Berkshire criminals jailed at Reading Crown Court in 2021

The teenage boys from Reading convicted of murdering 13-year-old Olly Stephens were sent down in September after a July trial, the Forbury Gardens terrorist Khairi Saadallah was handed a whole life prison term in January, and a man who shook his baby death was sentenced to years behind bars in November.

These are just some of the Berkshire criminals handed long prison terms from judges in 2021.

Here is a list of the most dangerous, evil and devious crooks from the royal county imprisoned at Reading Crown Court or at a higher court from the past 12 months.

Ashley Jenkins

The Berkshire criminals jailed in 2021

A 26-year-old man from Maidenhead was jailed for numerous child sex offences.

Ashley Jenkins, of Ray Park Avenue within the town, was sentenced at Reading Crown Court on January 18, where he received an extended sentence of 26 years – 18 of them to be served behind bars.

Jenkins pleaded guilty at a previous hearing on November 5 to four counts of rape of a child under 13, three counts of possession of an indecent photograph of a child, two counts of sexual assault of a child under 13, two counts of taking an indecent photograph of a child and two counts of making indecent photographs of children.

It is in connection to incidents that happened between January 1, 2018, and June 8, 2020.

Aaron Theodore

A robber who "grabbed" a victim's neck and stole his phone and bank card has been jailed.

Aaron Theodore, aged 26 of Elm Lodge Avenue, pleaded guilty at Reading Crown Court on Friday, January 8, to one count of robbery, four counts of attempted burglary and one count of burglary.

All the incidents took place on November 8, 2020, in Bath Road and Hatford Road.

Theodore was sentenced to six years’ imprisonment at the same hearing.

Khairi Saadallah

The knifeman who rampaged through Reading's Forbury Gardens killing three people was handed a whole-life sentence.

Khairi Saadallah, 26, shouted “Allahu akhbar” as he fatally stabbed friends James Furlong, 36, David Wails, 49, and Joseph Ritchie-Bennett, 39, on June 20 last year.

Three other people – Stephen Young, 51, Patrick Edwards, 29, and Nishit Nisudan, 34, – were also injured in the horrific attack before Saadallah threw away the eight-inch knife and ran off, pursued by an off-duty police officer.

Saadallah’s appeal to reduce to his prison sentence was thrown out by the Court of Appeal in October and he will serve life behind bars.

February

Latrell Greenridge

A man who stabbed another driver during a road rage attack in Reading was jailed on February 5 for more than six years.

Latrell Greenidge, aged 26, of Ashburton Road in Reading, was found guilty of wounding with intent following a three-day trial at Reading Crown Court.

Police said on May 28, 2019, Greenidge pulled out of a side road onto Oxford Road in Reading and started to drive behind the victim, a 30-year-old man who was travelling with his girlfriend and her four-year old-child in the car.

As the victim – who was known to Greenidge – drove onto the A33 Inner Distribution Road, Greenidge tailgated him before moving in front of his vehicle and stopping at a set of traffic lights.

The force said: "While stationary, the victim got out of his car and went to speak to Greenidge, who then jumped out of his van and chased him across the road in the opposite carriageway.

"He caught up with him and stabbed him once in the back with a knife, leaving him with serious injuries."

Rigert Korrage

A cannabis factory was discovered in Reading with police stating the operation at Dulverton Gardens had a potential crop yield of £93,000.

A hearing at Reading Crown Court was told the factory had "a number of rooms which had been converted in order to grow cannabis."

31-year-old Rigert Korrage was sentenced to two years in prison for his role in the scheme.

Jason Seagrove

A man who stole a delivery van and rammed it into a police car has been jailed.

Jason Seagrove, 39, walked up the driveway of a woman's home in Langley Road, Slough, on the afternoon of September 2 last year - but walked away when she rattled her blinds at him.

A little while later and Seagrove, of Gilliat Road in Slough, jumped into the front seat of a delivery van while the driver was out of the vehicle.

He has been jailed for three and a half years, disqualified from driving for 41 months and must take an extended re-test.

Jamil Munir

A man who tried to discard drugs in the middle of a deal and racially abused a police officer has been jailed.

Jamil Munir was spotted by police in Oldfield Road, Maidenhead, carrying out a drug deal on September 23 last year.

As police detained him, the 36-year-old, of Arkley Court in the town, violently resisted and launched a tirade of racial slurs and abuse at one of the officers.

At Reading Crown Court on Thursday, February 11, Munir was jailed for four and a half years after pleading guilty to possession with intent to supply class A drugs.

March

Ireneusz Wiater

A man who tried to gouge out a police officer's eye was jailed for more than four years in March.

Ireneusz Wiater, aged 35, of no fixed abode, was sentenced in Reading Crown Court on Thursday, March 4, after being found guilty of causing grievous bodily harm with intent to a police officer.

On Sunday, September 2020, at around 2.24am Wiater assaulted a police officer by choking him in a headlock and tried to gouge his left eye.

He was then charged and remanded the next day.

The attack left the officer with "many painful injuries", including temporary blindness in his eye.

Investigating officer, Detective Constable Chris Jamieson, based at Maidenhead police station, said: “This was a serious assault on a police officer acting lawfully in their duties.

“The actions of choking the officer and gouging his eye left him with many painful injuries, including temporary blindness in his left eye.”

Wiater was sentenced to four years and six months imprisonment for the attack, which took place on King Street in Maidenhead.

David Rackett

A dangerous knifeman who told his victim her life wasn't worth living before stabbing her in the throat has been jailed.

David Rackett, of Scours Lane, Reading, was sentenced at Reading Crown Court in March after the attack in April 2020.

During a six-day trial, the court heard details of how Rackett met a woman in her 40s on Oxford Road on Sunday, April 16.

At about 9.45pm, the pair walked together to a boat in Scours Lane in which he was living.

Police said 10 minutes after they got to his home, Rackett launched the violent attack on his victim, throwing her to the floor and strangling her.

The victim managed to free herself from his grip before he stabbed her in the throat, saying her life wasn't worth living.

The offender then plunged a knife towards the victim's stomach but she was able to grab the weapon and run away to safety.

Rackett was sentenced to 14 years’ imprisonment for attempted murder and must also serve an additional four years on licence.

Patrik Jankoczky

A man was locked up after admitting to dangerous driving and drug offences in Reading.

Patrik Jankoczky, aged 21, of Benson Close, Reading was sentenced at Reading Crown Court on Tuesday, March 23, to two years and six months imprisonment.

The sentencing comes after Jankoczky was approached by officers while he sat in the driver's seat of a car in Chepstow Road, Tilehurst on July 17, 2019.

He attempted to drive off, but mounted a curb and was involved in a crash with an oncoming car. The victim, a woman in her sixties, sustained minor injuries in the incident.

Once Jankoczky's car was inspected by officers, cash, phones, and quantities of cocaine and heroin were found in the vehicle. He was arrested on the same day, and was charged on December 10.

April

Roy Coxhead

A “dangerous” predator who groomed two teenagers decades apart was locked up in April for almost 20 years.

Roy Coxhead, of Erleigh Road, Reading, targeted “vulnerable” boys with money, cigarettes, alcohol and cannabis before having sexually abusing them on multiple occassions.

The first boy, who became “entangled” with Coxhead when he was “11 or 12” got a sexually transmitted infection from the businessman following the assaults.

Years later, after luring a second boy to his flat, the businessman put his hands down the teen’s trousers and encouraged him to do the same to him.

Richard Zarifeh

A Wokingham man defrauded Bracknell’s Jemca Toyota car dealership of more than £750,000 in a bid to fuel his gambling addiction, a court heard in April.

Richard Zarifeh, of Church Lane, Arborfield, will serve three years and ten months behind bars as punishment for his actions.

The 32-year-old started funnelling money from the sale of the John Nike Way dealership’s cars into his own bank account in January 2017 and continued this abuse of power for more than two years.

Acting as a corporate sales executive at the firm, he was able to access the company’s systems to help “cover up” the fraud.

His actions came to light when he confessed his stealing -- which cost the car dealership a total of £777,620 -- to a colleague at a meeting he had arranged.

Joseph Waters, Sahit Shehu, Cleon Douglinand Lee Peppiat

FOUR 'dangerous' gunmen have been jailed after a 'terrifying' attack in which the victim was shot at seven times.

Joseph Waters, aged 25, of Laytom Rise in Tilehurst, has been sent down for 24 years for attempted murder after the shocking attack that happened near Reading's town centre.

Reading Crown Court heard how Waters and his three accomplices were involved in the violent firearms offence in Southampton Street on October 16, 2019.

A five-week trial heard how shortly after midnight one of the accomplices Sahit Shehu, 31, of Bunces Lane in Burghfield, was involved in a crash in Southampton Street.

Witnesses reported seeing him shift a handgun from his damaged vehicle into a BMW X5 which arrived to pick him up.

Inside the BMW X5 was another of the defendants Lee Peppiat, 36, of Corinne Close in Whitley, who took Shehu back to his home in Burghfield before then taking the hand gun to Laytom Rise - where Waters lives.

A jury heard how a few hours later about 3.30am, Waters used the firearm shooting it seven times into the back of a Honda Jazz - intending to kill the 42-year-old victim sat inside.

Peppiat was at the scene as well as the fourth defendant Cleon Douglin, 37, of Coley Avenue in Reading.

The 'flurry of gunshots' hit the victim in the shoulder and he was rushed to hospital where he made a full recovery.

Reading Crown Court heard how after the attack gunman Waters got into a Ford Fiesta vehicle that had been hired by Douglin, and they both fled the scene. Peppiat left the scene in the BMW X5 vehicle that he used earlier on the same evening from Southampton Street.

At a hearing on Wednesday, April 28, three of the men [Waters, Douglin and Shehu] were jailed for a combined 43 years.

Both Douglin and Peppiat were found guilty of possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life, Douglin now facing 14 years in prison.

Rachid Khadla

An abusive dad has been jailed for 'controlling his three children's lives'.

Rachid Khadla, 56, from Windsor, was found guilty of causing harm to his three children at a trial at Reading Crown Court.

The abuse happened between 1998 and 2019 where he 'controlled all aspects' of his children's lives.

The court heard how Khadla controlled the clothes they wore to the food they would eat and who they could be friends with.

Trevor Smith

Windsor man Smith sexually abused a girl and raped a boy between 15 and 30 years ago. 

The Dedworth Road man was slammed by a Judge at Reading Crown Court last month for putting his victims through the trauma of a trial after he pleaded guilty to several sexual abuse charges. 

Judge Edward Burgess scolded Smith for the “grave” ways he “systematically” abused the boy, which included rape and sexual assault.

“Your abuse of him tragically became part of his formative life”, Judge Burgess said.

“The effects have been profound and life changing.

“There is no doubt you have caused him severe psychological harm.”

Smith, 56, will be in prison for up to 21 years.

May

Ruban Butt, Aisha Butt, Alasan Manneh, Marcus West and Georgia Bayes

Ruban Butt

Five were sent behind bars after being convicted of a ‘terrifying’ kidnap in August 2020.

Ruban Butt, of Long Readings Lane, Slough, was sentenced to the longest time in jail out of the five after he was given a seven-year term.

The 18-year-old helped kidnap a man before threatening him with a knife and stealing his uncle’s car.

The others, including Aisha Butt, also of Long Readings Lane, Alasan Manneh, of Bromycroft Road, Slough, and Marcus West and Georgia Bayes, both of Lynch Hill Lane, Slough, were handed sentences ranging from one year and nine months in jail to five years in prison for their parts in the kidnapping and the false imprisonment.

Investigating officer, Detective Constable Abdi Awil, said: “This was a frightening incident for the victim who was taken against his will and subjected to multiple threats throughout the incident.

“I am pleased that all five individuals involved in this incident have been found guilty of their actions and have now been sentenced to time in jail.”

Dorin Manolache

Dorin Manolache ‘ruined’ his and a woman’s life when he raped her in March of this year.

The 32-year-old, of Wantage Road, Reading, was handed six years in jail for his crime.

A court heard how the rape survivor, who had “overcome serious [medical] challenges” in order to “live a normal life” by starting a family and getting a job, had been set back an “unimaginable degree” by the incident.

Sentencing, Judge Nott said: “In all my time on the bench I have never seen such harm flowing from a rape which hasn’t involved violence.

“You have ruined two lives; you have ruined your life and you have ruined hers.”

Martin Stoakes, Patrick Cawley and John Cawley

A family of ‘seasoned’ and ‘professional’ burglars were sent down for 17 years at Reading Crown Court in May.

Martin Stoakes, Patrick Cawley and John Cawley targeted ‘vulnerable’ and ‘elderly’ people in a string of burglaries from July 2020 to February 2021.

One victim included a 100-year-old with dementia.

Sentencing, Judge Edward Burgess QC said: “All three of you have quite dreadful criminal records.

“I’m in no doubt you were targeting the homes of the vulnerable and the elderly.

“You are all seasoned and professional burglars in my judgement. There is nothing to distinguish between you.”

Brandon Neal

Thug Brandon Neal attacked his victim -- a 25 year old woman -- in a horrifying rage which left her with a 4cm gash down her skull. 

21-year-old Neal launched his gruesome offensive one evening in March 2020 at Worlds End Hill Park in Bracknell. 

He started arguing with the woman before smashing a bottle on her forehead.

He was then tackled to the ground by the victim’s partner before being arrested on the same day. 

At Reading Crown Court in May, Neal, of Berkshire Court was sentenced to two years behind bars. 

June

Shahmaan Ahmed

In June, Ahmed was sentenced to eight years in jail for travelling to Reading to attempt to rape two children.

Shahmaan Ahmed, of Roman Road, London, believed the children to be three and eight years old when he travelled from London in August 2020 and even bought sweets for the youngsters.

The children were not real, but Ahmed, who also brought 'sexual item' with him to the meeting, was arrested by officers from Thames Valley’s Paedophile Online Investigation Team.

He was sentenced to eight years in jail after being found guilty of child sex offences by a jury back in February.

Mark Church

Mark Church, aged 45, entered the McColl’s Convenience Store in Scaffell Road, Slough at 6.15am on January 15 last year.

Once inside he forced a female staff member at knifepoint to the back office of the store, where she was forced to hand over the safe key.

Church stole more than £3,750 in cash, cigarettes and stamps.

He was jailed to seven years in prison with a further three years on licence.

Aaron Jackson

Arron Jackson, 27 of Grovelands Road, Reading, was found guilty by a majority jury at Reading Crown Court on Thursday, April 29.

In 2010, Jackson visited a woman's home in Berkshire to watch a film with her.

The court heard how the victim had fallen asleep and she woke up to find Jackson was raping her. He then left her home.

On Friday, June 25, he was sentenced to six years' and six months’ imprisonment at Aylesbury Crown Court and will be placed on Sex Offenders Register for life.

Piotr Malinowski

Piotr Malinowski, of Adelphi Gardens in Slough, will face years behind bars after he launched a vicious and unprovoked attack on his lodgers.

Two women were knifed in the stabbing that happened on December 28, 2020 - one woman stabbed several times in the neck and ear, and the other in the hands and legs.

At the hearing on May 28, Malinowski was sentenced to seven years in prison for two counts of GBH wounding with intent and one count of possession of a bladed article.

July

Adam Leicester

Appearing via live link from prison at Reading Crown Court last month, Leicester was sentenced to 38 months behind bars after threatening to kill his partner and putting a scalpel to her neck.

The 24-year-old, formerly of Northumberland Avenue, Reading, gave his victim black eyes and scratches on the neck after he “went mad” with his girlfriend, who he had been in a “stormy” relationship with for five months.

Leicester then discovered she had been talking to another man and put a scalpel to her neck and told her she needed and deserved to die, prosecutor Charles Digby said.

Mervyn Harvey

Finchampstead man Harvey will spend the next 17 years in jail after he was sentenced at Reading Crown Court for a dozen sexual offences.

These included indecent assault, rape, and indeceny with a child.

Harvey, 62, of Kiln Ride, was in court at the start of the month.

Izmir Shehi

21-year-old Shehi launched a ‘vicious’ attack on a man on Friar Street in Reading on New Year’s Day this year.

Police said he approached his victim from behind and punched him to the back of the head which caused the victim to fall over.

Formerly of Crockenhamwell Road, Woodley, the thug will spend the next four years in jail.

Gulfraz Ali and Luke Finlay

Four years is how long these dealers will spend in the slammer after using a car park near a hospital to sell drugs.

Ali, 28, of Wellesley Road, Slough and Finlay, 22, of Tudor Way, Windsor, had pleaded guilty to one count each of conspiracy to supply class A namely cocaine, conspiracy to supply class B namely cannabis, and money laundering.

Investigating officer, DC Rebecca Stevens, based at Maidenhead police station, said: “Thames Valley Police does not tolerate drug dealing in our communities.”

Warren Grice and Reuben Barnett

The Slough duo will spend up to nine years in jail together after a Thames Valley Police sting.

Warren Grice, 53 from Bath Road, Slough, was stopped by police on June 6, 2021 and searched.

Officers found two knives as well as cocaine and heroin estimated to be valued at £650 in his car.

They then searched Reuben Barnett’s (42) property on Frimley Drive, where crack cocaine worth £25,500 was seized, as well as heroin worth £3,600.

John Imeson

Former Reading Blue Coat School teacher was jailed for up to 16 years after sexually abusing two boys in the 1980s.

Imeson, of Fitzroy Crescent, Woodley, was convicted of 13 sexual offences, including buggery, indecent assault, and indecency with a child following a seven-day trial in May.

Reading Crown Court heard how "respected teacher" Imeson, 73, abused one of the pupils, who was believed to be either 11 or 12 at the time, during camping and canoeing trips he ran as extra-curricular activities at the boarding school between June 1980 and September 1982.

James Dyer

Dyer committed a string of sexual offences just days before he was spared prison for a 2018 pizza-cutter attack.

Last month he was jailed by the same judge who previously let him walk free.

Reading Crown Court heard how James Dyer, formerly of Longs Way, Wokingham, sent three videos of him pleasuring himself to girls aged 14 and 16.

The court also heard how on another occasion he grabbed a woman’s bottom and asked her for sex after she got into her car in April 2021.

Judge Burgess sentenced Dyer to two years and six months behind bars after he admitted to three counts of sending indecent or offensive electronic communications with intent to cause stress or anxiety, common assault, and sexual assault.

Barry Gooden

Gooden, from Bracknell, was jailed for 22 months after being convicted of two counts of making indecent photos of children.

The 64-year-old was also told his phone would be destroyed and any equipment containing the indecent images would be forfeited too.

In addition, Gooden was handed a 10-year-sexual-harm-prevention order.

September

The teenagers who killed Olly Stephens

We are not allowed to name the 14-year-old and 15-year-old who caused 13-year-old Olly’s death at Bugs Bottom field in Reading in January of this year.

A girl, 14, lured Olly to the field where he was ambushed by the two boys, one of whom was 14 and one of whom was 13.

Here, the older boy started punching Olly before the younger boy stabbed him in the chest and the back.

It was an attack that lasted two minutes but that is all it took for Olly to tragically die in the arms of his parents who rushed to the scene after being alerted by another teenage boy.

Following a five-week trial in which the boys were convicted of murder, they were eventually sentenced at Reading Crown Court last month.

The older boy, who started the fight with Olly, received a life sentence and was told he will serve a minimum of 12 years in prison.

The younger boy, who stabbed Olly, also received a life sentence and will spend a minimum of 13 years in prison.

And the girl, who admitted to Olly’s manslaughter, was handed a three-year and two-month sentence.

However, this was increased to five years following an appeal at the High Court in December.

Charlie Ward

In September, Slough man Ward was re-sentenced for the brutal murder of Jason Gardner at the Earl of Cornwall Pub in May 2018.

He stabbed the father of two more than 30 times following a pub brawl that spilled over from another boozer.

Ward had already been sent to prison once before following a trial in late 2018.

Following a re-trial in June and July 2021, Ward was told he will serve 20 years behind bars for his part in the incident.

The brawl occurred at the Earl of Cornwall pub on Cippenham Lane when Mr Gardner, a father of two, attacked Charlie Ward, who was drinking at the pub with his wife, mother and father.

Ward, who had a Stanley knife in his possession, retaliated and stabbed the punter more than 30 times including in the eye, mouth and face.

Gardner ‘begged for help’ during the attack, a court heard, and suffered a cardiac arrest from his injuries.

Ethan Davison

Ethan Davison, 21, was looking at his phone when he came off the road and collided with a 12-year-old girl before driving off.

The father-of-two, formerly of Harrison Road, Southampton, will spend three-and-a-half years behind bars for his ‘reckless’ driving.

He was heading towards Marlborough when he reached the A339 Greenham Road in Newbury.

The girl and her mum, grandparents and cousins were walking home from the Corn Exchange in Newbury having been to a Christmas pantomime show at around 8.57pm when disaster struck.

Davison, who had been looking at a map on his phone, which was on the passenger seat, mounted the pavement and hit the girl.

The girl’s family immediately called 999 and she was taken to the John Radcliffe Hospital in Newbury for emergency surgery.

Her family was told to prepare for the possibility that she may not survive the procedure.

However, the now-teenage girl survived but suffered life-changing injuries, which include permanent brain damage, scoliosis, visual impairment and the inability to walk.

Christopher Minards

Minards will serve a minimum 16 years and two months in jail after pleading guilty to the murder of Emma McArthur on April 1.

He stabbed Ms McArthur, whom he knew from a previous relationship, in Thatcham.

A murder investigation was launched and Minards was charged on April 4.

Senior investigating officer detective inspector Sally Spencer said: “This incident has had a devastating impact on the family and friends of Emma, and shocked the entire community, and we are committed to bringing such offenders to justice.”

“No words can express the sadness and feelings we have as a family at the loss of Emma,” her family wrote in a tribute.

In December, an appeal from the Attorney General to increase Minards’ sentence failed after a top judge did not accept his sentence was ‘unduly lenient’.

Stuart Woods

National gymnastics coach Stuart Woods, of Wellington Road, Sandhurst, was found guilty of sexually abusing a child as well as engaging in sexual communication with two others.

Following scathing remarks made by a judge, he was sentenced to 11 years in prison.

Judge Burgess QC told the 34-year-old he was a selfish, highly manipulative, and a volatile man who had done “profound damage” to his victims and their families.

“Your offending against [the victim] was a dreadful violation of [the victim] physically and mentally,” said the judge.

“You have wounded [the victim] deeply and at an emotional level.”

October

Carl Vasey

A man who lined up a woman and shot at her with an air rifle, rubbed her face in dog poo and forced her to cut her legs with tweezers in almost four years of “horrific” abuse was jailed for more than five years on October 14.

Carl Vasey, of The Oaks, Newbury, also subjected the woman to physical, mental abuse including slapping, punching, kicking, spitting and sending her ‘degrading’ emails.

Lester Bell

A judge refused to give details of a serial sex offender’s vile abuse of two young girls as it was ‘clear’ he would get ‘sexual excitement’ recounting his shocking crimes.

A court heard how Lester Bell, 70 from Reading, would likely serve the rest of his life in jail after he was sentenced to a minimum of 16 years behind bars for the non-recent sexual abuse of the two survivors.

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.

Kadri Bako, Emiljano Faslliaj and Eduard Troka

These three men were 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.

Kadri Bako, 29 and Emiljano Faslliaj, 30, both of no fixed were arrested that day. Bako was then charged on December 4, 2020 and Faslliaj was charged the following day.

They both pleaded guilty in a hearing at Reading Crown Court on Friday, April 23 to the charge.

A third person was also found to be part of the drug gang after crime scene investigators found fingerprints identifying Eduard Troka, aged 30 of no fixed abode.

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

Mohammed Asif

The 22-year-old of Sheraton Drive, was locked up for four years and 10 months after he was caught trying to escape to Turkey at Heathrow Airport.

In June, police found £98,000-worth of heroin, cocaine, crack cocaine and cannabis in a flat in Maidenhead – which Asif had run away from just moments earlier.

Unfortunately for Asif, officers arrested him at Heathrow a few days later, just as he was about to board a flight to Istanbul.

At Reading Crown Court on Friday,October 29, Asif was sentenced after he pleaded guilty to three charges of possession with intent to supply class A drugs and one count of possession with intent to supply class B drugs.

November

O’Neal Joseph

28-year-old Joseph formerly of Amersham Road, Reading, was handed a life sentence for the murder of Yannick Cupido in Caversham on Valentine’s Day 2021.

The two had an argument over a prank Cupido played in which he falsely alleged their mutual friend Reece Weatherburn had been arrested.

Their row snowballed as Joseph could not reach Weatherburn and the former messaged the latter to say he would kill him.

They met outside a corner shop in Caversham just after midnight on February 14 where they had a fight.

Joseph had brought a large kitchen knife with him and used it to stab Cupido in the chest.

Following a three-week trial, Joseph was convicted of murder.

He was given a life prison term and told he will serve a minimum of 24 years in prison.

James Lawton

Lawton, 28, of Wiltshire, was jailed for the murder of his month-old son Colby, who died in May 2020.

A jury agreed with the prosecution’s case that Lawton shook his son in the minutes before he died, causing him fatal injury.

He was also convicted of inflicting grievous bodily harm after giving his son a skull fracture days before his death.

Lawton was handed a life sentence and will serve a minimum of 17 years in prison.

Aaron Clare

Aaron Clare was jailed for 8 years after he veered off the Bath Road in Southcote at 87mph and killed 41-year-old Kevin Burgess.

The 33-year-old was high on cocaine and xanax at the time of the incident in the early hours of May 23, 2020.

His speech was slurred when questioned by police immediately afterwards and in an interview at hospital, Clare told police: “I ran some matey over.”

At his sentencing, Reading Crown Court heard how Clare was pursued by police for less than a minute after members of the public saw his BMW speeding and mounting the kerb.

But officers felt unsafe and called off the pursuit as they felt “unsafe” and 35 seconds and 500 metres later, Clare had left the carriageway, collided into roadside signs and hit the pedestrian.

John Searle

A paedophile has been jailed to 16 years in prison for raping a girl under the age of 13.

John Searle of Bay Road, Bracknell, was found guilty of one count of rape of a girl under 13, and two counts of sexual assault of a girl under 13.

Police said the 48-year-old sexually abused the victims over a two year period and were non-recent.

He will be made to sign the sex offenders register for life and made subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

Case investigator Carole Sessions of the Child Abuse Investigation Unit, said: “I am satisfied that Searle will no longer pose a threat to others.”

Benjamin Taylor

A prolific beggar in Reading has been jailed for breaching his criminal behaviour order 25 times.

Benjamin Taylor, 35, of Russell Street, Reading, was caught begging in the streets of Reading town centre over the past six months.

Thames Valley Police said he breached his Criminal Behaviour Order 25 times.

Taylor was sentenced to 11 months and two weeks’ imprisonment on Thursday, November 11 at Reading Magistrates’ Court.

Martin Collins

A builder who sexually assaulted a seven-year-old girl on his way to pick up a toolkit from Screwfix has been sent to prison.

Martin Collins, formerly of Lower Henley Road, Caversham, was locked up after being found guilty of two counts of sexual assault of a child under 13 back in April.

A court heard how the builder has been ostracized by his friends and his home has been graffitied following his convictions.

And now he is facing three years behind bars after being sentenced for his offences at Reading Crown Court.

December

Sajmie and Ardian Katuchie

COUSINS involved in the mass supply of cannabis through factories in Reading have been jailed.

Ardian and Sajmie Katuchie, of no fixed abode and Basingstoke Road, Reading respectively, were part of an organised crime group run by Albanian nationals.

The group ran a network of factories around Reading which were used to supply cannabis to dealers across the UK.

Their ventures raised ‘large sums of money’, some of which would be sent back to Albania.

Sentencing, His Honour Judge Nawaz sentenced Sajmie Katuchie, 23, to 40 months imprisonment for conspiracy to produce cannabis.

Ardian Katuchie, 20, was sentenced to 12 months in detention.

Jordan Parker Anderson

Anderson was being chased by officers in the Audi he stole from a milkman in September 2020.

The stolen vehicle was spotted by police five days later and officers indicated for Parker Anderson to pull over.

The 27-year-old failed to do so, prompting a police chase which saw the Tilehurst man carry out a number of dangerous manoeuvres.

Appearing in court in December after he admitted to dangerous driving, driving under the influence of cocaine and aggravated vehicle theft, Parker Anderson was sentenced to 26 months in prison.

Victor Berry

A SLOUGH man jailed again for possessing images of children being sexually abused search for ‘nudist family pics’ online, a court has heard.

Victor Berry, of Ardrossan Close, was yesterday jailed after he admitted to having images of children as young as one-year-old being sexually abused on his laptop.

In total, the 63-year-old had more than 300 images of children and one image showing sexual intercourse with an animal.

The possession of these photographs meant he breached two conditions imposed in a sexual offences prevention order handed to him in 2010 after he was convicted for possession of indecent images a decade ago.

Berry was sentenced to two years imprisonment for three counts of making indecent images, two counts of breaching a sexual offences prevention order, one count of possession of extreme pornography, and one count of possession of prohibited images.

Kerron Annetts and Simon Bampton

Kerron Annetts, 41, from Aldermaston, was handed a four-and-a-half year sentence for his role in the terrifying robbery of the Coronation Square Betfred on May 31.

The 41-year-old left with £200 in cash but his actions that day left a lasting mark on the Betfred employee who stared down the barrel of Annetts’ gun.

A CCTV video provided by the Crown Prosecution Service shows Annetts pointing a gun at the terrified cashier after rushing into the store with a bag.

Annetts' accomplice, Simon Bampton, 47 from Reading, was waiting in a getaway car outside the store while Annetts was in the shop.

Recorder Mr Smith said that despite their different roles in the incident, both were “committed” to robbing the shop in order to ‘feed their drug addictions.’

Bampton was sentenced to six years in prison after being convicted of robbery following a trial.

Haseeb Ali, Kieron Agnew-Harris and Nathan Braim

Three men have been jailed for a combined total of 24 years following a series of knife-point robberies in Buckinghamshire and Berkshire - including in Reading and Woodley.

Haseeb Ali, 19, of Totteridge Road in High Wycombe and Kieron Agnew-Harris, 19, of Pheasants Rise in Chesham, were both sentenced to seven years and six months in prison, both with extended licence periods of five years.

Nathan Braim, 21, of HMP Bullingdon, was given nine years behind bars. All three men pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit robbery and were sentenced at Reading Crown Court on Thursday 23 December.

The charges relate to a series of incidents that took place between May 30 and June 1, 2020, in Woolford Park in Woodley, Sheepridge Lane in Flackwell Heath, Filey Road in Reading, Alwyn Road in Maidenhead and The Viewpoint car park in Cookham.

Ali and Agnew-Harris took part in all five incidents, while Braim was involved in three. In these three robberies, the group targeted members of the public, threatening them with knives and taking their possessions.

In one instance, one of the men was seen wielding a machete.

Ben Shand

A Reading man has been jailed for life for murdering his girlfriend Beth Aspey with a hammer.

Ben Shand, aged 45, of Crescent Road, will serve a minimum of 20 years in prison after he killed his 34-year-old partner at her Bedford Court flat on April 30.

Shand was found guilty of her murder following a two-week trial earlier this month and was sentenced at Reading Crown Court.

The court heard how during an argument, Shand punched his victim in the throat, then attacked her with a hammer after “losing control”.

Shand denied being the killer, but the court heard how during the terrifying ordeal, which lasted up to an hour, he struck Ms Aspey repeatedly with a claw hammer and a pair of pliers.

Ms Aspey, who was visually impaired due to her long-term struggles with diabetes, suffered a fatal blow to the head when Shand hit her with the claw of the hammer, leaving her bleeding profusely on her bathroom floor.