Poulton pensioner found guilty of scratching car parked ‘selfishly’ on pavement

The car’s owner, John Howarth, discovered £700 worth of damage to his Volkswagen Touareg after he left it parked on double yellows and partially on the pavement in Lockwood Road last September.

Infuriated and determined to find the person responsible, Mr Howarth hired a private investigator to track down the culprit who was captured on CCTV.

It didn’t take long for private eye Marc McKeown to trace the vandal. He posted images of the suspect on local Facebook groups and soon had an ID.

The woman, Elaine James, 72, was confronted by the investigator who visited her home at The Lanterns in Poulton. She was given 48 hours to admit what she had done, apologise to the owner and pay for the repair.

She refused and later denied criminal damage at her trial where CCTV of the incident was played showing James walking past the car with her partner.

At Blackpool Magistrates’ Court on Monday (April 24), she admitted that Mr Howarth's ‘selfish parking’ had annoyed her and her partner, who is registered blind, when they walked past the Volkswagen on their way home.

She also admitted carrying her front door key but denied using it to scratch the car.

Mr Howarth explained to Magistrates that he had parked quickly to pick up a takeaway and had not left his car for more than 30 minutes.

He said he noticed the damage the following day and paid £750 to the private detective because he thought the police were busy and did not want to waste their time .

The incident was reported to police only after James refused to settle the repair bill privately.

The pensioner told Magistrates that when the investigator turned up at her home she thought it was a "scam to try and get money out if her."

Prosecutor Nick Turner said: "The car may have been parked in a selfish manner but that does not justify the offence."

Magistrates found James guilty of damage and chairman Simon Bridge told her: “This was a moment of madness but you cannot take the law into your own hands.”

The prosecution asked for a total of £2,025 be awarded to Mr Howarth to cover the damage, his private investigator's £750 fee and £550 court costs.

She was given a one year conditional discharge and ordered to pay £1,572 in costs and compensation.