A man who became irate after being asked to move his car has been ordered to pay over £2,000 in court costs and fines. Richard Dono, 46, racially abused his victim during a parking dispute and later sent offensive emails to a charity.
North Staffordshire Justice Centre heard that Dono had ongoing issues with a neighbour regarding parking. Prosecutor Christopher Redmond explained that the victim had asked Dono to move his vehicle, but Dono responded aggressively, saying he would not 'f****** move it'. The argument escalated, and Dono racially abused the victim before walking away.
Dono then sent three offensive emails to the victim's support worker at Saltbox, a charity based in Stoke-on-Trent. In the emails, he threatened to forcefully remove tenants and suggested he had done so in the past.
Dono, of Dominic Court, Hartshill, Stoke-on-Trent, denied charges of sending by public communication an offensive message and racially or religiously aggravated intentional harassment. However, he was convicted by magistrates after a trial.
Defence lawyer Alan Dawson said there had been no further issues since the incident in 2024. He noted that Dono has since been diagnosed with ADHD and mild Tourette's. Dawson added that the dispute stemmed from parking problems, as both Dono and his partner had vehicles, which seemed to irritate others in the area.
Magistrate Chris Rushton described Dono's behavior as 'quite despicable', both in the way he spoke to the victim and in the emails sent to the charity. He emphasized that charity workers should not have to open their emails to find such offensive content.
Dono received a 12-month community order with a 20-day rehabilitation activity requirement. He was also ordered to pay a £1,384 fine, £650 costs, and a £114 surcharge, totaling £2,148.
