Crisis: Mark Huddart committed a terrible crime at a time of mental health crisis, said his mum A WORKINGTON man who was on the brink of suicide because he was homeless took part in a robbery after council officials refused to house him. Relatives of 29-year Mark Huddart – whose only previous crime was breaking a window – say he snapped after Allerdale Council officials repeatedly refused to find him emergency shelter. A qualified painter and decorator, he had to endure months of ‘sofa surfing’ after a relationship breakdown left him without a home of his own. Mr Huddart is now serving a jail term for a terrifying robbery at a Workington newsagents.