Three men caught bragging on Facebook that they were drinking while doing community service have been sentenced – to more community service.
Lee Snowden, 30, took a selfie with Christopher Bader, 34, and Matthew Fisher, 29, as they smirked and raised their cans of Carling beer to the camera.
He then posted the picture on his social media, captioned ‘Might as well have a few on unpaid work.’
The men were hauled before the courts after that selfie and other pictures were spotted online and in newspapers by West Yorkshire Police.
Lee Snowden (right) took a selfie with Christopher Bader (centre) and Matthew Fisher (left) as they smirked and raised their cans of Carling to the camera
The trio were part of a team gardening at a nursing home in Bingley, West Yorkshire, on May 19.
One picture that was posted on Facebook by one of the men was captioned: ‘Want ur rooms decorating by seven criminals cheap labour just hide ur valuables’ with two thumbs up emojis.
And in another shot, one of the men is snapped looking at his phone while dangling a pair of garden shears.
Another caption on a picture suggested the men were enjoying their punishment, with one of them writing: ‘Unpaid work time with the lads let the good times roll.’
Snowden, Bader and Fisher pleaded guilty to breaching the community order through unacceptable behaviour when they appeared at Bradford Magistrates’ Court on Thursday.
Pictured from left: Matthew Fisher, Lee Snowden and Christopher Bader arrive at Bradford Magistrates court
Snowden, dressed in a blue polo shirt and jeans, had been sentenced to the community order on February 19 for a charge of driving while unfit through drink.
Bader, dressed in a tracksuit, and Fisher, dressed in a polo shirt and jeans, were both sentenced to community orders earlier this year for assault charges.
Probation officer Quaiser Khan said the three defendants were in possession of alcohol while on unpaid work, adding that consuming alcohol contravenes health and safety requirements.
‘The particular work placement was gardening,’ he said.
‘If either had been caught [by a supervisor] they would have been dismissed.
‘This only came to light as a result of the defendants taking pictures and putting them on Facebook.
‘These photographs were seen to appear in newspapers.’
Another picture was captioned: ‘Want ur rooms decorating by seven criminals cheap labour just hide ur valuables’
Defending the trio, Amjid Khan said they had only consumed one can which had been given by the ‘generosity’ of a passer-by who knew one of the defendants.
‘They accept the behaviour was unacceptable,’ he said.
‘This matter was first detected from photographs in national newspapers.
‘The defendants had worked for seven hours and it was 28 degrees that day.
‘Someone they knew passed by. They took it and realised it was alcohol.
‘The person meant to be supervising them was sat in a van. In the good old day there would have been a hands on approach by the supervisor.
‘The day was drawing to a close. They took the photo and that was that. It was one can towards the end of the day after a hard day’s work.’
Snowden, dressed in a blue polo shirt and jeans, had been sentenced to the community order on February 19 for a charge of driving while unfit through drink
Sentencing the trio to an additional 20 hours of unpaid work, magistrate Mr Vigous said: ‘I have been asked to look at the sentence for your behaviour.
‘I have taken on board everything I heard from probation.
‘I take a very dim view of people that are treating a community order in the manner you have shown.’
He added that the time of day of the offence was ‘irrelevant.’
‘You would have known you were in breach of the order. We will allow the order to continue. This sort of behaviour is not acceptable.’
Community Payback, which is run by the West Yorkshire Community Rehabilitation Company, is handed out as a punishment by the courts and offenders can carry out anything from 40 to 300 hours unpaid work.