Antrim woman jailed for 'vile racist slurs' against 'Hello Fresh' employee
An Antrim woman has been given a four months jail sentence for ‘vile racist slurs’ against a man who was calling at homes in relation to 'Hello Fresh' food company.
55-year-old Frances Ann Williams, of Valiant Court in the town, was sentenced on charges of assaulting the man and stealing a laminated pricing card and Hello Fresh recipe card. The defendant had previously contested the case and was convicted. She was at Antrim Magistrates' Court, sitting in Ballymena, on Tuesday for sentencing.
A prosecutor said that on July 10 last year a man was going door-to-door at Valiant Court selling 'Hello Fresh' when the defendant asked him "what he was doing there?" and snatched the recipe card and pricing card out of his hand and threw them into her house.
When the man asked for the cards back, she "launched a tirade of racist abuse".
The man's manager approached to try to calm the situation and the defendant told him he "shouldn't be employing African c****s" and that "they don't belong here".
The prosecutor said the defendant continued to use "racist slurs" against the man calling him a "black b*****d".
The man was in "fear and shock" and his manager moved the man away from the address due to concerns for his safety.
The defendant shouted at them: "If you aren't out of here in five minutes I will ring my friends to beat up the African".
Police attended the address and arrested the defendant. The recipe and pricing cards were found in her home.
A defence barrister said alcohol is a crutch for the defendant and "it may well have been a crutch for her around this incident".
He said the defendant told him she "is not a person with any racist beliefs". She had a previous conviction for drink driving.
The barrister said the defendant intends to sell her home in Antrim and move back to England. He said although it was a very unsavoury incident it was a one-off offence.
District Judge Nigel Broderick told the defendant there had been vile abuse visited upon a totally innocent individual.
He added: "All they were doing was their job and you verbally attacked him and made terrible racial slurs against him of a vile and unacceptable nature and then there was the assault on him as well". The judge recalled that when the victim had given evidence at the contest he was a "very thoughtful individual and it was quite clear the emotional trauma he sustained was significant".
Judge Broderick said the offence was aggravated by hostility given what the defendant said and did to the victim.
He said it had been a conviction after contest and whilst he accepted she had a very limited record "this offence was aggravated by reason of the fact that you had alcohol taken".
The judge jailed the defendant for four months. She was released on £500 bail pending appeal.