Bristol Crown Court Sentencing Results

Taurean Jordan was sentenced at Bristol Crown Court for controlling and coercive behaviour, intentional strangulation and two breaches of a non-molestation order. He made multiple threats to kill and to kill the children. The judge said he has been assessed and poses a high risk of causing serious harm to women and children.

Janet Chard, aged 68 from Knowle West, participated in an organised crime group by acting as a courier, transporting drugs across the country on several occasions. Police uncovered over 40kg of drugs worth £1.8m, including 10kg of heroin found in a business park off Staunton Lane on November 18, 2024. Additional drugs including 10kg of cocaine, 9kg of heroin, and 21kg of amphetamines were found in a garage in Down Lane, along with cutting agents and paraphernalia. Chard was arrested the same day she was identified as the courier.

Jacob Dolphin, 24, of Weston-super-Mare, kicked out at police officers on five occasions and threw an object during a riot outside Bridewell Police Station on March 21, 2021, which involved some of the worst violence in Bristol's history.

Rodney Bunzly, 57, from Grasmere Drive, Weston-super-Mare, abused a young girl approximately two decades ago when she was very young and vulnerable, committing non-recent sexual offences including sexual intercourse with a child and penetrative sexual activity with a child, causing lasting serious and significant psychological harm. He also made ten indecent images of a child.

Vincent Allsopp, 37, of Bayfield Gardens, Dymock, Gloucestershire, played a key role in setting up and running the false business front, holding multiple bank accounts through which victims’ payments were channelled. Between January and December 2022, the group targeted nine older and vulnerable victims across Wiltshire, Oxfordshire, and Herefordshire, luring them with offers of low-cost guttering work under aliases and pressuring them with false claims of roof damage to pay for unnecessary and poor-quality repairs, stealing over £370,000 which was laundered through multiple accounts.

Callum Taylor, 26, of Ledbury, allowed his personal bank account to be used to disguise the flow of criminal funds. Between January and December 2022, the group targeted nine older and vulnerable victims across Wiltshire, Oxfordshire, and Herefordshire, luring them with offers of low-cost guttering work under aliases and pressuring them with false claims of roof damage to pay for unnecessary and poor-quality repairs, stealing over £370,000 which was laundered through multiple accounts including his.

Andrew Edwards, a former police officer, used police systems including intelligence records, the Automatic Number Plate Recognition system, and the Police National Computer to monitor his ex-partner's movements without a lawful purpose. He conducted 27 unauthorised searches and visited the area of her home address on 31 occasions, including while on duty and in breach of bail conditions. He also asked a friend to check her social media after being blocked. This occurred while he was a response officer in Chippenham, leading to his suspension and resignation on 6 May.

Liam Nicholl, 25, of Winscombe Road in Weston-super-Mare, strangled, beat, and traumatised a woman, causing physical and psychological abuse during a traumatic incident. He was arrested and convicted for these actions.

Simeon Bernard, aged 39, travelled from Birmingham to Gloucester on January 18, 2025, on a motorbike as part of a group involved in a mistaken identity shooting. He shot the victim, a man in his 40s, in the leg during a confrontation at the victim's home, causing significant injuries that required multiple operations and may lead to amputation. The incident was captured on CCTV, and Bernard was paid to act as the driver but became the gunman.

Darren Atkins, aged 42, travelled from Birmingham to Gloucester on January 18, 2025, on a motorbike as part of a group involved in a mistaken identity shooting. He was present during the confrontation at the victim's home, where the victim was shot in the leg, resulting in severe injuries that may require amputation. Atkins did not directly participate in the shooting but was complicit in the events.

Aaron Cheetham, 37, of Weston-super-Mare, subjected his partner to a year of controlling and coercive behaviour, including isolating her from friends and family, monitoring her movements, making repeated threats and intimidation, and intentionally strangling her during a violent incident, which caused significant physical and emotional trauma.

James Kelvin, originally from Bishop’s Stortford and living in Goldsithney near Penzance at the time of sentencing, created 640 Category C, 46 Category B, and 37 Category A indecent images of children, including two video clips, between November 15, 2019, and October 8, 2021. He also made two Category A and two Category B indecent pseudo-images of children and committed voyeurism against a girl under 18 while living in Bristol. There was a two-year delay in police examination of his devices after his arrest in March 2022, which caused significant hardship and anguish for victims.

Bradley Warwick, 28, of no fixed abode, wounded a person in December 2023. He was charged with the offence and found guilty in June 2025 before being sentenced.

Between May 2020 and December 2021, Martyn Newitt, a former temporary Police Sergeant from Dobwalls, Liskeard, formed an inappropriate relationship with a woman he met while on duty. He was also found guilty of causing a computer to perform a function with intent to secure unauthorised access to data, contrary to the Computer Misuse Act 1990.

Graham Wright, 62, from Nailsea, possessed extreme pornographic images portraying a person involved in sexual acts with dogs, horses, and pigs, and made indecent photographs of a child. He appeared in court and received his sentence.

Tom Pleass engaged in repeated illegal waste activities, including fly-tipping and breaching a Criminal Behaviour Order issued in October 2023. He was observed multiple times with waste on his vehicle, including incidents in November 2023 and January 2024, where he was stopped by police and gave false details. He continued these activities, taking scrap metal to a dealer without proper licences, and estimates suggest he committed around 200 offences during the pandemic period.

John Colmer, a 25-year-old custody officer employed by Serco, abused his position by contacting a rape victim during an ongoing trial at Plymouth Crown Court between August 3 and 7, 2024. He accused her of lying about the rape and threatened to reveal her identity publicly, using information he obtained while on duty. This misconduct occurred amid national violent disorders following the murder of three young girls in Stockport.

Between November 2017 and September 2019, Zhaoqian Yu controlled women working as prostitutes at a brothel in Birmingham and trafficked a vulnerable sex worker from London to Birmingham, fully aware of her exploitation. Between August 2018 and June 2019, he transferred £347,000 in proceeds of crime to a Chinese restaurant in Gloucester via an underground banking operation. Between December 2018 and October 2021, he conspired with others to import 34 kilos of cannabis into the UK for onward distribution.

Josh Kelly subjected seven women to a pattern of abuse, including controlling and coercive behaviour, physical assaults, and threats over several years. He attacked his ex-girlfriend at the graveside of their baby daughter, who died in November 2022, kicking her with steel toe cap boots and dragging her around. This incident occurred around the six-month anniversary of the daughter's death. Kelly also monitored her movements, restricted her social interactions, threatened self-harm and violence, and engaged in jealous and manipulative behaviour, often while maintaining multiple relationships simultaneously.

Joshua Kelly, 23, from Staple Hill, subjected seven women to a reign of terror by initially using love bombing to befriend them before becoming aggressive and controlling. He moved into their homes, accused them of being unfaithful, limited their social time, and manipulated them across overlapping relationships between 2020 and 2025. His actions caused significant trauma, leading victims to report difficulties in trusting others.