Scarborough man found to be carrying knife in his sock is locked up again after dramatic arrest

Jonathan Prew, 24, was wanted on other matters when police spotted him in Eastfield and suspected he had a blade, York Crown Court heard.

One officer got out of the police car and pointed a Taser at him and “gave instructions for him to get on his knees”, said prosecutor Kelly Sherif.

“He asked (Prew) if he had any sharp objects (and) the defendant replied ‘no’,” she added.

Prew was arrested and taken into custody where a body searched revealed he had a black-handled knife which had been tucked into his sock.

Police searched his rucksack and found some cannabis and a cannabis grinder.

They also found 27 Pregabalin tablets which he had hidden in his underwear.

Prew, of no fixed address, told police the cannabis and the tablets were for his own use.

He was charged with possessing an offensive weapon and possession of Class B and Class C drugs.

He admitted all the offences and appeared for sentence on Wednesday (Mar 2).

Ms Sherif said that Prew had 13 previous convictions for 36 offences including two for carrying a knife and another for possessing a prohibited weapon.

He also had previous convictions for shoplifting and possessing cannabis.

Since his latest arrest for carrying the knife in Eastfield in April 2021, he had committed more offences including burglary, battery and possessing an offensive weapon which resulted in a prison sentence of about 26 weeks in November last year.

He is still serving that sentence.

Katherine Robinson, mitigating, said Prew was due to be released from his current prison sentence in just under a few weeks’ time and had a job lined up.

She said Prew had a long-standing drug addiction and committed offences to fund his habit.

But judge Timothy Clayson said that as a third-strike knife offender, Prew was subject to a minimum mandatory jail sentence of six months.

He told Prew: “You are only 24 but have amassed a long list of previous convictions.

"In recent years, you seem to have (had) something of a habit of getting into trouble with either offensive or prohibited weapons.”

Prew was jailed for six months, consecutive to the sentence he was already serving.