Wigan's week in court

Charges have been dropped against a Wigan man accused of twice burgling a pub and stealing lead from a social club.

Darren Turner, 30, of Poplar Avenue, Worsley Hall, pleaded not guilty to entering The Venture in Highfield on October 1 and November 13, 2021 with intent to steal.

He also denied a charge of stealing scrap metal worth £40 from St William's Club on November 6, 2021.

The case was due to go to trial, but the charges have now been dismissed after no evidence was offered.

A man is behind bars after admitting burglary, threatening to destroy or damage property and being armed with a machete in Wigan.

Nathan Massey, 24, of Lowe Street, Golborne, appeared at Bolton Crown Court for sentencing after his guilty pleas.

There were two counts of threatening fire-raising, two concerning break-ins and one of having a weapon in Beech Hill.

The prosecution offered no evidence in relation to one of the counts of threatening to destroy or damage property by arson.

Massey received a jail term totalling 29 months.

A Wigan man caught carrying a kitchen knife in a public place has been given a suspended prison sentence.

Lewis Hare, 25, of Kitt Green Road, Kitt Green, pleaded guilty to carrying the weapon on Atherton Road on July 27.

He also admitted being in possession of class C drug diazepam on the same day, failing to provide a saliva sample to police for drug testing the following day and not attending court while on bail on March 16.

Wigan justices imposed a four-month prison sentence, suspended for 12 months, and ordered Hare to attend drug treatment and 20 days of rehabilitation activities over the next year.

The knife and drugs must be forfeited and destroyed.

Several parents have appeared in court accused of failing to regularly send their children to schools in Wigan.

Fiona Singleton, 35, of Coniston Avenue, Abram, and Scott Black, 34, of no fixed address, pleaded guilty to not sending two children to school between December 5 and February 20.

They were both ordered to pay an £80 fine, £100 prosecution costs and £64 to fund victim services.

Amanda Roe, 43, of High Street, Golborne, had denied failing to send two children to school regularly in 2017 but was found guilty after a trial.

Wigan magistrates imposed an 18-month conditional discharge and told her to pay £300 costs and £21 to fund services for victims.

Sophie Hand, of Ashmore Street, Tyldesley, was convicted in her absence of not sending a child to school regularly between January 3 and March 31.

She was fined £440 and must pay £100 costs and £176 victim surcharge.

Also convicted in his absence was Simon Ingham, of Manchester Road, Tyldesley, whose child did not attend school regularly between the same dates.

He must pay a £440 fine, £100 costs and £176 victim surcharge.

Victoria Martin, of Rixton Drive, Tyldesley, pleaded guilty to not sending her child to school regularly between those dates.

She was given a £200 fine and told to pay £100 costs and £80 victim surcharge.

The case of a Wigan woman accused of fly-tipping multiple times has been adjourned.

Anne Marie Liptrot, 43, of Beech Tree Houses, Bamfurlong, has pleaded guilty to four charges of dumping bags filled with household waste and a broken chair on land behind Beech Tree Houses.

These offences happened on February 24, 2020; December 23, 2021; February 21, 2022 and May 23, 2022.

The next hearing will take place at Wigan and Leigh Magistrates' Court on August 18.

A man has denied the murder of a Wigan dad in Leeds.

Andrew Weston, 44, of Sandford Road, Leeds, appeared at Leeds Crown Court, via video link from HMP Leeds, accused of the murder of Ian Aspinall.

He spoke to confirm his name and date of birth, and entered a not guilty plea.

His trial, which is expected to last for five days, will begin on January 8.

Mr Aspinall, 50, was taken to hospital in a critical condition on June 21 after reports of an assault at a property on Sandford Road, Kirkstall, the previous morning.

Despite efforts to save him, he died in hospital the following day.

Mr Aspinall hailed from Standish, but had moved to Leeds to be nearer to his son.

His family and friends used social media to pay tribute to the dad and launched an appeal to raise money for his funeral, with any extra money going to his partner for their son.

A Wigan man is among three men who pleaded guilty to class A drugs offences.

It follows a "county lines" drugs bust last month by police investigating a conspiracy to supply drugs between Wigan and Merseyside.

On Tuesday, June 6 at 6am, three dawn raids were made at properties in Wigan, Formby and Kirkby by officers from Merseyside Police’s Project Medusa and Wigan’s Challenger Organised Crime teams.

Officers uncovered a cultivation of cannabis plants, cannabis, mobile phones and approximately £2,000 in cash.

The warrants were conducted in relation to an investigation into the supply of class A drugs by an organised crime group operating the "Scouse Jonno" county line between Liverpool and Wigan.

A county line is the advertisement of drugs via a mobile phone, with the drugs then moved by dealers from one area to another.

The operation also identified one of the properties may have been subject to cuckooing, which is where the groups exploit vulnerable people, using their house as a drug den.

Craig Gee, 44, of Alder Avenue, Worsley Hall; Thomas Prior, 32, of Victoria Road, Formby; and Mark Keogh, 35, of North Mount Road, Kirkby, have now appeared at Liverpool Crown Court.

Gee pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiracy to supply class A drugs (crack cocaine and heroin), along with production of cannabis.

Prior and Keogh had already pleaded guilty to the conspiracy charge. In addition, Prior has admitted possession of cannabis and possession of criminal property, while Keogh has admitted possession of cannabis.

They were remanded in custody and will return to Liverpool Crown Court on Friday, August 11, to be sentenced.

Speaking at the time of the arrests last month, Det Supt Simon Hurst, who is leading Wigan’s Challenger Organised Crime Team, said: “Criminals don’t operate to borders and neither should we.

"By working with colleagues in neighbouring forces and a number of local authorities, we can combine intelligence and skills to protect the community and prevent further criminality.”

Anyone who has any information about county lines drug dealing or anyone who is concerned about someone who may be being exploited by these gangs, can contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or police on 101.

Magistrates have dealt with several drivers from the borough accused of motoring offences.

Julie Edwards, 49, of St Luke’s Avenue, Lowton, failed to stop at a red traffic light on Derby Street in Bolton on January 7.

Tameside magistrates ordered her to pay a £220 fine, £90 prosecution costs and £88 victim surcharge.

Her driving licence was endorsed with three penalty points.

Leonard Gheorghe, 31, of Lilac Road, Golborne, was convicted of driving on Elizabeth Street, Leigh, other than in accordance with his licence on January 3.

He must pay a £220 fine, £90 costs and £88 victim surcharge, plus he received three penalty points.

Norman Nkala, 52, of Regent Avenue, Ashton, pleaded guilty to committing the same offence on Park Road, Bolton, on February 1.

Justices imposed a £146 fine, £90 costs and £58 victim surcharge, along with four penalty points.

Dube Givemore, 47, of Carlyle Grove, Leigh, was convicted of driving without insurance and other than in accordance with his licence on Waldeck Street, Bolton, on January 21. He was told to pay a £660 fine, £264 victim surcharge and £90 prosecution costs, while his driving licence was endorsed with eight points.

Ian Aspinall, 65, of Arlington Drive, Leigh, pleaded not guilty to driving at 68mph on the A580 East Lancashire Road in Salford on February 22, above the 40mph speed limit.

The case was adjourned for a hearing at Manchester and Salford Magistrates’ Court on September 11.

Lynne Brimble, 65, of Balliol Way, Ashton, will appear there on the same day to face a charge of driving at 73mph on the M62 in Salford on February 20, in a 40mph zone.

A seven-day ban was imposed on a Wigan woman caught driving at 39mph in a 30mph zone.

Caitlyn Knowles, 23, of Wigan Road, Standish, pleaded guilty to breaking the speed limit on Victoria Avenue East, in Blackley, on September 3.

She was disqualified from driving for seven days and ordered to pay a £116 fine, £90 prosecution costs and £45 victim surcharge.

In a separate case, Jonathan Webster, 47, of Lune Grove, Leigh, admitted driving at 48mph on the 40mph A580 East Lancashire Road, in Mosley Common, on August 15 last year.

His driving licence was endorsed with three penalty points and he must pay a £76 fine and £24 victim surcharge.

Also caught doing 48mph on the East Lancashire Road was Alexander O'Malley, 32, of Johnson Street, South, Tyldesley.

He was driving near Ellenbrook Road on January 2. O'Malley's driving licence was endorsed with three points and he was given a bill of a £220 fine, £90 costs and £88 victim surcharge.

Heather Quinn, 34, of Midland Close, Leigh, admitted driving at 76mph on a 60mph stretch of the East Lancashire Road in Astley on January 27.

She was ordered to pay a £60 fine, £30 costs and £20 victim surcharge, while her driving licence was endorsed with three points.

Tracey Ozsakalli, 53, of Stranraer Road, Marsh Green, pleaded guilty to driving on Hector Road, Marsh Green, on January 23 without insurance, a licence and MOT.

Her case was sent to Manchester and Salford Magistrates’ Court, where she will be sentenced on September 18.

A trial date has been fixed in the case of a Wigan charity boss and former prison governor accused of misconduct with an inmate.

Kerri Pegg appeared at Preston Crown Court court charged with having a relationship with a prisoner and accepting a Mercedes as a gift.

Pegg, 40, of Cinnamon Brow, Up Holland, is accused of two counts of misconduct in public office and possession of criminal property.

She pleaded not guilty to all charges and a trial date was set for July 22, 2024.

She remains on unconditional bail until then.

Pegg was until recently operations director at Wigan's The Brick homelessness charity, but her current status at the organisation is unknown and there is no mention of her on the charity's website.

She is accused of entering into a relationship with a male prisoner at Kirkham Prison and signing him out on early release, accepting a Mercedes as a gift and attempting to conceal the origins of that vehicle.

She is also charged with failing to declare county court judgments and debt, and acquiring, using or possessing criminal property, namely a Mercedes.

The offences are said to have occurred between April 1, 2020 and February 11, 2021.

The charity’s Wigan headquarters was recently visited by former PM Gordon Brown and Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham for the launch of the Brick-by-Brick charity project.

This involved the creation of a new community donations hub where Amazon and other companies can donate items to support more than 50,000 families in need in Greater Manchester.

A former Wigan election candidate has been jailed after being convicted of harassment.

Alan Baines was due to stand trial at Manchester and Salford Magistrates' Court, having denied a campaign of intimidation of Jason Metcalfe between April and September last year, namely that he repeatedly swore, laughed, shouted and stared at him.

But after failing to turn up for the first day of the scheduled three-day hearing in June, a warrant was issued for the 66-year-old's arrest and Judge Hirst found him guilty in his absence.

Baines, of Alderley Road, Hindley, was later arrested and brought to court where he was remanded on conditional bail while presentence reports were prepared ahead of his sentencing.

At the latest hearing, Baines received a sentence of 24 weeks.

He will serve 11 of those in jail and the rest on licence in the community with an electronic tag, which means he could be returned to prison if he is found to have broken the conditions of his release.

He was also ordered to pay £2,000 to Mr Metcalfe in compensation for the bullying and torment he put him through.

This was not Baines’s first brush with the law.

In August 2021 he was given a community punishment after being convicted of attacking a neighbour by grabbing him by the throat in what was described as a homophobic attack.

He had pleaded not guilty to a single charge of assaulting Daniel Thompson by beating 12 months earlier.

Baines also fell foul of Wigan Council when, during litter picks in 2018, he also cut back trees and plants, prompting a warning letter from the town hall.

Baines stood as an independent candidate in Wigan's 2021 local elections, winning 305 votes but losing out to Labour’s Paul Blay.

Two Wigan men have admitted keeping thousands of pounds wrongly credited to their accounts.

Liam Arevalo, 25, of Laburnum Avenue, Atherton, pleaded guilty to five counts of knowing wrongful credits had been made and failing to take steps to have them cancelled.

These concerned £1,208 on April 9, 2019, £317.40 on April 22, 2019, £624.48 on April 20, 2020, and £609.21 on both April 6, 2020 and January 27, 2021.

Arevalo will be sentenced at Wigan and Leigh Magistrates’ Court on August 10.

He was remanded on unconditional bail until then.

Daniel Warrington, 37, of Claremont Road, Billinge, has pleaded guilty to five counts of the same offence. He received £1,525 on both August 15, 2019 and September 2, 2019, £1,475.52 on May 5, 2020, £1,475 on June 12, 2020 and £1,472.39 on January 28, 2021.

He was also remanded on unconditional bail and will be sentenced by Wigan justices on August 11.