Daljeet Dullay, a 49-year-old from Harborne, has been handed a community order after a first date at a London hotel spiralled into a burglary, an assault on a police officer, and a racially aggravated harassment offence. The incident, which occurred on February 7, saw Dullay take £600 worth of Asian-style wedding dresses from another guest's room.
How the burglary unfolded
Dullay had met a woman via social media for their first in-person meeting at a hotel. According to prosecutor Ms Butler, the hotel manager called police after CCTV captured individuals breaking into another resident's room. The victim reported seeing Dullay break into her room and steal the dresses.
When police arrived, Dullay returned to the scene and was arrested for burglary. During the arrest, he kicked out at an officer, leading to an additional charge of assaulting a constable.
Defendant's explanation
In police interview, Dullay claimed that he and his date forgot their room number and mistakenly used their key card to access another room. Realising it was not theirs, he took the two dresses 'on impulse'. He later returned to the hotel to give them back. His solicitor stated, 'It was impulsive, nothing planned. The residents of the hotel managed to get into the room that they didn't occupy, it was a mistaken belief that it was their room, but on impulse he decided to take the traditional wear.' The dresses were returned undamaged.
Separate racial abuse incident
Dullay also admitted racially aggravated harassment after repeatedly calling a police officer a 'P***' in a separate incident in October 2024. For the three offences, he received a 12-month community order at Birmingham Magistrates' Court on June 16. He was ordered to pay £250 compensation to the two officers involved.
Court details and mitigation
Mitigating, his solicitor said Dullay personally apologised to the officers at the scene and to the detention officer upon release. He added, 'He was embarrassed because he had met a lady and it was the first time they were together.' Dullay had previous convictions, including a public order offence in 2022.
