Spice drug user chased children

Children were left terrified after a drug user who had taken '˜spice' chased them on their way to school.
Wigan and Leigh Magistrates' CourtWigan and Leigh Magistrates' Court
Wigan and Leigh Magistrates' Court

Innocent Farai flailed his arms, shouted at and pursued the primary school pupils who had approached him after spotting him lying on the floor near the school.

Police had been called at around 8.30am on June 22 to reports of a man acting strangely and scaring children outside the school.

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The school’s headteacher reported that three children had approached him, before he woke up and startled them.

Officers found Farai nearby and said he appeared to be under the influence of either alcohol or drugs.

They observed at this point that Farai was showing signs of being on spice.

After conducting a search and finding a small empty plastic bag on his person, the 38-year-old admitted to being on the drug.

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Farai, of Linney Square, Scholes, appeared at Wigan and Leigh Magistrates Court on a charge on breaching the peace.

He told magistrates that the children had been taunting him.

“I was sat in the street. The kids came over and they were laughing at me,” he said.

“I was sat eating some food. I sat down because my legs were painful,” he added, commenting on a long-term leg injury.

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He insisted: “I never chased them. I never chased the children.”

Farai’s solicitor Bill Pearson told the court: “Whilst he (Farai) does not agree with everything that’s been said, he does accept that this behaviour may have frightened people, and for that he is very sorry.”

Farai was bound over for 12 months in the sum of £100.

Spice, a form of synthetic cannabis, is said to be more addictive than heroin.

Formerly a legal high, the drug has blighted Greater Manchester in recent years, leaving its users in a “zombie-like” state.

In April, the Post revealed that paramedics had been called to Arcade Street in Wigan everyday over a 14-day period to treat Spice users who were experiencing “psychiatric” episodes.