Man charged over canal incident in Newbury

A man has been charged with numerous offences including outraging public decency after he reportedly indecently exposed himself, and pushed a woman into a canal in Newbury.

Fintan William Burke, aged 35, of no fixed abode, has been charged with one count of outraging public decency, one count of using threatening/abusive/insulting words/behaviour to cause harassment/alarm or distress, one count of racially/religiously aggravated intentional harassment/alarm/distress and five counts of assaulting an emergency worker.

The charges are in connection with an incident on Tuesday (15/7) in which a man was seen indecently exposing himself on the towpath of the River Kennet, alongside Toomers Wharf. He then kicked a woman in her sixties, causing her to fall into the canal. She was assisted out of the canal and did not sustain any serious injuries.

When police attended they were assaulted.

He has been remanded into custody and will next appear at Oxford Crown Court on Friday 15 August.

Hear all the latest news from across the UK on the hour, every hour, on Greatest Hits Radio on DAB, smartspeaker, at greatesthitsradio.co.uk, and on the Rayo app.