Homeless drug addict swung knife at van-owner who chased him in Mansfield

Nottingham Crown Court heard how Joshua Wood was chased by the van’s owner after he was discovered on Westfield Lane, at around 7.30pm, on November 22, 2021.

The owner caught him in a bear-hug but Wood, now aged 31, wriggled out of his hooded top and got away.

At one point a witness said Wood was pinned against a car, but when he was caught again he swung a knife at the owner before escaping.

He left behind the hoodie and a baseball cap which were used to trace him through his DNA.

The owner found £50 had been taken from the glove box and Wood also left behind a Bag for Life containing various items.

The court heard it took police some time to find him. Wood claimed the van was unlocked and he got in to sleep there. He denied making threats with the blade and theft and the case was adjourned. He pleaded guilty to both offences when he appeared for a trial on Thursday.

The prosecuting barrister said Wood has 20 previous convictions for 39 offences, including battery in 2014 and 2016, and last appeared in court in July 2022 for possessing a hammer in a public place.

Wood’s barrister said he has never been in work and his life has been a “cycle of homelessness, drug addiction and offending to support that habit.”

“He maintains he found the van unlocked and was looking for somewhere slightly warmer against the November elements,” she said.

He has been remanded in custody since October and has served the equivalent of an 11-month sentence.

The court heard Wood learned his mother was diagnosed with terminal cancer just before he was remanded and the prison took him to visit her.

"He hopes to see her before she passes away,” his barrister told the court. “He reached out and she agreed to see him. She is looking after his children.”

She said “he struggles to see beyond two weeks” and his main ambition is to come out of prison and find some accommodation.

Judge Rosalind Coe KC sentenced him to 18 months in prison.