Wigan's week in court

Stephen Mann, 29, of Ince Green Lane, Ince, pleaded guilty to stealing air fresheners worth £134.70 from Bargain Buys on May 6, washing products worth £773.76 from B&M Bargains in Marus Bridge on May 7, as well as washing products worth £207.05 from the same shop two days later.

He also stole meat worth £27 from M&S Food on May 11 and washing products worth £79.92 from B&M Bargains in Wigan on May 14,

Mann pleaded guilty to further charges that he damaged a window pane worth £100 belonging to Lindsay Southworth on May 8 and made a threatening phone call to her on the same day.

He admitted two offences of using threatening or abusive words or behaviour towards her on March 17 and 18.

Wigan magistrates sentenced Mann to a total of nine months in prison, suspended for two years, and ordered him to attend the Building Better Relationships programme and 25 rehabilitation activity days.

A restraining order was imposed banning him from contacting Ms Southworth and he must pay compensation.

A Wigan motorist has been banned from the roads for 18 months after being found guilty of drink-driving.

Christopher Reeves, 42, of Artisan Close, Standish, was over the legal limit when he drove a van on Almond Brook Road, Standish, on August23.

Wigan magistrates heard he had 73mcgs of alcohol in 100mls of breath, while the legal limit for driving is 35cgs.

As well as being disqualified from driving, he was fined £1,200 and must pay £620 prosecution costs and £120 victim surcharge.

A Wigan man pleaded guilty to begging when he appeared before magistrates.

Edward Ord, 39, of Hardybutts, Scholes, committed the offence in Wigan on Monday, June6.

Magistrates handed down a six-month conditional discharge and told him to pay £22 to fund victim services.

A man has been sent to the crown court after admitting assaulting a woman and a police officer.

Jordan Beach, 23, of Swan Lane, Hindley, pleaded guilty to assaulting Leanne Ogden on October 16 and damaging her phone.

He also admitted assaulting police officer Ryan Sharrock on the same day, but an allegation that Beach obstructed him while doing his duty was dismissed when no evidence was offered to the court.

Beach was remanded on conditional bail ahead of a hearing at Bolton Crown Court on July 4.

A motorist who denies driving without due care and attention will stand trial in August.

Keith Breeze, 46, of Church Lane, Lowton, is accused of committing the offence while driving a Ford car on October21.

He has pleaded not guilty and a trial will be held at Wigan and Leigh Magistrates' Court on August 24.

A woman accused of carrying a weapon and wounding someone will have her case heard by a crown court judge.

Lynn Duffy, 45, of Mill Street, Ashton, is charged with having a hammer on Hardwick Street, Ashton, on June 7, 2021.

She is also charged with unlawfully and maliciously wounding Julie Witter with intent to do her grievous bodily harm on the same day.

Due to the seriousness of the allegations, Wigan magistrates sent the case to Bolton Crown Court, where Duffy will appear on July 11.

She was remanded on unconditional bail untilthen.

A woman has admitted a series of shoplifting offences, in which she stole flowers, clothes, perfume and other items.

Marie Darbyshire, 42, of Glebe Street, Leigh, pleaded guilty to stealing clothes and bottles of spirits from Sainsbury's on February 19; a Lynx gift set, socks and four packets of washing pods from Home Bargains on March 4; perfume and false eyelashes from TK Maxx on March 8; and three boxes of flowers from Marks and Spencer on March 25.

But she pleaded not guilty to a number of other offences - threatening Darren Clegg with a hypodermic needle at Parsonage Retail Park in Leigh on March 8; and using abusive words or behaviour towards James Pittman on February 19 and Dawn Turner on March 25.

Wigan magistrates remanded her in custody until June14.

A 12-week jail sentence has been imposed on a Wigan 26-year-old who flouted a community order issued when he threatened to firebomb a woman's house.

Alexander McIntosh, 26, of Mayfield Road, Orrell, stood before justices to admit failing to attend meetings with a responsible officer as ordered by Manchester justices for the arson threats he made against his victim and her home in Leigh last year.

Neither did he provide evidence of reasonable excuses for missing those meetings.

The defendant was told he was being sent to prison because this was the third order breach.

A man has been accused of trying to burgle Whelley Labour Club and on another occasion stealing a man's television.

Daniel Simm, 30, of Orchard Street, Wigan, stood before borough magistrates charged with taking the £400 set belonging to William Higham on May 8 and then 20 days later breaking into the club with intent to steal.

The case was adjourned until August 25 when a trial takes place at the same court, in the meantime Simm is on conditional bail.

A would-be burglar who attacked the two police officers who found him "tooled up" will be sentenced by a judge.

John Webster, 34, of Jeffrey Street, Ince, had denied assaulting PCs Andrew Bunn and Sarah Cavanagh by beating while in the course of their duties and to possession of a glass-breaking hammer for burglary purposes on April 4.

But he was found guilty by Wigan magistrates after a trial.

Webster was cleared of possessing a cut-throat razor.

Sentencing will take place at Bolton Crown Court on June 27, before which he is remanded in custody.

A serial shoplifter has been jailed for 32 weeks and banned from various businesses in Wigan town centre after his latest string of offences.

Darren Kay, 40, of Scholes, Scholes, was already subject to a community order when he committed his latest crimes.

Wigan magistrates found he had a "flagrant disregard" for court orders, as well as for other people and their property.

Kay pleaded guilty to damaging a television screen worth £1,800 at McDonald's in Wigan on November 25 and to using threatening or abusive words or behaviour towards David Heap on March 12.

He admitted stealing toothbrushes worth £59.94 from B&M Bargains in Wigan on February 3, stealing jars of coffee worth £50 from the same shop on May 19, and attempting to steal children's pyjamas on May 21.

He also pleaded guilty to stealing boxer shorts and socks worth £32 from Bargain Buys in Wigan on May 11 and stealing 10 jars of coffee worth £89.90 from the same shop on May 14.

He admitted a further offence of stealing coffee on May 15 and breaching a community order, which had been imposed in March, by failing to attend appointments.

Magistrates imposed a series of four-week sentences for the offences, to run consecutively, making a total sentence of 32 weeks.

One of the sentences was for the original offence of using threatening words or behaviour, for which the community order had been given.

Kay was also made subject to a criminal behaviour order for 18 months, which bans him from entering any self-service retail establishment or fast food premises in Wigan town centre.

He must also pay a £156 surcharge to fund victim services.

A Wigan man who admitted trying to make sexual contact with a schoolgirl must wait to find out his fate.Edmund Coughlin, 64, of Hereford Close, Ashton, was due to be sentenced at Bolton Crown Court on Wednesday for child sex offences.But the judge adjourned the hearing until July 8.Coughlin has already pleaded guilty to communicating with a girl under 16 and sending a picture of himself to her for his sexual gratification, plus making a category C indecent image of a child.

A thief has been jailed for more than two years after stealing lead from a library’s roof and committing several other offences.

Lee O’Shea, of Petticoat Lane, Ince, appeared at Bolton Crown Court on his 35th birthday to be sentenced.He had previously admitted stealing lead from Ashton Library on March 20 and was jailed for eight months.That will be served consecutively to a 12-month prison sentence for causing actual bodily harm and six months for dangerous driving – bringing the total sentence to 26 months’ imprisonment.O’Shea was given concurrent sentences of six months for taking a vehicle without consent, three months for driving while disqualified and seven days for breaching bail.He was disqualified from driving for four years.Two other men are accused of stealing lead from the library’s roof and have pleaded notguilty.Callum Holgate, 21, of Falkirk Grove, Norley, and Sean Roberts, 23, of Beverley Road, Marsh Green, will stand trial at Bolton Crown Court on January 3.

A Wigan worker has admitted stealing more than £10,000 worth of prescription medicines from his drug firmemployer.

Nathan Hart, 31, of Warrington Road, Abram, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to steal from an employer when he appeared at Liverpool Crown Court.

With others, he took products worth £10,268 from AAH Pharmaceuticals, in Warrington, which supplies prescription drugs to hospitals and pharmacies.

The offence happened between September 14 and December 20, 2020.

Hart will be sentenced on Monday, July 11 at Manchester’s Minshull Street Crown Court.

A Wigan borough granny and a former partner have admitted encouraging or assisting in the commission of a child sex offence.

Amanda Bywater and Philip Park were firmly told by a judge that they will be jailed when they return for sentencing.

Bywater, 48, of Brooklands Park, Widnes admitted an offence of sending messages to Park encouraging him to engage in sexual activity with an under-age girl.

Park, 37, of Holden Road, Leigh, pleaded guilty to an offence involving sending messages to Bywater encouraging her to engage in sexual activity with the same child.

They had been due to face trial but changed their pleas at the last minute and they have been further remanded on bail to enable pre-sentence reports to be prepared.

Judge Stuart Driver warned them, “On July 15 I will send you both to prison.”

He made an interim order for them both to sign on the Sex Offenders’ Register.

A trial date has been set for a Wigan man who denies repeatedly sexually abusing a young schoolgirl.

The 13 charges against Sean Johnson include one of rape, two of attempted rape and several others of indecent assault perpetrated in different ways as well as forcing her to perform sex acts on him.

A Bolton Crown Court judge heard that the offences are alleged to have taken place over a period of more than two years in Leigh and Tyldesley from early August 2017 to November 2019 when the alleged victim was aged 12 to 14.

The 32-year-old of Roundhouse Avenue, Aspull, pleaded not guilty to all the charges and he was released on conditional bail pending the trial whose date has now been fixed for February 23 next year.

Sentencing of a motorist who admits to several road offences including dangerous driving has been delayed.

Nathan Modlinsky, 27, of Belmont Avenue, Bickershaw, had stood before borough justices to plead guilty to being at the wheel of a BMW 320 on March 11 which was driven dangerously on Higher Green Lane and Lower Green Lane, Astley, failed to stop for police and was driving without a licence or insurance.

The case was sent to Bolton Crown Court for sentencing but that has now been adjourned for a second time. Modlinsky is now set to learn his fate on July 29.

A new 2023 trial date has been set for a Wigan man who denies committing a catalogue of sex crimes, including rapes, against boys dating back more than a quarter of a century.

Norman Williams had previously appeared before a Bolton Crown Court judge to face a total of 20 historical offences dating from 1995 to 2002.

The 57-year-old of Leigh Road, Atherton, was released on unconditional bail pending a 10-day trial which was to have begun this month.

But it is has now been rescheduled to take place on February 27 and he was re-bailed.

A woman has been banned from entering Ashton town centre for a year after stealing two gift sets.

Sukenya Morrisey, 37, of York Road South, Ashton, pleaded guilty to taking the Soap and Glory sets worth £50 from Boots on October 18.

Wigan magistrates imposed a 12-month community order with 25 rehabilitation activity days and banned her from a defined area of Ashton town centre, which includes the Gerard Centre, for 12 months.

She must pay a £50 fine, £50 compensation, £85 prosecution costs and £95 to fund victim services.