AN accountant who stripped strangers of their socks and shoes in night-time encounters was today under curfew.

York magistrates heard that Simon Patrick Andrews, 43, roamed the city's streets after midnight for more than five years in a crusade against what he considered to be anti-social behaviour.

Prosecutor David Tucker said Andrews grabbed men walking alone from behind or accosted them before removing their shoes and socks.

One of the attacks was at 3.15am on Christmas Day against footballer James Clamp, 18.

"Now you can't run away from me," he told two others and falsely accused them of making remarks against him a few hours earlier. Andrews' solicitor, Harry Bayman, said his client had become addicted to his night-time activities, which he had begun as a way of relieving work-related stress. He took the footwear to hold the other men captive while he lectured them on unacceptable behaviour and was now sorry for doing so.

Andrews, of Sadberge Walk, Osbaldwick, pleaded guilty to four charges of affray between October 1, 2002 and March 13, 2003 and asked for eight more affrays starting in December 1997 to be taken into consideration. Magistrates said that if he had stolen anything from his victims or used any more violence, they would have jailed him.

Instead, they tagged him and ordered him to stay at home between 9pm and 6am for six months, do two years' community rehabilitation and pay £100 compensation each to the four victims named in the charges and £70 costs.

The last victim, Paul Douglas, said outside court: "I am reasonably satisfied. The curfew was needed."

He said that when Andrews grabbed him by his jacket near Heworth at 2.15am as he walked home, he thought he was about to be robbed.

The court heard that Mr Douglas's call to police after the attack led to detectives uncovering a string of similar complaints dating back to December 1997.

Updated: 10:05 Saturday, May 03, 2003