Somerset Gimp suspect ordered not to 'crawl, wriggle or writhe on the ground' ahead of trial
The man in the gimp suit photographed by a woman last year
AVON AND SOMERSET POLICE
A man accused of being the ‘Somerset Gimp’ has been handed an interim order, banning him from "crawling, wriggling or writhing on the ground" ahead of his court date in October.
As part of restrictions, which will expire in January next year, the suspected gimp has also been instructed to refrain from wearing or possessing a mask in a public place and donning all-in-one black clothing at night in public.
Joshua Hunt, 32, denies two charges of intentional harassment, alarm or distress under Section 4 (a) of the Public Order Act.
The charges relate to incidents allegedly committed on May 7 and May 9 in the Bleadon and Cleeve areas of Somerset.
Joshua Hunt
Handout
Previous hearings have heard how female motorists driving at night had reported seeing a man in a black costume to the police.
At one hearing, a woman said she had initially believed the figure, who wore a mask with two white crosses on his eyes, was a badger.
It comes as District Judge Angela Brereton, sitting at Taunton Deane Magistrates’ Court, fixed a half-day trial for the case at Bristol Magistrates’ Court on October 27.
Hunt, of Claverham, Somerset, had been excused attendance at the case management hearing and was represented by his solicitor David Fanson.
He was released on unconditional bail until his trial.
A carpet of bluebells at sunrise in woods near Cleeve, North Somerset.
PA
Last month, the defendant was made subject of an order placing restrictions on his alleged behaviour.
Hunt previously denied leaping out at two women while dressed in a latex gimp suit.
At an earlier hearing, the balding and bearded defendant spoke only to confirm his name, address and date of birth.
Robert Yates, prosecuting, told the court: “This is a case that has had quite a complex history and has been up to the crown court and come back.”
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Lucy Anne posted on Facebook the morning after she reportedly saw the Somerset Gimp: “As soon as I got over the first railway bridge, I noticed something on the ground which I thought was a badger.
“As I got closer I could see it wasn’t, but in fact a man with a mask on, who was crawling and writhing on the ground.
“His mask had 2 [sic] white crosses on his eyes and he was in all black. I have honestly never been so frightened in my entire life and drove away so fast.
“It was such a strange experience that I honestly thought I had hallucinated.”
A gimp suit typically refers to a full-body fetish costume made of stretchy material (such as latex or leather) that covers the wearer from head to toe.
Hunt is separately charged with one count of affray and one count of possession of a bladed article in Bleadon, near Weston-super-Mare, on May 9.
He is also accused of affray in relation to an incident two days earlier and is also charged with outraging public decency in Cleeve on October 25 last year.