Warwick Crown Court Sentencing Results

Matthew Barker conspired with John Tuff to steal six cars worth £77,000 from garages in Warwickshire, Leicestershire and Coventry. Barker would drive Tuff to garages, where Tuff posed as a customer, obtained keys and drove off with the vehicles while Barker followed in his silver Astra van. Thefts included a VW Transporter from Guest Cars in Rugby, during which Tuff ran over the salesman, causing severe injuries. Other vehicles stolen included a red BMW from Malyon Jones in Ashby-de-la-Zouch, a Mercedes from Kia Sandicliffe in Leicester, a Toyota Prius from Farmer and Carlisle in Loughborough, a black BMW Sport from DR Motors in Leicester, and another BMW from Auto Choice in Coventry. Barker was arrested in January 2017.

Matthew Fury was driving a BMW on Coventry Road, Bulkington, when he struck the victim, a 39-year-old father of three, killing him instantly. Fury, who had been on the phone at the time, fled the scene without calling emergency services and drove home. His father later attempted to take the blame, falsely telling police he was the driver. Matthew Fury pleaded guilty to causing death by careless driving and was jailed for two years.

Matthew Holland, a 44-year-old train engineer from Cambridge Street, Rugby, police learned in April 2016 that his computer was used to download indecent material. A search of his home found an envelope containing 16 A4 prints of indecent pictures of children, five of them category A. Over 500 further images were found on his computer, some featuring babies and toddlers. When arrested he admitted having the prints, claiming he found them years ago while clearing a relative's loft, but denied involvement with the computer images.

Matthew Morrall drove his BMW 1 series at over 70mph in a 30mph zone in Coventry in the early hours of November 1, 2021. He lost control of the car and hit a pole, with the passenger side sustaining the impact; the passenger, a man in his 20s, suffered fatal injuries. Morrall admitted to drinking vodka and smoking cannabis, and a search of his vehicle found a large bag of cannabis, cash and a mobile phone. Phone records showed he had been drug dealing on the night of the collision.

Max Gall was given a six-month suspended sentence in March for causing £400 of damage by smashing the outside pane of double glazing at a property under renovation in January. He was originally charged with attempted burglary, but his guilty plea to damaging property was accepted. He was ordered to complete 40 hours of unpaid work but completed only 22 hours by early October. A judge adjourned the case for two months to allow him to finish the order, but he still had not done all the hours when he appeared back before the court. The court ordered him to serve two months of the suspended sentence.

In March 2017 police executed a warrant at Lloyd Patton's Rugby home. He told officers he had been downloading material and deleted most of it. A computer tower seized contained over 100 indecent images of children and five movies, all recently downloaded. He also possessed extreme pornography involving sex with animals. He claimed curiosity and said he had deleted the files, but they remained accessible. He had no previous convictions.

Liam Adams attacked the victim after an encounter at Midas night club. He punched the victim repeatedly, stamped on his chest, and kicked him to the head, leaving him unconscious with a fractured eye socket, a minor brain contusion, and broken teeth. Adams then called an ambulance himself, put his jacket over the victim, and waited nearby until police arrived. The victim had no memory of the attack.

Liam McMahon attacked a man in his 20s with a vodka bottle around the head in Park Road, Bedworth, on April 1 last year. The victim suffered severe brain injuries, was left unable to walk or talk properly, and now requires around-the-clock care. McMahon was identified by police enquiries and arrested the following day.

On 24 April police executed a search warrant at a three-bedroom house in Long Itchington and found 123 mature cannabis plants distributed across the living room, all three bedrooms and the loft. The property was equipped with a good-quality ventilation system, insulation, thermometers, heating and lighting equipment, spare bulbs and plant food. Kristian Roulet had a camp bed in the living room and all other windows were blacked out. He initially denied involvement but later admitted his function was to water the plants. The potential street value of the crop when mature could have been up to £66,000.

Krzysztof Stanczyk was involved in a large scale cannabis factory at a home on Howkins Road, Brownsover, Rugby. In February, police raided the property and discovered a large scale drugs factory with evidence of a recently harvested cannabis crop, growing equipment, dried Skunk type cannabis with a potential street value of around £3,000, and £1,500 in cash. He was sentenced on October 5, 2015.

Police raided Kyle Kinchen's Coventry home in September after receiving intelligence linking the address to stolen motorbikes. Officers found a loaded revolver in the pocket of a coat hanging on his bedroom door, along with four bullets, more than £10,000 in cash, cannabis, cash bags and a stab-proof vest. He gave no comment in interview and was charged with possession of firearms, criminal property and cannabis.

Lackston Powell went to a house in Milverton Road after a relationship ended, knocked on the door and shouted aggressively, climbed onto a shed, had a physical confrontation with a man, left and returned with a knife, and later returned with another man. He admitted affray and possession of an offensive weapon.

Kerrianne Cole, 40, previously of Ashwood Court, Rugby, rented a property in Thomson Close, Rugby, in October 2015 on a six‑month lease. The house was converted into a cannabis factory containing 69 plants at various stages of growth, growing equipment, and evidence of a previous harvest, with a potential street value of up to £39,000. She pleaded guilty to producing cannabis and was jailed for 20 months at Warwick Crown Court.

Klaudi Mehmetaj was involved in the production of cannabis at a house in William Street, Rugby. In October 2020, police officers on patrol followed a BMW driven by Vilson Hoxha due to non-payment of speeding fines. Hoxha picked up Mehmetaj from the William Street house. The car was later stopped in Gavel Road, and a search revealed a large quantity of cash and the smell of cannabis. A subsequent search of the house uncovered cannabis plants with a street value of over £116,000. Mehmetaj pleaded guilty to producing cannabis and possessing criminal property.

John Woodhead drove his Audi S8 dangerously in Coventry on May 10, crashing through the front wall of a family's home and into the hallway where it collided with the stairs. Three young children were in the house at the time. Woodhead climbed out of the driver's window and walked away, leaving his injured partner in the car, and later refused to provide a breath specimen. The judge said he could have killed all three children if they had been in the living room.

In January 2018, Kalib Townsend moved back to his parents' address in Rugby. On 3 January, while his parents were away, he and his older brother began to argue. Townsend became very angry and aggressive, and the brothers grabbed hold of each other. During the scuffle, Townsend bit his brother's cheek with considerable force, causing a wound. He let go and left the house, then returned and threw further punches before being told to leave. Police arrived and arrested Townsend; he claimed he had been acting in self-defence. He subsequently pleaded not guilty to wounding with intent, but on the day of his trial pleaded guilty to an alternative charge of unlawful wounding on the basis of excessive self-defence.

Karl O’Sullivan phoned his daughter and threatened to kill her and other family members. He then went to his former partner’s home carrying a knife with a ten-inch blade, shouted threats to stab her, banged on the door, slashed at bushes, and poked the knife towards her chest. Other people contacted police and officers arrested him at the scene smelling of drink and unsteady on his feet. He later pleaded guilty to making threats to kill and admitted affray.

On 30 July, police on patrol in Rugby found Shephard's VW Polo stationary in the road. When officers activated their blue lights, he sped off. Later, other officers spotted the Polo near a recycling centre, but when they tried to block him, he drove away again, travelling on the wrong side of the road and the wrong way round a roundabout, narrowly avoiding an oncoming vehicle. The pursuit was abandoned due to the risk to the public. Shephard eventually stopped at Riverside Academy, where a minor collision occurred between his car and a police vehicle. A breath test showed he was one-and-a-half times the legal alcohol limit. He had no driving licence or insurance.

On 17 November last year at around 2pm, Karmarni Bailey was involved in a fight in Market Place in Rugby town centre. He pulled a black imitation handgun from his rucksack and pointed it at others involved and at bystanders who were trying to help. Armed police responded to reports of a firearm being drawn, arrested Bailey at the scene and seized the weapon, which was later found to be an imitation firearm.

At the end of March 2017, Hope approached the victim near a shop in Rugby, made threatening comments, and punched him in the face. He aimed a second blow which the victim dodged, and the victim punched Hope before running to a nearby chip shop.

Joseph Maduka used a false Dutch identity card to secure a job as a carer at Drovers House Care Home in Rugby. He had originally entered the UK on a legitimate visitor's visa but remained and obtained the fraudulent document. He was discovered when police searched the shared address of him and co-defendant Osazee. He pleaded guilty to possessing a false identity document with improper intention.

Justice Osazee used a false French passport in the name David Seglie to obtain employment as a carer at Drovers House Care Home, a dementia care facility in Rugby. A background check revealed the passport was not genuine, leading to a police investigation. Osazee was arrested and admitted obtaining the fake document to find work. He pleaded guilty to possessing a false identity document with improper intention.