A thug who strangled a woman in a park and left her for dead before admitting to his mum he 'may have murdered someone' is among the criminals locked up in Greater Manchester this week.
A 21-year-old driver who stopped for the police before speeding off again and sending them on a high speed chase has also been locked up. A drug dealer who supplied class A drugs and cannabis and kept designer watches and thousands of pounds in cash in his Salford home was also jailed.
Prison sentences are handed out to the worst offenders each week and Manchester Evening News reporters are in court to cover the most serious cases.
Read more: Armed robber threatened to 'smash' Morrisons worker's head in terrifying cigarettes raid
Here are some of the criminals locked up in Greater Manchester this week...
Driver stopped for cops, waited for officer to get to his car and then sped off again
A driver has been jailed after speeding off from cops he had initially stopped for, before leading them on a high speed chase through a town centre. Luke Conway, 21, pulled over after a police car activated its sirens on Chorley Old Road, Horwich, on November 7 2022.
However when an officer approached his Volkswagen Passat on foot, Conway sped off. He drove through Horwich town centre at 70mph - more than double the 30mph speed limit - and ran a red light where pedestrians were waiting to cross, prosecution barrister Thomas Worsfold told Bolton Crown Court.
After a chase lasting a few minutes, Conway eventually fled his car on foot after turning into a cul-de-sac and failing to drive down a footpath. Police caught up with him shortly after and he was arrested.
Conway, of Montserrat Road, Johnson Fold, Bolton, pleaded guilty to dangerous driving, possession of cannabis, possession of an offensive weapon, driving without insurance, and driving while disqualified and was jailed for four months. Conway was also banned from driving for two years.
Drugs gang caught red-handed with designer watches and thousands of pounds in cash
Members of a drugs gang were caught with luxury watches and thousands of pounds in cash after a huge raid. A raid of Kyle Darbyshire's home in Walkden, Salford, led to officers discovering £15,799 in cash as well as a number of designer watches and jewellery.
The drug dealer's role within the gang was uncovered following a National Crime Agency led operation in relation to the use of encrypted mobile phones - which are used almost exclusively for criminal activity including money laundering and drug supply.
Financial investigators valued the gang's potential returns from the drugs to be nearly £400,000. Darbyshire, 35, of Blantyre Avenue, Walkden, was sentenced to 12 years in jail at Manchester Crown Square Crown Court, after pleading guilty to conspiracy to supply class A drugs and production and cultivation of cannabis.
Three other men were also arrested as part of the investigation for the production of cannabis and were given suspended sentences.
Thug strangled woman and left her for dead in park after she made joke about his son
A violent thug confessed to his mum that he 'may have murdered someone' hours after leaving a woman for dead in a country park. Shane Woods subjected his victim to a brutal assault after she made a joke about his son, a court heard.
During a sentencing hearing at Bolton Crown Court on Monday (January 9) the Honorary Recorder of Bolton Judge Martin Walsh said that Woods, of Balcarres Road, Aspull, met up with his victim in the early hours of May 21 last year, after speaking to her on social media, and that they drank alcohol and took cocaine after making their way to the park.
The woman could not recall how the assault started but said that when she regained consciousness on one occasion, Woods' hands were around her throat, strangling her. She drifted in and out of consciousness and the court was told that one of the times she came round, she believed she had suffered a stroke because her face was so swollen.
A few hours after returning home, Woods confessed to his mum that he "may have murdered someone" and asked her to call 999. When arrested, Woods made reference to showing the police "where the body was", the court heard.
The 33-year-old, from Wigan, has now been jailed for 11-and-a-half years, with an additional five years on extended licence, after a senior judge deemed him to be a 'dangerous' offender.
He was originally charged with attempted murder but pleaded not guilty and instead admitted to inflicting grievous bodily harm with intent at a hearing in October, which was accepted by the Crown.
It was a routine police stop of a speeding Audi A3... and it brought down a massive criminal network
A routine police stop of a speeding car brought down a massive drugs network, with five men now starting jail terms totalling 31 years, Greater Manchester Police has revealed.
It ultimately led to the seizure of almost five kilos of MDMA, nearly two kilos of cannabis and a substantial amount of ketamine - with a combined street value of around £220,000. Jawwad Iqbal-Wahid, 25, and Imran Hossain, 29, were travelling in the black Audi A3, which was first spotted by patrolling officers on the A6 Stockport Road in Levenshulme, south Manchester.
Snap bags filled with cannabis were uncovered and Hossain was found with a large amount of money and two mobile phones, GMP added. Subsequent analysis of the phones uncovered text messages detailing drug dealing in south Manchester and further afield, the force said, with one of the phones found to be a 'drug line' being operated by Sadek Shek, 25.
Five men appeared at a Manchester Crown Court sentencing hearing on January 6 after they pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply cocaine, MDMA, cannabis and ketamine. Sadek Shek, of Brynton Road, Longsight, was jailed for 10 years.
Imran Hossain, of Elsdon Road, Longsight, was jailed for six years. Muteeb Tahir, of Hector Road, Longsight, was also jailed for six years. Jawwad Iqbal-Wahid, of Hector Road, Longsight, got three years and Michael Gill, of Westbank Road, Burnage, was jailed for six years and nine months.
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