Margate Magistrates' Court Sentencing Results

Explore 9 verdicts at Margate Magistrates' Court (Margate, Margate). Updated with the latest court outcomes.

February 2026 2 cases

Daniel Taylor

Controlling and coercive behaviour *

Sentence

12 months' imprisonment

Daniel Taylor admitted controlling and coercive behaviour towards his wife. He was arrested in June 2025 and pleaded guilty on January 9, 2026.

Pleaded guilty on January 9. Suspended from Reform UK after arrest in June last year and expelled after guilty plea. Disqualified as councillor, triggering by-election.

20 Feb 2026

Marcus Phillips

Coercive or controlling behaviour and assault occasioning actual bodily harm *

Sentence

12 months imprisonment suspended for 18 months, concurrent 28 weeks imprisonment suspended for 18 months, 150 hours unpaid work, 40 rehabilitation activity requirement sessions, 18 months mental health treatment requirement, 6 months electronic monitoring

Marcus Phillips engaged in coercive and controlling behaviour towards his former girlfriend between June 1 and October 22, 2025, including threats to 'get someone to smoke' her parents if she did not comply, and demands to meet him. On October 19, 2025, in Gravesend, after she informed him she wanted to end their relationship which began in April 2025 and resulted in her pregnancy, he threw a coffee table in anger, striking her arm and causing a deep gash that bled profusely. She fled to her parents' home and reported the incident to police. He was arrested, charged with coercive or controlling behaviour and assault occasioning actual bodily harm (ABH), and admitted the offences in October 2025.

Early guilty plea. Previous conviction for coercive behaviour in 2022 (jailed 16 months), suspended sentence for burglary in 2017, community order for common assault in 2021. Suffers from PTSD, autism, and anxiety. Ordered to pay court costs and victim surcharge. Restraining order for 5 years against victim and her parents.

17 Feb 2026

January 2026 3 cases

Gavin Chapman

Equipped for searching or pursuing hares with dogs *

Sentence

18-month conditional discharge and ordered to pay a fine

Gavin Chapman, 48, of Longmete Road, Preston, was found guilty following a trial of being equipped for searching or pursuing hares with dogs. The incident occurred in land off Dane Road, Birchington, where police discovered three dead hares hidden under a hedgerow near his green vehicle. Witnesses reported seeing a man carrying dead hares over his shoulder accompanied by a white and brown lurcher dog not on a lead, and a green vehicle stopping beside a hedgerow. Officers found fresh blood on his clothing and a monocular discarded nearby which he admitted belonged to him. He was arrested at the scene but denied hunting hares, claiming he stayed on public footpaths.

Issued with a national Criminal Behaviour Order (CBO) lasting two years. Under the order, must not own or be in control of a dog on private land without the landowner’s permission or walk a dog in public off a lead, unless the dog is muzzled, anywhere in England or Wales.

30 Jan 2026

Daniel Hilden

Burglary *

Sentence

8 months imprisonment

Daniel Hilden, 43, of Steddy Close, Ashford, drove to an Ashford business on Saturday, January 17, 2026, where he was captured on CCTV breaking a padlock and entering the premises before driving away. Within hours, he returned, forcing his way into a locked storage cage and stealing several gas canisters. He returned a final time on Sunday, January 18, 2026, at around 6pm, stealing further gas canisters from the same locked storage area. In total, he stole almost £1,000 worth of property. On Monday morning, January 19, 2026, a neighbourhood policing officer reviewed the CCTV, identified him, and he was arrested by 10.15am outside his home. He was charged with burglary that evening.

Pleaded guilty to burglary.

20 Jan 2026

Mehmet Dari

Wilful obstruction of a highway *

Sentence

Fined £850 and ordered to pay £19,885.25 in costs

Mehmet Dari erected an illegal glass-fronted enclosure outside the Herne Bay branch of his A La Turka restaurant in 2019, despite only having planning permission for retractable awnings. The structure, costing £20,000 to build, obstructed the public highway and prevented access to underground utilities. After retrospective planning permission failed in 2022, Kent County Council issued an enforcement notice to remove it, which he ignored for years despite repeated assurances. The enclosure was finally removed days before the October 2025 hearing. The case involved delays, including allowances for personal circumstances related to the 2023 Turkey earthquakes.

Pleaded guilty to wilful obstruction of a highway and failing to comply with a notice to remove a projection from a building. Attempt to withdraw guilty pleas rejected. Early guilty plea taken into account.

19 Jan 2026

June 2025 1 case

Lloyd Armstrong

Shoplifting *

Sentence

18 weeks imprisonment

Lloyd Armstrong stole over £500 worth of men’s underwear and other clothing from shops in the Westwood area of Thanet on May 26 and June 1, with some items still tagged.

Pleaded guilty to shoplifting and breaching a suspended sentence.

3 Jun 2025

July 2024 1 case

Gheorghe Nica

Failing to pay proceeds of crime confiscation order *

Sentence

11.5 months imprisonment

Gheorghe Nica failed to repay £65,157.65 ordered in a proceeds of crime confiscation hearing related to his involvement in the manslaughter of 39 Vietnamese nationals and conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration in the Essex lorry deaths case on 22 October 2019.

Additional default sentence for failing to pay £65,157.65 proceeds of crime confiscation order. Original sentence was 27 years imprisonment. All recovered monies to be paid as compensation to victims' families.

11 Jul 2024

March 2019 1 case

Richard Mcauley

Assaulting an emergency worker *

Sentence

12 month conditional discharge and £100 compensation

Richard McAuley, a 22-year-old drunken labourer from Northdown Road, Margate, was arrested at around 1.30am on February 24, 2019, following reports of a disturbance at a party. While being placed in a cell at Margate police station, the door did not close properly. When another officer attempted to lock the reinforced steel door, McAuley kicked it in frustration, thinking he was alone, smashing it into the officer's head. The impact caused dizziness and swelling, but the officer considered it a relatively minor injury.

Pleaded guilty to assaulting an emergency worker. Defence stated it was a random kick done in a reckless manner with lack of premeditation. Chairman of the bench commented that the defendant abused the situation by stupidly kicking back and injuring a police officer, advising him to just behave.

28 Mar 2019

January 2019 1 case

Shane Rowden

Drink driving *

Sentence

Two 120-day suspended sentences (concurrent for 1 year), 4-year driving ban, 6-month alcohol treatment programme, 15 rehabilitation activity days, £85 court costs, £115 victim surcharge

On May 23, 2018, Shane Rowden, of Douglas Road, Dover, who was already disqualified from driving for 24 months following a prior motoring offence, drove a Renault Clio while intoxicated in Tower Hill, Whitstable. He crashed into two parked cars, attempted to drive away, then fled on foot to a nearby public toilet where he was found by police. A witness confirmed he was the driver. Breath test showed he was more than three times over the drink drive limit. At the time, the 54-year-old former builder was drinking heavily and taking cocaine daily, and had been sectioned for mental health issues in June and July 2018. He now lives in mental health accommodation and has reduced drinking and stopped cocaine use.

Pleaded guilty to drink driving, driving while disqualified, and driving without insurance. Narrowly avoided prison due to mental health progress and determination to change. Chairman Neil Hubbard noted that normally it would be an immediate custodial sentence but progress was taken into account.

31 Jan 2019

Disclaimer: The information on this page is compiled from publicly available court records and published media reports. It is provided strictly for general informational purposes and does not constitute legal advice, nor should it be relied upon as a definitive record of any individual's criminal history or legal status.

Offence names marked with an asterisk (*) reflect descriptions used in media reporting and may not correspond to the formal legal charge or indictment. Sentencing details are as reported and may be subject to subsequent appeal, variation, or correction by the courts.

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Cecil Square, Margate CT9 1RL, Margate, Margate, CT9 1RL, United Kingdom

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About Margate Magistrates' Court

Margate Magistrates' Court, located in Margate, Margate, is a Magistrates' Court that deals with summary offences, some either-way offences, and preliminary hearings for more serious cases. With 9 sentencing records in our database, it serves the Margate, Margate area and surrounding communities. Magistrates' Courts handle the majority of criminal cases in England and Wales, with cases heard by a bench of magistrates or a district judge.

The court can be found at Cecil Square, Margate CT9 1RL, CT9 1RL.

Accessibility provisions at this court include wheelchair accessible entrance.

For enquiries about cases heard at this court, you can contact the court by telephone on +441303227800.

All sentencing information published on this page has been sourced from publicly-available records and verified by our editorial team. If you believe any information is inaccurate or should be removed, you can submit a removal request directly from the relevant listing above.