Anthony Bannon: former jockey smears poo in cell after Shepparton arrest

After spending a few hours in the Shepparton lock up on New Year’s Day, a disgruntled former jockey made his feelings known – using his own faeces.

A former jockey sspent the first day of 2020 smearing his own poo all over the door of a policeholding cell. Generic picture: iStock

A former jockey who spent the first day of 2020 smearing his own poo all over the door of a police holding cell was slapped with a $500 fine.

Anthony Bannon was walking home drunk in Shepparton on New Year’s Day when police stopped him and asked to search his bag.

The Shepparton Magistrates’ Court heard the 52-year-old was taken into custody after refusing police’s request.

While he was in the Shepparton Police Station holding cell about 6:45pm, Bannon was verbally abusive and tried to kick the cell door down.

But his most shocking behaviour started an hour later, when he sat on the toilet and defecated into his hands and smeared his faeces over the clear panel on the holding cell door – twice.

When police and custody officers attended the cell, they found him “screaming profanities” with his hands cupped.

The court heard staff asked Bannon to open his hands, fearing he was about to throw his faeces at them, but he refused and continued hurling verbal abuse.

Bannon only co-operated after police showered him with capsicum spray, when they were then able to remove him from the cell and apply after-care.

Bannon’s lawyer said his client was a single man on Newstart who had lived in Shepparton for a number of years.

The court heard he used to be a jockey, but his career came to a sudden end after a horse came down on his back.

The lawyer said while Bannon was pleading guilty to this “fairly average behaviour”, he questioned why his client was held in a cell for a couple of hours despite police not filing any public drunkenness charges against him.

“He obviously gets into the cells and is not happy with what’s going on,” his lawyer said.

Magistrate Mary-Anne MacCallum still condemned his behaviour as “highly inappropriate” – to which Bannon’s lawyer replied: “getting arrested for being drunk was highly inappropriate”.

“Surely you’re not suggesting the court condones his actions?” Ms MacCallum said.

Ms MacCallum handed down the fine with conviction and noted this was not offending where she could sentence him to a term of imprisonment.

“The officers that serve in our police stations don’t deserve to be exposed to these kinds of behaviour,” she said.

“It’s unacceptable behaviour which doesn’t reflect community standards, and the court needs to respond.”

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