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Conman guilty of selling urine as whisky
A British conman has been labelled “a danger to public health” and handed a suspended prison sentence after admitting to selling urine as whisky.
A conman duped holidaymakers into buying whisky laced with urine and human waste
Nicholas Stewart, 35, tricked holidaymakers in Blackpool into buying bottles of what appeared to be sealed, 1.5 litre bottles of Jack Daniel’s whiskey and Smirnoff vodka.
Security staff seized the bottles – which were being sold at £10 each – after they noticed Stewart approaching tourists at the Coral Island slot machine complex.
However, scientific analysis revealed that while some bottles contained flat cola, others contained urine and additional human waste.
Blackpool Council prosecutor Victoria Cartmell told the court last week: “We are working with the police and will apply to the courts for a CRASBO (Criminal Anti-Social Behaviour Order) against Mr Stewart forbidding him from selling anything in Blackpool.
“Two bottles seized from him were sent for analysis. They were purported to contain whisky and vodka.
“But they were water laced with urine and faeces probably to give the so called whisky colour.
“They were totally unsuitable for public consumption – they were hazardous and contained dangerous e-coli bacteria. This man has been involved in 32 incidents and is a persistent and troublesome offender.”
Stewart claimed at an earlier hearing that he carried out the scam to raise money for food.
Upon handing Stewart his sentence of 70 days in prison suspended for 12 months, magistrates told him: “You are a danger to public health.”
Martin Hillson, defending, told the court he would object to the CRASBO because it would ban Stewart from selling The Big Issue magazine, which offers homeless people the chance to earn a livelihood.
“The products being sold are valueless and, in some cases, could be dangerous to health,” said councillor Gillian Campbell, Blackpool Council’s cabinet member for public safety.
“We’re therefore pleased to have been able to bring him before the courts for these offences and we hope the sanctions we’ve applied for will act as a further deterrent to him doing it again.”