A MAN was sent for sentence to the crown court after a rumpus in the A&E department of Glan Clwyd hospital that a court chairman described as “an episode that was frankly disgraceful”.

Chairman John Rooney added that medical staff who could have been tending to patients had been occupied in dealing with him. “There has been a series of persistent breaches of a criminal behaviour order and we feel our sentencing powers are insufficient and matters will be passed to the crown court.”

He was speaking to 24-year-old Connor Buckley of Pentre Halkyn, near Mold, and prosecutor James Neary said at Llandudno court that for 50 minutes three police officers and eight staff members had been tied up.

It happened at 11am on Sunday and Buckley pleaded guilty to disorderly behaviour which breached a criminal behaviour order, assaulting a police constable – which is an offence against an emergency worker – and failing to comply with a supervision order by not contacting the probation service after leaving prison last summer.

Mr Neary said he had been taken by ambulance to hospital because relatives were worried about his mental state. Officers believed that in the A&E he was under the influence of drink or drugs, and his grandmother said he had been drinking the night before.

He called one of the nurses a bitch, would calm down and then become aggressive again and threatened “to bite the nose off everyone”.

Buckley said he would fight everyone, was handcuffed, then taken to the floor after trying to bite a PC on his right arm.

“A doctor said he was mentally and medically fit,” added Mr Neary. Buckley had broken his behaviour order three times this year and been jailed.

Mr Neary pointed out: “It’s eleven o’clock on a Sunday morning: threats towards staff and an attempt to bite a police officer. The officer wasn’t actually bitten but was just doing his job.”

Defence solicitor Steven Alis said part of Buckley’s difficulty was the lack of a fixed address. Alcohol was also a problem.

A probation officer told the court that because of his non-compliance there was no programme that could be offered.

Magistrates heard that £4,696 was outstanding in fines.

Buckley was remanded in custody to be sentenced at Mold Crown Court on December 19.