'Idiot' who licked cereal boxes at Woolworths while he was high on ice amid the coronavirus pandemic is JAILED
- Ebbannezah Raymond Douce was sentenced to 12 months in prison
- He licked poles, signs and cereal boxes at the peak of the coronavirus pandemic
- Douce admitted to the court he was high on ice at the time of the offences
- Here’s how to help people impacted by Covid-19
A man who licked cereal boxes at Woolworths during the height of the coronavirus pandemic has been jailed.
Ebbannezah Raymond Douce was on bail for driving offences when he started licking a steel pole and an advertising sign outside a Woolworths in Townsville on April 8, Townsville District Court heard.
He then entered the store and went to the breakfast aisle before licking several cereal boxes, Townsville Bulletin.
Douce had previously liked a escalator handrail at the City Lane and City Arcade on Flinders Street on March 31.
Ebbannezah Raymond Douce was jailed for licking a sign and steel pole outside a Woolworths in Townsville
Douce was arrested two days after the Woolworths incident after being identified through CCTV footage and tested for coronavirus.
Douce did not have the deadly virus.
'Is this because I licked all that s**t at the shops,' he said when he was arrested.
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'I thought it would be funny because everyone else is freaking out about it and I'm not scared because I'm not going to get sick.'
Douce pleaded guilty to eight charges including two counts of public nuisance and one count of contamination of goods with intent.
The prosecution argued over what would be an appropriate punishment as there was no precedence for a case such as this.
Prosecutor Monique Sheppard slammed Douce's actions as 'idiotic' and potentially harmful.
He then entered the store and licked a number of breakfast cereal boxes. He was arrested two days later (stock)
Douce's lawyer Edward Bassett said his client was under the influence of ice at the time of the offences.
He said his client left school in year eight and developed an addiction to cannabis and ice during his early adolescence.
His said his client should not be jailed due to his young age.
However Judge Gregory Lynham disagreed and wanted to send a message to others.
'You might have thought your offending was funny or humorous. I'd like to think now you are under no misapprehension just how unfunny your offending was,' he told Douce.
He said anyone who pulls similar stunts would also be jailed.
Douce was sentenced to 12 months in prison and a parole date was set for July 9.
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