Isle Of Wight Magistrates' Court Sentencing Results

Roxanne Findlay admitted shoplifting from Sainsbury's in Freshwater on January 12, when she was one of two women who stole steaks and Birra Moretti beer worth £37.10. She also admitted two shoplifting offences at Tesco Extra in Freshwater on May 14 and July 6. During the May theft she concealed unpaid items in a bag after paying for other goods; on July 6 she and an accomplice left without paying for food and alcohol worth £42.45. None of the stolen goods were recovered. She also admitted failing to appear for sentencing on August 18.

Samuel Paul Taylor, 26, a mobile tyre fitter from Sandown, Isle of Wight, drove on the wrong side of Whippingham Road near East Cowes and caused a head-on collision with another vehicle. Emergency services including the air ambulance attended, and a woman had to be cut free from her wrecked car before being airlifted to Southampton General Hospital with life-changing injuries. Taylor pleaded guilty to driving without due care and attention, stating he did not think he was speeding and could not explain how he lost control, suggesting slippery road conditions might have played a part.

Terrence Myles, of Cavendish Place, Newport, admitted failing to comply with the notification requirements of the Sex Offenders’ Register in Newport on March 13 by failing to register a new bank card with police within three days of receiving it. The case went before Isle of Wight magistrates on Friday, May 15.

Tyson Betts was sentenced for sending an offensive/indecent/obscene/menacing message. The case was heard at Isle of Wight Magistrates Court during the week commencing September 7, 2026. He received a 24-month community order with a six-month alcohol treatment requirement and 20 rehabilitation days, was fined £80 and ordered to pay £85 costs.

Abdul Hamid, owner of Shahanaz Indian restaurant on Sandown Road, Lake, Isle of Wight, pleaded guilty at Isle of Wight Magistrates' Court to four food safety offences. These included failing to protect food from contamination and lacking proper staff training and supervision. The restaurant had ignored an improvement notice from the council after persistently poor food hygiene ratings over two years. Hamid was personally fined £1,295 and the council was awarded costs of £3,514.

Benjamin Weekes, 43, of Longhalves, Freshwater, breached a restraining order four times between November 12, 2025, and January 7, 2026. He sent multiple messages to a woman and attended addresses linked to her, starting on the day the order was imposed after his conviction for assault by beating in Yarmouth in September 2025.

Conor Pattrick was sentenced for driving while disqualified and driving without insurance. The case was heard at Isle of Wight Magistrates Court during the week commencing September 7, 2026. He received a 12-month community order with ten rehabilitation days, was fined £80, received a 27-month driving disqualification and was ordered to pay £85 costs.

Darren Cook was sentenced for possession of cannabis. The case was heard at Isle of Wight Magistrates Court during the week commencing September 7, 2026. He was fined £80 and ordered to pay £85 costs.

David Steele was sentenced for being drunk and disorderly in a public place. The case was heard at Isle of Wight Magistrates Court during the week commencing September 7, 2026. He was fined £146 and ordered to pay £85 costs and a £58 surcharge.

James Patton, a coastguard operational manager, was found guilty of driving without insurance. He had a prior conviction for the same offence in 2024 and already had 6 penalty points. This latest offence added 6 points, bringing his total to 12 and triggering a mandatory 6-month driving disqualification. Patton claimed he was unaware his licence already had points and that he needed separate insurance policies for his two cars, one kept on the Isle of Wight and one on the mainland. His exceptional hardship argument against the ban was rejected.

Police stopped John Johnstone on Hope Road after receiving a tip-off that he had been drinking and then got into his car. He failed a roadside breath test and was arrested. At Newport Police Station he blew over the legal drink-drive limit. He admitted he should not have driven after drinking. The court heard he is unemployed and had one previous drink-drive conviction in the early 1990s.

Laura Harding engaged in sexually explicit communication via texts and images with two individuals she believed were under 16 years old, for her own gratification. The offences were uncovered by a sting operation run by the vigilante group Guardians of the North, who posed as underage victims online and confronted Harding before contacting Hampshire Police. Harding was arrested in early November and later charged.

Levi Bellamy, 27, of Fort Street, Sandown, led police on a chase through Newport and Carisbrooke on October 7, 2025, ignoring signals to stop and driving through no entry signs. He admitted failing to stop for police, driving without insurance, driving without a licence, and driving without due care and attention.

Lucy Wilton, 29, a Shanklin estate agent, was rescued from the River Medina after her Vauxhall Corsa veered off the road, smashed through a bridge barrier, and plunged into the water. She was found to have a blood alcohol level four times the legal limit. Emergency crews pulled her from the river; witnesses' quick actions likely saved her life. The magistrate remarked she was lucky not to have been seriously injured or killed, or to have killed someone else.

Nathan Martin, 29, of High Street, Bembridge, area manager at Domino's Pizza, crashed a company car on Long Lane, Newport, in the early hours of April 26, leaving it on its roof before walking away. He later returned and initially denied being the driver, but admitted drink driving after speaking to police. A breath test recorded 77 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath, more than twice the legal limit.