THE warning issued by Thames Valley Police to Oxford’s restaurants over fraudster Eric Austin shows the difficulties of dealing with repeat offenders.
The 45-year-old has become infamous for dining and dashing in city eateries, leaving behind large bills that he had no intention of paying.
He was made subject to one of the new Criminal Behaviour Orders, which replace Asbos, banning him from even entering the restaurants he preys on.
Then when he breached it he was given a prison sentence because of his long history of offending – but still went back to his old habits when he was released.
Some people might argue that if he refuses to change his ways, Austin cannot complain when longer and longer prison sentences are the result.
But as the manager of the Dong Dong Noodle Bar, Chi Lai, said: “It doesn’t matter how long the sentence is, the only thing that matters is the outcome.”
And since locking him up forever is not an option, maybe a different solution is needed to deal with such persistent petty criminals.
In the meantime, restaurants just need to be on the lookout and hopefully the posters put up by Pc Mike Ellis and his team will help them avoid getting stung.
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