A man who used pepper spray on a police officer, who was trying to give him first aid following a road collision, has been jailed.
Ashley Flowerday, 34, had been involved in the crash on the Twenty Foot Bridge, near March, and was bleeding from a head injury when response officer PC Zoe Pell arrived to help.
However, when she asked Flowerday to sit down so she could provide first aid, he became defensive, reached into his pocket, grabbed a small black canister and sprayed pepper towards her.
She managed to duck but then felt a burning sensation on her arm. Flowerday ran away, and PC Pell called for backup.
A member of public alerted officers that Flowerday was in a nearby river, and he was found floating on his back.
He eventually agreed to come out of the water and was thrown a lifeline rope.
Flowerday was taken to Peterborough City Hospital and his car was searched.
Officers found a crossbow, two wrapped packages of cocaine, grinders, weighing scales and a packet of pink pills.
Flowerday, of Church Road, Emneth, Wisbech, appeared at Peterborough Magistrates’ Court on Monday (31 October) where he was sentenced to 12 months in prison, having previously pleaded guilty to possessing a weapon for the discharge of a noxious liquid and assault by beating of an emergency worker.
PC Zoe Pell, who is based in Wisbech, said:
“As a police officer I accept there is a level of risk each day I come into work; however, it is never acceptable or ‘part of the job’ for me to be assaulted.
“Assaults on police officers don’t just affect the officer, but also their family and loved ones, their colleagues and ultimately the public we serve, while we all deal with the aftermath of such incidents.”
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