Berkshire criminals locked up or let go at Reading Crown Court

These are just some of the criminals sentenced at Reading Crown Court last week.

However, not all of them went to prison!

Here are the names and faces of those who have stood in the dock over the past seven days.

Gary Cresswell

A man was told he was lucky not to be sent down for manslaughter after he was jailed for knocking a man out cold in a punch-up outside a petrol station.

Gary Cresswell, of Sandringham Way, Calcot, left the man unconscious after knocking him out and the victim would not wake up for another two weeks after he went into a coma.

At one point during his treatment at the John Radcliffe Hospital, the victim’s partner was told it was ‘50/50’ as to whether he would wake up.

Fortunately, the victim did come around, but he was only discharged from hospital last month and he now suffers from short-term memory problems and needs a walking frame to get around.

Sentencing him to 32 months imprisonment, Her Honour Judge Campbell told Cresswell he was ‘fortunate’ the victim did not die as he would be facing a manslaughter charge.

The brawl came about after Cresswell and his colleagues were arguing with shopkeepers at BP Petrol Station on Oxford Road on the evening of August 10, 2021.

Another customer – the victim – defended the shopkeepers and made some comments about Cresswell’s behaviour.

After a brief pause Cresswell, who set up the scaffolding company he works for, exited the petrol station forecourt and shouted ‘wait, wait’ to the man before catching up with him around the corner on Oxford Road.

Shocking CCTV footage shown to the court caught the moment Cresswell punched the man – who was holding his hands up -- in the face.

The blow made the man collapse and he was knocked unconscious.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE

Richard Whitty

A SENIOR software engineer who grew £45,000 worth of cannabis in his bedroom has been spared jail.

A court heard how Richard Whitty, of Lowestoft Drive, Slough, had a tent set up in his house after his brother, Thomas, came to him asking him to set it up.

Despite initially refusing his brother’s plans, Thomas got his way and 54 cannabis plants were planted in the tent.

It was estimated that these plants would have a street value of £45,000 if they had been allowed to grow to their full size.

Sentencing, Her Honour Judge Campbell acknowledged Richard’s refusal in setting up the cannabis farm but also highlighted that he did not report his brother to the police.

Whitty, a senior software engineer at a software development company in Slough, was handed an 18-month community order.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE

Emma Casey and Tim Casey

A husband and wife who stole £143,000 from her elderly, vulnerable father’s life savings were spared jail in order to care for their severely disabled daughter.

Tim and Emma Casey, of Shelgate Walk, Woodley, gambled all the money away after the latter was put in charge of managing her father’s only remaining funds.

Reading Crown Court heard how Ms Casey could have been handed a six-year prison sentence had she been found guilty at a trial.

And following an August court hearing the pair were told a prison stay was 'almost inevitable'.

But because she is the primary carer for her youngest child, who has “complex” support needs, and because she admitted to her crime removing the need for a trial, Her Honour Judge Nott let her and her husband walk free.

In a victim statement, Ms Casey’s father said: “Shortly after this had come to light, I felt anxious and so let down.

“I did not believe my own daughter could do this to me until she admitted it.

“I started to think life was not worth living anymore.

“One of the few people I adored let me down totally.”

READ THE FULL STORY HERE

Karen Irvine

A THIEF who has stolen almost £47,000 from three different employers has been spared jail for the third time.

Karen Irvine, of Spinners Green, Bracknell, stole £8,000 from a Surrey-based catering company over a period of 14 months between 2018 and 2019.

This was her third such offence, having stolen £7,000 and £32,000 from HP and DHL respectively in the 2000s.

After being handed a suspended sentence, a judge warned Irvine this was her “last chance” and that the “sword of Damocles” was “hanging over her head”.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE

Kadri Bako, Emiljano Faslliaj, Eduard Troka

Three men have been locked away for producing a cannabis factory in Wokingham worth about £1,500,000.

Police were called by a witness to reports of a large cannabis factory at two industrial units in Oxford Road, Wokingham.

On December 3, 2020, officers attended the scene and a large quantity of cannabis was located being grown within the site.

A large number of cannabis plants with a street value of approximately £1.5 million was discovered in various stages of growth.

All three men were sentenced at Reading Crown Court on Tuesday, October 5 to four years imprisonment.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE

Alan Latimer

70-year-old Latimer, of Sea Grove Avenue, Hayling Island, Hampshire, was sentenced to two years in jail for the indecent assault of a girl under 14-years-old in Maidenhead in the 1980s.

He was placed on the sex offenders register for life and handed a 10-year sexual harm prevention order.

Scott Lovejoy

48-year-old Lovejoy, of Hubberholme, Bracknell, was handed a 24-month community order for a conviction of three counts of making indecent photographs of a child.

He was also told to take part in 30 rehabilitation activity requirement days and was given a five-year sexual harm prevention order.

Paul Vig and Maria Vig

Paul Vig, 58, and Maria Vig, 40, were convicted of breaching an enforcement notice following prosecution from Slough Borough Council.

The former, of Scotlands Drive, Farnham Common, Slough was fined £5,000 and was told he will serve three months in prison if this is not paid within six months. He was also told to pay £8,161.67 in court costs.

The latter, of Fawsley Close, Slough, was given a six-month conditional discharge and told to pay £4,000 in costs.