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IQOS: A Decade of Innovation Toward a Smoke-Free Future

Everything You Need to Know About Shingles & the Shingles VaccineThis month has seen a plotting GP, a meat-cleaver-cluthing thug, a smirking firestarter and a 'clairvoyant' paedophile among those jailed on Teesside. One of the biggest cases saw GP Thomas Kwan sentenced to 31 years for attempted murder. Disguised as a community nurse, the once-trusted Sunderland GP, from Ingleby Barwick , delivered a toxic dose of iodomethane to his mother's partner by falsifying a Covid vaccine visit utilising fake NHS documents. Kwan travelled from his Teesside home to his mother Jenny Leung's Newcastle city centre residence on January 22. He administered the poison to Patrick O'Hara, 72, after arranging a Covid vaccine appointment using counterfeit NHS letterheads. Kwan admitted attempted murder in October and was sentenced at Newcastle Crown Court to 31 years and five months behind bars. He will serve two-thirds of that in custody before he can apply for parole. Here are the Teesside-linked cases of those jailed in November: Thomas Kwan A Teesside GP was jailed for over 31 years in November after disguising himself as a nurse and poisoning his mother’s partner with a fake Covid jab in a murder bid plot. Dr Thomas Kwan previously pleaded guilty to the attempted murder of Patrick O’Hara, 72, in an extraordinary plan that was motivated by money and caused his victim to develop a flesh-eating disease. Mrs Justice Lambert, sitting at Newcastle Crown Court, said: “It was an audacious plan to murder a man in plain sight and you very nearly succeeded in your objective.” At a previous hearing, Mr O’Hara said in his victim statement that he had no idea that Ingleby Barwick's Kwan was the community nurse who administered the fake Covid vaccine during a visit to the home he shared with the defendant’s mother in Newcastle city centre. The jab caused intense pain, he felt as though his arm was on fire and he felt he should have died. Mr O’Hara needed weeks of hospital treatment and plastic surgery after having some of the flesh on his arm removed. Kwan, who was obsessed with money and developed a deep knowledge of poisons, planned his murder bid for months by writing fake letters, supposedly from the NHS , offering Mr O’Hara a home visit in January. The married 53-year-old was motivated by greed after finding out that his mother, Jenny Leung, had made a will which allowed Mr O’Hara to stay in her home should she die before him. The couple have split up since her son’s attempt on his life. Peter Makepeace KC, prosecuting, said at a previous hearing: “The motive for this attempt to kill was to remove an impediment to his inheritance.” Kwan, a Sunderland-based GP, refused to tell police which poison he had used as medics tried to save Mr O’Hara. Officers scoured CCTV and were able to track Kwan, still disguised as a nurse, back to a city centre hotel and then to his home on Brading Court in Ingleby Barwick . In his garage they discovered an array of dangerous chemicals which the GP had amassed. On his computer they found the instructions on how to make the chemical weapon ricin. Paul Greaney KC, defending, said the GP was previously of positive good character, and had “ruined his life”. He described Kwan’s disguise, when he passed himself off as a nurse, as “amateurish” and “clumsy”. Kwan was sentenced to 31 years and five months behind bars in November. He was branded as a "dangerous offender" by Mrs Justice Lambert. Ashley Dalkin This violent thug threatened two people with a meat cleaver and repeatedly punched a woman in the face . Cleveland Police were called to Tithe Barn Road in Hardwick , Stockton , on Sunday, January 21, following reports that Ashley Dalkin was wielding a meat cleaver in the street. The 33-year-old defendant held the meat cleaver to the throat of one woman and waved it towards another before smashing the back window of a vehicle. Just prior to this incident, Dalkin, who lives on Tithe Barn Road, carried out a vicious attack on a woman punching her several times in the face causing a black eye. The Teesside man was arrested and subsequently charged with controlling and coercive behaviour, assault causing actual bodily harm, threatening a person with a bladed article and criminal damage. He appeared at Teesside Crown Court on Friday, July 19, where he pleaded guilty to all four offences. Last month, he appeared at the same court and was handed a four-year prison sentence. Teesside Live previously reported a number of police vehicles, as well as armed officers and police dogs, were called to the incident. Officers closed off the road while it was dealt with. Investigating officer PC Hood from the Domestic Abuse Unit said: “This was a particularly terrifying incident which involved an extremely dangerous weapon on a residential street." Jack Tomlinson A drugged-up driver will spend the next three years and nine months behind bars after causing the death of his 18-year-old passenger. Jack Tomlinson, 21, appeared at York Crown Court, after previously pleading guilty to causing death by driving without due care and attention while over the prescribed limit of alcohol and causing death by driving without due care and consideration while over the specified limit for controlled drugs - cannabis. On the night of August 13, 2021, when Tomlinson was 18, he had been drinking with friends at a pub in East Ayton before he decided to collect his car and go for a drive to Dalby Forest. Tomlinson, of Farside Road, West Ayton, Scarborough and four of his friends, left in his red Citroen that was later seen driving erratically and aggressively. Not long afterwards it left the road at Langdale End, where it rolled over, hit several trees and came to rest near St Athanasius Monastery. Tragically, as a result of the collision, 18-year-old Harry Coopland, also from West Ayton and a passenger in the vehicle, died two days later from serious head injuries. A 16-year-old girl passenger also lost her hand in the collision, a second 18-year-old male passenger sustained three fractures to his spine and a 15-year-old girl passenger suffered a laceration to her face. Tomlinson was disqualified from driving for 45 months and must take an extended driving test before he can obtain a driving licence. A North Yorkshire Police spokesperson said: “Harry had his whole life ahead of him but it has been needlessly taken from him, and his family’s life has changed forever.” Martin Roberts Paedophile Martin Roberts invited an underage teenage boy into his home with the offer of a spiritual reading, then sexually abused him. The 41-year-old gave the boy a sip of his alcohol and offered him some cannabis last year, before subjecting the child to horrific sexual abuse. Afterwards, the boy looked at his phone "and made an excuse" to leave. The victim went home and had a bath "because he felt unclean" before self-harming himself. He later told his mum what had happened, and she called the police. Roberts appeared at Teesside Crown Court over video link from Durham prison in November. He admitted the offences, after initially denying ever having met the child, to the police. Roberts, of Cobblewood, Thorntree in Middlesbrough , pleaded guilty to two counts of inciting a child to engage in a sexual act; engaging in sexual conduct in the presence of a child; and to two counts of sexual activity with a child. He has previous convictions for robbery, burglary, and the sexual assault of a woman in 2012. In mitigation, Victoria Lamballe told the court that Roberts had pleaded guilty, "it remains rare indeed for defendant's charged with offences such as these, to admit their guilt. He has spared the victim the ordeal of a trial and having to give evidence. " Ms Lamballe said that her client was traumatised as a child, when one of his friend's committed suicide; and that he has been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia. "He moved to the area a decade ago, and he is in a relationship with a woman," Ms Lamballe told the court, "he was in that relationship at the time of these offences and she is supportive of him. Their relationship continues." Roberts was jailed for four-years-and-nine-months . He was made the subject of an indefinite sexual harm prevention order and a restraining order banned him form contacting his victim. Brian Todd Smirking firestarter Brian Todd hurled a petrol bomb into an elderly couple's home. Todd was seen buying a lighter from a shop before targeting the couple's Bevanlee Road, South Bank home on November 7, last year. Teesside Crown Court heard the pair were in bed watching TV when they heard a "loud bang". Prosecutor Ashleigh Leach said it was around 7pm when the couple's living room window was smashed and a petrol bomb was hurled into their home. She said: "They went into the living room to find a brick on the floor with fire spreading across the room towards the fireplace. They saw the settee was on fire, the living room window had been smashed. Neighbours assisted in helping to put out the fire." The court heard firefighters also attended and helped extinguish the flames before informing police it was most likely a petrol bomb. Ms Leach said there was a smashed glass bottle inside the property. Ms Leach said the living room sustained damage, including melted windows and blinds and damage to the fireplace and settee. The prosecutor said an investigation was launched and police obtained CCTV footage from nearby businesses. The court heard the dad - who had been drinking prior to the incident - was identified buying a lighter from a shop and he was arrested and interviewed but made no comment to all questions. The 31-year-old defendant later pleaded guilty to arson and also charges of robbery and possession of an offensive weapon. The robbery took place three months prior to the arson attack in Todd's hometown of Darlington . Ms Leach said it was just after 11.10pm, on August 30, last year when a man riding his electric bike on Geneva Road was targeted. Ms Leach said the defendant told the victim he "wanted to have a word with him" and asked him to walk with him. However moments later, the defendant hit the victim in the face with an unidentified object causing his nose to "pop" and bleed heavily. Ms Leach said the victim was knocked from his bike and the defendant made off on it before attending the victim's home the following day. She said it was around 11am when Todd knocked on the victim's front door, she said: "The defendant was wearing a mask on his face and holding an axe. The defendant demanded the charger for the bike. He banged on the window and made threats to [name of victim's] life before leaving the address." The Middlesbrough court heard police were called and officers attended Todd's address that afternoon. The victim's bike was parked outside Todd's home and he was arrested just after 2pm. Todd denied taking or riding the bike in police interview and said the one outside his address belonged to a friend. Summarising a victim impact statement, Ms Leach said the man worries day-to-day about bumping into the defendant or having further issues. In mitigation, Paul Abrahams said the Darlington defendant has mental health problems and has struggled with drug abuse and homelessness. The Dumfries Street defendant - who has two previous convictions for three offences - was jailed for eight-and-a-half-years. Hamish Hickey This barrister was jailed for almost two years after a pensioner died following a crash on a country road . Police said Michael Lupton, 85, died after his Ford Ka was hit by a Volvo XC40 driven by Hamish Hickey, 40, on a road near the village of Ampleforth, in North Yorkshire , in July 2022. North Yorkshire Police said Hickey had been travelling towards Ampleforth with his two young children in the back of the car. He went over a blind brow in the middle of the road at 65pmh before colliding with Mr Lupton, who was travelling uphill towards him on the left-hand side of the rural road, the force said. Mr Lupton's car was pushed backwards and onto the grass verge. He was airlifted to hospital where he died on August 14 2022 - 19 days after the crash. A force spokesman said Hickey initially claimed that he was driving at an appropriate speed, close to the left-hand side of the road, but this was contradicted by a forensic investigation. This found that he was travelling at 65mph, in a 60mph zone, on a narrow country lane over a blind summit. Hickey, of St Hildas Walk, Ampleforth, later provided an updated statement accepting his driving fell below what would be accepted of a careful and competent driver, the spokesman said. The force confirmed that he admitted causing death by dangerous driving and was jailed for 23 months at York Crown Court in November. He was also disqualified from driving for two years and 11 months. Michael Hall An angry Facebooker threw a petrol bomb towards a family home, after feeling unhappy with a quad bike he had received in exchange for his motorbike. Michael Hall, 32, missed the home on Maple Avenue in Thornaby , but his petrol bomb landed in the front garden and caused fire damage to outside furniture. Teesside Crown Court heard that a young child watched as Hall threw his weapon at the house, on June 23, and launched a crowbar at the man he had arranged the swap with. Hall appeared at Teesside Crown Court on video link from Durham prison, to be sentenced in November. The court heard that the two men, who lived near each other in Thornaby, arranged the swap on Facebook marketplace. Hall went to the other man's house to say he wasn't happy with the quality of the quad bike. The two got into an argument and Hall threatened to "petrol bomb" the man's home. The man, and his dad, chased Hall out of their house. Hall went home, got a petrol bomb and a crow bar. He threw the petrol bomb, but it landed short of the house and set fire to the front garden. The other man shouted at his younger brother to get out of the house, and came out with a baseball bat, Hall threw his crowbar at the man and fled. He was arrested a short while afterwards and told police, "I done it." Hall, now of no fixed address, pleaded guilty to arson, the possession of an offensive weapon and affray. In mitigation, Nicci Horton said that Hall felt the other man "had been taking a liberty with him by not properly representing the state of the quad bike." Ms Horton said that her client has been diagnosed with a personality disorder. Judge Deborah Sherwin jailed Hall for 28-months . Edwin Taha A dad previously jailed after a 'pepper spray' attack on beloved Luke Jobson was told he will be deported for drug dealing. French national Edwin Taha, 24, was hauled back before a judge on Monday, November 4, after pleading guilty to a raft of serious offences including breaching a deportation order and dealing cocaine. It comes after the HMP Hull defendant was "wrongly released" from court and unlawfully at large for a number of months, Teesside Crown Court heard. The 24-year-old was told he will spend five years and nine months in prison before being sent back to France. Outlining the case, prosecutor Saba Shan said it was around 1am on September 14, when police stopped the defendant in a white vehicle on suspicion of driving offences. The court heard he was travelling towards Hartlepool when he was pulled over by officers and found to be driving without a licence or insurance. Ms Shan said the vehicle was searched and officers found weapons and cash. She said: "Officers found CS spray, baseball bats a wooden hammer, a large quantity of cash and a bag of gold rings. All of these were found in the car boot." She said the defendant should not have been in the UK to begin with, after he was deported following the death of Luke Jobson. Luke's body was found in the River Tees after he became involved in a dispute with a gang outside The Keys nightclub, in Yarm , before being chased towards Yarm school. A sentencing hearing in October 2020 heard how Luke was chased by the gang - including Taha - behaving like 'a pack of wolves' before his death. Taha, of Middlesbrough, was sentenced to 21 months in prison for affray and four years and four months for the drug offences. The court heard after he was caught for the new offences in September, officers took him to Hartlepool Police Station and his address on Park Lane, in Middlesbrough town centre was searched. Ms Shan said: "A North Face bag was seized it contained cocaine, snap bags, digital scales, as well as a mobile phone. The cocaine had a street value of £10,000." Ms Shan said the defendant was interviewed by police and admitted driving without insurance of a licence. He said he'd never seen the drugs but later pleaded guilty to following: Knowingly enter the UK in breach of a deportation order Possess with intent to supply a controlled drug of class A - cocaine Possess a weapon for the discharge of a noxious liquid / gas / electrical incapacitation device Drive a motor vehicle otherwise than in accordance with a licence Use a motor vehicle on a road / public place without third party insurance In mitigation, his barrister David Ward said he was back in the country as thought he could return on a visit. Mr Ward said he lives in France but his mother and brother's live in the UK. He said: "His main reason for coming back was he was going to have a child here, who is now eight weeks old. He was funding his ability to stay using means he should not have been. He is a man who is going to be deported at the end of his sentence here. He accepts he did wrong and accepts he shouldn't have been here to start with." The Park Lane defendant has five convictions for 11 offences was jailed for five years and nine months. Ashley Ferguson This rioter a rmed himself with a wooden pole and joined others in looting Tesco Express. Ashley Ferguson was wearing a balaclava when he smashed through the shop's glass door and grabbed alcohol and chocolate, whilst other rioters emptied the cigarette display, in the midst of the Middlesbrough riots, on August 4. The 34-year-old was also captured on a drone camera, rocking a parked car with a group of men, until it was turned onto its roof. Ferguson shouted and goaded a line of riot police, after violence broke out on Linthorpe Road, after objects were thrown at marchers by a separate group. Police formed a cordon across the junction with Clarendon road, in an attempt to try and stop protestors breaking away from Linthorpe Road. But rioters began throwing objects at the police and trying to break through their line. Bins were set on fire, windows smashed and cars damaged. 14 police vehicles were also targeted. In November, Ferguson appeared at Teesside Crown Court and pleaded guilty to violent disorder and burglary. Michael Bunch, prosecuting, said that Ferguson had been easy to follow on CCTV, because he was wearing a bright red pair of shorts. "The footage shows that he was one of the main instigators of violence," Mr Bunch said, "he participated for four hours or so. He was seen drinking from a bottle that he stole from Tesco Express on Parliament Road." The court heard he has previous convictions for threatening behaviour and criminal damage; and in 2009, he was jailed for burglary. In mitigation, Michelle Turner told the court that Ferguson "attended the protest out of curiosity". "He saw the posts on social media," she told the court. Ferguson was jailed for 30 months. He will serve 40% of his sentence, before being released on licence. Akheel Khan This engineering graduate was jailed in November for his part in the Middlesbrough riots. Akheel Khan was armed with a hammer and ran as police arrived on Park Lane, on August 4, as Middlesbrough saw rioters set fire to cars, attack police and loot shops. Teesside Crown Court heard that police were called out to "reports of a group of Asian men fighting" at 8pm. When the police arrived, Khan, 24, and three other men fled. Five officers ran after them but the group got into a car. Seconds later, the car crashed and Khan was arrested. The court heard that Khan had been to his Mosque that morning, and that after prayer, people stayed behind, to discuss what to do if the Mosque was attacked. Michele Turner, mitigating, said that many there were "fearful of what was happening on the streets of Middlesbrough". Khan left with a friend, to drive to another friend's home. But Ms Turner said that he found his car had been targeted and was damaged beyond repair. Michael Bunch, prosecuting, told the court: "He and the others in his group were perhaps out looking for rioters involved in this earlier incident. They were seeking people out to have a confrontation." Khan was living in Sheffield where he had got himself a job, but he returned home to Middlesbrough at the weekends to see his family and friends. "He wasn't part of the main violence," Ms Turner told the court, "it was his response to being a victim of an incident. He's not proud of that day. "He says he didn't want his mother in court. She has witnessed his every achievement, including his graduation ceremony, and he did not want her here today. He has not settled in prison. He's clearly not cut from the same cloth as many there." Khan was locked up for 15-months . He will serve 40% of his prison term, before being released on licence. Wayne Bryson A man fled on a bus after a brutal knife attack that left his victim fighting for life. After an initial dispute within a property on Hawthorne Street, Easington , back in February, the fray spilled onto the street where Wayne Bryson, 31, wielded a kitchen knife to stab his victim in the chest and back, which resulted in life-threatening injuries requiring an air ambulance to hospital. The assailant made his escape by boarding a bus to Peterlee, where he disposed of the weapon in a bin at the bus station. Despite claiming innocence, Bryson was convicted for wounding with intent and possessing a bladed article in public at Durham Crown Court after a trial lasting four days. He received eight-and-a-half years behind bars followed by another four years under license. Detective Sergeant Anthony Wild from Peterlee CID, reacting to the sentence, stated: "The devastating and lasting impact of knife crime on individuals, families, and communities cannot be overstated. "Although our county has one of the lowest rates of knife crime in the country, we remain committed to reducing weapon-based violence across our patch and will ensure those involved in this type of activity, like Bryson, face the consequences. Our duty is to ensure public safety and to relentlessly pursue those who carry and use weapons", reports Chronicle Live . Paul Smith Rioter Paul Smith pushed a bin towards a police cordon after violence erupted at a far-right protest . The 24-year-old was locked up for 22 months at Teesside Crown Court on Monday, following riots in Middlesbrough on Sunday, August 4. The court heard Smith was seen on Ayresome Street among a group of males who were trying to set alight a Biffa bin. The Middlesbrough defendant was seen with a lighter before pushing the bin into the police cordon. A second bin, a household wheelie bin, was also set alight and pushed into the police cordon. The St Catherine’s Court defendant was jailed for 22 months for violent disorder. Teesside Live previously reported how protestors stormed Middlesbrough town centre in August after a week of violence across the country in protests organised by far-right and anti-immigration groups. Cars were torched, windows were smashed and police were attacked in the shameful violence. In recent weeks, countless rioters have been jailed on Teesside with police still tracing suspects. Following the troubles, Cleveland Police launched an investigation to identify individuals suspected of being involved. Codenamed Operation Acorn is led by detectives in the force's homicide and major enquiry team. Rosh Mahmood This man was caught carrying a broken wooden pole down the street near his mosque, during the Middlesbrough riots. Rosh Mahmood wept in the dock in November, as Teesside Crown Court heard that when he was arrested near the Mosque on Waterloo Road, he told the police that he had picked up the pole because he had heard that "English people are attacking others". The court heard that police came across "a commotion" just after 8pm on August 4, on the junction of Apsley Street and Aubrey Street, in central Middlesbrough. Officers reported that a "group of mainly Asian males were shouting and moving up the street". Mahmood was seen carrying the wooden post and arrested. The 21-year-old later pleaded guilty to the possession of an offensive weapon. In mitigation, Tom Bennett said that "there is no suggestion that he threatened anybody or harmed anybody". "If he walked around the corner, and there's a group of white youths shouting racist chants, the weapon would have been used," replied Judge Francis Laird, "he would have either brandished it or hit men with it." Mahmood, of Victoria Road in Middlesbrough , was handed a six-month prison term. He was told that he will serve 40% before being released on licence. Mark Philip Pelling A thug threatened a dog walker with a ‘butcher-style knife’ in a ‘deeply disturbing case’. Mark Philip Pelling approached the woman on a footpath over New Bridge, Whitby , at around 6.50am on Saturday, January 29, 2022. The 33-year-old pulled out a large knife and threatened the woman to hand over a small bag that was around her waist. Unlucky for Pelling, the bag contained nothing more than dog poo bags and dog treats. He repeated his initial threat to stab the woman’s dog, but this time he demanded that she handed over her purse. The victim, fearing for her life but bravely managing to stay calm, replied: “What purse? I haven’t got a purse. Who brings a purse on a dog walk at six in the morning?” Pelling then walked away empty-handed while shouting abuse at the woman. She headed to safety and made an emergency 999 call to North Yorkshire Police just before 7am. Response officers were quickly on the scene and made sure the victim was unharmed. They carried out an area search for the suspect and began CCTV enquiries, but he wasn’t immediately located. The victim was able to provide the officers with a very good description of the man, including his clothing, tattoos and a distinctive Lincolnshire accent. Later in the day, two more officers came on duty to assist with enquiries. They both believed the description of the suspect matched a man living on the town’s Abbots Walk called Mark Pelling who was originally from Boston. Officers attended his address and Pelling was arrested at 3pm the same day. A search warrant was conducted at his home and a knife set was recovered. One knife was missing, a large black handled butcher-type knife as described by the victim in her statement and first account to officers. CCTV was also obtained which showed a man following the victim onto New Bridge and then walking away not long after the incident. The man was wearing a distinctive pair of tracksuit bottoms that can be clearly seen on the footage. These were in Pelling’s home. Evidence was also recovered from Pelling’s phone which proved crucial, alongside the other compelling evidence, to place him at the crime scene. Pelling was set to contest the charges for attempted robbery and possession of a knife in a public place. However, on the first day of the trial on September 11, he pleaded guilty. He was sentenced in November at York Crown Court where he was imprisoned for two years and nine months. Paul Jagger A sex attacker was caged in November after being found guilty by a jury. An investigation by Cleveland Police's CAVA Team (Child Abuse and Vulnerable Adults) was launched in 2022 after a report was made to police that a man had sexually assaulted a female in the Teesside area. Paul Jagger was arrested and subsequently charged in April with three sexual assaults and one attempted sexual assault. The 51-year-old denied the offences but was found guilty of all charges at Newcastle Crown Court on July 11. He appeared in court on Friday, November 1, for sentencing, as well as sexual activity with a child and stalking which occurred in the Northumbria Police area. Jagger, from South Shields, was jailed for four years and six months. Temporary Detective Sergeant, Natasha Barber, said: “I would like to thank the victim and her family in this case. They have shown incredible strength and resilience throughout the process." Jake Wray Rioter Jake Wray stopped drivers during widespread disorder in Middlesbrough to check if they were "white" or "English" and set fire to a wheelie bin. Jake Wray, 23, of Middlesbrough, played a leading role in the violence which erupted in the town centre on August 4 following a far-right protest, Teesside Crown Court heard. He was captured on police cam wearing a distinctive red top and an England flag around his shoulders during the 1,000-strong demonstration. Prosecutor Emma Atkinson told the court protesters were chanting "take our country back" and as the march reached Clarendon Road objects began to be thrown. She said: "Missiles were thrown towards police, bins were set on fire, damage was caused to police vehicles and residential properties. Windows were smashed in various public buildings. Jake Wray was identified as one of the people involved." Ms Atkinson played police footage in court which showed Wray quizzing drivers on Linthorpe Road. On the clip, while he stood blocking traffic, Wray could be heard asking: "Are you white, are you English?" Further clips showed him setting fire to a wheelie bin on Ayresome Street which was pushed towards police lines and helicopter video captured him interfering with a red hatchback which less than four minutes later burst into flames. Describing the footage, Ms Atkinson said: "The defendant is seen with a residential wheelie bin. One of the residents came out seeing the group. The defendant successfully set it a light and is then seeing throwing something towards another member in the crowd. The defendant along with a female wheeled the bin in the direction of the police line." Ms Atkinson said on another occasion the 23-year-old was seen with his arms in the air shouting "you can stick your chicken tikka up you a***. T T Teessiders!" The court heard the defendant was interviewed but made no comment to the majority of questions put to him by police. However, he told officers that he was not directing traffic and was giving a "warning" to cars and claimed he'd just been trying to get home but couldn't because all the roads were closed. The Seaton Street defendant has seven convictions for 11 offences and admitting violent disorder put him in breach of a 24-week suspended sentence. Ms Atkinson said the defendant's previous convictions include battery, assault of an emergency worker and possession of a blade. His barrister Harry Crowson told the court the defendant is "appalled" by his actions and has reflected on his behaviour while on remand at HMP Nottingham. He also said the defendant admitted violent disorder and was previously the victim of a stabbing. The defendant was handed a 38-month prison sentence . 'Ghost’ line dealers A gang of drug dealers - operating under the name ‘Ghost’ - flooded a North Yorkshire town with heroin and crack cocaine. The county lines drug dealers were sentenced at York Crown Court, on Tuesday, November 5, after selling class A drugs in Scarborough between August 2017 and January 2018. Christina Stelious Xiourroupas, 35 was sentenced to three and a half years imprisonment. Javough Denmar Ennis, 27, currently of HMP Leicester, was handed two years’ imprisonment. Neil Kenneth Gordon, 22, of Sandstone Road, Eastfield, Scarborough, got two and a half years imprisonment. A further three members were sentenced at York Crown Court on Thursday, October 17. Patrick King, 38, of Osler Street, Birmingham, was sentenced to four and a half years’ imprisonment. Daniel Keith Ellis, 30, of Oscott Road, Birmingham, got three and a half years’ imprisonment. Theo John Waldron, 29, of Longwestgate, Scarborough, got a 15-month suspended sentence as he was already in prison. The ringleader of the conspiracy was Riccardo Nathaniel Donalds, 36, of Oscott Road, Birmingham. He failed to appear at York Crown Court for sentencing and a warrant has been issued for his arrest. Detective Constable Darrel Temple from Scarborough and Ryedale CID, who led the investigation, said: “Referring to their own county lines drugs conspiracy as ‘Ghost’, the group thought they could operate with impunity between the West Midlands and Scarborough. “Unfortunately for them, North Yorkshire Police ‘ain’t afraid of no ghost’ or any other drug dealers for that matter, and we set about a complex investigation to dismantle the gang. “It has taken the best part of six years to secure justice against the offenders. This effort shows our determination to rid our community of the harms caused by drug-related crime.” Callum Hunter This thug left an Army veteran fighting for his life in intensive care after stabbing him in the head . Callum Hunter, 26, launched the brutal attack in Guisborough on the evening of March 23 as his victim made his way to the shop. Teesside Crown Court heard the Army veteran was out to buy cigarette papers in the Helmsley Drive area when he heard a group shouting and swearing. Jonathan Gittins, prosecuting, said CCTV from outside the Guisborough Quoit Social Club showed the victim walking as the group stood outside of the club. Mr Gittins said all of a sudden the men began to chase him and Hunter struck him in the head with a knife. He said: "CCTV shows a male start to walk towards [name of victim]. The victim starts to run and the men give chase. "The defendant was one of the first in the group to run over to him. [Name of victim] describes one of the males stabbing him in the head with a knife. He named this male as 'Sid' - it was Calum Hunter." The Middlesbrough court heard that despite being attacked, the victim returned to his home and was caught on CCTV standing outside the property covered in blood. Mr Gittins said he then went to his cousin's house who called Cleveland Police and the victim was rushed to hospital. He said: "It was on arrival that police found [name of victim] bleeding from a deep wound to his head. His condition was described as potentially life-threatening." The court heard the man was taken to James Cook University Hospital , in Middlesbrough , and wasn't discharged until May 1. The court heard Hunter was interviewed about the attack on April 9 but made no comment to all questions. He later pleaded guilty to causing grievous bodily harm with intent. His barrister, Tom Bennett said the defendant suffers with learning difficulties has ADHD, emotionally unstable personality traits and appears to suffer with PTSD. He said: "He had an extremely difficult and traumatic background including abandonment when he was a child and ill treatment." The defendant has 35 previous convictions for 68 offences and was told he must serve an extended prison sentence to protect the public. Hunter, of no fixed address, was handed a 13-year-10-month extended sentence made up of a nine year and 10 month prison sentence and an extended licence period of four years. He was also handed a restraining order banning contact with the victim. Richard Finn, Martin Timms and Christopher Teasdale These three men drove around Grangetown "looking for their victim" before shooting at him four times - with one bullet firing straight through his chest, puncturing his lung and shattering ribs. Christopher Teasdale, 42, Martin Timms, 53, and Richard Finn, 45, used a .22 long-barrelled rifle, which was fitted with a telescopic sight, to fire at their victim, after they spotted him on Griffiths Road. The man was left with "an entry bullet hole in his back and an exit wound in his chest" - as the piece of ammo coarsed through his body and out the other side. He suffered huge blood loss and a punctured lung, with broken ribs piercing his skin. The paramedic who treated the victim said he was preparing for him "to go into cardiac arrest." Police have never uncovered which of the three pals carried out the shooting . The drive-by attack took place at 9.48pm on May 28. The three men initially faced a charge of attempted murder. They pleaded guilty to causing grievous bodily harm with intent last month, and this was accepted. All three were remanded into custody. Defence barristers said that Teasdale, of Stafford Road in Grangetown , has 12 previous convictions for 19 offences - which include theft and drug driving. Teasdale also admitted possession of an offensive weapon - after he was seen in Raj Stores on Derwentwater Road in Grangetown, with an axe up his shirt sleeve. He refused to leave the shop on January 24, and Mr Rooney said that CCTV showed children standing next to him, as he kept the weapon up his sleeve. Teasdale has children, and for some of those, was their main carer before being remanded into custody, as his wife goes out to work, the court heard. Finn, of Brunswick Avenue in Normanby , hadn't committed an offence for 20 years, before the shooting. His barrister Paul Abrahams said that Finn had started taking drugs, "due to personal problems, and that led him into this criminal fraternity." He is a single dad to three children. Timms, of Caernarvon Close in Eston , was driving the BMW. The dad-of-three served a six-month prison sentence in 1996, for drug driving. All three men were handed extended sentences of 13-years-and-nine-months, made up of 10-years-nine-months in prison and three years on licence in the community . Mark Redfearn This tent-living addict punched his sister, smashed his mum's car windscreen, and wrecked his ex's home - all in one night. Homeless Mark Redfearn, 40, was living in a tent in his sister's garden, when he turned up at his mum's at 4 o'clock in the morning, on October 6. When his mum asked him to leave her Stockton home, he smashed the back window of her car. The drug addict had taken zopiclone, crack cocaine and cannabis and drunk brandy and vodka. Redfearn than made his way to his sister's house where he continued to drink. At 5am, as his sister was on her phone, he launched an attack. Teesside Crown Court heard he repeatedly punched her in the face, knocking her to the floor. Redfearn began shouting insults at his sister, calling her a "dirty s***" and a "bad mother." He kicked her in the ribs, stomach and pelvis as she lay on the floor. The victim was left with bruising to her eye socket and all over her body. Redfearn then moved on to his ex-partner's house, where he screamed abuse, smashed up a bedroom and two TV's. Redfearn later pleaded guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm; and to three counts of criminal damage. He has no previous convictions. The defendant of no fixed address, was jailed for 18 months . He will serve half of his sentence before being released on licence. Lee Mole An "entrenched paedophile" was caged in November after engaging in abhorrent sex chats with an American man who was abusing his own child. Lee Mole was having depraved sex chats with a man in the USA over a messaging app, and incited the pervert to sexually abuse their own child. The man would then send Mole and other paedophiles photographs of the sickening abuse. Mole, 53, who also shared a category A indecent image, was caught after the chats were discovered by the United States Department of Homeland Security. Mole was also found in possession of category A, B and C indecent images. The defendant, of Blackhall Colliery, just outside of Hartlepool , appeared at Durham Crown Court to be sentenced for three counts of making indecent images and one count of distributing an indecent image. He had pleaded guilty to the offences. The court heard that the offences were committed on September 8, while Mole was either under investigation or on police bail as his electronic devices were being reviewed. He was also serving a suspended prison sentence for making indecent images. Annelise Haugstad, prosecuting, said Mole used the Kik messenger app to chat with an American pervert. The pair shared sickening abuse images and eventually attracted the attention of Homeland Security. Mole was later arrested. Vic Laffey, defending, said Mole had been working well with probation and had been "making progress" on his order. He added that Mole is in ill-health and suffers from COPD and asthma and uses a nebuliser six times a day. Mole was jailed for two years and eight months and will be on the sex offenders register indefinitely . He was also made subject of an indefinite sexual harm prevention order. Matthew Smith A violent brute caused a "deep laceration" to a police officer's face by concealing a key between his knuckles and striking him. Matthew Smith, 40, launched the attack on the officer when police arrived at a home after being called out to a domestic situation. The assaulted officer received a serious cut beneath his eye and was fortunate not to lose his sight, Durham Crown Court heard. Smith had to be subdued with a Taser and was ultimately restrained by three officers during the violent episode. Prior to the assault, he had expressed his dislike for police, saying he hated them "more than anyone on the planet". This incident occurred two years following Smith's threats towards a family amid a clash in Milton Keynes, where he brandished a golf club and vandalised a house's windows. Appearing via link from HMP Durham at Durham Crown Court, Smith of Bradley Street, Easington Colliery - between Hartlepool and Peterlee - faced sentencing for: He pleaded guilty to all the crimes, reports Chronicle Live . Mitigating, Michele Turner, said Smith had endured "childhood trauma" an struggled with anger in his younger years. She said he'd sought mental health support and is now drug-free. Smith was sentenced to three years in prison . Dominic Legg A teenage rapist was put behind bars in November. Dominic Legg, 19, who launched sex attacks on three young girls, was found guilty of 14 sexual offences by a jury at Teesside Crown Court . One of Legg’s victims - a once “bubbly” girl - now has trouble sleeping, while another began to suffer mental health issues. Legg, who “still maintains his innocence”, appeared at the Middlesbrough court via video link from HMP Durham for sentencing. Claire Anderson, prosecuting, outlined that on one occasion, Legg raped a victim, slapped her and threatened to “kill her” if she told anyone about the sexual abuse. The Middlesbrough court heard that during another of Legg’s sexual assaults he “shoved” the girl’s head onto him and “repeatedly” grabbed her hand to touch him. Legg was arrested and interviewed on three separate occasions, telling officers that “none of it happened”. The teenager was found guilty of 14 sex offences on June 26. Legg, of Owton Manor Lane, in Hartlepool , was convicted of: Judge Smith sentenced Legg to five years and nine months in a young offenders institution . He told Legg that he would be subject to notification requirements for the rest of his life and granted restraining orders to prevent Legg from contacting his victims, who cannot be identified for legal reasons. Mohammed Rahman This 'dangerous' sex offender stalked an off-duty cop as she walked home alone at night. Mohammed Rahman followed the woman for around 10 minutes as she walked home from an evening out in Darlington with her friends in April this year. The woman - an off-duty police officer – became aware that someone was following her as she began walking home from the town centre at around midnight. In an effort to lose him, she quickened her pace and repeatedly crossed the road, only to find the man continued to follow her. As he got closer, the quick-thinking woman grabbed her phone and began recording him just as he ran past her and disappeared down a side street. The woman called police, who found Rahman hiding in a nearby garden, and took him into custody. The 20-year-old was later charged with breaching a Sexual Risk Order, which was imposed in June last year following an exposure incident in which he carried out a sex act on himself in front of a care home. The order lasts 10 years and prohibits Rahman from doing several things, including exposing himself or committing sex acts in public, entering the boundary of a private house or garden without prior permission, and harassing or intimidating women. Rahman, of no fixed abode, admitted the breach and was jailed for two years and eight months at Teesside Crown Court on Friday, November 8. Drugs gang A notorious Teesside drug dealer bought £18,000 of heroin to sell on his home turf. Nico Easton, 31, also tried to buy a handgun from Newcastle men Robert English and Mark McKeswick. The three men have now been jailed at Teesside Crown Court , for more than 47 years. Easton, whose girlfriend testified in court, held his head in his hands, as he was handed a sentence of 15 years and six months. Mark McKeswick, who cut the heroin and added bulking agents in the "drugs depot" at his Muswell Hill home, was jailed for 13 years and three months. Robert English was the mastermind of the operation who ran a gardening supplies business in Northumberland, whilst searching for a handgun with a silencer for Easton. He was locked up for 18 years and eight months. The conspiracy was uncovered after French police cracked an encrypted messaging platform used by the drugs ring. None of the "encro devices" have ever been found, but EncroChat notified its customers that their security had been compromised, after the hack in 2020. It's thought that the men got rid of their phones. All three men were convicted of conspiracy to supply a class A drug and conspiracy to acquire a firearm without a certificate, by a jury after a trial, in September, at Teesside Crown Court. English was also convicted of the possession of criminal property; he failed to turn up to the trial during the last week, and he was later arrested and pleaded guilty to failing to surrender to custody. In addition to the drugs and firearms offences, McKeswick was convicted of the possession of criminal property; being concerned in the production of heroin; and the possession of heroin and amphetamine, with intent to supply. Mitigating for English, Jeremy Barton said that his client was "scared for his life and for his family's life" whilst he was on trial, and when he failed to turn up to court. "He has since received death threats whilst on remand, from others in Strangeways prison," Mr Barton said. "He owes a significant amount of money for drugs, he was not at the absolute top." McKeswick was found to be English's "trusted lieutenant" in the drugs operation and his barrister Chris Knox said that he "did what he was told" after succumbing to drugs himself. Mr Knox said that McKeswick did not "have significant means or lifestyle" and he wasn't even the named tenant of his rented Newcastle home. Andrew Hobson, Samantha Nunn and Kallum Shilham This trio who carried out a revenge attack that left their victim so terrified, he climbed out of his window and jumped, have been jailed for a total of 54 years. Kyle Mulcaster, who is now 21, fell "almost vertically, head first" from the roof above his bedroom window. He was left a quadriplegic and needs 24-hour care for the rest of his life. Samantha Nunn, 33; her now ex-boyfriend Kallum Shilham, 25; and Andrew Hobson, 45, appeared at Teesside Crown Court to be sentenced. A jury found the trio guilty of causing grievous bodily harm with intent and aggravated burglary after a trial in September. Shilham, of Harrowgate Lane in Stockton, was found guilty of the possession of a bladed article - he turned up at his victim's home with a large kitchen knife; and Hobson, of Sun Gardens in Thornaby, was found guilty of the possession of an offensive weapon - he arrived at his victim's home, in Stockton , with a pool cue. The Middlesbrough court heard that Mr Mulcaster "must have been terrified" when he woke up and looked out of his bedroom window, as Hobson was smashing a downstairs window to break in. Nunn, of Sandringham Road in Thornaby , had driven three men to the victim's home, on Parkfield Way, at 4am on April 7, in what prosecutors said was a "revenge attack". The third man involved has never been identified. Samantha Nunn was recorded on a neighbour's ring doorbell footage, shouting: "Go on, get in. He is a c***. Go on, get him." As the three men, all in balaclavas, climbed in through the smashed window and began running up the stairs, their terrified victim climbed out of his bedroom window and tried to get onto the roof. As Nunn shouted at him from outside, "jump, you c***!" Mr Mulcaster jumped. He fell almost vertically, hitting a bin and then landing on the floor. Seconds later, the three men left his home. Hobson was seen going through the man's pockets, as he lay paralysed on the ground, before they drove off. The victim suffered fractures to his spine and a blood clot on his brain and underwent a craniotomy, at James Cook University Hospital , to relieve the pressure on his brain. During the trial, defence barristers said that the group, who had taken drugs, had turned up at Mr Mulcaster's home to retrieve drugs. Andrew Hobson claimed he had become involved after he was unable to pay a drug debt to Shilham. The judge jailed them for 18-years each . Alistair Paylor A drug mule was nabbed attempting to sneak £8.5m worth of cocaine through Newcastle Airport. Alistair Paylor had just returned from a Mexico trip, organised by criminal masterminds, with a suitcase crammed full of cocaine. Newcastle Crown Court was told that he agreed to act as a courier to settle his debts. On August 24, the 48-year-old landed at Newcastle Airport on a flight from Cancun, Mexico. He had two large suitcases and had paid an excess baggage fee, but his lack of hand luggage raised eyebrows. When questioned by Border Force, he claimed he had been away for seven or eight nights, travelled solo, and packed his cases himself. An American Tourister suitcase was opened and found to be stuffed with 25.18 kilos of cocaine in 12 vacuum-sealed packages. The court heard that the cocaine was 97% pure and had a street value of between £7m and £8.5m. Paylor, from High Northgate, Darlington , who has eleven previous convictions, including for possessing cannabis with intent to supply in 2010, admitted to the fraudulent evasion of the prohibition on the importation of cocaine and was sentenced to six years behind bars , reports Chronicle Live . He confessed to the probation service that he had been asked to act as a courier to pay off drug debts. He said others arranged for him to travel to Mexico, where his suitcase was packed with the drugs. Rachel Hedworth, representing the defence, outlined that her client was battling a cocaine addiction which led him into debt and subsequently homelessness. She stated he is "extremely sorry" for his actions. The court learned that he found himself dealing cocaine, owing a sum between £10,000 and £15,000, but was informed this would be cleared if he acted as a courier. Zack Reeves This dad-of-three told police where his drugs stash was after they turned up at his home with a search warrant. Zack Reeves kept 15.5 grams of cocaine in a second fridge in his garage. Police also found grip-seal bags, weighing scales and three mobile phones - which Judge Andrew Latimer told the 28-year-old were "the tools of his trade". Prosecutors valued the cocaine at £1,500, "or slightly more, if sold at the usual 0.2gram deals at £20 a time". Reeves also had £3,629 in cash in the house, a samurai sword and an axe. In November, he pleaded guilty to the possession of a class A drug with intent to supply and to the possession of criminal property. The Middlesbrough man has previous convictions for the possession of amphetamine and cannabis, from 2017, but he has never served a prison sentence before. Teesside Crown Court heard that when the police turned up at Reeves's home, on August 22, his children were present. His barrister, Andrew Turton, told the court that his client had kept the drugs "well out of the way of his children". "It's been a rude awakening to him," Mr Turton said, "the affect his actions have had on the whole family." Reeves's barrister said that his client uses three grams of cocaine a week, "when the children are at their grandparents" and that he was selling the cocaine, alongside cars and bikes, to make money on the side. Judge Latimer told Turton, who has been held on remand at HMP Doncaster, that he will have to make a statement "setting out your assets and money, for a proceeds of crime application" which will be heard in December. Reeves, of Downside Road, Acklam , wept as he was jailed for 40-months. Robbie Quail A thug who turned up at a Middlesbrough home with a knife and tried to force his way in to get money was jailed in November. Robbie Quail, 26, went round to his target's mother's house, and demanded the cash - which he said was a drug debt, on February 10. His victim tried to stop him coming inside, where his parents and other children were, and a fight broke out. Quail repeatedly punched the man in his face and threatened him with the knife. Quail's partner pulled him off his victim, and Quail fled. Last month, Quail appeared in court to be sentenced, after pleading guilty to attempted robbery; assault and threatening a person with a weapon. He has a previous conviction for sending threatening communication and the possession of a knife, from 2022, where he was given a suspended prison term. In mitigation, Gary Wood said that Quail has written a letter of apology for what he has done. Mr Wood said that Quail lives with his partner and two of his children, but that he helps to care for all six of his off-spring and that he will have to work with government agencies, so that he can be part of their lives. "He has problems with addiction but he does have an address he can go to, where his children don't live, until he is part of the family unit again" Mr Wood said. The court heard that Quail "self-medicates with benzodiazepine"; and that a psychiatrist's report found that he shows autistic traits. Quail, of Berwick Hills , Middlesbrough , was jailed for three-years-and-eight-weeks. He was made the subject of a restraining order, prohibiting him from contacting his victim for five years. Ryan Mason A dad's £42,500 stash of drugs was uncovered by police after border force officials intercepted a parcel destined for his address. Ryan Mason, 25, ordered over 1,000 ecstasy pills and over £10,000 of powdered ecstasy - but his package was opened at Coventry postal hub in May 2022. Days later, police turned up at his door with a search warrant. They found 2,965 ecstasy tablets - worth £30,000. A further 251 grams of ecstasy was taken away - worth £12,500, when sold at street level. Mason had £5,200 in cash at his home; two wraps of cocaine; some cannabis sweets and four sets of digital weighing scales. Police searched through Mason's phone and found texts showing that he was selling the drugs to individual users and to suppliers, in larger quantities. When he was arrested, Mason told police that he'd recently become unemployed. He later pleaded guilty to importing ecstasy; being concerned in the supply of ecstasy; and to the possession of cocaine and cannabis. He has previous convictions In mitigation, Martin Scarborough said that since the offences, over two years ago, Mason has become a dad and his partner is expecting another child. "He stresses they weren't trying because he knew what was coming today" Mr Scarborough told the court. Mason, of Kirriemuir Road in Hartlepool , was jailed for five-years-five-months . The judge told him that he must work with his barrister to set out his finances, as prosecutors pursue a proceeds of crime application. Arron Jeff This thug who broke in to a pensioner's flat at 2.30am, gagged his victim with wire and held a knife to his throat, as he demanded cash. Arron Jeff had his XL Bully dog 'Luna' with him, when he climbed into the Redcar flat and tried to force the pensioner, who lives alone, to withdraw cash from an ATM. When the victim said he didn't know his PIN number, the 24-year-old told him: "You are really getting on my wick now mate. "See this flat, I'll tie you to a chair and set it alight, if you don't give me your PIN." But the police were listening, as the pensioner had dialled 999 before dropping his phone on the floor, as Jeff climbed in, on August 7. The line stayed open and the victim could be heard gagging and saying: "You're threatening me with a knife now, are you?". Jeff replied: "What number do you put in the bank machine? "Stop playing, you need to remember before I flush you down the toilet in pieces." The pensioner was recorded shouting: "Get out, you bastard. I'm trying to go to bed. I don't have any money!" Jeff then told the man that he owed him £20 "for fixing his TV." The police arrived and rang the doorbell, but Jeff fled. His DNA was found in a blood stain on his victim's jumper. The pensioner had moved into the ground floor flat in Dormanstown months earlier, to be near his wife who had gone into a care home. The victim told police that he had been "sitting in his chair when a man came in and put an electrical cable in his mouth and a knife to his throat, and demanded money." Jeff told police that he had helped the man unpack and put pictures up on his walls when he had moved in; and said the man owed him £20. He said he was passing at 2.30am and saw the pensioner "having a fit" and got in to put him in the recovery position. Jeff, of Micklow Close Redcar , later admitted attempted burglary. He has previous convictions for robbery and 17 separate assaults. He had been released from a prison sentence for theft, six weeks earlier, in June. John Nixon, mitigating, told the court that Jeff was homeless at the time "living a miserable existence. Life has not been kind to him. His difficult upbringing had a profound affect on him, emotionally." Jeff was handed an extended sentence totalling 11-years-and-nine-months. His sentence is made up of a prison term of six-years-and-nine-months; and five years in the community. He will serve two-thirds of the custodial element, before the parole board will consider if it is safe to release him. Christopher Hey A thug poured bleach over his ex and her home. Christopher Hey's ex delivered cut-up outfits to his new house in Hartlepool , after their 12-year relationship ended. Teesside Crown Court heard that the woman had become frustrated after seeing a Facebook post that Hey had written. Hey, 37, followed his ex home on June 4, after she had delivered his clothes, and banged on her doors and windows. The woman locked herself inside, but Hey kicked the front door in. High on cocaine and alcohol, he poured bleach all over her house and over her back, before pushing her into the television, the court heard. Hey, of Topcliffe Street in Hartlepool, later pleaded guilty to burglary and criminal damage. He has previous convictions for two house burglaries; battery and criminal damage. His barrister Stephen Constantine, said that what he had done was "effectively an over reaction to the victim cutting his clothes up". The Middlesbrough court heard that Hey is now sober, after spending the last five months on remand. Mr Constantine said that his client renovates houses for a living "and he'll go back to doing that when he's released". Hey was jailed for 34-months. Christopher Ryan and Tammy McIvor Two drug-addicted robbers attacked a woman on a Middlesbrough street in full view of passers-by. Christopher Ryan, 47, and Tammy McIvor, 38, kicked and punched a woman before pinning her to the ground. They rifled through her pockets, and stole a bank card, two mobile phones and cash. Teesside Crown Court heard the two turned on their acquaintance after "what appeared to be a drugs purchase which went wrong" on Gresham Road in central Middlesbrough. Ryan claimed that he gave the victim cash to buy him drugs and that she ripped him off. McIvor told police that the victim had been "giving me dodgy looks and bit my finger." The two drug addicts were remanded into custody after the attack on March 20. They both admitted the street robbery. A third woman who was involved in the attack will be sentenced at a later date. McIvor also pleaded guilty to two counts of the possession of class A drugs - after she was caught with crack cocaine and heroin in her pockets during a police raid in January 2023. McIvor, of Letitia Street in Middlesbrough , has a long criminal record for theft. In 2017, she was jailed for 13-months for robbery. In 2016, she was caught on Google street view , running out of a shop with unpaid items. Ryan, of no fixed address, served prison terms for burglaries in 2005; 2007; and 2021. In 2014, he forced a vulnerable pensioner to the bank and stole his life savings from him . Barristers representing the pair told the court that they were heavy drug users at the time, but have both got clean in prison. Emma Handley said that McIvor was "...addicted to class A drugs at the age of 14; she was in sex work paying for her addiction by 16. "She is now off drugs completely." For Ryan, Andrew Turton said that this "appeared to be a drugs purchase which went wrong. He's now off methadone and all drugs. He's struggled with addiction for years." Ryan and McIvor were jailed for three-years . They will serve 40% of the sentence in custody before being released on licence. The judge told them that they their "release date will not be too far in the future" after the time they have spent on remand is also taken off the sentence. Nicholas Smith A siblings' row has landed one in jail after his booze-fuelled rampage of attacks. “You’ve been sleeping with my lass, come out here and we’ll sort this out,” Nicholas Smith told his brother, after he’d hurled a brick through his flat window. The “slurring” 33-year-old then punched his girlfriend on the nose, leading to it gushing with blood, as she came to investigate what the noise was at 6.20am. But the Teesside thug didn’t stop there. Not only did he assault three police officers, he then returned to his brother’s home to threaten him to retract his statement - ‘or he’d go to jail’. The Billingham defendant told his brother that he ‘knew people who would set fire to his home and car’. Smith appeared at Teesside Crown Court in November via video link from HMP Doncaster. Prosecutor Rachel Masters stated that Smith has been estranged from his brother for a number of years. However, he came into contact with him when he moved into a flat near to his then partner’s home. After around a week of living in the area, the victim awoke to his kitchen window being smashed at 6.20am. Smith had thrown a brick through the window and the victim could see him standing outside. “You’ve been sleeping with my lass, come out here and we’ll sort this out,” Smith told his brother, then Smith's girlfriend, who had heard the disturbance, left her flat to see what was happening. As she approached Smith, he punched her in the nose and she feared her nose was broken due to it ‘pouring with blood’, Ms Masters said. She called 999 but Smith walked away from the area. Officers arrived at the scene and Smith returned. However, as officers were trying to arrest him he began “making threats and tensing up”. He was taken to the ground and handcuffed. However, as officers were walking him to the back of the police van he hit out and was taken to the floor again. He kicked one officer to the chest and attempted to bite another, Ms Masters added. He made a no comment interview when he arrived at the station on April 9. Smith was granted conditional bail and told not to attend his brother’s address. But he broke that condition. “I need your help,” Smith said as he stood outside his brother’s home. “You need to retract your statement, if not I’ll go to jail.” He then went on to threaten his brother telling him that he ‘knew people’ who would burn his home and car if he didn’t comply with his order. Smith was arrested again after his brother reported the incident to police. Smith previously pleaded guilty to criminal damage, assault and three charges of assaulting an emergency worker. Victoria Lamballe, mitigating, told the court that Smith has spent almost six months on remand - his first experience of custody. The defence barrister added that Smith lost his grandmother - the ‘only maternal figure he’d ever known’ - in 2023 and it led him to “drink to excess”. Judge Nathan Adams sentenced Smith, previously of Quebec Grove, Billingham, now of no fixed abode, to 18 months in prison . Jake Marron Drug dealer Jake Marron who was surrounded by police on a footbridge over the A66 , climbed over the railings and "shimmied along the ledge" before climbing down. Marron, 22, hid a bag stuffed with cash and drugs on the ledge of the bridge before he tried to cross the four lanes of traffic on the A66. After he had ridden across the road, he called "someone in his drugs network" to say he had been caught. He then threw his phone away before a police officer caught up with him. Teesside Crown Court has heard then when Marron found himself surrounded by police on both sides of he bridge on the evening of August 30 this year, he rode his electric bike at one of the officers The officer's thumb was bent back as the bike collided with him. Marron then climbed over the bridge railings. The bag he had stashed on the ledge contained £1,285 in cash; crack cocaine and cocaine. When Marron was arrested, he had more drugs on him. In total, he had £3,690 worth of crack cocaine and cocaine. In November, Marron listened on video link from Durham prison, as Albany Kidd, prosecuting, said that Marron was spotted by police on Acklam Road, cycling quickly into Laycock Park. The police followed and saw Marron "openly dealing." He then cycled out of the park, at high speed. Marron, of Acklam Road in Middlesbrough , pleaded guilty to two counts of the possession with intent of a class A drug; to the possession of criminal property and to assaulting an emergency worker. In Mitigation, Rob Mochrie told the court that Marron got himself into debt after one job contract ended and there was a gap before the next one began. "He took a loan out for £1,000 to pay his rent. He fell behind with payments and it was suggested to him that he could pay back his debt by selling drugs. "He was provided with the electric bike. He is naïve - he tells me he had only been dealing for two days before he was caught. Speeding across lanes of traffic on an electric bike was not the brightest thing he could have done." The judge handed Marron a 27-month sentence . He will serve 40% of the prison term before being released on licence. Keith Sterling A pervert who raped a woman and sexually abused a child was jailed for 17 years in November. Keith Sterling, 46, was convicted of two counts of rape of a woman and four counts of the sexual abuse of a child, by a jury, after he stood trial at Teesside Crown Court in September. On Friday morning, he appeared back in court, on video link from Doncaster prison, to be sentenced. Sterling stared straight ahead, as his barrister Tony Davis told the court that Sterling "continues to deny the offences and he has asked about making an appeal." Judge Aisha Wadoodi jailed Sterling, of Roker Close, in Darlington, for 17 years. He will serve two-thirds of the sentence before the parole board will decide if it is safe to release him. Sterling was made the subject of an indefinite sexual harm prevention order. He will sign the sex offenders' register until further notice. A restraining order was put in place prohibiting him from contacting the two victims, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, for the rest of his life. Shaun Donnelly A drunk thug launched a violent attack on his new girlfriend after downing five pints in the pub. Shaun Donnelly, 36, kicked a bedroom door off it's hinges and grabbed his partner by her hair with one hand and around her throat with his other hand. The woman struggled to breathe and punched him, before running downstairs. But Donnelly chased her into her kitchen and pinned her up against her fridge. The victim's teenage son saw what was happening through the window and rescued his mum from Donnelly. He had heard shouting and objects being thrown upstairs on February 25, 2023, and had taken his two younger siblings out of the house to a relative's, before he saw his mum being attacked in the kitchen. The son rang 999, but when the police arrived, Donnelly told them to "f*** off." Two officers stopped him from getting into his car and driving away whilst drunk. He grabbed one of them and pushed the other away, telling them that he was the victim. Teesside Crown Court heard that the couple got together after Donnelly did some work on the woman's home. The couple and the victim's children had enjoyed a day out in Scarborough and went to a pub in Skelton to celebrate a family birthday. Donnelly downed five pints and fell asleep in the pub. When he was woken, Albany Kidd, prosecuting, told the court, "he was in a completely different mood. "He called her a 'f****** doyle.' He packed his bags and said he wished he had never met her." The victim suffered a ligament damage to her hand in the attack and she is unable to continue working as as a prison officer, because of the injury. Donnelly pleaded guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm; intentional strangulation; criminal damage; and two counts of assaulting an emergency worker. In mitigation, Andrew Turton said that Donnelly "understands his shortcomings - that he has a short temper and alcohol makes it worse. He says he's abstained from drinking since February. He failed to contain his emotions. He's deeply remorseful." Donnelly, of Richard Street in Skelton, was jailed for two-years . David Littlefair This Darlington pervert had "hot water thrown over him" in prison. David Littlefair, was also attacked in HMP Hull - where he was held on remand for breaching the strict conditions of a court order. Littlefair, 42, appeared at Teesside Crown Court in November, when his barrister asked the judge to give him a suspended prison sentence, to get him out of prison. Littlefair must abide by strict rules governing his online usage, after he was convicted of making indecent images of children in 2018 and again in 2022 . He breached his sexual harm prevention order by creating online accounts on the social messaging platform Discord, where he called himself "Dave nerd" and on Kikk, where his profile name was "gay Dave." The court heard that Littlefair did not contact any children, and that he created the accounts "out of loneliness and a desperation for human contact" - but that they are a breach of his court order. Littlefair told police himself: "I'll be honest with you, I bought myself a new phone. I haven't used it to look at kids" when he was attending a risk assessment at Darlington police station in August 2023, to see if he could attend a support group. The police uncovered the accounts and found "non-indecent" photos of children downloaded from the internet, on the phone. Littlefair was taken back into prison. He later pleaded guilty to three breaches of his sexual harm prevention order. In 2022, he served two-years in prison after admitting making indecent images of children. Littlefair's barrister Elisha Marsay said that he had created the accounts "to talk to other adult males, out of loneliness. He has no friends of family. His existence is centred around going to the shops for food. He has a longing and a desperation for human contact." Littlefair, of Grange Road in Darlington, was jailed for 12-months . Lewis Bates A child rapist led police on a high-speed chase reaching speeds of 100mph and travelling the wrong way around a roundabout. Lewis Bates was seen weaving in and out of cars in Hartlepool, forcing his way down a no entry road and travelling the wrong way around a roundabout. Despite a police stinger being deployed, the driver continued running red lights and forcing drivers to take evasive action. He was only stopped when he was "boxed in" by police forcing him to stop. Teesside Crown Court heard the chase took place after Cleveland Police was alerted to a red Subaru car which they believed to be involved in a robbery on October 22. At around 10pm, the vehicle was spotted on the Coast Road, in Hartlepool , being driven by Bates. Prosecuting the case, Nigel Soppitt said officers followed the car and a chase took place. He said: "The defendant failed to stop despite a stinger being operated at one point. He continued at speed - estimates by the pursuing officer say around 100mph. The defendant was travelling on the A179 and passed two roundabouts at speed. On the second roundabout he performed a U-turn and went around the roundabout the wrong way." Mr Soppitt said two blue-lighted blue cars followed the driver but Bates continued onto Easington Road, Hartlepool, going down a single carriageway no entry road. The prosecutor said the 29-year-old forced a car to pull over and later was seen travelling at 60mph in a 30 zone. Mr Soppitt said: "The defendant then went down a side street again at speed, weaving between cars parked on either side. What brought him to an initial stop was there was a truck in the middle of the road removing a car. "He mounted the pavement narrowly missing two officers and collided with a garden wall." Teesside Crown Court heard despite the crash, he continued driving and also ran two red lights but was then "boxed in" by officers. Mr Soppitt said when the Subaru was checked there was a machete in the car and the defendant was arrested. Bates, of Arch Court, Central Estate, Hartlepool, later pleaded guilty to: Mr Soppitt said it is not the first time Bates has appeared before the courts. In 2014, the defendant was jailed for 14 years for the rape of a child. The prosecutor said he has now been recalled on licence for the offence. Mitigating for Bates, his barrister Stephen Constantine, said it's the first time Bates has appeared before a court for driving offences and asked for credit for his guilty pleas. Mr Constantine said Bates bought the car a short time before the incident and "panicked" when he saw police. T he defendant was handed a 20-month prison sentence and banned from driving for 22 months . He must take an extended retest. Benjamin English A paedophile branded a ''danger to children'' was jailed for 15 years in November after raping a girl. Middlesbrough's Benjamin English, who was previously known as Steven Watts, initially pleaded guilty to inciting sexual activity with three girls in 2006 and received a suspended sentence. In 2013, he was jailed for five years for raping a young girl five times. Following this offence, the former Army Cadet Colour Sergeant changed his name by deed poll to English. But in 2022, after struggling with the abuse she had suffered, one of the original three victims further reported being raped by the 58-year-old. English denied the offence but was found guilty by a jury at Durham Crown Court and on Friday was sentenced to 15 years in prison. Paul Whitfield A "committed paedophile" who tried to meet a 'schoolgirl' and downloaded child abuse and sex-with-snake clips was banged up for nine years in November. Stockton's Paul Whitfield, 53, arranged to meet a "13 year old girl" in Lincoln - but the online profile he was chatting with actually belonged to a police decoy who called herself "Carrie." When police raided his home, they found videos on his phone showing young children being sexually abused. Whitfield had also downloaded videos of adults involved in sexual activity with a snake and a horse. Last month, Whitfield appeared at Teesside Crown Court, on video link from Stafford prison. The court heard that he pretended to be a teenager and he began talking to "13 year old Carrie" in February 2023, about "holding and kissing" her. The two discussed telling her school that she had a dentist appointment, on February 15, when they agreed to meet - but undercover cop Carrie cancelled the meeting. Police then raided Whitfield's house and took away two mobile phones - that he had failed to register as a convicted sex offender. The phones showed Whitfield's arrangements to meet the girl, and he had also downloaded over 900 photos and videos of children being sexually abused. He had looked at videos showing sexual activity with "multiple animals." Whitfield forwarded some of the videos to other people, including one category A video - featuring the most severe type of child abuse - to a group of 227 users. Whitfield, formerly of Fairfield in Stockton , but now of Stafford prison, pleaded guilty to: Mitigating, Tom Bennett told the court that in the case of the arranged meeting in Lincoln, there was "no actual child victim." Judge Timothy Stead told Whitfield that he is a "committed and determined paedophile" and h anded him an extended prison sentence totalling nine-years-and-eight-months. Adam Leonard A dangerous drunk with a long history of knife convictions stabbed another man nine times on a Redcar street. Adam Leonard, 33, launched a frenzied attack after "luring the man" outside the taxi office, where they were both separately waiting for lifts home in the early hours of Easter Sunday. Leonard gestured to his victim to follow him outside, and the man left the taxi office on Redcar High Street. Within seconds, Leonard stabbed him five times in the chest and four times in his back. The victim's left lung was pierced and both of his lungs collapsed. He was rushed to hospital with life threatening injuries. On Thursday, a judge at Teesside Crown Court said that Leonard's behaviour that night was "distinctly odd and rather bizarre." Judge Richard Thomas said that Leonard "had taken some sort of exception to (the victim)" who he didn't know at all. "More then once" Judge Thomas said, referring to CCTV footage, "you moved away from the taxi office, but you kept returning and provoking him." The attack was only partially captured on CCTV because a street sign blocked the camera on the High Street. Leonard, of Park Court in Redcar, was found guilty of wounding with intent and to the possession of a bladed article, during a trial last month. The jury found him not guilty of an original charge of attempted murder. He was handed a 17-year sentence which is made up of 14-years in prison and three-years on extended licence in the community . He will serve two-thirds of the prison term. James Rutherford A wannabe plumber was seen smacking a man with a bicycle seat and trying to hit him with a baseball bat. James Rutherford, 43, was captured on Middlesbrough Council CCTV beating the man at Vaughan Shops in Netherfields, Middlesbrough, on October 15. Rutherford was spotted hitting and kicking the man, as children on bikes looked on. The incident took place at around 5.05pm and was described as "disgraceful" by Judge Jo Kidd. Prosecutor Charlie Thompson described the dad striking the man twice with a bicycle seat before wrestling him to the ground. On the floor, he hit him in the head before kicking his upper body. Mr Thompson said he then left the scene only to return five minutes later with a baseball bat. He said: "As the man was stood in the doorway of a local shop he ran towards him and swung the baseball bat at his head. The complainant avoided it and closed the door in front of him. "There were several children in the vicinity of the shops who were on bicycles and observed much of what happened." Mr Thompson said the Middlesbrough defendant has a number of convictions for violent matters, and on this occasion pleaded guilty to: Rutherford's barrister Nigel Soppitt said his client accepts he carried out unacceptable violence in a public place. He said Rutherford claims the affray was started by the complainant who the defendant claims stabbed him in the back and the neck with a screwdriver. Mr Soppitt said: "There's some evidence of it, his injuries are consistent with that. He said he simply lost control." Mr Soppitt said the defendant's father has a plumbing and heating business and he has plans to work for him on release from prison. He also said he looks after his sister and has a job in prison as a cleaner. Judge Kidd sentenced the defendant, of Teak Street, to 12 months in prison . Curtis Tudor A pub goer who fatally headbutted a man to the ground, and then punched him in the head as he tried to get up - was jailed for manslaughter. Curtis Tudor, 26, was dragged away from the attack by other drinkers in the beer garden of The Jack and Jill pub, in Berwick Hills , Middlesbrough on the evening of May 11. The victim Carl James, a dad-of-five, lay collapsed on the ground, as people tried to administer first aid. He had hit his head on a table as he collapsed, and he was rushed to James Cook University Hospital , where a CT scan showed that he had suffered a large haemorrhage. Mr James, 42, died three days later. The court previously heard that the two men had "a chew" between them and "words had been exchanged earlier that day." Mr James sat down next to Tudor in the beer garden, when Tudor told him to "f*** off" and "get away, from me." Pub CCTV showed Tudor headbutted Mr James, without warning. On Friday morning, Tudor appeared at Teesside Crown Court to be sentenced. Judge Francis Laird said that he had listened to Mr James's brother and partner speak "in glowing terms of a well-liked generous man - generous not only in terms of his money, but with his time and affection." The judge said that Mr James's death "has left a sad and terrible void in the family. He was a much-loved son, brother, partner, dad and grandad." Tudor, of of Welburn Grove, Ormesby in Middlesbrough, was jailed for six years. Amy Johnston A prison officer hid "bulk packages" of pregabalin in her knickers and smuggled it into Holme House prison. Amy Johnston, 35, handed the drugs over to a prisoner in exchange for £1,000. It came after the single mum-of-two had previously told a senior colleague that she was in financial difficulty. But after she had smuggled the drugs in, in December 2021, she claimed "her mam had won the bingo" and she was no longer needing financial help. Johnston's crimes were uncovered after she was spotted on CCTV "in areas of the prison where she shouldn't have been." Teesside Crown Court heard that she was filmed speaking with inmate Curtis Hammond - a convicted drug dealer - on December 15, 2021. Prison authorities investigated further and realised that Hammond was calling the prison officer. After Johnston was arrested, on December 21, the police uncovered deleted messages on her phone between her and a man named "Wardy." The unknown man paid her £500 per job and Johnston smuggled the class C drug in on December 17 and 21, 2021. Johnston, who has never been in trouble before, pleaded guilty to two counts of conveying a prohibited article into prison. In mitigation, John Nixon said that the mother-of-two claimed she was threatened by Hammond and acted under pressure from him. Johnston told the probation service that her windows had been smashed and her tyres slashed. She said that two months after starting the job, Hammond approached her and asked her to bring the packages in. "She said she initially declined, but over time he said he knew where her children went to school; and he talked about someone watching her home" Mr Nixon said. "She's acknowledged that the right thing to do would have been to refer the threats to the prison authorities. Rejecting Johnston's claims, Judge Joanne Kidd said, "As early as December 6, Hammond was in possession of your phone number and he was trying to call you. in order to cover your tracks, a third person became involved to pass on information, and to provide you with drugs and money. "The tone of the messages between you and 'Wardy' was fairly friendly, there was no suggestion he was threatening you." The judge told Johnston that "the presence of drugs in prison causes misery - it leads to violence, bullying, deaths and corruption." Johnston, of Glentworth Avenue, Netherfields, Middlesbrough , was jailed for 12 months. Teesside Live is now on WhatsApp and we want you to join our community. Through the app, we'll send you the latest breaking news, top stories, exclusives and much more straight to your phone. To join our community group, you need to already have WhatsApp. All you need to do is click this link and select 'Join Community' . No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Teesside Live team. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'Exit group'. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice . Click here to join our WhatsApp community . For breaking news in your area direct to your inbox every day, go here to sign up to our free newsletter

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