Man who brandished samurai sword at Basingstoke B&M store on Christmas Day jailed

A man who brandished a samurai sword at Basingstoke's B&M store on Christmas Day has been jailed.

John Shrubshall, 45, of no fixed abode, had the weapon in the B&M car park on Worting Road at around 7.45pm on 25 December.

A witness described seeing Shrubshall, armed with a sword, kicking the only parked vehicle which had been left in the car park during the festive period.

Officers attended the scene and found the weapon underneath the car. Shrubshall had attempted to flee the scene and was arrested a short while later.

Police said nobody was threatened or injured during the incident and Shrubshall was later charged with possession an offensive weapon in a public place.

He admitted the offence and was jailed for six months when he appeared at Basingstoke Magistrates Court on Wednesday 3 January.

Detective Constable Natalie Gardner, from CID North, said: “We uphold a zero-tolerance approach towards offensive weapons and knife crime.

“Thankfully, in this instance, no one was hurt, and I’m pleased that our officers were able to quickly attend the scene and make a swift arrest.

“Taking knives and weapons off the streets is another priority for us and I hope this result highlights how seriously we take these reports.”

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