Wigan's week in court: latest cases going before judges and magistrates

​The 16-year-old boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, pleaded guilty to making 48 category A images (the most serious type), 19 category B images and 21 category C images. He also confessed to possessing an extreme pornographic image involving an animal. The offences all took place between February 1 and 28, 2023.

Wigan magistrates adjourned the hearing so a pre-sentence report could be prepared and the boy will find out his punishment on February 20. He was remanded on conditional bail until then.

A football banning order has been imposed on a Wigan teenager after he pleaded guilty to affray.

The 16-year-old boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, admitted using or threatening to use violence in Wigan on April 4, 2023.

Wigan magistrates handed down a three-year football banning order with a host of conditions. These include not going to Wigan town centre or the area around The Brick Community Stadium at certain times on the days of Latics matches and not entering the town where England's senior men's team are playing a match that day. The boy was also told to pay £85 prosecution costs and a £26 surcharge.

A young man has made his first appearance before a judge to face a charge of murdering a Wigan borough mechanic.

Tom Gomm, 44, from Tyldesley, died in hospital on Tuesday, December 17 after being assaulted in Boothstown two days earlier.

Jack Naylor, 22, of Irvine Avenue, Boothstown, has since been charged with murder, as well as two counts of assaulting an emergency worker, a racially aggravated public order offence and domestic assault.

Appearing at Manchester Crown Court, Crown Square, Naylor was remanded into custody until a pre-trial preparation hearing takes place on January 24. He has yet to enter any pleas to the charges against him but a provisional trial start date of June 9, 2025 has nonetheless been scheduled.

Tom, who was a mechanic, engineer and motorcycle enthusiast, is alleged to have been attacked on Irvine Avenue at around 8.15pm on December 15. He was rushed to hospital with critical injuries, but medics were unable to save him.

Tributes were later paid to Tom on social media, where he was described as a “true gentleman”.

And his sister Rowan later set up a GoFundMe appeal in the hope that help can be given in covering the funeral costs. So far £3,460 has been raised.

A teenager has appeared in court accused of having a meat cleaver and drugs in the car park outside a Wigan supermarket.

The 16-year-old boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is charged with possessing the weapon and class B drug cannabis outside Tesco in Hindley on November 2.

He was remanded on conditional bail until a hearing at Wigan and Leigh Magistrates' Court on February 6.

A Wigan man has admitted harassing a woman and possessing a stun gun.

Stephen Sheridan, 48, of Liverpool Road, Hindley, pleaded guilty to harassment without violence, after he left intimidating and aggressive voicemail messages for her. He also admitted having a stun gun, with both offences taking place on December 9.

Sheridan was remanded on conditional bail until he is sentenced at Wigan and Leigh Magistrates' Court on March 21.

A motorist who was caught driving dangerously while already banned from the roads has been given a suspended prison sentence.

Matthew Johnson, 27, of Kings Road, Golborne, pleaded guilty to driving dangerously on Fir Tree Avenue, Lowton on September 27. He also admitted driving while disqualified and without insurance, as well as failing to stop for a police officer on Church Lane, Lowton.

Wigan justices imposed a 12-week prison sentence, suspended for 12 months, and ordered Johnson to do 25 days of rehabilitation activities and 200 hours of unpaid work.

He was disqualified from driving for 12 months and must take an extended retest. Johnson must also pay £85 prosecution costs.

A Wigan man who made "continual unwanted contact" with a woman through messages and phone calls has confessed to stalking.

Dean Brook, 38, of Birkside Close, Marus Bridge, stalked the woman between November 13 and December 6. He also breached a non-molestation order by contacting her.

Wigan magistrates imposed a 12-week prison sentence, suspended for 12 months, and ordered him to pay £85 prosecution costs and a £154 surcharge.

A man has pleaded not guilty to four charges of sexual assault.

Jessy Jones, 34, of no fixed address, faces three allegations of sexual assault in Wigan on December 5 and one allegation on December 12.

A trial will be held at Manchester City Magistrates' Court on December 10, 2025 and he was remanded on conditional bail.

A 20-week prison sentence was imposed on a Wigan thief who targeted stores in Bolton.

Adrian Whitty, 36, of Atherton Road, Hindley, appeared before borough justices to plead guilty to twice stealing six bottles from Westhoughton's Sainsbury's store on November 30 and December and to stealing packs of meat from a Tesco Express in the same town on December 1.

He also admitted to the common assault of David Meredith on the most recent of those days.

As well as his prison term, Whitty must also pay £200 in compensation.

There was no order of costs, though, the court hearing that the defendant was of limited means.

A convicted Wigan sex offender has a new court date after failing to let police examine electronic devices.

A condition of Andrew Taylor's sexual harm prevention order is that police can demand that any technology capable of accessing the internet and storing images must be produced on demand.

But the 58-year-old of Lilian Drive, Whitley, appeared before borough magistrates to admit that he failed to do this on December 19.

An SHPO had been imposed on him by a Liverpool Crown Court judge in June 2016.

Taylor will be sentenced at Bolton Crown Court on January 17, until when he is on conditional bail.

A Wigan mechanic who issued dozens of MOT certificates to vehicle owners without actually carrying out any work has narrowly avoided going straight to jail.

Stuart Banks, 32, of Concorde Avenue, Hawkley Hall, faced a total of 30 charges under the 2006 Fraud Act.

They covered a period from February 6 to May 17, 2023 and each reads that he dishonestly made a false representation, by issuing an MOT certificate to a vehicle (with a named registration mark) without performing the MOT test as prescribed by the Motor Vehicles (Tests) Regulations of 1981, "intending to make a gain, namely to expose another to a risk of loss, for yourself."

He had pleaded guilty to all the offences at a Wigan and Leigh Magistrates' Court hearing.

Sent to Bolton Crown Court for sentencing, he was given a 10-month custodial sentence although it was suspended for 18 months.

He was also ordered to complete 200 hours of unpaid work and 20 days of rehabilitation activities.

A trial date has been set for a Wigan 30-year-old who denies throttling a woman and sending an obscene message.

Thomas Rostron, of Alders Green Road, Hindley Green, stood before a Bolton Crown Court judge to face charges of intentionally strangling a named woman on September 3 this year, assaulting the same woman by beating on that day and to sending offensive or indecent or menacing message via electronic communications on November 3.

The case was adjourned until a trial scheduled to take place on April 9, 2025.

A provisional trial date has been set for a Wigan borough 45-year-old accused of attacking a woman three times in the space of weeks.

Stephen Pemberton, of Tamer Grove in Leigh, appeared before a judge at Bolton Crown Court to face three charges of causing a female actual bodily harm on September 17, October 8 and November 15.

He has yet to enter any pleas but a trial was nonetheless scheduled for September 2, 2026. Pemberton's next date in court, however, is on January 22.

A Wigan 35-year-old has admitted flouting a driving ban.

Daniel Taberner, of no fixed address, appeared before Wigan justices to plead guilty to being at the wheel of a Skoda on Beaumont Road, Bolton, on November 6 while disqualified from the road, and in doing so he was also driving while uninsured.

He was granted unconditional bail until sentencing takes place by Manchester magistrates on March 19.

A convicted Wigan borough sex offender has been found guilty of making indecent images of children and multiple breaches of a sexual harm prevention order.

Michael Marshall, 35, of Chisworth Close, Leigh, stood before local justices to plead guilty to making one indecent image of a child which falls into the middle legal category of seriousness - B - and one of making a category C image, both between June 2019 and January 2021.

He then pleaded guilty to SHPO breaches by failing to disclose ownership of a hard drive, mobile phone, tablet and memory card on or before January 23, 2022.

Marshall was given unconditional bail pending sentence at Bolton Crown Court on January 22. The hearing was told that a judge at Bolton had imposed the order in September 2020.

A Wigan teenager has been accused of causing serious injury by dangerous driving while high on drugs.

Louisa Tunstall, 19, of Bradwell Road, Lowton, stood before borough magistrates charged with seriously injuring a named female in a collision while at the wheel of a Fiat 500 in Lowton on May 24.

She is further charged with driving while unfit through drugs and possessing nitrous oxide, also known as laughing gas, on the same occasion.

Tunstall will make her first appearance at Bolton Crown Court on January 22.

A 37-year-old Wigan man is accused of owning a banned pit bull.

Scott Yates, 37, of Linney Square, Scholes, appeared at the borough's law courts facing a single charge under the 1991 Dangerous Dogs Act that he had an outlawed fighting dog on October 13.

He has yet to enter a plea and the case was adjourned until February 21 when he will return to the same court.

Charges that a Wigan 33-year-old attacked a man and stole £2,000 from him have been denied.

Danielle Liptrot, of Anson Place, Marsh Green, appeared before borough justices to plead not guilty to assaulting Kevin Miller by beating and stealing the cash on November 2.

She was remanded on conditional bail until her trial takes place at the same court on December 4, 2025.

A Wigan biker has been jailed after driving at lethal speeds while high on drugs.

Liam Dunn, 28, of Comet Road, Kitt Green, appeared before borough magistrates to plead guilty to riding a Madness motorcycle dangerously on Billinge Road without insurance or a licence on June 8 and that he did so while under the influence of cannabis and amphetamine.

He was given a 12-week custodial sentence and banned from the road for a year and nine months.

A Wigan teenager who drove a car dangerously will learn his fate in February.

Nicholas Joice, 18, of Darlington Street East, Scholes, appeared at Wigan Magistrates' Court to admit to being at the wheel of a Hyundai on November 15 which was driven dangerously along Cawdor Street, Ormskirk Road, Stanley Street and other roads and that he did so when uninsured and without a licence.

Sentencing was adjourned until February 25.

Sentencing of a Wigan 34-year-old for flouting a road ban has been adjourned.

Mark Ashworth, of Broom Road, Worsley Hall, stood before borough magistrates to plead guilty to being at the wheel of a Vauxhall Combo on Westminster Street on December 17 and not having valid insurance at the time.

He will be sentenced on February 24.

A Wigan 44-year-old has been accused of assaulting and stalking a woman.

Craig Bithell, of Pepys Place, Worsley Mesnes, appeared before borough justices to face charges of causing a named female actual bodily harm on January 27, 2024 and to causing her serious alarm or distress by stalking her between January 25 and February 7 by sending her numerous emails.

He has yet to enter pleas but a provisional trial date of May 8 was scheduled at Wigan Magistrates' Court before which time Bithell has been granted conditional bail.

A banned Wigan motorist will be sentenced in February after he was caught driving a van.

Simon Birchall, 48, of Sydney Street, Platt Bridge, stood before borough justices to plead guilty to being at the wheel of a Ford Transit on Bolton Road, Ashton, on June 14 while disqualified from the road.

He also admitted to driving while uninsured.

He is on unconditional bail until his February 19 sentencing at the same court.