A man who carried a knife "for protection" has been jailed.

Sol Clarke, 23, appeared before Colchester Magistrates' Court on Monday, November 14 where he admitted possession of a knife in a public place.

Clarke, of Towler Street, Peterborough, had been spotted by police in Harwich throwing away a knife.

Two officers from Essex Police were patrolling in the area on October 16, 2021 when they spotted Clarke and a woman acting suspiciously in Station road near Dovercourt rail station.

They stopped and spoke to the pair and Clarke was arrested after the officers found the knife in the grass nearby.

The court was told that Clarke had said to the officers during a custody interview that he always carried a knife for his own protection.

He was jailed for 16 weeks for the offence.

PC Ryan Gilroy, of Essex Police North Disruptor team, said: “It is dangerous to carry a knife, whatever the reason.

“You may be tempted to use it and it could be used against you.

"And the introduction of a knife into any scenario causes that situation to escalate quickly, despite the initial intentions of the person who produces it.

“Carrying a knife in a public place is an offence so I would urge anyone who does this to think carefully about the possible consequences and then drop it into one of our knife bins.”

Clarke's sentence came at the start of a week-long knife amnesty, which allows for anyone who wants to dispose of bladed weapons to do so safely and without fear of prosecution in bins around Suffolk and Essex.