Berkshire criminals sentenced at Crown Court in July 2022

Industrial action carried out by publicly-funded defence barristers up and down the country has meant many sentencings and other court hearings have been postponed.

But while there have been fewer sentencings at Reading Crown Court in July, there have still been a number of criminals locked up for terrible offences.

Here are their names and their crimes.

The man who spied on a young girl

Michael Walker, of Harvey Place, Andover, was locked up in July 2022 after he set up covert cameras in order to film a teenager showering and getting undressed.

Reading Crown Court heard how Walker’s offending, which took place between February and August 2020, was uncovered by police after they found the 36-year-old’s depraved messages about recording the girl on Twitter.

They traced the Twitter account’s IP address back to Walker and arrested him at his Bracknell residence.

Officers secured his devices and found that Walker had filmed the 15-year-old getting undressed after setting up secret recording equipment.

Located on Walker’s devices were:

• 8 indecent videos, two of which were deemed to be the most explicit kind
• 14 videos of extreme porn
• 67 indecent images and two images of extreme porn

Walker was handed a 32-month prison sentence for three counts of making indecent images, one count of distributing indecent images, and one count of voyeurism. He will serve half of this in custody before being released.

The man who trashed his ex’s home

Kaine Bentley-Simmonds was locked up last month after he made his partner’s life a living hell.

The 21-year-old twice threatened to kill her, destroyed her flat causing £20,000 worth of damage, and stalked her.

This came after the woman broke up with Bentley-Simmonds, of Pryor Close, in November 2021 having spent seven years together.

Over the next four months, the woman would be subjected to:

• An assault in which he grabbed her throat
• Appeared at her house drunk and smashed her bathroom window
• Sent her a text saying ‘i’m going to kill you’
• Called her 64 times in one day
• Confronted her as she left work before dragging her across the road by her hair and subsequently suffocated her
• Stole her phone and keys
• Waited outside her friend’s house when she was visiting
• Caused £20,000 worth of damage at her flat by destroying her kitchen and bathroom

In a victim statement, the woman said: “I feel like my life has been ruined.”

Bentley Simmonds was handed a four-prison sentence for assault, three counts of criminal damage, theft, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, burglary, and stalking.

He was barred from contacting his former partner via a 10-year restraining order.

The 21-year-old was sentenced at Reading Crown Court on Friday, July 8.

The pervert who sexually assaulted a child multiple times

A Windsor pervert tried to claim he was asleep after he was caught groping a 13-year-old girl.

Keith Roberts was today jailed for indecently assaulting the child multiple times in the early 1990s.

The 65-year-old was in his thirties when he ‘preyed’ on the girl by looking at and touching her underwear and kissing her lower body.

One night, Roberts began touching the girl's genitals when the child told him to stop.

A court heard how he became tearful and claimed he had been asleep.

Roberts was convicted of six counts of indecent assault following a trial in May 2022.

His Honour Judge Burgess, sentencing, said the victim suffered ‘severe psychological harm’ as a result of Roberts’ offending.

He sentenced Roberts to eight years in prison for six counts of indecent assault.

Roberts was sentenced at Reading Crown Court on Wednesday, July 13.

The massage therapist who preyed on his customers

A massage therapist working at Reading’s Thames Lido has been locked up after sexually assaulting four female clients in ‘the most disturbing and distressing way.’

Toshihide Nukui, of Oaklands, Reading, was jailed after he also admitted to digitally penetrating another woman while working as a private masseur at The Therapy Centre, having been ‘emboldened’ by his assaults at the Lido.

Reading Crown Court heard how Nukui carried out his vile assaults over a period of one year, from autumn 2018 to autumn 2019.

Prosecutor Richard Whitcombe said: “They trusted him to do that properly, professionally and not to touch them in a way that was sexual or that overstepped the boundaries of what was expected of him.

“The last instance of sexual assault by penetration represents an escalation in what Mr Nukui was doing.

“Throughout the period of time of a year, Mr Nukui was becoming emboldened by the way he was able to touch various clients.”

Nukui was reported to police in October 2019 after he sexually assaulted a private client at The Therapy Centre.

This time, the masseur digitally penetrated his client after forcing his fingers into her underwear.

Nukui was charged and was due to stand trial for multiple counts of sexual assault in March 2022, but this was abandoned after he pleaded guilty to five offences.

Her Honour Judge Real, sentencing, said: “Each of these women were vulnerable once on the massage table.

“Each of these women were not expecting to be sexually assaulted.

“They had paid for a professional massage. You were delivering a professional service. They should have been safe.”

Judge Real handed Nukui a five-year prison sentence, of which he will serve half before release.

He was banned from practising massage until further notice and was ordered to sign the sex offenders register indefinitely.

Nukui was sentenced at Reading Crown Court on Tuesday, July 12.

The thief who burgled three homes in three days

A Chalvey man has been jailed after burgling three homes in three days.

Matthew White, of Montem Lane, was said to be searching for drugs when he stole expensive goods from all three properties, a court heard.

The 29-year-old’s stealing spree began on March 3, 2022, when White broke into a property on Cromwell Road.

He broke into the house by smashing a window and stole a power drill worth £90.

Later that day, he broke into another property on Kingfisher Court and stole two bank cards and two pieces of metal.

On the evening of March 5, 2022, White smashed the window of another property in Slough and stole a Dell laptop and charger, a plate set, and a phone charger.

White caused £475 damage to the window and stole more than £2,100 in goods in total.

Sophie Chaplin, defending, said White knew of the people who lived in the first two homes he burgled.

“He knew these people were fellow drug users. He went to see if they had any drugs they could share”, she said.

“When he saw there was nobody three, he took the opportunity to steal these items.”

The defence barrister said White had been addicted to crack cocaine and heroin at the time of the incidents.

White was sentenced to 21 months in prison for three counts of burglary at Reading Crown Court on Friday, July 15.

The drug gang jailed for dealing cocaine and cannabis

SIX drug dealers have been jailed after police discovered kilos of cocaine, cannabis and £49,000 in cash at a property in Reading.

The group were sentenced to 35 years and six months in total after they were found guilty of drug dealing across Berkshire.

It comes as part of Operation Sleek, a police investigation launched into the organised crime group (OCG) who conspired to supply multi-kilo quantities of cocaine and cannabis in the Reading area.

The investigation that followed identified that Aaron Lockwood, assisted by his ex-partner, Catherine Lockwood, stored cocaine in an address before it was supplied to Aaron Lockwood’s customers, Wellard and Harrison.

Wellard and Harrison prepared the drugs to be sold on to customers across Berkshire.

Watt sourced his drugs from the same upstream supplier as Aaron Lockwood and Sue.

As such, detectives carried out searches of the suspects houses in May 2020. More than 1.5kg of cocaine and 8.9kg of cannabis were found, along with cash totalling more than £49,000.

Ryan Watt, aged 28, of Amberley Road, Slough, and Ricky Sue, aged 56, of Brightwell Crescent, Tooting, London, both pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply cocaine, conspiracy to supply ketamine and conspiracy to supply cannabis.

Watt was sentenced to a total of four years and six months’ imprisonment.

Sue was sentenced to a total of seven years and ten months’ imprisonment.

Joshua Harrison, aged 30, of Wavell Gardens, Slough, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply cocaine and conspiracy to supply cannabis, and was sentenced to seven years and nine months’ imprisonment.

Wellard was jailed for four years and nine months.

Aaron Lockwood was sentenced to seven years and eight months’ imprisonment.

Catherine Lockwood was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment.

The steam fair employee who sexually assaulted a child

A Carters Steam Fair employee sexually assaulted a seven-year-old girl while she was in bed, a court has heard.

Roger Sibley, who is already in jail for the child sex offences committed in York in 2018, received a lengthy extension to his prison sentence.

Reading Crown Court heard how Sibley committed the offence at a Steam Fair site in Maidenhead on February 14, 2006, while the girl’s parents were attending the BRIT Awards.

The 54-year-old woodworker was in a wagon with the seven-year-old girl when he removed her underwear and digitally penetrated her genitals.

Her sister and Sibley’s girlfriend - who was 17 at the time and who would later tell police he ‘seemed to have an unhealthy interest in young girls’ - were also in the wagon at the time of the offence.

The incident went unreported for years but the victim contacted police after learning Sibley had been locked up for crimes committed in Yorkshire.

In 2019, Sibley was handed an eight-year prison sentence for two counts of sexually assaulting girls aged under 13, one charge of voyeurism against a woman, and two counts of making indecent images.

He was locked up at HMP Hull and this is where he remains.

Sibley was handed a six-year prison sentence to run consecutively to his current jail term.

This means he will serve half of his eight-year sentence handed down in 2019 before beginning his six-year stint.

He will be eligible for release after four years but this will only happen if a parole board deems him suitable to re-enter public life.

This is because Judge Nawaz made an order which declared Sibley a person ‘of particular concern.’

Sibley was sentenced at Reading Crown Court on Tuesday, July 26.

The thief who stole Percy Pig sweets and led police on a dangerous chase

A serial shoplifter has been locked up after stealing a teenager’s Christmas present, taking Percy Pigs and leading police on a dangerous chase at top speeds.

Drug-addict Jamie Barrett, of Jocks Lane, Bracknell, has more than 60 convictions for theft and dishonesty offences.

The 34-year-old added to that list in the first half of the year with a string of offences.

• On April 2, 2022, Barrett drove whilst disqualified and without a licence to a shop in Bracknell. Here, he stole a 16-year-old’s £900 bike, which had been a Christmas present to him. The bicycle was never recovered.
• On April 19, 2022, Barrett stole meat worth £44 from the BP garage on Bagshot Road
• On April 25, 2022, Barrett stole seven bottles of alcohol and three crates of Percy Pigs from the same store
• Police tracked down Barrett’s car as it had been linked to a theft offence on May 10, 2022.

Officers spotted his vehicle in Reading on May 11, 2022 and started chasing Barrett.

Their pursuit all the way to Bracknell lasted 27 minutes and involved Barrett going through red lights and driving on the wrong side of the road.

He clocked speeds of 60mph in a 20mph zone, 70mph in a 30mph zone, and 85mph in a 40mph zone while he had two passengers in his car.

Police had to drive at 96mph in a 40mph zone to keep up with the Bracknell man.

He was eventually caught after crashing into a bollard, prosecutor Jonathan Sank said.

Barrett was taken to a police station for interview but refused to leave his cell and spat at officers - something the defendant denied while listening to the sentencing hearing over video link from custody.

The Bracknell man’s barrister said Barrett was a Class A drug addict and his stealing helped fund his habit.

Reading Crown Court heard how Barrett was making progress with his addition in prison after reducing his methadone dependency.

His Honour Judge Nawaz, sentencing, raised concerns about Barrett’s dangerous driving, saying: “We simply do not know what could have happened.”

Barrett was sentenced to 46 months in prison for three counts of theft, driving without insurance and whilst disqualified, and driving dangerously.

He was sentenced at Reading Crown Court on Thursday, July 28.

The man who beat up his girlfriend as his son watched

A violent father strangled and repeatedly headbutted his girlfriend while his three-year-old son watched on, a court has heard.

Luke Humphries, of Canterville Place, Bracknell, was spared jail after drunkenly assaulting his girlfriend in April 2021.

The 28-year-old was hosting friends at his new home when his girlfriend went to bed and allegedly made the group feel awkward.

Humphries went upstairs in a rage and told his partner to leave, so she tried to call her sister to ask if she could stay with her.

The Bracknell man then took her phone off her and smashed it, before pinning his partner down by her wrists.

He then placed his hands around her neck and strangled her so hard that she blacked out and was left with bruises on her neck.

Humphries proceeded to repeatedly headbutt his girlfriend, busting her lip.

The pair’s three-year-old son was present in the room and witnessed the entire altercation, a court heard.

Holly Newing, prosecuting, said Humphries then ‘slipped out of his rage and apologised’, before preventing her from leaving the room and calling her ‘nasty names.’

They went outside for a cigarette but Humphries’ partner had to ‘beg’ to be let back in after she went out without any shoes on.

The pair went to bed ‘as if nothing happened’ as the girlfriend felt ‘she had to play it off to protect their children.’

They carried on in their relationship until August 2021 when Humphries’ partner found out he was to father a baby with another woman.

It was only in October 2021 that the woman reported the incident to police. Officers arrested Humphries at he admitted in interview he had caused his ex-partner’s injuries.

Humphries was handed an 18-month prison sentence suspended for 18 months for one count of assault and one count of criminal damage.

As part of this punishment, he must take part in a 90-day alcohol abstinence course.

He was barred from contacting his partner for two years but was told to pay her £90 compensation for smashing her phone.

But Humphries was spared paying court costs because he is £18,000 in debt.

Humphries was sentenced at Reading Crown Court on Friday, July 29.

The dealer who flooded Reading with drugs

A Bradford man has been jailed after flooding Reading with heroin and crack cocaine.

Akaash Nazir, of St Margarets Avenue, was caught by police on Buckland Road on May 11, 2022, when officers found 33 wraps of cocaine in his possession.

This came after he tried to run off from police after being spotted standing by a parked vehicle.

The 25-year-old was arrested and an address in Reading was searched.

Here, officers found two weighing scales which tested positive for crack cocaine and heroin.

Nazir admitted to one count of possession with intent to supply heroin and one count of possession with intent to supply crack cocaine.

Appearing at Reading Crown Court on Thursday, July 28, Nazir was sentenced to four years and ten months in prison.

He was given six points on his driving licence and ordered to forfeit cash, drugs, phones and more.

The man who robbed a rough sleeper

A 32-year-old man has been jailed for seven years at Reading Crown Court after robbing a homeless person and another man in Slough.

Dean Brettell, while himself a rough sleeper, beat another man he was sharing a tent with in Brunel Way before pouring a bottle of gin over him and stealing £260 in February.

He grabbed another victim by his neck in a separate attack last year and forced him to hand over his phone, £50 cash and a gold chain on Stoke Road.

Brettell committed his first robbery on October 13, 2021, when he grabbed a rucksack on the shoulder of a man, aged in his thirties, from behind in Stoke Road and demanded money.

When the victim turned round, Brettell grabbed him by the neck, patted him down, and demanded the victim hand over his belongings.

He then punched the victim leaving a cut on his temple, before the victim complied in fear.

The victim attended hospital for minor injuries and was later discharged.

In a separate incident on February 11, 2022, Brettell was sleeping rough in a tent with another homeless man, aged in his forties, in Brunel Way, Slough.

Brettell, of no fixed abode, turned on the man, giving him a black eye and stealing his money.

On February, 12, 2022, Brettell was arrested in connection with both offences. He was charged on February, 24, 2022, and found guilty by unanimous jury verdict on July 1.