A 38-year-old man from Southampton, Hampshire, has been jailed for four months after he pleaded guilty to assaulting a police officer by spitting in their face. Zachary Charles Lowe, who is of no fixed abode, was sentenced at Southampton Magistrates’ Court on Friday 6 March 2026. The incident occurred on Bevois Valley Road on 5 March 2026, just one day before his sentencing.
Lowe also admitted to a racially aggravated public order offence involving the same officer during the incident. At the same court hearing, he pleaded guilty to stealing £99.95 worth of DVDs from the HMV store on the High Street on 23 February 2026.
Chief Inspector Charlie Ilderton, who serves as the Southampton Deputy District Commander for the Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary, said that violence against officers is not an acceptable part of their job. He stated that the police will continue to push for legal action against anyone who chooses to abuse emergency workers.
The details of the conviction were shared by Hampshire Alert to remind the public that assaults on police are taken seriously. Lowe has now begun his four-month prison sentence for the assault, the public order offence, and the theft.
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