Birmingham Crown Court Sentencing Results

Saleh Hassan drove a Toyota Corolla onto a pavement in Sutton Coldfield shortly before midnight, striking a woman and her friend. The woman died at the scene and her friend suffered serious leg injuries. Hassan had been driving uninsured and making circuits around the town centre before losing control at about 45mph. Members of the public attempted to help before emergency crews arrived. He was arrested at the scene.

Zain Hussain converted blank-firing weapons into live-firing firearms. The National Crime Agency placed him under surveillance after intelligence indicated he was involved in the conversion and sale of weapons, with converted pistols estimated to sell for up to £3,000. Officers followed him along the Grand Union Canal in Birmingham and arrested him in a wooded area where he had been digging a hole; three firearms and ammunition were found there, along with a large carving knife and ball bearings. Forensic tests found his DNA on a converted blank-firing pistol that matched a weapon purchased two days earlier. Messages on his phone showed him discussing the sale and progress of weapons, referring to 'two Lucys' being sold and describing expected profits.

Jayden Adams was driving a Seat Leon at more than double the 30mph speed limit on Heath Way in Hodge Hill when he collided with a cyclist on April 26, 2025. The cyclist, aged 29 and a father of one, suffered fatal injuries and died in hospital three days later. Adams drove off after the collision, abandoned the vehicle, then returned later that day to retrieve and burn it. He initially lied claiming to be a passenger in the vehicle.

Shanise Hussain was driving an Audi A3 on Great Hampton Street in Birmingham on 21 July 2024 when she lost control after driving at 48mph in a 30mph zone. She mounted the pavement and struck two pedestrians, causing fatal injuries to one and minor head and hand injuries to the other. She remained at the scene and was later charged with causing death by dangerous driving.

In December 2023 Rebecca Cooper posted on Facebook under an alias expressing that she liked children, culminating in a live video directed at children in which she was seen touching herself sexually in the reflection of a television. In separate incidents she threatened to kill a doctor and was caught waving a knife in public.

Nigel Barwell managed cannabis cultivation farms across at least five properties in Coventry, using extensive lighting, heat and ventilation set-ups. Police raided a property in Willenhall and found 40 mature cannabis plants in one bedroom. A tampered electricity meter yielded Barwell's fingerprints, and his DNA was recovered from a cigarette butt. More plants and growing equipment were found at other properties, and forensic evidence linked him to cannabis production.

Duc Quang Ta was involved in the transport or attempted transport of Vietnamese migrants hidden in lorries on 16 occasions between 18 August and 6 September 2020. He acted as an organiser, matching migrants with lorry crossings and coordinating drivers, safe houses and immigrants. He was arrested on 3 September 2020 after a car stop on the M25 near Leatherhead; police found £55,020 in cash in a plastic bag and a further £1,000 in his pocket. Messages on his phone showed he was heading to Kent to hand cash to co-conspirators who had arranged for migrants to be smuggled in the back of an HGV.

Sarfaraz Sardarzehi assisted with three attempts to transport migrants into the UK between 18 August and 6 September 2020. He was stopped by police in Birmingham on 4 September 2020 while driving a silver Vauxhall Corsa carrying migrants; he initially claimed they wanted a lift but later admitted he knew they were migrants. He was re-arrested in June 2022. The investigation showed he acted as a driver, transporting migrants after they entered the UK and moving cash for the crime group.

Tyler Phythian joined another man in filling a petrol container and travelling to the victim's flat. They poured petrol across the entrance and set it alight, and CCTV captured them running from the scene. The victim was unable to escape and died from his injuries. Phythian was convicted of arson with intent.

John Davies threw a recently boiled kettle of water over a police officer in Birmingham as he tried to resist arrest, causing blistering to her shoulders, back and neck. Officers had been called to a disturbance in the garden of his home, where he had another man cornered against a fence. He punched one officer in the face before scalding the other. Davies admitted maliciously wounding the officer he scalded with intent to resist arrest, assaulting the officer he punched, and assaulting the man he had been arguing with.

Jagger Strang threatened to kill classmates and was found with materials capable of making explosives. He was arrested after reports that he had videos of himself torturing cats and had told fellow college students he carried knives and planned to blow up the college. He showed a classmate photos of homemade weapons, discussed an attack, and shared videos of himself lighting substances in his garden and kitchen. A search of his devices found a manifesto written in 2025 in which he wrote about doing something violent and described admiration for serial killers including the Sandy Hook school shooter. He had told classmates a pressure cooker was all he needed to build a bomb, had tested explosive powders and possessed ingredients for up to 1.3kg of thermite and 320g of gunpowder. A blowpipe he had made and tested was recovered from his home.

Damion Thomas failed to seek timely medical help for his seriously ill son, who had shown symptoms of severe diabetic ketoacidosis for several hours. The child was taken to hospital on 9 December 2022 and died in the early hours of the following day. Expert medical evidence indicated the death would have been preventable with earlier medical attention.

Rizwan Malik, directed via Encrochat, attended an address at Sapphire Heights, Hockley, in April 2020 and handed over three Walther Creed 9mm semi-automatic pistols to Michael Earp, an associate of crime boss Danyal Aziz. The weapons were for use by Aziz's group, which was responsible for distributing large quantities of class A drugs across the West Midlands and beyond. CCTV captured Malik arriving in his van to transfer the firearms.

Clare Davenport, a former detective constable, conspired with others to smuggle contraband into HMP Onley and HMP Gartree using drones throughout 2021 and 2022. Drones carried packages containing Class A and B drugs, tobacco, and mobile phones. One package recovered in August 2021 contained heroin with a prison value of £22,400 and cannabis worth £15,300. Davenport pleaded guilty to the offences.

Sultan Arif, a petrol station worker, was arrested after armed police raided the Gulf petrol station in Saltley, Birmingham, on 15 January 2020. Officers found a sawn-off shotgun loaded with two live cartridges in the boot of a Vauxhall Vectra parked next to the forecourt, along with additional live and spent cartridges. A separate search of the forecourt revealed a loaded revolver with four rounds of ammunition hidden in a bag between two water butts. Police also discovered extra shotgun cartridges concealed on the site and a stun gun hidden inside a fire extinguisher box. Forensic tests linked Arif to the revolver. He admitted possession of the firearm and ammunition. He had a previous conviction for possessing a sawn-off shotgun and ammunition, and police believed he had links to gangs in the Alum Rock and Washwood Heath areas.

On August 13, 2024, RSPCA officers were shown a dead English bulldog named Babaloo by vets. The dog's owner, David Bernard of Priory Road, Hall Green, had brought in the body earlier that day. Veterinary staff noted bleeding from the nose, mouth, and anus. Witnesses reported seeing Bernard being physically and verbally aggressive towards the dog the evening before, and he was confronted about it. A post mortem by independent veterinary expert Dr Sean Taylor concluded that the dog died from blunt force trauma to the chest and abdomen, causing internal bleeding, liver and kidney injury, and respiratory failure. The dog, though brachycephalic, showed no clinical signs of being adversely affected by the condition prior to the attack. Bernard subsequently pleaded guilty to inflicting blunt force trauma resulting in non-accidental injuries.

Richard Hamilton, 73, of Dawley, Telford, committed a series of child sex offences. On 11 June 2022, at Brynowen Holiday Centre in Borth, he assaulted a girl under 13 by touching. He was later charged with multiple historic sexual offences, including 10 counts of sexual assault of a child under 13, rape of a child under 13, causing a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity, engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child, assault by penetration, sexual activity with a child, and indecent assault. He faced 20 charges in total.

On the morning of 16 December, Harinderpal Athwal drove his Vauxhall Corsa down Soho Road in Birmingham, swerving into oncoming traffic and mounting the pavement. He struck a 54-year-old man and 47-year-old woman who were walking hand in hand, then hit a parked car. He drove back and struck the man again, leaving him fatally injured, before fleeing. The woman suffered life-changing injuries. Athwal, of Sorrel Close, Oldbury, was arrested the following day.

James Gray shot a handgun through the windows of a property in Princethorpe Road, Willenhall, in the early hours of 26 May 2025 while a family of five including two children was at home. A second shot struck a car outside. He was convicted of possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life.

Sharif Cousins shot a handgun through the windows of a property in Princethorpe Road, Willenhall, in the early hours of 26 May 2025 while a family of five including two children was at home. A second shot struck a car outside. He was convicted of possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life.

Razvan Mut carried out a violent 10-minute assault on a man at a property on Whitehall Road, Handsworth, Birmingham, just after midnight on 11 April 2024, using a metal bar and a knife, stabbing the victim who was found seriously injured and taken to hospital in a life-threatening condition but survived. Mut was arrested at the scene. A member of the public witnessed the attack and called emergency services, bringing it to an end. Detectives from the Major Crime Unit reviewed CCTV footage confirming his responsibility.

On November 12, 2022, in Solihull, West Midlands, Jordan Herring, then 19, pushed his 18-year-old girlfriend out of a window at Merton House tower block after a row fuelled by cannabis and paranoid accusations of cheating. She fell 40ft, landing on grass and sustaining life-changing injuries including a collapsed lung, fractures to her pelvis and ribs, requiring airlift to hospital and multiple surgeries. Prior to the incident, Herring had isolated the victim from her family, locked her in a bedroom, rifled through her phone, and assaulted her, inflicting bruises to her eyes and neck. He had gone on the run with her to hide from her concerned family.

Troy Green, 22, of Vicarage Road, Soho, covertly recorded over 460 males, including children, in public toilets across Birmingham, such as at Grand Central, Rush trampoline park, churches, licensed premises, university campus, and Wetherspoon at Birmingham Airport where he was employed. He filmed victims urinating or at lavatories without their knowledge. He also targeted children via Snapchat using a false identity to coerce them into performing dares involving exposing themselves, with videos stored in a Google Drive account. Over 500 videos found on his devices. Initial arrest on 21 February 2025 after being observed at university toilets.

Zaynul Shaffi, along with Shahid Khan, made more than 100 hoax 999 calls over 78 days in 2024 and 2025, costing the public £100,000. The calls included false claims of having been shot, drowning a pregnant wife, and abandoning a baby on train tracks. On one occasion in August 2024, a call about a baby left on train tracks prompted a massive police response with nearly 20 vehicles, 30 officers, and a helicopter. The pair used multiple phones and switched accents to avoid detection, and boasted about their crimes on social media.

On July 2, 2025, outside a pub on High Street in Erdington, Birmingham, Herbert Palmer joined Omar Clarke in attacking a victim who had intervened in Clarke's argument with a woman. Palmer participated in the violent assault after Clarke struck the victim with a glass bottle. The incident was captured on CCTV, leading to Palmer's identification and arrest.