A man who was banned from entering Macclesfield town centre has been jailed after defecating in a police van.

Stephen Cooke has been sentenced to 16 weeks in prison after breaching the terms of a criminal behaviour order.

The two-year order was handed to him at Crewe Magistrates Court in June 2023 and prohibited the now 60-year-old from entering Macclesfield town centre, including the South Park area.

It also banned Cooke from urinating or defecating in public, being drunk or holding open containers of alcohol in public, and from sleeping outside in public when an offer of housing had been made by the local authority.

Sergeant Matthew Bassirat said at the time: "Cooke has become a real problem in the town, so I am thankful this order has been granted."

Cooke was sentenced at Warrington Magistrates Court on Saturday, February 22 (Credit: Nub News)

Cooke first breached the order on Saturday, January 25, when he entered Macclesfield railway station and walked down the ramp onto Sunderland Street.

He then breached the order again on Friday, February 21, when he was found in Pitt Street in Macclesfield.

On this same day, he defecated in a police van and smeared it one the inside panels of the van.

Cooke appeared at Warrington Magistrates Court the following day where he pleaded guilty to two charges of breaching a criminal behaviour order, along with a charge of criminal damage for the van as well as possession of a class B drug, namely cannabis.

He was handed an eight-week prison sentence for each of the breaches, to be served consecutively.

Cooke, most recently of Oxford Street in Crewe, will also have to pay £100 in compensation for defecating in the police van.

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