South Shields axe-wielding clown mask teen detained

Michael March carried out the offence the night before Halloween

A teenager in a clown mask who brandished an axe at a pregnant woman has been detained for six months in a young offenders institution.

Michael March banged the weapon on the floor to scare a couple walking past a pub in South Shields in October 2016.

The panicked woman, who was 22 weeks pregnant, picked up a brick and threw it at the Gateshead teenager, Newcastle Crown Court heard.

March committed the offence during October's "killer clown" craze.

Judge Jamie Hill QC told the 18-year-old: "I accept that you did not intend to hurt, but it was just downright dangerous.

"Carrying a real axe and threatening people at any time of the year is not acceptable in any context."

At an earlier hearing at South Tyneside Magistrates' Court, March, of Hopedene, Leam Lane, pleaded guilty to possessing a bladed article.