A pervert who exposed himself to a frightened female customer in the grocery store checkout line while engaging in a disgusting sex act on himself has escaped jail.
Alexander Clarke, 58, was standing behind his victim in the Aldi in Boscombe, Bournemouth, when she saw that he was “too close” to her in accordance with the social distance standards in effect at the time.
Before realizing he was fondling himself in the Dorset store, she initially believed the defendant was staring at her laptop in her purse.
The sex pest Clarke promptly left the Aldi grocery after the victim contacted a staff employee, who then phoned for security.
During a lockdown at an Aldi store in January 2021, the “disgraceful” occurrence occurred.
After a trial at Poole Magistrates’ Court, Clarke, who had violated a sexual risk order issued in 2019, was found guilty of conducting a sex act. He received a 12-month sentence with probation.
The prosecutor, Stuart Ellacott, claimed that part of Clarke’s sexual risk order required him to refrain from exposing or enjoying himself in public.
He claimed that despite being spotted getting into a car registered to him outside the store, Clarke was not arrested until June 2021, five months after the offence.
In a victim impact statement that was read aloud by Mr. Ellacott, the woman stated that she “feels nervous going out on her alone, particularly at night when she encounters a lone male.”
According to Lucie Taylor, who is representing Clarke, he just established a landscaping company and, aside from the incident, leads a “normal and productive life.”
She claimed that Clarke, a landscape gardener, will have the chance to start a “long road” of recovery by having his sentence suspended.
Clarke was on the verge of receiving a prison sentence when Recorder Paul Garlick QC decided against it and instead gave him a 12-month suspended sentence with 60 days of community service and 200 hours of unpaid labour.
A two-year restraining order was also issued to the perpetrator.
“Your behaviour was disgusting,” he continued. Your actions seriously distressed the other sex partner.
Do you comprehend the significance of the offence, the judge questioned before releasing Clarke from the dock?
I do, the defendant retorted.