Central Criminal Court Crown Court Sentencing Results

In autumn 2020, former police constable Joshua Williams examined the phone of a female suspect and told a colleague she was 'quite fit'. He sent a photo of the woman in her underwear and engaged in salacious gossip about intimate material found on the phone. He was sentenced at the Old Bailey after pleading guilty to misconduct in public office.

Former Cambridgeshire Constabulary police sergeant Paul Street fostered a toxic WhatsApp culture and abused his position by asking a colleague for intimate images and footage from a female suspect's mobile phone. In April 2020 he encouraged colleagues to bully a teenage detainee. He was found guilty of two charges of misconduct in public office, and he admitted unlawfully disclosing personal data in 2020.

Leah Campbell-Knechtel, 28, plotted an attack on her partner following a dispute over money on January 18. The victim had given her thousands of pounds during their apparent relationship and had given her cash on the day of the attack before demanding it back. Campbell-Knechtel later returned to the flat to make peace but allowed her accomplice to enter and passed him a kitchen knife. The victim suffered multiple stab wounds requiring emergency surgery and was left with life-changing injuries. Less than 48 hours after the attack, officers found Campbell-Knechtel hiding beneath a bed at an address.

Jawad Naser, 47, carried out a knife attack on the victim at a flat after being allowed inside by his co-defendant following a dispute over money. He inflicted multiple stab wounds, which required emergency surgery and left the victim with life-changing injuries. He was found around four hours after the attack and bloodstained trainers were recovered as evidence.

Badea was one of two men who attacked a journalist outside his home in Wimbledon, south London, on 29 March 2024. He was directly involved in the attack, during which the victim was restrained and stabbed multiple times in the leg. He fled the UK immediately afterwards and was later extradited from Romania. Mobile phone data, CCTV and DNA evidence linked him to the attack.

Abdullah bin Yassir was arrested in July 2025 after a search warrant was executed at his home in Luton. Detectives seized digital devices, and forensic examination revealed detailed documents on preparing explosive substances, including ingredients, safety measures and how to avoid detection. Further material showed an extremist mindset, including videos on attack methods and messages supporting violence. He was charged with three counts of collecting information likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism under Section 58 of the Terrorism Act 2000.

Stana was involved in the planned attack on a journalist in Wimbledon, south London, on 29 March 2024. He acted as the getaway driver and waited nearby while the victim was stabbed. He had carried out reconnaissance near the victim’s home in March 2023 and returned to the UK in early 2024 to take part. The court found the attack was carried out on behalf of the Iranian state and that Stana knew or ought to have known of that connection.

Peter Wai, 41, a former British immigration official and Metropolitan Police officer, conducted 'shadow policing' on behalf of Chinese authorities, targeting Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters living in the UK. He accessed Home Office databases while on sick leave and days off, gathered intelligence on individuals including politicians, and referred to Hong Kongers as 'cockroaches'. With Bill Yuen, he plotted to kidnap the victim, a fraud suspect, from her flat in Pontefract by first attempting deception and then force. The attempt failed and they were arrested on May 1, 2024. Wai was found guilty at the Old Bailey of assisting a foreign intelligence service and misconduct in a public office.

Bill Yuen, 66, a retired Hong Kong police superintendent, served as office manager at the Hong Kong Economic Trade Office in London and acted as a handler for Peter Wai, directing 'shadow policing' activities against Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters in the UK. He was directly linked to the Chinese government's Security Bureau. Together with Wai, he orchestrated the attempted kidnapping of the victim from her West Yorkshire flat, which involved deception and force. The plot was foiled by security services, leading to his arrest on May 1, 2024. He was found guilty at the Old Bailey of assisting a foreign intelligence service.

Chi Leung (Peter) Wai, a Border Force officer, was tasked by Chung Biu Yuen with spying and surveillance on UK-based pro-democracy campaigners for the benefit of Hong Kong authorities. He exploited his position to carry out illicit checks on Home Office systems, accessing files of Chinese and Hong Kong nationals. Wai was part of a group that broke into a flat in Pontefract on 1 May 2024, targeting a Hong Kong woman accused of fraud by her former employer. Counter-terrorism police arrested the group at the scene. Forensic analysis of digital devices revealed messages showing Wai was aware of the purpose for the Hong Kong authorities and received payments via Yuen. He was charged on 12 May 2024 and subsequently convicted.

Chung Biu (Bill) Yuen, a retired Hong Kong police superintendent, acted as a handler for Chi Leung (Peter) Wai, directing him to gather intelligence on Hong Kong pro-democracy activists in the UK. He was employed as office manager at the Hong Kong Economic Trade Office in London and was linked to the Chinese government's Security Bureau. He was arrested alongside Wai during the failed attempt to access the victim's flat.

On 17 October 2022, Bilal Tahir was driving his BMW X5 at speeds over 100mph in heavy rain on the M20 near West Kingsdown. The victim had lost control due to standing water and was on the hard shoulder. A woman and a man stopped to assist her. Tahir collided with them, killing both women at the scene and seriously injuring the man. Vehicle and mobile phone GPS data revealed he was travelling at 98mph five seconds before the impact.

Keith Davies, former head of sport for UK Athletics, erected a throwing cage at Newham Leisure Centre on 10 July 2017 for para‑athlete the victim’s training. The cage was not properly secured – the required metal weights were not used – and the following day it collapsed in high winds, striking and killing the victim. An investigation revealed a history of failing to secure the cage and serious shortcomings in health and safety management by UK Athletics. Davies was also charged with gross negligence manslaughter but pleaded guilty to the health and safety offence.

On 18 March 2025, Christopher Jackson, driving a van at speed, collided with iron gates at Bush House in Aldwych, forcing them open and seriously injuring a 28-year-old woman and a 24-year-old man. He continued driving, mounting a flower bed and becoming airborne before colliding with 20-year-old victim, who was sitting on a bench and was pronounced dead at the scene. The incident was caused by unintended acceleration worsened by Jackson's panic, with no mechanical defects in the vehicle.

On the evening of 18 October 2025, after consuming alcohol, Justin Clarke-Samuel drove across central London back towards his home in Woodford for approximately 30 minutes. CCTV footage captured him travelling at excessive speed, executing dangerous manoeuvres, and causing damage in a collision with another vehicle. While driving on Redbridge Lane East, he collided with the pedestrian victim at a speed in excess of 60mph as he crossed the residential road, causing catastrophic and fatal injuries. Clarke-Samuel failed to stop at the scene and continued home. He was arrested the following day and made no comment during interview.

Harry Whittaker, aged 33, of Caddington, Bedfordshire, was arrested on 6 May 2024 after Bedfordshire Police searched his home following paramedics' concerns about chemical exposure injuries and his comments about dangerous substances. Officers discovered improvised explosive devices made with black powder, a nitrate-based explosive, along with toxic chemicals including uranium, potassium cyanide, mercury, and other poisonous substances in his garden shed. Some chemicals were labelled with antisemitic or Islamophobic references. Evidence showed interest in extreme right-wing ideologies but no intent to target others or plan an attack. The site was cordoned for over two weeks, with military EOD support for safe removal and controlled explosions. His actions endangered himself, his family, and the neighbourhood.

Robert Adamski, 29, was arrested in Walthamstow on 11 July 2024 after Counter Terrorism Policing London found a 3D printer at his home in the process of making a component for an FGC-9 Mk2 semi-automatic rifle. Other printed parts, including a magazine capable of holding 25 cartridges, were recovered. He had searched for 3D-printed gun instructions, bought a printer in June 2024, and saved a guide on making the firearm. Officers also found extreme right-wing material and evidence that he shared documents on a Telegram group he administered.

Paul Martin, 60, of Croydon, posted 16,000 messages on the Telegram group ‘The Resistance UK’, which had 8,000 members, calling for the use of crossbows and explosives to incite a violent uprising against the Government due to his belief that Covid was a hoax and the vaccine was poison. He was arrested at his home on September 28, 2021, where police seized a stun gun disguised as a torch, two crossbows with bolts, a large knife, air guns, and drones. His messages described the situation as a ‘silent war’ and encouraged members to purchase crossbows and make petrol bombs.

On 12 August 2024, in Leicester Square, London, Ioan Pintaru, a 33-year-old Romanian national, held an 11-year-old girl in a headlock and stabbed her repeatedly eight times in the face, neck, and shoulder with a knife. The attack occurred in public while the girl and her mother, Australian nationals on holiday, were present. Pintaru was disarmed and restrained by a bystander until police arrived.

On 12 August 2024, at 11.30hrs, Ioan-Alexandru Pintaru randomly attacked an 11-year-old Australian tourist girl outside the Lego Store in Leicester Square, London, while she was with her mother. He held her in a headlock and stabbed her repeatedly with a knife, causing injuries to her eye, neck, chest, and shoulder. The attack was captured on CCTV. A security guard and bystanders intervened, disarming and detaining him until police arrived within four minutes. The girl received treatment at hospital from a passing nurse. Pintaru was arrested at the scene and initially charged with attempted murder and possession of a bladed article, but convicted of causing grievous bodily harm with intent and possession of a bladed article.

Andrew Stevens, 60, from Gillingham near Barnsole Road, targeted a vulnerable child for his own sexual gratification by inciting the child to engage in sexual activity on four counts. The offences occurred between 2008 and 2012. He was arrested on June 1, 2023, after the victim disclosed the abuse.

Zubair Iqbal assisted Tejean Kennedy on the night of 13 October 2022 when the two victims were abducted in central London. Iqbal provided Kennedy with a safe house to change clothing and leave his mobile phone, and laundered money for him. There was a high level of telephone communications between them that night. Iqbal was an associate of Kennedy, who used his chicken shop for drug packaging and his bank account for money laundering.

Dr Salvador Plasencia supplied ketamine to actor the victim, knowing the victim was an addict. He charged the victim thousands of dollars for the drug, which is primarily used as a surgical anaesthetic. On one occasion, the victim experienced adverse effects like freezing up and spiked blood pressure after an injection, yet Plasencia left more ketamine for the victim's assistant to administer. This occurred in the context of the victim's ongoing addiction issues, leading to the victim's death on October 28, 2023.

Declan George-Candiani was stopped at Stansted Airport by Counter Terrorism officers on 13 August 2024. Analysis of his phone revealed terrorist-related documents, including guides on how to commit ‘lone wolf’ attacks. A search of his home led to the seizure of an iPad containing similar material. He developed an interest in an extreme-right wing group advocating “traditional Satanism” and accessed the material intentionally, according to the prosecution. In interviews, he claimed a “possessed mindset,” a “pact with the devil,” and an “unhealthy obsession” that overpowered him.

Nathan Gill, a former MEP for UKIP and leader of Reform UK in Wales, accepted bribes from pro-Russian associate Oleg Voloshyn between December 6, 2018, and July 18, 2019. He made pro-Russian statements in the European Parliament, including speeches on Ukraine and Kazakhstan, and arranged for other MEPs to give interviews to 112 Ukraine news channel. Payments totalled amounts such as €5,000 and $2,000 for these activities, linked to Ukrainian oligarch Viktor Medvedchuk. Gill's phone messages revealed the unlawful agreements after a border stop in 2021.

Seng Hok Ling was involved in the international money laundering operation linked to Zhimin Qian's fraudulent Bitcoin scheme, which affected thousands of victims through a seven-year investigation by the Met’s Economic Crime team.

Benjamin Aninakwa, the ward manager at Goodmayes Hospital, failed to adequately assess and manage the risk of keeping bin bags in the communal toilet, despite warnings from the victim's family and her previous self-harm attempts using similar materials. He did not address major concerns raised by the victim's mother and failed to record prior self-harm incidents. The victim, under his care on the Hepworth Ward since May 2012, took her own life using bin bags from the shared toilet in 2016.

Between 2014 and 2017, Zhimin Qian orchestrated a large-scale fraud in China, defrauding over 128,000 victims. She converted a portion of the illegally obtained funds into cash, jewellery and Bitcoin, before fleeing to the UK under an assumed identity. Following intelligence in 2018 about the attempted realisation of criminal assets in London, investigators built a case leading to the recovery of over 61,000 Bitcoin from Qian – the largest confirmed crypto seizure in the world, currently worth around £5 billion. Civil recovery proceedings against the bitcoin are ongoing.

Dylan Earl, aged 21, established contact with the Wagner Group in 2023 and worked with Jake Reeves to recruit others to carry out an arson attack on a Ukrainian-owned business in Leyton, east London, on 20 March 2024, causing approximately £1 million of damage. He also organised surveillance for further attacks in Mayfair. He was arrested on 10 April 2024.

Jake Reeves, aged 23, worked with Dylan Earl to recruit others for the arson attack on a Ukrainian-owned business in Leyton on 20 March 2024 and organised surveillance for further attacks. He received a livestream of the arson via FaceTime.

Evan Forde, 32, from Bedford, was driving a black Mercedes at speeds exceeding 140mph on a 40mph section of Hendon Way in Brent Cross, North London, around 3.45am on 25 December 2022, after leaving a nightclub in Camden. Police in a marked vehicle signalled for him to stop, but he sped off, dragging an officer along the road. Within a minute, he collided with a BMW, causing the death of passenger Maria Carolina Do Nascimento, aged 22, at the scene. Forde and others fled the vehicle. He gave 'no comment' interviews to police.

Isa Giga, 32, travelled to Syria via Turkey in September 2015 with the intention of committing acts of terrorism, fighting for the Jaysh Al Fath group, an alliance of Islamist armed factions including an Al-Qaeda affiliated group. He was arrested at Heathrow Airport on 23 May 2024 upon returning from Turkey. Evidence included emails, social media messages from family, flight records, bank transactions, and messages to an undercover officer in June 2016 expressing support for 'Nusra' and desire for martyrdom.