Man convicted after not paying for hundreds of pounds of food and drink

A man who did not pay for the meals he ate after trying to use a stolen credit card during the first week of restaurants reopening has been sentenced.

Paul Miles, aged 48, pleaded guilty at Cheltenham Magistrates' Court on Wednesday 14 April to two counts of fraud after he ordered and ate food and drink without paying for it.

The court also granted a five-year Criminal Behaviour Order which prohibits him from entering any pub or restaurant in Gloucestershire without having the funds, or the ability, to pay immediately for any food or beverage ordered there and then.

Miles, of The YMCA House, Cheltenham, had entered a restaurant in Cheltenham on Monday 12 April, the first day outdoor hospitality could open after being closed during lockdown.

He ordered food and drink worth £46.65, and after consuming it he tried to pay with a stolen debit card. When this card did not work he said he could not pay and left the premises.

The following day, Tuesday 13 April, he entered another Cheltenham restaurant and again ordered and consumed food and drink to the value of £87.19 and tried to leave without paying. However, he was stopped by staff and detained until police arrived.

Miles was then remanded overnight and received an eight-week sentence the following day after pleading guilty. He was also ordered to pay £133.84 compensation plus £212 in other costs.

PC Andy Plant said “The restaurants have been closed for some time now causing financial loss and hardship to employers and employees alike. Miles has compounded those difficulties by knowingly ordering food and alcohol that he had no intention of paying for.

"Gloucestershire Neighbourhood Policing teams have supported our businesses by applying for this order and were really pleased with the outcome. 

"Once released, if Miles enters any restaurant in Gloucestershire and orders food or beverages without being able to pay he will be arrested and remanded to the next available court."