A thug who went for a beer with his girlfriend after knocking a Sikh leader out and leaving him for dead in the middle of the road was one of the criminals jailed in Greater Manchester this week.
A man who throttled the mother of his child and bit her during a sickening assault in her own home has also been put behind bars. A ‘sexual predator’ who raped two teenage girls after meeting them via social media was also handed jail terms.
Jail sentences are handed out to the worst offenders each week and Manchester Evening News reporters are in court to cover the most serious cases.
Here are some of the criminals locked up in Greater Manchester in the past seven days.
Thug left Sikh leader in pool of blood after vicious attack - before going for a pint with girlfriend
A thug went for a beer with his girlfriend after knocking a Sikh leader out and callously leaving him in a pool of his own blood in the middle of the road. Avtar Singh, 62, suffered life-changing brain injuries following the sickening assault at the hands of Claudio Campos in Manchester’s Northern Quarter on June 23.
When police turned up to arrest Campos at his Fallowfield home on September 7, following a successful public appeal, they discovered a fully packed suitcase on top of a cupboard. In his interview, the 28-year-old accused Mr Singh of ‘touching his girlfriend’s bottom’ and claimed that he punched him as a result.
CCTV footage shown at Manchester Crown Court showed Campos walking with his girlfriend along Hilton Street and Mr Singh, who was making his way home from work, passing them. Campos then gestured towards Mr Singh and started following him towards Tib Street.
Realising that he was being followed, Mr Singh tried to get away but Campos sped up and punched him twice to the side of the face. While grabbing the back of Mr Singh’s shirt, Campos then punched him for a third time, knocking him to the ground.
Campos was dragged down as Mr Singh fell, but got back up and fled the scene, briefly stopping to look back. He then re-joined his girlfriend and went to Ancoats bar Second City, where card transactions show that he bought a burger and a beer, prosecution barrister Eleanor Myers said.
Following the assault, at around 6.30pm, Mr Singh was rushed to hospital where he was diagnosed with a severe traumatic brain injury, a number of bleeds on the brain, and multiple facial fractures. As of Thursday (October 6) he still remains in hospital, the court heard.
Campos pleaded guilty to inflicting grievous bodily harm at Manchester Magistrates’ Court on September 8 and has been remanded in custody ever since. Defending, Abigail Henry told the court that Campos is of “hitherto good character”, with no previous convictions. She added that he is “genuinely remorseful” for the incident.
Judge Hilary Manley jailed Campos for three years.
'Appalling' Audi driver led cops on 100mph chase and caused massive crash
An ‘appalling’ driver led police on a high speed chase before trying to overtake cars through a small gap in traffic - and caused a huge crash. Daniel Matley, 27, was spotted in an Audi on false registration plates on the M60, leading them to believe it was stolen.
After engaging in a pursuit, Matley drove at speeds reaching 90 to 100 miles per hour, overtaking and undertaking other cars and going the wrong way round a roundabout. The chase eventually came to an end when he tried to squeeze through a gap to overtake a car, and instead smashed into a number of parked and moving cars.
Fortunately nobody was seriously injured, Minshull Street Crown Court heard. Matley admitted dangerous driving, driving whilst disqualified, failure to provide a specimen of blood, and was jailed for 20 months on Wednesday (October 5).
Matley was said to have eight previous convictions for 17 offences including dangerous driving and drug driving. He had recently been released from prison following a jail term for burglary.
Defending, Ian Ridgway said it was fortunate that nobody was injured. He added that Matley has since been recalled back to prison for the offence of burglary. Matley, of Highfield Close, Hyde, was jailed for 20 months and banned from driving for three years and ten months.
Predator with ‘unhealthy interest in abuse of women’ raped two teenage girls after contacting them on Snapchat
A ‘sexual predator’ with an ‘unhealthy interest in the abuse of women’ has been jailed for life after raping two teenage girls. Faizan Dogar, 19, met them both on social media and agreed to meet them in person.
Dogar contacted his first victim via Facebook and Snapchat in August 2021, and they agreed to meet, a court heard. She told him she needed to go home but he became aggressive and put her in a headlock. He then threatened to choke her before raping her.
Almost a year later he met the second girl on Snapchat and they agreed to meet after talking about gaming. He then raped her, Manchester Crown Court heard.
Dogar, of Bolton Road, Bury, previously pleaded guilty to five offences of rape, two offences of sexual communication with a child, three offences of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity and two offences of possession of indecent images. He was on Thursday (October 6) jailed for life.
Detective Constable Nathan Lilley, of Bury CID, said: “Dogar is a calculating sexual predator who has subjected two young girls to horrific attacks. He is a fantasist with an unhealthy interest in the abuse of women and young girls.
“Both victims continue to be supported by specialist GMP officers and showed extreme bravery in providing evidence against Dogar. He is a dangerous individual and it’s a relief that he is off the streets and behind bars.”
'Fast and Furious' burglar nearly trapped dad between two cars as he made desperate escape in Fiat 500
A dad says he was almost trapped between two cars when a burglar reversed one of them off his driveway. An open door of the stolen Fiat 500 also damaged the victim’s Mercedes-Benz A-Class as Darren Partington made his getaway, a court head.
Partington has now been jailed for two years and five months after pleading guilty to the burglary and a string of other offences committed between May and June of this year. The 33-year-old was pictured wearing a t-shirt from popular film series Fast and Furious in his police mugshot.
Partington’s first burglary came on May 23, in Green Lane, Middleton, Manchester Crown Court heard. While the homeowner slept, his £40,000 Toyota Supra was stolen from his drive.
A wallet, containing a number of cards and £110 in cash, was also taken after Partington gained entry through the back door of the home in the early hours of the morning. On June 29, Partington targeted a home in Salford. On this occasion, he let himself in through the front door and stole the keys to a Fiat 500 that was parked in the drive.
One resident of the house was alerted to the burglary by a notification from his Ring doorbell at around 2am. The man ran downstairs to confront Partington, banging on the window of the car that Partington was sitting in and even opening the driver door.
Partington reversed away quickly, while the door was still open, striking the back of the man’s Mercedes.
Defending, Michael Johnson told the court that Partington, of no fixed abode, was living in a tent at the time of the crimes and that drug taking and drinking was “rife” within the impromptu camp site in which he stayed.
The judge, Recorder Neil Usher jailed Partington for two years and seven months. Recorder Usher also banned Partington from driving for two years and three months.
'Rogue trader' jailed after customers left out of pocket in £15k fraud
A 'rogue trader' who left customers out of pocket in a £15,000 fraud has been jailed. Council bosses in Rochdale - who investigated Christopher Barlow after numerous complaints - said his crimes gave 'trustworthy tradespeople a bad name'.
Barlow, said the council, took thousands of pounds from people for paving and groundwork jobs that were not started or left incomplete. He used false names and a bank account belonging to a third party in a bid to cover his tracks, said a town hall spokesman in a statement after his conviction and sentence.
Barlow, 37, of Lambley Close in Leigh, Wigan, but previously of Heywood, Rochdale, pleaded guilty to five counts of fraud. Rochdale council said he was jailed for 22 months by a judge sitting at Manchester Crown Court on Tuesday (October 4).
In a statement, the council said the prosecution followed a lengthy investigation by its trading standards team, after complaints were received from people targeted across Greater Manchester.
Thug told mother of his child 'I’m not going to stop until you’re dead' as he beat her in own home
A thug throttled the mother of his child and bit her during a sickening assault in her own home. Barry Purcell told his terrified victim "I'm not going to stop until you're dead" as he repeatedly attacked her, a court heard.
During the vile incident on August 12 2021, Purcell also spat at the woman, threw a suitcase at her and used one of her shoes to hit her in the head. It all happened while their young child was also present, prosecution barrister Callum Ross told Bolton Crown Court.
Purcell, 28, of Duke Street, Bolton, was on Tuesday (October 4) jailed for two years after being convicted of battery, criminal damage, harassment, witness intimidation, and malicious communications in relation to the victim. He was also convicted of aggravated vehicle taking with an accident occurring causing injury, following a separate incident in April 2021.
On that occasion, Mr Ross told the court that Purcell had been drinking heavily and was driven to a house in Ainsdale, Southport, by one of his friends. When his friend got out of the Citroen C2, Purcell jumped in the driver's seat, while the friend's six-year-old child moved into the passenger seat.
Purcell sped off, zig-zagging in the road and having to swerve to avoid an oncoming car. Despite there being speed bumps in the road, witnesses said that Purcell reached speeds of 70mph. The six-year-old boy, who was not wearing a seatbelt, was thrown forward and hit his head on the windscreen.
Purcell fled the scene and the child was taken to Ormskirk Hospital. He was discharged the following day, with no serious injuries. As a result of the incident, the child's mother lost custody and now just sees him six hours per week.
The Honorary Recorder of Bolton Judge Martin Walsh described Purcell's driving offence as a “grotesquely reckless act” as he jailed him for two years. He also imposed a restraining order to stop Purcell contacting his victim and banned him from driving for four years.
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