Wigan's week in court

A motorist found to be driving under the influence of cocaine has been banned from the road.

Nicholas Evans, 35, of Ribble Drive, Norley, appeared before Wigan and Leigh magistrates to plead guilty to possessing the class A substance and having taken an illegal quantity of it before police stopped him in a Vauxhall Astra near his home on March 13.

As well as disqualifying him from driving for 12 months and ordering the drug to be destroyed, the bench also fined him for both offences and ordered that he contribute a victim services surcharge, the bill coming to £232.

A drug-driver has been banned from the road after he got behind the wheel the day after smoking cannabis.

Wigan and Leigh Magistrates’ Court heard Daniel Beddows, from Golborne, had 4.7 microgrammes per litre of a derivative substance formed when cannabis breaks down when he was pulled over.

Officers stopped his Vauxhall Corsa at around 10.20pm on April 8 on Warrington Road in Platt Bridge and immediately detected a strong scent of the illegal substance on his breath, prosecutor Catherine Allan told the bench.

The court heard Beddows, of May Street, had had an argument with his family and was on his way to a friend’s property to stay over when the police intercepted his vehicle.

Melissa Fagan, defending, said: “He had not smoked on the day in question but had smoked the day before. Cannabis is one of those drugs where the derivative breakdown product does remain in the system for some time.”

Ms Fagan said Beddows, 25, would lose his job as an engineer in Preston due to his disqualification from driving.

He would also be unable to continue carrying out a caring role for his grandad, who has dementia, which included taking him to and from hospital appointments.

Ms Fagan also said there was no suggestion Beddows’ driving was impaired by the illegal substance in his system.

The bench banned him from the road for a year, fined him £120 and ordered him to pay £85 in costs and a victim surcharge.

A man who attacked a woman and smashed two of her televisions has been given a community punishment.

Brett Connor, 28, of Orchard Street, Wigan, appeared before borough justices to plead guilty to assaulting Terri Latham by beating and causing £450 damages to two TVs, a blind and a wall in two separate incidents on August 18 and 19.

Connor was ordered to complete 30 days of rehabilitation activities, carry out 120 hours of unpaid work and pay his victim £600 in compensation.

A Wigan man who denies smashing a window and assaulting a woman will face trial at the end of this year.

Wigan and Leigh Magistrates’ Court heard Darren Evans, from Ashton, plead not guilty to the two charges against him.

He is accused of criminal damage of property belonging to Naomi Gardner and also faces an allegation of trapping her fingers, which comes under the charge of assault by beating.

Nick Lloyd, defending, told the court his client denies being present when the alleged incidents took place on July 20.

Evans, who is 31 and gave an address on Duke Street in court, will now return to the magistrates’ court to stand trial on December 1.

He was released until then on unconditional bail. James Gore appeared for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) during the brief hearing.

A 58-year-old Wigan man has denied making indecent images of children.

Simon Blakeney, of Grove Place, Standish, appeared before borough magistrates charged with having 143 vile pictures of abuse falling into all three categories of seriousness, 28 of them being category A (the severest).

He is further charged with breaching a sexual harm prevention order imposed by Liverpool Crown Court in May 2016 by downloading software used for sharing.

The offences are alleged to have taken place between 2016 and 2018.

Having pleaded not guilty to all four charges when he appeared before a Bolton judge, Blakeney was told that his trial will take place on August 14 and he was released on bail until then.

A motorist who was almost five times over the legal drink-drive limit has been given a suspended prison sentence.

Phillip Poole, 57,of Bakewell Drive, Beech Hill, appeared before Wigan and Leigh magistrates to admit that when police stopped his Nissan 350Z convertible on Knowsley Road, Wigan, on January 18 he gave a breathalyser reading of 170 microgrammes of alcohol in 100ml of breath. The legal limit is 35 microgrammes.

He was given a 16-week jail sentence, the bench telling him that it warranted a custodial sentence because the alcohol level had been so high and that he had shown a “total disregard for the safety of other road users.”

But they suspended the jail term for 18 months on account of mental health issues and the fact that Poole is addressing alcohol problems.

He was disqualified from having a driving licence for 40 months, ordered to complete an alcohol rehabilitation programme, complete 15 days of rehabilitation activities, be the subject to a night time curfew for 12 weeks and pay £207 in court costs and a victim services surcharge.

A man has been sent to prison for breaching a restraining order.

The courts had forbidden Andrew Mullins from having any contact with Emma Jones back in May 2014.

But Wigan magistrates heard that the 36-year-old of Park Road, Wigan, had done just that on August 28.

And after he pleaded guilty to the order breach they imposed a 12-week custodial sentence, justifying it saying that he had displayed a “flagrant disregard” for court orders and highlighting his record of offending. Mullins must also pay a £128 surcharge for victim services.

The case of a man who denies a racially aggravated criminal damage attack has been put back to October.

Dean Irvine, 23, of Liverpool Road, Hindley, pleaded not guilty to damaging Babak Oroujane’s Vauxhall Astra and that the incident was racially motivated.

He also denied an alternative charge of criminal damage to the Astra without racist intent, but has admitted to one of threatening to smash Angela Foster’s windows on the same day - April 15.

Wigan magistrates ordered Irvine return on October 13 and released him on bail on condition that he does not contact Mr Oroujane and Angela Foster, nor go near addresses in Liverpool Road and Longton Street, Hindley.

A robber who raided a Wigan grocer’s has been jailed for three years.

Damien Rutter, 42, of no fixed address, had already appeared before a Bolton Crown Court judge to plead guilty to robbing a staff member at the McColls branch in Marsh Green, of £18.50 worth of groceries in Wigan.

The hearing was told that at 6pm on June 29, Rutter selected four packs of fishcakes, one pack of steak, and a pack of chops in McColls on Marsh Green.

The shop supervisor saw him do this and locked the door.

He said: “You had best open it: I’ve got a knife” and put his hand in his pocket.

He then pushed the woman aside, opened the door and fled with the goods.

He dropped them on the ground and when someone went to pick them up he said: “Leave it, I’ve got a knife”. He gathered up the goods and walked away.

As well as the jail sentence, Rutter must also pay £190 towards victim services.

A man accused of attacking a woman in a domestic violence incident has walked free after the case collapsed.

Lee Connell, 44, of Scot Lane, Newtown, had denied assaulting Karina Heys by beating on May 3 and at his latest appearance before Wigan magistrates, the prosecution offered no evidence so the case was dismissed.

A man has been ordered to pay £780 compensation after he went on a wrecking spree at a Wigan Council-owned property.

Jason Wood, 49, of Kendal Street, Gidlow, appeared before borough magistrates to admit to the criminal damage on September 6 of fixtures and fittings at Kendal House where he lives.

He was also given a conditional discharge.

A visitor to Wigan has been accused of appalling driving.

Martin Lockwood, 41, of Hall Avenue, Barnsley, is charged with driving a Ford Focus dangerously on Bolton Road and Lily Lane at Bamfurlong on August 17 last year.

He is next due to appear before Wigan magistrates on September 29.

A woman had drunk more than twice the legal limit of alcohol when police stopped her at the wheel of her car, Wigan magistrates heard.

After Lyndsey Fairhurst was pulled over in her Renault Clio on Hodges street on June 7, she gave a reading of 92 microgrammes of alcohol in 100ml of breath. The legal limit is 35 microgrammes.

Banning her from the road for two years, the bench also imposed a £425 fine and ordered that she pay £42 towards victim services and £85 in court costs.

A Wigan man has denied racially abusing a next door neighbour.

Sean Breheny, 52, of Bankwood, Appley Bridge, appeared before justices charged with causing Ketsaraporn Smith racially-motivated harassment, alarm or distress.

Breheny faces an alternative version of the charge which does not include the racist element and he has pleaded not guilty to this also.

Electing summary trial before Wigan magistrates, he was released until that hearing on January 18. His release is conditional on not contacting either Ms Smith or Peter Kay.

A woman who drove a motor vehicle without a licence or insurance while under the influence of cannabis has been barred from the road.

Corie Liptrot, 25, of Whelley, appeared before Wigan magistrates to admit to the three offences committed on Millgate in a Volkswagen Scirocco on February 5.

As well as receiving a 12-month driving disqualification, Liptrot must also pay a fine, costs and a victim services surcharge totalling £297.

A teenager has admitted attacking four emergency service workers.

The 17-year-old, who cannot be named, appeared before Wigan Youth Court to admit to the assault by beating of three police officers - one of them twice - and a paramedic. She also admitted to possessing a knife.

The case was adjourned for the preparation of pre-sentence reports and the girl will learn her fate on October 8.

A Wigan pensioner has admitted to benefit fraud.

David Gray, 71, of Cromford Drive, Pemberton, appeared before borough magistrates to plead guilty to failing to inform the Department for Work and Pensions that for a period in 2015 and another between 2016 and 2018 that he had earnings from self-employment which would have affected his eligibility for pension credits.

He also admitted to not telling Wigan Council of his working arrangements between 2015 and 2018 which meant he received a council tax reduction to which he wasn’t entitled.

All the offences were in breach of the 2006 Fraud Act.

The bench, who took Gray’s guilty pleas into account, fined him and ordered that he pay court costs and a victim services surcharge which meant he faces a total bill of £235.