November 29, 2010 9.44 am This story is over 160 months old

Man jailed for stealing busker’s hat

Hat thief found: A man was jailed for seven days for stealing the hat of a city busker, an incident caught on video by a passer-by.

A man who admitted to stealing the hat of a Lincoln city centre busker has been jailed for seven days.

Arben Bushati pleaded guilty for the hat theft and not guilty of threatening behaviour, for which he was convicted for 16 weeks.

The incident happened on October 24 on the High Street.

City busker and supply teacher Phil Gray (54) (pictured) made a YouTube video asking the man who took his hat to return it to him safely.

The whole incident was caught on camera, and was used to make a video appeal to the thief to return Gray’s treasured headwear.

Gray reportedly said after the conviction that he wished Bushati received work on community service rather than a jail term, so that he can be reformed.