Yob accused man of being a paedophile and forced him to strip in the street

'Vulnerable person' hospitalised 42 times for panic attacks since

- BY ADAM EVERETT

A THUG from Southport forced a man to strip half naked in the street while accusing him of being a “nonce”.

James Morris “tried to take the law into his own hands” but ended up in prison himself.

The dad sought to “humiliate and shame” his victim who had apparently been ensnared in a paedophile hunter sting, during a “vigilante” attack.

He thereafter seized upon the opportunity to steal an “irreplaceable” necklace from the complainant, an item which had been given to him by his late nan.

Liverpool Crown Court heard that Karl Brown had been sitting with a group of buskers outside the Scarisbrick Hotel on Lord Street in Southport on the evening of March 2 last year when Morris approached him and began “towering over him” before “calling him a nonce”.

The 42-year-old, of Manchester Road, then ordered his victim to strip, with CCTV footage showing him forcibly taking the victim's coat, T-shirt, shoes and mobile phone and removing an item of jewellery from around his neck.

Gerald Baxter, prosecuting, described how the incident persisted for around five minutes in total.

Morris was then said to have binned the items of clothing before another man, who has not been charged with any offences, punched and kicked Mr Brown.

In a statement which was read to the court on his behalf, Mr Brown said: “Since the incident took place, my quality of life has decreased significantly to the point where I’ve contemplated taking my own life.

“I've got family who care for me.