last year.

He was told to go home but instead he got over the fence and climbed scaffolding alongside the tower, said Alex Menary, prosecuting.

At the top,as police negotiators with night goggles and firefighters from Harrogate with a turntable ladder were called to the scene, he kicked and pushed a spire and caused damage estimated at £19,108 which would take 38 hours of work to repair.

The incident lasted for almost four hours before he was eventually talked down. He told police he had not intended to vandalise the Minster when he climbed the scaffolding.

Eddison Flint said in mitigation that Webster had been diagnosed as having an emotionally unstable personality disorder, having had mental-health problems since his teens, and climbing the Minster had been a 'cry for help.' 

York Press: Joshua Webster caused damage to York Minster, main picture. He was told to apologise when he appeared at York Crown Court, insetJoshua Webster caused damage to York Minster, main picture. He was told to apologise when he appeared at York Crown Court, inset (Image: Staff)

He said: “He has an awful lot of demons that he’s trying to manage on a daily basis.

“The realisation that he’s damaged such a valuable piece of York’s history is something that causes him great shame. He wants the people of York to know he is truly sorry for what he has done."

He said Webster had tried to kill himself after being released from his last prison sentence a few weeks before the incident at the Minster. After the suicide attempt, he was hospitalised and then recalled to jail “for his own safety”.

The court heard that Webster had been jailed previously for a robbery with an imitation firearm at a corner shop and he was still on licence for that offence when he climbed the Minster.

Other previous offences included assault causing actual bodily harm, criminal damage and possession of a controlled drug.

The judge told Webster that police and firefighters had risked their lives because of him. He said Webster 'knew right from wrong,' but he was a 'damaged young man' and sentence would be deferred for six months to see if he could now 'break the cycle.'