Preston Crown Court Sentencing Results

Anthony Howell and Kieran O'Leary attended Rayrigg Motors in Morecambe 'under the guise' of wanting to buy a car and started speaking to the owner. During the conversation one of the defendants went into the office and stole the keys to a Kia Sportage which had been left at the garage for repairs. The vehicle was driven off and then spotted five days later outside a house in Carnforth, near The Highwayman Pub. A neighbour, who was suspicious of the vehicle parked on the road, raised concerns with the house owner through social media. When CCTV was later examined it showed two men breaking into a garage at the house and stealing two mountain bikes worth £680. Police were dispatched to look for the Kia and the court heard that driver Howell initially failed to stop when flagged down by an officer. Mr Barr said the 54-year-old was eventually arrested along with passenger O'Leary and they were taken to a local police station. O'Leary was then identified as the burglar of a separate house in Calderdale, West Yorkshire, three weeks earlier. The theft occurred in 2019.

Liam Cafferkey turned up at the victim's house on Yewtree Avenue in Ribbleton after getting a taxi from Royal Lancaster Infirmary. Despite being told not to enter the property, the 29-year-old used his key to unlock the door and told victim 'You're not so clever now, you're not so gangster now'. He ran at her and punched her to the ribs before 'upending her on the stairs'. Cafferkey then stood over her and stamped on her legs, arms and body. As she screamed for help the defendant 'mimicked her' by also shouting 'help me, help me'. Cafferkey then followed her into an upstairs bedroom and headbutted her to the nose and punched her. She put up her arms to protect herself but the defendant continued to punch her to the arms and ribs. He then put his hands around her throat and squeezed saying 'I'm going to f***ing kill you'. The victim tried to kick him off and dug her nails into his hand before managing to break free and shouted again for help. The attack occurred at 3am on October 14, 2019.

David Ostafi was stopped in the early hours of August 8, 2019 on Holland House Road in Walton-le-Dale and officers noticed his 'eyes were glazed and he smelt of intoxicants'. The father-of-three was held in the cage of a police van as they prepared a roadside breath test when 'from nowhere he launched himself' at the female officer with his head at chest height and knocked her to the floor. He then punched another male officer in the chest before 'making a run for it through the gap'. Ostafi was heard 'roaring like an animal' as police then made 'extensive efforts to detain him'. When one officer grabbed hold of him the defendant 'started to thrash about with his hands' and broke free before running away again. A Taser was used to try and incapacitate Ostafi however it was 'insufficient'. The defendant continued to 'violently resist' by kicking his legs and waving his arms as four officers tried to handcuff him on the ground. A search of Ostafi's car revealed a metal baseball bat and a large can of pepper spray in the rear footwell of the passenger seat. When he was searched at the police station a small bag of cocaine was recovered but Ostafi refused to provide a breath test. In a separate incident Ostafi was caught driving a £48,000 Audi which had been stolen in a house burglary four weeks earlier on October 1, 2018. The vehicle had been on false number plates until five days before he was arrested at a BP petrol station.

Jamie Douglas Bullen knocked out victim Jason Procter in the early hours of June 2, 2019 with a ferocious punch before kicking him twice on the floor. The remorseless 32-year-old then 'slapped him around the face and as a parting shot flicked his nose'. The shocking incident was immediately witnessed on CCTV by police officers who rushed to the scene. Mr Procter was found bleeding profusely on the pavement and suffered a laceration to his head and a 'bust lip'. He was taken to Royal Blackburn Hospital for treatment but 'refused to raise a formal complaint'. A short time after the attack on Mr Procter the defendant then attended the home of Paula Smith - his ex-partner's sister - in Blackburn. Bullen was seen 'waving a hammer around and shouting aggressively toward her' before smashing the back window of her car. He then ran off down the street and drove away in a Vauxhall Corsa before the victim's husband Karl Smith returned home. Mr Smith then followed the defendant to the home of Karen Smith - Bullen's ex-partner - on Ailsa Road and when he went into the house he heard voices upstairs. Mr Smith saw Bullen by the side of the bed using an 'aggressive tone towards Karen Smith'. Mr Smith punched Bullen who then fell onto the bed before Ms Smith shouted the word 'knife'. The court heard that Mr Smith looked down and saw Bullen holding a knife in his right hand and they 'both ended up in a scuffle on the floor'. Bullen eventually dropped the weapon saying 'I don't need a knife' and walked out of the house. Mr Smith followed him outside before realising he had a 'scratch and small puncture across his chest'. Bullen got back into the Corsa before officers arrived at the scene and arrested him. He provided a roadside breath test of 52mg in 100ml - the legal limit is 35mg - and officers also seized a small amount of cannabis.

Jacob Hough accused the victim, from Leyland, of cheating on him during a drunken argument and pinned her down on the bed at his home in Skelmersdale. The 24-year-old bit her twice to the leg and she 'screamed' for him to get off. He then 'bit her nose and held on for five seconds' before throwing her to the floor. The defendant then grabbed an empty beer bottle and struck her to the mouth in a 'hammer blunt motion' and then pushed her down the stairs. Another resident at the address heard Hough call her a 'rat' and their child a 'rat'. The victim was taken to hospital for treatment and told police she had 'never felt more scared in my life'. She sustained an open wound on her nose, a chipped tooth, cuts to her lip and face, a swollen ankle and bruising to her leg. Hough has 28 convictions for 39 offences including an attack on his mother in 2016. The incident occurred in 2019.

Anthony Howell and Kieran O'Leary attended Rayrigg Motors in Morecambe 'under the guise' of wanting to buy a car and started speaking to the owner. During the conversation one of the defendants went into the office and stole the keys to a Kia Sportage which had been left at the garage for repairs. The vehicle was driven off and then spotted five days later outside a house in Carnforth, near The Highwayman Pub. A neighbour, who was suspicious of the vehicle parked on the road, raised concerns with the house owner through social media. When CCTV was later examined it showed two men breaking into a garage at the house and stealing two mountain bikes worth £680. Police were dispatched to look for the Kia and the court heard that driver Howell initially failed to stop when flagged down by an officer. Mr Barr said the 54-year-old was eventually arrested along with passenger O'Leary and they were taken to a local police station. The theft occurred in 2019.

On October 21, 2019, Richard O’Brien, under the influence of diazepam and nitrazepam, broke into the home of a 73-year-old woman on Burnley Road in Accrington, stealing her handbag containing £197.33 cash, two bank cards, £226 in Euros, and keys. He was seen acting suspiciously by a motorist, who enlisted builders to detain him until police arrived. Earlier that day, he had burgled the neighboring property of a 72-year-old woman while she was visiting her husband in a care home, leaving the house in a mess after an untidy search. The victims reported emotional distress, including nightmares and feeling unsafe in their homes.

Raja Sikander Ali, 34, of Neath Close, Blackburn, assaulted his estranged wife on two occasions. On July 11, 2019, at 11.10pm, he went to her home in Accrington, punched her in the face with a clenched fist when she answered the door, causing her to scream in pain. She called the police, and he fled towards Accrington train station. The couple had married in April 2018 but separated by February 2019. In the 12 days following the first attack, Ali sent her offensive and threatening text messages. On July 23, 2019, she agreed to meet him at Blackburn train station to facilitate his arrest. When he entered her car carrying a tree branch and a glass jar, he pushed her, causing her head to hit the door frame, leaving her feeling threatened.

Christian James Niven, 29, of Sandfield Road, Bacup, wielded a knife and punched taxi driver Parvez Akhar during a robbery on February 2, 2019, on Bury Road in Rawtenstall, causing injuries to the victim's fingers. He then participated in setting fire to the stolen red Skoda Octavia taxi at the entrance to a primary school, where it rolled back onto a wall near a house, forcing a traumatised family to flee through the back door.

Jacob Christopherson, 18, of Carr Mount, Rawtenstall, assisted in the knifepoint robbery of taxi driver Yasser Javid on January 20, 2019, in Accrington by preventing escape, and later participated in the robbery of Parvez Akhar on February 2, 2019, in Rawtenstall. He was involved in setting fire to the stolen taxi near a residential property, and was seen walking away smelling of accelerant after the family fled their home.

Elliot Lee Boothman, 24, robbed taxi driver Yasser Javid at knifepoint on January 20, 2019, outside Omars Takeaway on Nuttall Street in Accrington, stealing his Skoda Octavia taxi and cash after threatening to kill him with an eight-inch kitchen knife. Less than two weeks later, on February 2, 2019, he participated in another knifepoint robbery of taxi driver Parvez Akhar on Bury Road in Rawtenstall, involving punches and threats, after which the stolen taxi was set on fire by co-defendants near a residential property, causing a family to flee.

Lee Anthony Francis Quinn targeted six businesses in Waterfoot and Stacksteads over a three-day period in October 2018, while on bail for a previous burglary. He smashed into Glen Service Station, stealing £300 cash and a £500 CCTV hard drive, causing £1,500 damage. He broke into an empty butchers shop next to Mannings, stealing £25 from charity boxes. He kicked down the door of Hong Kong Takeaway, stealing £80 from a till. He smashed a window at Headmasters Hair and Beauty Salon, stealing £40 in tips. He attempted to kick down a fire exit door at another shop. The spree was to fund a £100-a-day drug habit. He was arrested on a river bank with stolen items. The prior burglary in February 2018 at R U Comfy Beanbags in Blackburn involved stealing four Apple Macbooks, a safe, loose change, and whiskey worth £10,480.

Liam Sloane sexually assaulted a woman in Dalton by performing a sexual act on her for his own gratification, disregarding her resistance.

Taylor Edwards, while drunk, choked his ex-girlfriend with a dog lead, leaving her feeling helpless and thinking she was going to die.