Plymouth Crown Court Sentencing Results

Tommy McTighe, aged 34, of North Down Crescent, Plymouth, and Gemma Vanstone lured the victim out of his home around 10.50pm on 25 March 2024 in the Stoke area of Plymouth under the pretence of a drug deal. They targeted the man in his 50s, known to them, using a premeditated plan. Equipped with a foot-long machete and a long metal bar from their black Mercedes, McTighe hid while Vanstone called the victim. Upon arrival at the rear service lane between Molesworth Road and Hotham Place, the victim was set upon, struck multiple times, and stabbed eight times while lying on the ground screaming. The metal bar was bent from the force. The attackers fled, and the victim staggered to Molesworth Road before collapsing. McTighe was detained two hours later at Keyham Road; the vehicle contained the metal bar, drugs, and the victim's blood was found in his address.

Gemma Vanstone, aged 35, of Valletort Road, Plymouth, and Tommy McTighe lured the victim out of his home around 10.50pm on 25 March 2024 in the Stoke area of Plymouth under the pretence of a drug deal. They targeted the man in his 50s, known to them, using a premeditated plan. Vanstone was smuggled in the boot of their black Mercedes and let out by McTighe at Hotham Place. With a third unidentified person, they equipped themselves with a foot-long machete and a long metal bar from the car before entering a rear service lane between Molesworth Road and Hotham Place. McTighe hid while Vanstone called the victim. Upon arrival, the victim was immediately attacked, struck multiple times with the weapons while Vanstone demanded the drugs. The victim was stabbed eight times around his body while lying on the ground screaming. The attackers fled back to the car, and the victim staggered to Molesworth Road before collapsing. Vanstone was arrested on 28 March 2024 hiding under a bed at her home.

Rasty Hassan, aged 27, an Iraqi national, conspired with others between August 1, 2024, and September 18, 2024, to organise the illegal entry into the UK of men, women, and children via a 27-foot yacht named Induna that encountered mechanical issues off Berry Head near Torbay on September 17, 2024. The yacht was towed to Brixham harbour where nine Iraqi nationals, including a family with a 10-month-old baby and three siblings, were arrested. Hassan transported Mohamed Bedah from Roscoff, France, to Calais before the crossing.

Ricky Stubberfield, 31, of Walnut Gardens, Plympton, abused eight females aged 16 to 27 between 2013 and 2024. He lured young women via Instagram offers of free teeth-whitening treatments at his Essex Smiles franchise on Mutley Plain, subjecting them to lewd remarks and forceful sexual assaults including rape, sexual assault, digital penetration, and indecent exposure. Additional offences occurred at a concert in Plymouth Pavilions in 2022, in his van on Plymouth Hoe, at a house party, and other locations such as a dating site encounter in 2013 and a 2021 incident. One assault was captured on a FaceTime call reflected in a cooker hood. The investigation, Operation Highrock by Devon and Cornwall Police’s Project Gemstone, began after reports in 2022 and 2024, leading to his arrest and trial.

Saif Kahya, aged 32 from Liverpool, raped a third teenage girl in December 2017 during house parties in Plymouth. The incident was part of a series of offences involving grooming vulnerable girls with alcohol and drugs, as investigated under Operation Garcia.

Abalzaq Salih, aged 31 from Plymouth, participated in grooming and raping two underage teenage girls at house parties in Plymouth in May and December 2017. The victims were abused after being given alcohol and money to buy drugs, as uncovered in Operation Garcia.

Anthony Anantharajah, aged 35 from London, was involved in grooming and raping vulnerable girls in Plymouth. The offences took place at house parties in 2017, where girls were given alcohol and money to buy drugs before being sexually assaulted as part of Operation Garcia.

Conor O’Neill, 26, of Glen Park Avenue in Plymouth, was involved in drug dealing activities. On April 11, 2024, police observed a suspected drug user at his property, leading to the discovery of 2.42g of heroin and 18.6g of cannabis, along with drug paraphernalia and messages on his mobile phone indicating supply. While on bail, he travelled to Thailand and returned to the UK on April 2, where he was caught at Heathrow Airport with 17kg of cannabis in his suitcase, valued at approximately £110,000 on the street. He claimed he was coerced into smuggling the drugs to settle debts and had received an Osman Warning due to threats on his life.

Mohamed Bedah, a 39-year-old Palestinian national, attempted to enter the UK without a valid entry clearance via a 27-foot yacht named Induna that got into difficulties off Berry Head near Torbay on September 17, 2024. The yacht was brought into Brixham harbour by the RNLI. Bedah had made six unsuccessful visa applications between January and August 2023. He was among nine Iraqi nationals on board, including a family with a 10-month-old baby.

Luke Dann killed pedestrian David Kelly in a fatal hit-and-run incident in Beechwood Rise, Plymouth, on September 2023. Dann drove his car deliberately towards Kelly, using it as a weapon, causing significant injuries including massive brain injury, multiple skull fractures, chest injuries, and a severed aorta. Dann later staggered into a nearby coffee shop claiming he had been attacked. He was arrested shortly after and the body-worn camera footage captured the arrest. The incident occurred in the Leigham area of Plymouth.

Alexzander Pearce, a 30-year-old dad of two and stepdad of one, sexually assaulted a 16-year-old girl on a train near Truro train station on March 11, 2021. He approached the only other passenger in the carriage, sat in front of her, and touched her thighs without consent while rubbing his crotch. He asked if she wanted to see his penis and, when asked to stop, caressed her naked breasts inside her bra, leaving her frozen, shocked, and scared. The incident occurred during Covid restrictions when fewer people were travelling on public transport. He was caught and the assault was reported.

Thomas Hodge carried out a vicious assault on Sascha Martine Bennett in her home in North Down Crescent, Keyham on February 8, 2023, causing severe injuries that nearly killed her. This incident involved physical domestic abuse, and Hodge was sentenced following a hearing that Bennett attended.

In June 2023, Sammy Jo Dillon burgled and defrauded an elderly blind couple and stole from an 80-year-old man with Parkinson's who was described in court as 'effectively housebound'. This led to her arrest and subsequent sentencing.

An Iraqi man arranged an illegal boat crossing using a yacht that carried a family with a 10-month-old baby, demonstrating reckless endangerment of vulnerable migrants.

Steven Richards, then 31, raped and murdered 18-year-old Frances Nethercott at his flat in Plymstock on January 20, 2001. He had expressed interest in her shortly after she started working at the Lidl supermarket in Plymouth city centre. On the night of the murder, they left the store together and took a taxi to his flat in Jennycliff. Frances was sexually assaulted, strangled with cable ties around her neck, and her body was found wrapped in a black bin liner inside a holdall, with tape over her eyes and nose. Her clothing and bag were left in the hallway. Richards attempted to dispose of the body at Fort Stamford but was arrested the next day at a hotel in Exeter.