A TEENAGER who appeared before magistrates for attacking another man has ended up behind bars – for not paying outstanding fines.

Jonathan Steven Raeck, of Church Mews, Sherburn-in-Elmet, appeared at Selby Magistrates’ Court and pleaded guilty to assault.

The magistrates heard that Raeck had been with a group of friends at 7pm on July 7 in Low Street, Sherburn in Elmet. Raeck saw another man and shouted at him: “What are you looking at?”

When the other man came over, a fight started and he pulled out a knife – that other man is now being prosecuted for wounding.

Members of Raeck’s group grappled the knife off the other man after which he ran off.

Raeck, 19, chased after him, pulled him to the ground and punched him up to seven times in the head. The police were called and arrested the knifeman immediately and Raeck later.

Keith Haggerty, mitigating, told the magistrates that his client had been extremely angry about having a knife pulled on him.

Magistrates gave Raeck a 12-week 7pm to 7am curfew for the assault.

But magistrates then asked Raeck why he had not paid any money for the last five months towards £293-worth of fines previously imposed by the court.

They told him it should have been taken from his benefit money.

Raeck explained that he had been working and not receiving benefits which left magistrates asking why he had not been paying his fines if he had money coming in.

Jailing him for two weeks, Angela Lewis said: “You simply don’t care about the law and you don’t care about court orders.”