An outraged shopper chased a bus in Oxford city centre and battered it with a bagful of shopping after the driver almost ran him over, a court heard.

Oxford magistrates were told yesterday that Andrew Richardson, 22, flew into a rage in Queen Street on June 19, when a Stagecoach bus almost ran over his foot.

He chased the bus down the street and after swearing at the driver, began to bang his shopping from Debenhams against a window.

The pane of glass shattered, causing £70 worth of damage. Richardson admitted criminal damage.

Sian Saunders, prosecuting, said one witness told police that the bus may have run over Richardson's foot, while Mike Geeson, defending, added that another woman who witnessed the incident told Richardson that the bus "could have killed him".

Magistrates heard that after a row with the driver and the bus company's controller, Richardson, of Banbury Road, Kidlington, walked into Allders and stole a pair of jeans, despite having £45 cash. He was caught by the store's security guard and then arrested. He also pleaded guilty to theft.

Mr Geeson added: "In his anger and frustration about the bus incident, he simply picked up the jeans and walked out of the store. He regrets what he did."

Magistrates warned Richardson, who was on licence from prison at the time of the offences, that he was "within a whisker" of returning him to jail.

However, he was given a conditional discharge and ordered to pay £70 compensation to Stagecoach, £15 to the driver for loss of earnings and £40 court costs.

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