POLICE have been issued a warrant to arrest a man who failed to appear in court for sentencing after urinating into Holy water and damaging an altar cross in a West Somerset church.

Wilfred Owen, aged 30, was convicted of the offences after pleading guilty at a hearing in Taunton Magistrates Court on October 22 last year.

The case was then adjourned for the probation service to prepare a pre-sentence report to aid the court in deciding an appropriate punishment.

It was brought back to the court on Thursday (January 29) for District Judge Angela Brereton to pass sentence.

However, Owen, of Church Lane, Norton Fitzwarren, failed to turn up.

Judge Brereton issued an arrest warrant without bail.

Owen had been charged with the religiously aggravated crimes of urinating into a stoup bowl containing Holy water in St Andrew’s Church on October 19 last year and with damaging the church’s altar cross on the same day.

The charges alleged he caused damage to a value unknown, intending to destroy or damage such property or being reckless as to whether such property would be destroyed or damaged.

A stoup is a small bowl often placed near a church entrance where worshippers can use the Holy water to bless themselves by making the sign of the cross to symbolise a renewal of baptismal vows.

Owen, who was previously of no fixed abode, would also have faced sentencing on several other charges.

He had previously admitted two offences of shoplifting in Taunton and in Bath and two of public disorder.

The Taunton shoplifting occurred in Icelands on November 26 last year when he stole items of an unknown value, while in Bath he stole £239.94 of T-shirts from TK Maxx on June 17.

He also used threatening or abusive behaviour in Bath and Taunton in June and November.