Yahoo News Man warned 'people will die' in planned explosion at Grimsby railway station
Emergency services responded when a man called 999 to warn that he was going to blow himself up at Grimsby Railway Station and "people are going to die."
Police found the man with a butane gas canister, two cans of deodorant and two lighters outside the station on December 12, last year.
At Grimsby Crown Court, Nathaniel Panks, 34, of Macaulay Way, admitted possession of offensive weapons on December 12. He also admitted a further offence of possession of a knife on January 26.
READ MORE:
Prosecuting, Abigail Rowley told how 999 call handlers received a call from a man stating he was outside Grimsby Railway Station and he was intending to harm himself by setting himself on fire. He warned: "People are going to die." When police officers responded they found him with the incendiary gas.
Miss Rowley said he was interviewed the following day and told police he drank seven litres of cider that day. He confirmed he had mental health difficulties and said he intended to take his own life in the incident.
The prosecutor said in the interview he admitted his excessive drinking had impacted on his mental health. She told how he had previous convictions for possession of weapons, including a Samurai sword.
Miss Rowley said Panks called police again on January 26 at 5.15am with a warning that he had a knife and he wanted to hurt someone. He was arrested near Birchin Way custody suite and found with a 5in kitchen knife.
For Panks, Oliver Shipley said his client was "on a path of self-destruction in his alcohol use". He said the significant drink problem arose following the death of his daughter seven years ago. That led to a "downward spiral to significant alcohol use", he said.
Sentencing Panks, Recorder Caroline Sellars said "the evil of alcohol" had impacted severely on the defendant's poor mental state. She said she accepted the offence had been a cry for help.
The defendant had repeated his warnings of hurting others, while he was at Birchin Way police custody suite. The Recorder said she had read of the defendant's tragic loss seven years ago and how his "mental health has deteriorated significantly since then."
"Instead of talking to probation or support services, you took the decision to make threats through the police," she said. She jailed Panks for 17 months and added: "I wish you the best of luck in your detoxification."
