Maidstone Crown Court Sentencing Results

Danuska Pullia, a 47-year-old teaching assistant of White Satin Close, Iwade, in Kent, hit, pinched and spat at vulnerable pupils at a school in Sittingbourne between September 2021 and July 2023. She spat at a child who had spat at her and pinched another child's nose to remove a chocolate bar from their mouth. She was reported by colleagues and investigated by Kent Police.

On September 15, 2024, just before 8pm, Tyler Luckhurst, then 22, was driving his grandmother’s blue Mercedes C200 along Lower Road in Minster, Sheppey, while over the drug-driving limit with cocaine, ketamine and benzoylecgonine in his system. He overtook two cars at speed, attempted to pass a third at the brow of a hill, crashed into an oncoming vehicle driven by one victim, then collided with another car driven by another victim, causing his vehicle to flip. He was flung into bushes. Both women suffered serious injuries including broken bones, bruising and a punctured lung. Luckhurst fled the scene but later admitted responsibility at hospital.

Jay Bishenden, 24, from Castle Rough Lane in Sittingbourne, was using unauthorised devices. Officers attended his address on November 13, 2025, with a warrant and found two mobile phones and a laptop with evidence of him using a private browser.

Gillingham resident Andrew McPherson, 53, was visited by officers at his home in Charter Street on January 12 as part of a regular schedule of visits. They identified a laptop and phone showing signs of regular use, including internet usage. He was arrested and charged with breaching his SHPO.

On June 10, 2023, at the Aldi store in Langley Park, Edmett Way, Maidstone, Anthony Wickham, a 67-year-old retired carpenter from Bearsted, strapped a mobile phone to his right foot with the camera facing upwards to record beneath women's skirts without their consent. He followed multiple women around the store, making unusual movements with his foot to capture upskirt footage. One victim confronted him after noticing the phone, but he refused to show it and left. CCTV confirmed his actions. Following a police appeal, former customers identified him. Upon arrest in July 2023, devices seized from his home revealed 140 images and videos of voyeurism, including footage of an unknown woman using a toilet (not recorded by him) and three deleted indecent images of children aged 7-14 depicting sexual acts. Internet searches showed interest in upskirt and spy camera content. The incident caused lasting distress to the victim and her son, affecting their sense of safety.

On May 24, 2024, during the victim's wedding ceremony at Oakwood House Register Office in Maidstone, Antonia Eastwood threw black paint over her sister-in-law, the victim, splattering her wedding dress, face, eyes, and skin just moments before the ceremony was due to start. The attack was a revenge act stemming from an ongoing family feud, exacerbated by a false accusation that the victim had tried to trip Eastwood at her own wedding in Dover in September 2023. The incident caused over £5,000 in damages and loss of revenue to the venue, which had to close for repairs. Eastwood fled the scene but was later interviewed by police, initially responding 'no comment'. She admitted the revenge motive in a pre-sentence report. The attack ruined the wedding, leading to the victim suffering depression, inability to work, and loss of her £1,800 dress, which could not be cleaned.

Macauley Sanna, 22, of Five Oak Green, Tonbridge, crashed ambulance head-on in Badsell Road, Paddock Wood early March 5, 2022 after drinking beer/spirits, fled scene leaving girlfriend, hid with family help to avoid alcohol testing.

Michelle Sanna, 51, of Five Oak Green, Tonbridge, with children Macauley and Mollie, hid Macauley after head-on crash with ambulance in Badsell Road, Paddock Wood early March 5, 2022. Lied about contact, switched off phones to avoid detection and alcohol testing. Macauley fled scene after drinking.

Mollie Sanna, 19, of Five Oak Green, Tonbridge, helped mother and brother hide Macauley after head-on crash with ambulance in Badsell Road, Paddock Wood early March 5, 2022, lying about contact to avoid detection.

Isabel Nunes, aged 34, from Berkley Close in Rochester, perverted the course of justice following a fatal crash on October 29, 2022, in City Way, Rochester, caused by her partner Isidoro Olim. After Olim called her 15 times post-crash, she arrived at the scene and falsely told police she was the driver of the BMW, providing a detailed account of her supposed driving, allowing herself to be arrested, and complying with breath test and sobriety checks. She feigned injury while in custody to make her account more credible and deleted the call history from her phone before handing it over for examination. She was charged in October 2024 and pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity.

On October 29, 2022, Isidoro Olim, aged 35, from Berkley Close in Rochester, was driving his blue BMW 118D at 77mph in a 30mph zone along City Way, Rochester, after consuming four pints of alcohol, including one just six minutes prior. He ploughed into the rear offside of a Skoda Fabia carrying four victims at around 11.45pm, with an impact speed of 65mph. Two of the victims, who were not wearing seatbelts, died from blunt force trauma to the head and torso; one victim was ejected from the vehicle. The other two victims suffered serious injuries. Olim had drunk at a bar in Rochester and his blood alcohol level five hours later was below the legal limit, but the prosecution argued he may have been over the limit at the time. He initially lied to police, claiming his wife was driving, refused a breathalyser, and called her 15 times to come to the scene. He was charged in October 2024 and pleaded guilty before trial earlier in March 2026.

Thomas Bull, 32, from Gillingham, began a relationship with the victim in early 2024, initially using dates and gifts. He then engaged in obsessive behaviour, digital harassment, isolation from friends, regular physical assaults including choking her so she needed hospital treatment, forced entry into her home, urinating on her clothing and furniture, and stealing two watches. Arrested on December 30, 2024.

Cora Upple, 22, from Rainham, breached a five-year restraining order imposed in 2023 for persistent harassment of the EastEnders actress, the victim, who plays Amy Mitchell. In 2024, Upple bombarded the victim with hundreds of messages, leading to a nine-month suspended sentence for 15 months imposed by magistrates. On May 10, 2025, Upple sent a follow request to the victim's mother, via Instagram, and on June 9, 2025, followed her account, breaching the extended restraining order. Initially denying wrongdoing and claiming accident or impulse to apologise, Upple pleaded guilty at Southwark Crown Court in January 2026. The actions caused serious harm and distress to the victim personally and professionally, and impacted her family. Upple has previous convictions and a history of disobeying court orders, assessed as high risk of reoffending and causing serious harm.

On December 27 at 8.43pm, Mario Pascoal, 35, of Cranbrook Road in Thornton Heath, London, chased a person with a knife through Maidstone High Street. He was identified via CCTV, pursued by police and a member of the public, and arrested near Maidstone Crown Court after throwing a duffel bag containing class A and class B drugs, two mobile phones, cash, and a leather weapon holder into the River Medway. Phone messages confirmed drug supply activities. The arrest occurred four minutes after the initial 999 call.

Amie Bray deliberately set fire to her home on Copenhagen Road, Gillingham, at approximately 11:00 p.m. on May 5, 2025, endangering neighbouring residents. During the police response, she became combative, kicking one officer while being detained and slapping a second officer while being placed into a holding cell.

Lauren Kinrade from Sittingbourne made 20 false reports to police over a six-month period between August 2023 and February 2024, claiming her former partner had sent her malicious and threatening emails, including threats to rape and kill. She set up an email address in his name while acting as his carer in August 2022, and after their romantic relationship ended in November 2022, she sought a non-molestation order in June 2023 by sending five fake emails posing as him. She made 13 calls to police and seven witness statements, leading to the victim being charged and remanded in custody for over three months at HMP Elmley. The false emails were traced to her home IP address and recovery phone number. She also conducted internet searches on tracking IP addresses from emails. Her actions worsened the victim's health, including his bladder cancer and Parkinson’s disease, causing significant distress, financial loss, and reputational damage.

On June 16, 2026, at around 7.40pm, David Fowkes, driving a Vauxhall Corsa, approached a pedestrian walking along Bayham Road, Tunbridge Wells, after a round of golf. With no pavement, the pedestrian was on the right-hand side. Fowkes left insufficient space, leading to the pedestrian expressing dissatisfaction. An argument escalated, Fowkes exited his vehicle and punched the man once, knocking him backwards to hit his head on the floor, causing serious injuries requiring hospital treatment in London.

Karen Gordon, 52, of Ellington Road, Ramsgate, allowed her home to be used for storing drugs as part of the Thanet drug gang led by Bertie Payne. The gang supplied 24kg of cocaine, 10kg of ketamine, and 5,000 ecstasy tablets across east Kent from August 2024 to January 2025.

Halim Lashi, 31, of Lynwood Gardens, Croydon, was arrested with Bertie Payne on 24 January 2025 in Bluewater car park while handling £50,000 in cash. He was involved in money laundering for the drug gang supplying class A drugs across east Kent.

Mark Caprile, a visually impaired driver from Holden Park Road, Tunbridge Wells, struck and killed 76-year-old pensioner Nigel Knight with his white Volkswagen Transporter van while driving at around 24mph in a 20mph zone on Culverden Down near the entrance to Tunbridge Wells FC's ground in 2023. The victim was crossing the road after watching a match with his son Paul Knight when the collision occurred, causing him to fall backwards and strike his head on the pavement. He was rushed to hospital and died four days later. The crash could have been avoided if Caprile had braked one metre earlier. He had not had an eye test for 10 years and failed to meet the legal vision requirements for driving (acuity of 0.5 in at least one eye). Officers noted he should have seen the pedestrians from 40 metres away.

Ryan Page, a registered sex offender, created fake social media accounts under the names 'Jim White' and 'Ryan Wenham' on Snapchat, and 'Ryan Chantilly' on Facebook in 2023, breaching his court-imposed internet restrictions following his 2008 conviction for rape. He was arrested in November 2024 at The Grand Burstin Hotel in Folkestone, charged with four counts of failing to comply with sex offender notification requirements, denied the charges, failed to appear for trial in October 2025, was convicted in absentia, arrested in Somerset on March 9, 2026, and sentenced the next day.

On November 2, 2023, Ahmed Boshmakov was driving a Mercedes C220 at night on a wet surface in Longfield Road, Tunbridge Wells, potentially at double the 30mph speed limit. He collided with a BMW emerging from a junction, causing his vehicle to spin and hit a parked van. The crash broke his pregnant partner's back (two broken vertebrae in her lower spine), broke her waters, and led to their baby being born extremely prematurely on November 19, 2023, with enduring medical conditions including a shortened lifespan. Witnesses estimated his speed at 60mph. Although the BMW driver contributed, the prosecution stated the collision would not have occurred if Boshmakov had driven sensibly and within the limit.

On March 15, 2023, Dawn Simon was interrupted by police while meeting convicted drug dealer Graham Marriott in the car park of Hempstead Valley Shopping Centre in Gillingham to allegedly pay the final £50 instalment for a £4,000 Rolex watch. She fled the scene in her white Mercedes-Benz, smashing into a police car during a chase, before abandoning the vehicle and hiding in bushes near Quaife Engineering on the Gillingham Industrial Estate. She was arrested wearing red slippers, pyjamas, a long black coat, and a Rolex watch. Police found £900 hidden in her buttocks, £300 in her handbag, and upon searching her home, discovered £7,500 in cash, designer clothing, perfumes, sunglasses, handbags, and cutting agents for cocaine. DNA matching Simon's was found on drug wraps discarded by Marriott. She claimed she thought the officers were robbers and did not see or hear the police lights or sirens.

Over a five-month period between June and November 2025, Aaron Nugent assaulted the victim multiple times and controlled where she could go and who she could speak to. He followed her, turned up unannounced at locations she planned to visit, and was offensive. He threw a brick through the window of her home and climbed into the property when she refused to let him in. During a two-hour ordeal while drunk, he repeatedly punched and slapped the victim, grabbed her round the neck causing bruising, and threatened to kill her. He was arrested on 28 November 2025 and later charged with non-fatal strangulation, controlling and coercive behaviour, actual bodily harm, assault by beating, threats to kill and criminal damage.

Malcom Nix, a registered sex offender from Gillingham, was subject to an indefinite sexual harm prevention order requiring that any internet-enabled device he used be capable of retaining and displaying his browsing history. On 9 September 2025, investigators visited his home and he handed over his mobile phone. Officers found he had been using private browsing mode, a direct breach of the order. He was charged the following day, pleaded guilty at Maidstone Crown Court, and was sentenced to 13 months' imprisonment.

Lee Webster, aged 39 from Maidstone, reoffended just six weeks after release from prison by using a false name and claiming to be 28 to send explicit messages and images to someone he believed was a 12-year-old girl. He also attempted to arrange a meeting for sexual activity. Webster was arrested at his home in Fairmeadow and charged with attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child, attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity, attempting to facilitate a child sex offence, breaching a Sexual Harm Prevention Order, and failing to comply with sex offenders’ register requirements. He attempted to conceal evidence by deleting social media apps from his phone.

Michael Tucker attacked a man in a shop in Chatham on 19 August 2025, brandishing a knife due to a grudge following a previous incident. The victim defended himself but sustained a laceration to his hand. Tucker was arrested the following day and later admitted all charges.

Andrew Hamilton, 50, of Voisin Close, Hoo, held a significant role as a drug runner in Frank Harris's reactivated cocaine network. Arrested on January 11, 2025, in New Cut, Chatham, during a drug deal; officers seized cocaine valued at £2,840 and £640 cash. While on bail, on April 11, 2025, a warrant at his home led to his attempted flight with deal bags, gloves, phone, pepper spray, and ammunition; search found cocaine valued at £480-£640.