Suspect cleared of pub raid (From Daily Echo)

Suspect cleared of pub raid

7:00am Wednesday 20th March 2013 in Crime By John Hoskins, Court Reporter

A MAN suspected of committing a burglary that threatened the future of a Southampton pub has been acquitted without having to say a word in his defence.

Ethan Drummond, 37, had been accused of emptying a safe of about £5,000 from a flat above the The Rockstone pub in Onlsow Road on Sunday, February 3.

The theft was only discovered after water started dripping from the ceiling of the bar downstairs after sink taps had been turned on.

Drummond, who lives in St Mary’s Road, Southampton, was arrested after police had studied security camera footage of a man entering the premises and later walking behind the bar before going upstairs.

But when Drummond appeared at Winchester Crown Court on a preliminary hearing, the prosecution withdrew the allegation.

Recorder Richard Tyson was told Drummond had been cleared following an identity parade.