Perverts, burglars and blackmailers among those facing justice

A SEXUAL deviant who was caught with more than 27,000 child sex abuse images and videos has been jailed for almost four years.

Anthony Harrison stayed at his elderly parents' home to use their laptop to download the 'filth' onto a memory stick before transferring the images to his own laptop when he returned home.

Anthony Harrison

The 55-year-old was arrested after police carried out a routine inspection of his electrical devices after he went missing from his registered address, Teesside Crown Court heard.

The defendant, of Ramsgill House, Darlington, pleaded guilty to four charges of possession of indecent images, failing to comply with his notification requirements and breaching the condition of his sexual harm prevention order (SHPO).

The judge, Recorder Anthony Hawk, told Harrison he had a 'perverted interest in children' as he jailed him for a total of three years and ten months.

A GANG of travelling thieves who targeted hospitals around the country have been jailed for four years.

The four Norfolk-based men smashed their way into three hospitals in the region where they stole a number gas cylinders over the weekend when the Covid lockdown was announced in March.

The professionally planned raids were carried out at a time of 'national crisis'.

Richard Bennett, prosecuting, said the gang travelled to the North East after burgling hospital sites in the North West.

The court heard how they used two vehicles, a Fiat van and a BMW, while carrying out the night time burglaries at Chester-le-Street, Bishop Auckland and Darlington where they stole a number of nitrous oxide canisters, used to deliver pain relief to patients.

Oliver Zak Henry Evans, 22, of Sandy Lane North, Wallington; Harry David Bradley Goodrum, 23, of Norwich Road, Dereham; Jake Alexander Roberts, 23, of Chestnut Hill, Norwich; and Wayne John Grady, 42, of Sallhouse Road, Panxworth, Norwich, all admitted a single charge of conspiracy to commit burglary.

The four gang members

Judge Paul Watson QC, the Recorder of Middlesbrough, branded the gang 'despicable' as he jailed them all to four years in custody.

A PERVERT who attempted to meet a teenage girl for sex has avoided being sent to prison.

Paul Woolston created two different online profiles for a dating website before targeting the 13-year-old, who was actually a decoy from a team of online paedophile hunters.

The 45-year-old called himself 'single, polite and friendly' and then later 'needf***y' when he contacted the teenager.

Paul Woolston

Paul Abrahams, prosecuting, said it was made clear to Woolston from the outset that the girl he was talking to was aged just 13 using his first account.

The court heard how he then made contact with her using a different account and carried on regardless with the messages quickly descending into ones of a 'highly sexual nature'.

Woolston, of Cornwall Street, Hartlepool, pleaded guilty to attempting sexual communication with a child on April 3 last year.

Woolston was sentenced to a 30 month community order, 20 rehabilitation activity requirement days and ordered him carry out 120 hours of unpaid work.

He was also made subject of a five-year sexual harm prevention order and notification order.

A MAN threatened to ‘chop up’ his former partner’s lover while threatening to kill her before blackmailing the man out of £1,000.

Daniel Richmond embarked on a ‘disgusting’ rampage of threats and intimidation after he was dumped after being caught cheating by the mother of his two children.

The 31-year-old reacted with extreme threats of violence when he was told that his former partner had moved on with another man.

Paul Newcombe, prosecuting, said Richmond self-harmed in an attempt to ingratiate himself back into her life before stealing her keys, mobile phone and bank card on July 17 this year.

Richmond, of Auckland Avenue, Darlington, pleaded guilty to blackmail, making threats to kill and breaching a restraining order.

Judge Jonathan Carroll said: "You behaved disgracefully, in fact the word disgraceful doesn't get close to how badly behaved you were, you were out of control and there was a viciousness to your behaviour when you were not getting your own way."

Richmond was jailed for four years and issued with a ten-year restraining order.

A MAN has been jailed for more than five years for a knifepoint robbery in Middlesbrough.

Robbie Bean, 24, was jailed today at Teesside Crown Court for five years and four months.

Robbie John Bean

The court heard how in June this year he had robbed a man in his 20s who was with his girlfriend in Gresham Road.

The victim reported Bean showing a knife before stealing £70 in cash.

DC Benn Haxton from Middlesbrough CID, said: “Robbie Bean took out a large kitchen knife and used it to threaten the victim and steal £70 in cash from him in broad daylight."