A knife-wielding man who lunged at a police dog and his handler with a zombie knife in Folkestone has been jailed for two years.
26-year-old Reece Armstrong was reportedly involved in an altercation with another man in Endrook Valley on Wednesday, 23 March 2022.
A dog handler responded to the 999 call for help with PD ‘Blue’. After a quick search, they found Armstrong and approached him.
Armstrong initially spoke to the officer before his mood quickly changed, and he stood up and produced a large zombie knife from his hoodie.
He became very aggressive and moved toward the officer and PD Blue, shouting, ‘I’m going to kill your dog’.
The officer feared for the safety of himself and PD Blue and shouted at Armstrong to stop and step back.
Armstrong ignored these commands and swung the knife toward PD Blue. The blade caught his collar but fortunately did not injure him.
Armstrong then fled the scene.
He was later located in Folkestone Town Centre on Monday, 28 March, by firearms patrols.
He again tried to flee from officers but was caught with the help of a police drone and detained (scroll down for the drone footage).
Following his arrest, officers located the zombie knife he had used in his attack on PD Blue.
After being interviewed in custody and charged, Armstrong was immediately recalled to prison for breaching the terms of his licence concerning a separate conviction.
He later pleaded guilty to two counts of possessing an offensive weapon in a public place, a count of assaulting an emergency worker and causing fear of violence.
He was sentenced at Canterbury Crown Court on Thursday 7 July.
Investigating officer PC Sophia Lateu of Kent Police said:
‘Armstrong’s behaviour was utterly abhorrent; PD Blue and his handler were extremely lucky to be able to walk away from this incident unharmed.
‘Every day our officers are required to attend unpredictable, challenging and sometimes volatile situations.
‘However, like any other job, officers should be able to perform their roles without being the subject of such disgusting and potentially dangerous actions.
‘Any assaults on police officers, staff or our police dogs are completely unacceptable, and we will not hesitate to prosecute those who put their safety and the safety of other emergency workers at risk in this way.’
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An officer gets a final written warning for being tough on a knife wielding youth and this thug tried very hard to seriously injure or kill a police dog and perhaps his handler as well and gets 2 years, which means he will be out in 1.
He was out in licence for a similar offence. When will the idiot, woke judges wake up to the simple fact that such people are not only party extremely dangerous but are likely to remain so.