A thief was remanded in custody overnight after a judge raised concerns that the man had come into court inebriated.

Samuel Cooper, 30, was at Oxford Crown Court on Wednesday to be sentenced for stealing alcohol from a Witney Tesco.

The theft put him in breach of a crown court suspended sentence, imposed last year for assaulting a man in Witney’s Corn Street in 2019.

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After Cooper walked into court on Wednesday morning, Judge Michael Gledhill QC said it seemed the defendant might be ‘under the influence of something’.

“I don’t think he should be sentenced if he’s not 100 per cent compos mentis. It is not fair on him,” he said.

The judge remanded Cooper, of Ticknell Piece Road, Charlbury, in custody overnight and said he would aim to sentence him first thing on Thursday morning.

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This story was written by Tom Seaward. He joined the team in 2021 as Oxfordshire's court and crime reporter.  

To get in touch with him email: Tom.Seaward@newsquest.co.uk

Follow him on Twitter: @t_seaward