A MAN has spent the weekend in police cells after being arrested for breaching an anti-social behaviour order (Asbo) imposed on him in December.

Paul Noble was arrested by Darlington Police after residents reported he was banging on doors and causing annoyance in Esk Road on Friday, between 4pm and 9.30pm.

He will appear on remand court, Newton Aycliffe Magistrates' Court, this morning.

In December, police told of their delight after securing the Asbo on 32-year-old Noble, who had committed a string of shoplifting offences and harassed people at Darlington's Cornmill Centre and other locations in the town.

The court heard he had been asked to leave the shopping centre 22 times since June 2002.

The Asbo bars Noble from committing several crimes, including taking drugs in a public place, assaulting or intimidating people.

He is also prohibited from attending premises he has been barred from, and from entering the East Row public toilets, in Darlington.

Noble is also banned from a specified area of the town centre, except between 10am and 11am. He was arrested for breaching the harassment part of the Asbo.

Acting Inspector Alison Jackson said: "We do take anti-social behaviour very seriously, it is one of our priorities."