Oct 5 2004
South London Press
ONE of the Tube's most prolific graffiti vandals has been sentenced to a 200-hour community punishment order.
Daniel Halpin, whose graffiti tag "Tox" can be seen on trains and buses across the capital, was made the subject of the order after breaching the conditions of an Antisocial Behaviour Order (ASBO) made against him.
The 19-year-old from Stockwell had spent four-and-a-half months on remand at Feltham Young Offender institution ahead of the sentencing hearing at Inner London Crown Court on Friday.
The court heard Halpin was caught in Camberwell bus garage in the early hours of May 17 in breach of the ASBO banning him carrying aerosols and graffiti equipment.
He admitted breaching the ASBO and asked for 20 other offences to be taken into consideration.
The court was told how Halpin had stopped attending school at the age of 14 and that both his parents were drug addicts.
Halpin's barrister, Trevor Siddle, said: "He describes his graffiti as an addiction. He accepts he needs help to stop and that the antisocial behaviour on the estate where he lives does not provide any.
"His tag 'Tox' is short for the word toxin."
Recorder Philip Sapsford sentenced Halpin, of Burrow House, Stockwell Park Estate, Stockwell, to a 200-hour community punishment order after hearing he had already spent four-and-a-half months on remand.
Speaking after Halpin was sentenced, a London Underground spokesman said: "Mr Halpin is now learning that his actions have serious consequences - graffiti is criminal damage."
Personally I think he justs needs to be thrashed to within an inch of his life and then have one of his cans shoved up his aerosol.