Man's bomb hoax to stop wife’s night out in Minehead

Mo Ahmed was given a suspended sentence at Exeter Crown Court

A jealous husband phoned false bomb alerts into a Wetherspoon pub to try and stop his wife having a night out, a court has heard.

The Duke of Wellington in Minehead, Somerset, was forced to close early on 25 November, losing £840 in takings.

Mo Ahmed, 42, admitted making two hoax calls and was given a suspended sentence at Exeter Crown Court.

The court heard he was angry she was going out while he worked two jobs to make ends meet.

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The couple had opened a gift shop in August but by November it was only taking about £20 a day, a probation report said.

Ahmed, of The Parade, Minehead, had taken a second job at a restaurant in Tiverton, Devon, to pay the rent and bills and was upset when he learned his partner was going out to the pub at midnight.

Police evacuated 25 overnight guests and 130 bar customers at 01:00 (GMT).

'Bizarre thinking'

The probation report said: "He felt annoyed she was spending money while he was having to work away to pay the bills. When he learned she was going to Wetherspoons, he was angry and frustrated and wanted to ruin her night.

"He did not consider the effect it would have on the pub or the emergency services."

Ahmed was sentenced to six months imprisonment, suspended for a year; ordered to pay £840 compensation and to do 120 hours unpaid community work.

Judge Geoffrey Mercer told him: "These calls were bound to be traced because they were made from your own mobile phone. I am told you are thoroughly ashamed and so you should be.

"It was a bizarre way of thinking. It was an extraordinary thing to do."