Wealthy businesswoman who attacked two policemen is fined more than £1K and spared jail

A millionaire businesswoman who lashed out at two policemen as they arrested her during a fight has been handed over £1,000 in fines and costs.

Carol Holcroft, 60, pushed one officer and kicked another when she was arrested outside an address three miles from her £1million home in the village of Prestbury, Cheshire.

Holcroft, a director of a company which manufactures parts for forklift trucks, had called police over another matter to the address in Bollington, near Macclesfield, but was arrested herself.

At Crewe Magistrates Court, Holcroft pleaded guilty to two charges of assault by beating of an emergency worker and was ordered to pay her victims £200 compensation. She was also fined £692 and handed costs and a victim surcharge of £397.

Laura Davig, prosecuting, said: ‘Police were in attendance regarding an unrelated matter that is not before the court today. ‘The defendant was arrested for those matters. When the defendant was cautioned she became non-compliant with the officers.

Carol Holcroft, 60, pushed one officer and kicked another when she was arrested outside an address three miles from her £1m home in the village of Prestbury, Cheshire

At Crewe Magistrates Court, Holcroft pleaded guilty to two charges of assault by beating of an emergency worker and was ordered to pay her victims £200 compensation. She was also fined £692 and handed costs and a victim surcharge of £397

‘She reacted by pushing a PC Hilditch, who had been using handcuffs. When PC Mason came to his colleague’s assistance, the defendant kicked the officer to the left knee. The defendant has one conviction for two offences. Her last conviction was in 2016 for drink driving.

‘The Crown asks for compensation for PC Hilditch and PC Mason.’

In a statement, Holcroft said: ‘I was very upset with the pain the handcuffs were causing me and I accept I pushed my hands towards the officer, double cuffed in front of me, which caught him in the chest.

‘I accept this was a reckless assault. PC Mason was standing very close to me and I accept that I was agitated and upset and I was moving my legs around. I accept that I may well have caught PC Mason but not with any intent or force.’

Holcroft’s only other offence dates back to 2016, when she was caught drink driving twice in three months while behind the wheel of her Mercedes C220.

In mitigation, Holcroft’s lawyer Lesley Herman said: ‘There’s no injury to either of the officers and PC Mason accepts there was no force.

In a statement, Holcroft said: ‘I was very upset with the pain the handcuffs were causing me and I accept I pushed my hands towards the officer’

‘It was her who called the police. She was arrested for a separate matter. For that there was no further action on the day she was interviewed.

‘She was in her mind wrongly arrested. She accepts that the officers have got a job to do. They got information that came from her initially.

‘It’s hard for people new to the system, it is hard for them to understand. She felt there was no reason for her to be arrested and did not think there was a need to be handcuffed.

‘She tried to get the officer to loosen them. You can see from the photos they were clearly very tight and causing her discomfort and pain.

‘She finds herself in this position and it’s a shame.

‘It’s minor by any account of this offence. She is 60 years old. It’s very sad that we got to this.’