Omaree Lindsay, 19, believed to be one of first prosecuted under UK laws banning use of hoverboards on pavements

This article is more than 4 years old

This article is more than 4 years old

A man accused of stealing a crate of Lucozade while riding a hoverboard may make British legal history after being charged with offences including driving the gadget on a pavement.

Omaree Lindsay, 19, from Croydon, Surrey, is thought to be facing one of the first prosecutions for using a self-balancing scooter in public, after he was allegedly filmed riding into a Co-op and then leaving carrying a crate of Lucozade.

He will appear on bail at Wimbledon magistrates court on 30 December, charged with theft, failure to comply with a court order and driving a self-balancing scooter on a pavement.

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The Crown Prosecution Service issued guidance in October on the illegality of riding the vehicles, which include hoverboards and single-wheeled “monopods”, on public pavements or roads, although the gadgets are still expected to be bestsellers this Christmas.

Police had appealed to the public to help trace a man filmed riding a hoverboard with blue flashing lights into a Co-op store in Mitcham, south London.

The figure could be seen on CCTV riding into the shop at 9.43pm on 6 September, before reappearing a few moments later holding a crate of bottles in his arms. After performing a three-point turn, he rode away from the shop.