A "drunken nuisance" got on a bus and told passengers: "I'm going to nonce you up."
Ryan Kenny was today banned from Liverpool city centre by a court order after a spate of offending which also saw him sexually assault a young student, steal Toblerones from B&M and smash his way into Specsavers during a burglary. Despite this, he told a judge: "I'm going back to town whether you like it or not."
Liverpool Crown Court heard on Friday afternoon that the 28-year-old boarded a double decker in September 2021 and sat next to a man and opposite a teenager who was on her way home from college. Kenny asked them if they wanted to buy some tobacco before touching the girl on the thigh.
READ MORE: Couple sold gun to gangster in Aldi car park to fund 'cosmetic dental work'
Louise McCloskey, prosecuting, described how she shouted for him to stop but he responded by moving his hand towards the top of her leg. When others on board challenged the serial offender, he replied: "I'll touch you all up.
"I'm going to nonce you up. I bet you'd like it."
When the man made to get off the bus, Kenny said "I'm going to slap this guy's a***" and then did so. This victim reported the unruly passenger to the driver, although he continued shouting he would "bash people's heads in".
The defendant, of no fixed address, added: "I'm not a muppet, I'm not a weirdo. I'm a normal person."
Kenny was heard to say at this point: "He was calling me a nonce. They were all calling me a nonce on the bus."
Then, on March 27 last year, the thief stole two bottle of vodka from Solo on Colquitt Street in the city centre. Kenny smashed one of them after discovering it was empty, but poured the contents of the other into a bottle of coke.
He attempted to steal goods from the nearby Tesco Extra store but was stopped by a security guard, he then returned to the bar and said "I've reached the end of the line" before picking up the glass shards and throwing chairs around. Afterwards, the foiled shoplifter told police "he had robbed the shops for fun and wouldn't stop until he was jailed".
The following month, Kenny stole £34 worth of Toblerones and Daim bars from B&M in Clayton Square. After being spotted by police community support officers, he ran off into the Blob Shop pub where he was arrested - then racially abused the PCSOs as he was being transported to custody.
Five days later on April 11 2022, Kenny was detained by members of the public and an off-duty police officer after he was seen smashing the front window of Specsavers on Lord Street. He had attempted to steal 13 pairs of glasses worth £129 each during this break-in.
Under interview, Kenny said he had been "extremely drunk" and was "sorry for doing it". He has 63 previous convictions for 94 offences.
Fiona McNeill, defending, told the court: "This is a man who has effectively continued a pattern of offending riddled throughout his previous convictions. This man is not a sexual predator - he is a man who had come off drugs and was effectively self-medicating with alcohol.
"Having a look through sober eyes, he looks back upon that and can't believe he behaved like that. He felt aggrieved by the way he was spoken to on the bus, but frankly one can well imagine the reaction provoked by his behaviour and understand that reaction.
"Despite his difficulties, he has made significant progress. There is clearly a case for cautious optimism."
Kenny admitted sexual assault, assault, theft and burglary. Appearing via video link to HMP Altcourse, he was jailed for 28 months and handed a criminal behaviour order banning him from the city centre for three years.
The inmate reacted to the news by taking a drag from a vape he was holding and saying: "I'm going back to town whether you like it or not. I live there, I'm homeless - I'm in the homeless community.
"I live in jail. Jail is my home."
Kenny will also be required to sign the sex offenders' register for 10 years. Sentencing, Judge David Swinnerton said: "This sexual assault wasn't motivated by you being some sort of sexual predator. You are someone who was drunk and a nuisance."
READ NEXT: Man kidnapped and shot by gang demanding ransom after relative won £50,000
Child rapist used threats to keep his devastated victims quiet
Thug brutally battered girlfriend before issuing grim 'parting shot'
Drunk thrown out of Hot Water Comedy Club torched hotel room
Dead puppy found in flat 'surrounded by children's toys and bits of rubbish'
