Jail for man who threw tiles at police from rooftop

A man who threw tiles at police from a hostel rooftop during a five-hour standoff has been jailed for more than two years.

Paul King, 42, climbed on to the roof of a building where he lived in Wesleyan Road, Dogsthorpe, Peterborough, and remained there until he was helped down by the fire service on 14 January.

He threw ceramic tiles, damaging three police cars, an ambulance and a hostel staff member's car.

King appeared at Peterborough Crown Court on Friday where he was sentenced to two years and seven months in prison, after previously pleading guilty to affray and four counts of criminal damage.

King initially climbed on to the roof after becoming aggressive with hostel staff who wanted him to undergo an alcohol test.

Staff called police at 20:15 GMT and officers found him on the roof.

He came down after five hours with the help of the fire service who were called when he tried to start a fire.

According to Cambridgeshire Police, three counts of the criminal damage charge related to damage worth more than £5,000 - and one count worth less than £5,000.

A charge of attempted arson will lie on file.

"King's dangerous actions resulted in lots of emergency service resources being used to protect him and the community," Det Con John Pentney, investigating, said.

"I would like to thank all those who responded to the incident and put themselves at risk to protect the public."

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