A prolific criminal who slapped a teenager in a ‘very serious and nasty assault’ has been jailed.

John Lomax, of Washington Street, Accrington, ‘lost his temper’ and accused her of stealing from him, Burnley Crown Court heard.

The teenager, who was in her school uniform at the time, was left feeling ‘humiliated, upset and shaken’ after the incident.

Lomax, who has 56 convictions for 124 offences, pleaded guilty to assault by beating and was committed while subject to a 12-month suspended prison sentence following a conviction of assault occasioning actual bodily harm in May last year.

The 39-year-old was jailed for a total of 13 months.

Henry Pepper, prosecuting, told the court how the teenager was with a friend when Lomax ‘angrily’ approached her.

The court heard how he ‘grabbed her by the arms’ as he accused her of stealing money from him.

Mr Pepper said Lomax was ‘screaming at her’ and said the teenager was ‘surprised and shocked’ after he slapped her to the face.

Mr Pepper said the slap was witnessed by other members of the public and was ‘a full arm swing’ and used a ‘great deal of force’.

Peter Turner, defending, said Lomax has had ‘serious mental health issues’.

Mr Turner said he ‘lost his temper’ which he ‘shouldn’t have done’ and slapped her.

Sentencing, Judge Beverley Lunt said: “There can be no possible excuse for violence towards a teenage girl.

“It’s very worrying indeed that you have no empathy for what she went through and don’t seem to understand how rotten and nasty it was for her and you ‘don’t know what the fuss is all about’.

“It’s a very serious and very nasty assault and will have shocked her tremendously I’m sure.”