A 63 YEAR old Skipton man who threatened a woman with two pool balls, throwing them at her, and narrowly missing, has been ordered to pay £292 in fines and costs by magistrates.

Harry Barker was on a rare night out with his partner at the town’s Venue Sports Bar when his partner was accused of ‘rifling’ through another woman’s handbag, the Skipton Court heard today (Tuesday).

In response, Barker picked up two balls from the bar’s pool table, held them up to the woman before telling her ‘I will destroy you’. He then threw them at her, one narrowly missing, said prosecutor, Imran Majid.

Barker, when he was interviewed by police claimed he had been on strong medication at the time and remembered nothing of the incident or even being in the bar at the time, said Mr Majid.

Barker, who initially denied using threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour at the bar in Cavendish Street on September 23 last year, changed his plea to guilty on the day of his trial.

In mitigation, John Mewies said his client at times presented as a formidable character, but that in reality, he was a recluse who lived quietly with his partner, and rarely went out.

On the day in question, he and his partner had gone to the Venue and had been joined at their table by two other women.

One of the women told Barker his partner had been going through her bag, an accusation his client knew to be false, said Mr Mewies.

He’d had little to drink, but had been on medication at the time and when faced with a ‘wrongful allegation’ had reacted in an unusual manner, said Mr Mewies.

“He picked the balls up in exasperation and threw them in the general direction of the lady who had made the false allegation,” said Mr Mewies.

The court heard there was no CCTV footage available.

In a pre-sentence report, the court heard that Barker had a pattern of violence and public order offences,but had not been in trouble since 2009. He had been struggling with his mental health at the time and now accepted he had not taken into account the impact on his victim.

Magistrates, who had been considering a community sentence, handed out a fine instead, as an alternative. Barker, of Greatwood Avenue, was fined £160 and ordered to pay costs of £100 and a surcharge of £30.