AUGUST has been another busy month for our criminal justice system with several defendants from across Cheshire being sent to prison.
From a man who raped a teenager as she slept, to persistent shop lifters and a mother who attacked her own daughter following a drunken row over music - here are some of those locked up this month.
A NORTHWICH man has been jailed after he raped a woman as she slept in bed next to him.
Joseph Taylor, of Solvay Road, had originally denied four counts of rape and four sexual assaults against the woman, who was just 16 at the time the offences took place - he was 17 and 18.
A trial of the 25-year-old began at Chester Crown Court in June, but on the second day, Taylor was re-arraigned in the dock and pleaded guilty to two rapes and two sexual assaults.
He did so after his defence barrister was made aware about the existence of a voice recording in which Taylor admitted to the woman what he had done to her. This is despite Taylor himself being interviewed about the recording by police officers during their investigation.
A MUM has been jailed after she attacked her daughter following a drunken argument about music being played too loudly.
Michelle Gerrard, of The Crescent in Weaverham, bit her daughter’s forearm and stamped on her head as she dragged her across the floor during the attack on April 1, 2021.
The 39-year-old had denied the single charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm against her daughter, who was 19 at the time of the attack.
However, despite claiming she had been acting in self-defence, was found guilty by a jury following a short trial at Chester Crown Court in June.
A ‘CAREER criminal’ currently serving a prison sentence for breaking into an elderly flood victim’s home has been hauled back to court for leading police on a dangerous car chase and crashing into a lamppost.
Shaun Kelly, of Beech Grove, Weaverham, appeared in Chester Crown Court on August 10 to be sentenced for crimes committed before he was imprisoned.
The 36-year-old led police on a car chase through Frodsham and Runcorn on November 17, 2020, driving a Vauxhall Zafira he knew had been taken without the owner’s consent.
Kelly then crashed the vehicle into a lamppost and damaged a garden fence panel to the value of £35 in Runcorn.
A DRUG dealer from Northwich has been jailed after a police raid uncovered a quantity of heroin and cocaine he was intending to supply to the town’s residents.
Mark Keelan, of Romanes Street, pleaded guilty to two counts of possession with the intent to supply class A drugs.
The 49-year-old was first arrested by police on April 28 when they executed a warrant on Manchester Road.
He admitted the offences on June 1 at Chester Crown Court.
A THIEF described by the courts as a ‘professional criminal’ has been jailed after stealing plants pots and lamb joints from supermarkets in Northwich.
Gary Bloor, of Parkfield Road in the town, was told he had a ‘flagrant disregard for people and their property’ when appearing at Chester Magistrates’ Court on August 22.
The 40-year-old was recalled on licence after stealing two plant pots worth £20 from Waitrose on August 15.
Just two days later, on August 17, Bloor stole three lamb joins worth £30 from Iceland.
A PROLIFIC shoplifter who made the lives of Northwich business owners ‘a misery’ has been jailed after visiting a supermarket he was banned from entering.
Steven Owen, of Victoria House in Church Road, was originally made the subject of a five-year criminal behaviour order (CBO) at Chester Magistrates’ Court on May 23.
As part of the order, the 53-year-old was banned from entering several stores in both Northwich and Winsford, as well as being given a ban on being drunk in public places and asking people for money.
But on Friday (August 5), Owen was hauled back to court for breaching the order and entering the Asda store in Northwich on August 2.
A CARER who abused her position to defraud a vulnerable man out of almost £4,000 has been jailed after showing ‘no remorse’ for her crimes.
Julie Jackson - previously of Lune Crescent in Rudheath but currently of no fixed abode - appeared in Chester Crown Court on August 3, after deceiving a 58-year-old man who had developed feelings for her during her time as his carer.
The victim, who has the mental age of an eight or nine-year-old due to a childhood accident, did not have the capacity to manage or make decisions about money.
Jackson, also 58, would help him with his finances and had his bank card and pin number.
The court heard how between August 2017 and July 2019, she abused this position of trust by persuading him to get loans, withdraw cash and pay for things for her.
A CONVICTED sex offender from Winsford has been jailed after breaching the terms of an order put in place to protect the public.
Mark Buckley, of East Dudley Street, was locked up for two years after he deleted internet history and failed to register electronic devices to the police.
The 47-year-old had been made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order when he was given a suspended prison sentence in August of last year.
Buckley had been spared an immediate spell behind bars despite pleading guilty to inciting a young teenager to engage in sexual activity. He had also downloaded indecent images of children, but his 18-month jail term was suspended for two years.
A MAN has been jailed after stalking a woman on social media for several weeks.
Jamie McFee, of Brimstone Road in Winsford, had been subject to a suspended sentence order for fleeing the scene of a crash in Pickmere at the time.
The 38-year-old had initially denied stalking the woman online but changed his plea to guilty when he appeared at Chester Magistrates Court on July 14.
He was back at the same court on Monday, August 15, where he was jailed for a total of 19 weeks.
The court heard how McFee made excessive contact with the woman via multiple social media sources which the court heard he ought to have known amounted to harassment.
A MAN with a ‘flagrant disregard’ for court orders has been jailed after attacking a woman in front of children.
Jermaine Bellamy, of Longridge, Knutsford, appeared in Warrington Magistrates’ Court on August 5 after pleading guilty to the offence.
The court heard how on August 3 in Wilmslow, Bellamy assaulted a woman by beating her.
By committing this offence, the 35-year-old was in breach of a restraining order against the same woman imposed by Manchester Crown Court on May 10, 2019.
A MAN has been jailed for driving home from court - right after he was banned from the roads.
Ryan Tuckman, of Saltersbrook Grove, Wilmslow, appeared at Crewe Magistrates Court on July 28 earlier this summer charged with two counts of drug driving.
The 29-year-old had been caught in Dean Row Road on June 28 with 421 microgrammes of Benzoylecgonine (a breakdown product of cocaine) and 6.7 microgrammes of Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol per litre of his blood.
The respective limits are 50 microgrammes and two microgrammes.
Magistrates banned him from the roads for these offences, but Tuckman was caught behind the wheel driving away from the court hearing.
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