Liverpool Crown Court Sentencing Results

Ashton Rees, aged 17 at the time, downloaded four documents containing instructions on making firearms and explosives, including the Anarchists’ Cookbook, found on his phone. He experimented with making basic devices, two of which were discovered by police, while others were buried in woodland and not recovered. Messages showed him bragging about making a pipebomb. Police searched his room in 2024, finding knives, skull masks, and a calendar entry saying 'kill'. He had a friendship with Aristedes Haynes, convicted in 2023 for daubing a Windrush mural with Nazi symbols. Rees was a marine biology student expelled after arrest, now married and working.

James O'Donnell was driving his black Volkswagen ID5 at speeds of 63mph in a 30mph zone when he struck 63-year-old cyclist Keith Hornby on Tarbock Road in Huyton on 5 March 2025. After the collision, O'Donnell turned the car around, looked at the victim lying in the road, and sped away. He abandoned the car in a nearby housing estate, then went to a shop to buy more alcohol before attempting to walk home. He was found staggering along the street, arrested, and a breath test showed he was nearly three times over the legal alcohol limit.

Walter Chahwanda, 34, of Plemonstall Court in Chester, a former pastor in the Apostolic Faith Mission who set up his own church Sound of Dominion in Liverpool, targeted children and young women across the country over approximately four years. He met them through church activities, added them on Snapchat or Instagram, sexualised conversations, and sent intimate pictures and videos of himself, often performing sexual acts. He sexually assaulted one 14-year-old child. He goaded victims to expose him as part of his fantasies. Offending escalated despite church awareness. Reported by a victim's father to NSPCC and police. Initially arrested February 2024, re-interviewed April 2025. Charged with 22 counts relating to nine victims; convicted on 17 counts on 3 February 2026, including sexual activity with a child, sending indecent images, causing a child to watch a sexual act, and sexual communication with a child. Not guilty on rape, assault by penetration, and sending genitals image; no evidence on blackmail counts.

On August 4, 2024, at Toscana's Pizza and Grill on Stanley Road in Bootle, Iman Sepahvand, aged 39, of Orrell Lane, engaged in a heated argument with his colleague Mohammed Bakhshi over religious issues. After months of squabbling, Sepahvand armed himself with two kitchen knives and stabbed Bakhshi in the chest, then pursued him into the back area, inflicting further wounds to his hands and arms as Bakhshi defended himself. The manager intervened to restrain Sepahvand, allowing Bakhshi to flee and collapse in the street. Bakhshi was treated at Aintree Hospital for stab wounds causing lifelong sensory restrictions in his hands, loss of job, depression, and flashbacks. The incident was captured on CCTV.

On 24th July 2023, officers from the Anti-Corruption Unit attempted to contact Samarah Kamal in relation to a different matter. She had phoned in sick to work and was not present at her home address. Calls to her personal mobile at 2.56pm and 2.59pm went unanswered. At 3pm, the investigating officer received a missed call from her phone and recalled at 3.02pm. Kamal agreed to meet and arrived at 3.11pm, where she was arrested. A search revealed she had disposed of her mobile phone in the nine minutes between the call and arrival, leading to the loss of evidence. This resulted in charges after consultation with the Crown Prosecution Service.

In November 2024, during a visit to his ex-girlfriend's home in the Bootle area, Mario Garino lost his temper during an argument, threw objects around the house, threw the victim onto a sofa, placed his foot on her neck applying full weight causing her to struggle for breath and nearly pass out, then threw a bicycle at her while their four-year-old daughter screamed for him to stop. The assault was reported to police in summer 2025 after Garino began stalking her via calls and WhatsApp messages. He was arrested on August 11, 2025, in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, and denied the allegations initially.

Nathan Ratchford, aged 18 from Prince Edwin Street, Everton, was found with disturbing items in his caravan on the family driveway, including knives scratched with slogans like 'f*** Jewish supremacy' and 'Columbine', face masks referencing Southport attack victims and 'mass stabber', a rifle stock with a swastika, converted 9mm ammunition, and a document on making an improvised 'slam gun'. His phone contained plans to rape an actress in the USA, commit terror attacks on schools and mosques, glorify mass shooter Jake Davison, an email threatening government buildings, videos of handling a gun, discussions on Telegram about acquiring firearms to shoot politicians, indecent images of children including extreme abuse, and secret recordings of children on a beach. This followed a prior burglary and criminal damage incident on May 21, 2025, at a Subway store where he stole £200 and caused £20,000 damage. Initially sentenced in February 2026 to a youth rehabilitation order after pleading guilty to possession of ammunition, four counts of making indecent images of children, and accessing terrorism-related material, but revoked after he resumed viewing violent content including beheadings, serial killers, and the Christchurch mosque attack within days of release.

David Brown, 25, was driving his BMW 1 Series M Sport along Teehey Lane in Bebington at approximately 40mph in a 30mph zone on 4 March 2024, just after 7.30pm in dark, rainy conditions. He accelerated sharply after a junction, overtook parked cars, crossed into the opposite lane, and failed to return to the correct lane. He struck 81-year-old James Atkinson, who was crossing the road after parking on Roland Avenue and taking eight steps into the carriageway en route to band practice at the Royal British Legion. Mr Atkinson suffered fractures to his neck, skull, ribs, and facial bones, plus catastrophic brain bleeding, and died in hospital on 6 March 2024. Brown briefly slowed but fled to his mother's flat before she returned him to the scene, where he admitted hitting something in his blind spot. He was a mechanic running late for dinner.

In August 2025, a 17-year-old boy contacted police stating he wished to 're-enact' the Southport attack by Axel Rudakubana, having accumulated four knives and purchased a green hoodie resembling one worn by the killer. He had been referred twice to the Government's anti-terror programme Prevent prior to his arrest, but no intervention occurred. The boy admitted the offences and was sentenced last week before March 10, 2026.

Zoe Oldham, a 29-year-old prison officer and mother of three, engaged in an intimate relationship with inmate Lewis Smith at HMP Risley in Warrington starting in 2023. She sent him naked pictures, videos of sex acts, and received declarations of love via a hidden mobile phone in his cell, which contained 1,184 messages. She also provided her bank details, receiving at least £350 from a family member of Smith. The relationship was discovered after Smith became overprotective and attacked other prisoners. Oldham was arrested in December 2023.

Scott Cameron, 41, from Norris Green, groomed a 13-year-old schoolgirl after obtaining her phone number from a thank-you letter left at a fire station following a school open day. He initially posed as another firefighter, contacted her, called her 'gorgeous', demanded bikini and nude photos, threatened to share them, and offered payment. He met her six or seven times clandestinely, including in his partner's car and at her house, leading to sexual activity where she lost her virginity. Communications were intense, graphic, and frequent, with Cameron jealous when she confided in him about another rape. He also pleaded guilty to a non-contact offence of inciting another underage girl to sexual activity in the early 2000s. Initially denied activity, claimed she was 16 and harassing him, but was convicted after trial.

Daniel Connelly, a 34-year-old paedophile and former football manager from East Parade in Rhyl, North Wales, but originally from Birkenhead, groomed a 13-year-old boy over a two-year period starting in 2021. He abused his position of trust to engage in sexual activity with the victim when they were alone. The offences occurred while he was coaching football.

Matthew Cooney, aged 21 at the time and living in Manchester, subjected a 13-year-old schoolgirl to eight months of terror starting in 2015. He first approached her when she stepped off a bus at Eastham Rake, Wirral, followed her in a car, and asked for her number, calling her 'fit'. She reluctantly shared her Kik username after hiding in bushes. He bombarded her with messages for four weeks asking to meet, then became threatening when refused, saying he would find her home, kidnap, kill, and cut her into pieces. Despite being blocked, he used multiple accounts, sent self-harm photos, knife to throat images, and tablet photos. At one point, she had 33 unread messages. In June 2015, she met him at a railway station where he gave her a bracelet and promised to treat her like a princess. He approached other girls in a park to pass messages. In September 2015, he sent a 'with sympathy' card implying loss, leading her to tell parents. He called her father threatening to send people or come with a gun, knowing their address. On September 30, he sent a letter saying 'Ever get the feeling someone is watching you?'. In October, he emailed her school pretending to be police, accusing her of smoking cannabis in uniform. Arrested in June 2016, he admitted feelings for her but failed to attend court on June 9, 2016, fleeing to USA where he married twice, had three children, and committed crimes. Deported back to UK late 2025, arrested November 2025.