A teenager with an 'obsession' for weapons who posted a video of a terrifying combat knife on Snapchat after almost killing a boy was just one of the offenders jailed in our region last week.
Prison terms were also handed to two thugs who landed punches on two men and left one fearing he would be thrown into a canal.
A gangster's girlfriend who transported six deadly guns to another criminal gang at the height of lockdown and a serial conman who stole cars and vans worth almost £50,000 were also put behind bars.
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 last week
Man who threatened staff at homeless shelter he was already banned from
A man who was banned from a Greater Manchester homeless shelter has been jailed after hurling racist and homophobic comments and threatening staff. Greater Manchester Police says Joe Wharton had already been barred from The Town House, in Ashton-under-Lyne, when he returned to the Burlington Street building on Tuesday evening (June 14).
When he was asked to leave the site, the 26-year-old soon turned abusive - using slurs and threatening to injure a staff member by stamping on his head. Wharton, of no fixed abode, appeared at Tameside Magistrates Court charged with racially aggravated harassment, alarm or distress, and intention to cause harassment, alarm or distress.
He pleaded guilty to both charges and was sentenced to six weeks in prison.
Serial conman who posed as undercover cop
A serial conman who taunted his victims by admitting 'I'm a grafter' after stealing cars and vans worth almost £50,000 is back behind bars. Mason Crozier tricked several people into letting him drive away in the vehicles they were selling by pretending an internet bank transfer was about to be made.
On one occasion he posed as an undercover GMP officer and gave his victim a fake collar number to persuade him to let him drive off in an Audi A3 worth £7,250. In total Crozier, 21, stole six vehicles- including a Ford Transit van worth £13,000 and a BMW worth £3,500 - over a nine month period during lockdown in 2020 and 2021, Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court heard.
The first offence took place just days after he was released from a young offenders institute on licence having been sentenced in February 2020 for a string of almost identical crimes. After one victim, from whom Crozier stole a Renault Trafic van, made numerous attempts to contact him the conman texted: "Look pal, stop ringing. I've done this to hundreds of people.
"Your van is gone. It's in parts all over the north west. You can report this to the police they will tell you it's a civil matter because you gave me the keys. They won't be interested so good luck."
Another text, sent to the owner of the Audi A3 read: "OK, I'm a grafter. I will give you the car back. It's not worth the headache. Give me a couple of hours I will get it back to you." The car was never returned, the court heard.
After stealing £50 of diesel from a petrol station in Northenden by persuading staff he would pay via bank transfer Crozier threatened the owner by saying he would get a 'load of kids' to go round and strip the shelves. Gwen Henshaw, prosecuting, said the majority of Crozier's victims had advertised their vehicles for sale on either Facebook or Gumtree.
'Hard-working' man found with 'sickening haul' in BMW
A ‘hard-working man’ was caught with a ‘drug dealers kit’ following a raid at his house before police found a gun, a silencer and drugs in his BMW parked outside. Jake Hartley, 28, was also found with a kilogram of cannabis, cocaine and Taurine - which is used as a cutting agent.
The handgun, a Walther P99, was found to be in working order, alongside 18 rounds of ammunition. He also had a knuckle duster and baton concealed in the boot of his car, Minshull Street Crown Court heard.
After pleading guilty to a raft of offences, Hartley was jailed for over seven years. Prosecuting, Lisa Boocock said that in the early hours of January 20 this year, police attended at Hartley’s home in Hollingworth. They searched his bedroom and then his BMW which was parked outside and was unlocked.
“They found three sets of scales with various traces of drugs on them, as well as snap bags and a block of Taurine, which weighed around 769 grams. Taurine is used as a cutting agent,” Ms Boocock said. “There was also a vacuum pack of one kilogram of cannabis. In the car boot, officers found 91 grams of cocaine at a purity of 32%. The total value of the drugs was £20,000.”
Officers also found a baton, a knuckle duster, and a Walther P99 self loading pistol, as well as a silencer and 18 rounds of ammunition. The gun was test fired and found to be in working order. Hartley’s DNA was found on the handgun, it was said. Prosecutors said the items were a ‘drug dealers kit’, and Hartley must have known this as he handled them personally.
He originally claimed he was given a package and was unaware of its contents - a defence he didn’t proceed with in court. He has since pleaded guilty to possession of a prohibited weapon; possession of ammunition; possession of an offensive weapon, and possession with intent to supply class A and B drugs.
Hartley, of Green Lane, was jailed for seven years and 10 months.
Salford man who killed woman in Christmas Day crash while heading to shops
A man has been jailed after a Christmas Day death crash. Nathaniel Ritchie, from Salford, was sentenced to three and half years.
He had been found guilty of causing death by dangerous driving by a unanimous decision at a previous hearing. Chester Crown Court heard how he was driving an Audi RS5 on the A536 Macclesfield Road in North Rode, Cheshire on December 25th 2019.
In a statement Cheshire Constabulary said that Ritchie, 34, of St Paul's Road, was travelling to buy some soft drinks after celebrating Christmas at his home address, which was in Congleton at the time.
"On leaving his home, Ritchie realised the shop he was intending to travel to was likely to be closed due to it being Christmas Day. He decided to turn around and travel to a petrol station in Congleton," a spokesperson for the force said.
"It was when Ritchie drove back along the A536 he travelled at speed on a left-hand bend, veering into the opposite side of the carriageway colliding with a white Volkswagen Up." The Volkswagen was being driven by 46-year-old Lakshmi Basford, from the village of Rainow, who died at the scene.
Teen who sent sick Snapchat message after almost killing boy
A teenager with an 'obsession' for weapons posted a video of a terrifying combat knife on Snapchat after almost killing a 16-year-old boy. In the chilling clip, featuring a serrated blade which appeared to have blood on it, Kyle McGuinness wrote 'enjoy the hospital' in an accompanying message.
Shortly before posting the video, McGuinness, 17, had stabbed a 16-year-old boy in Ashton town centre, leaving him fighting for his life. McGuinness took to Snapchat and wrote: "Two of you tried dukking (stabbing) me down. Shame, enjoy the hospital lad', followed by two laughing emojis.
About five months later, after he'd been given bail following the appalling attack, McGuinness went on to stab another young man in Trafford. Now a judge has declared him 'dangerous' and said he had an 'obsession' with weapons. McGuinness can be named for the first time after the M.E.N. successfully applied to have reporting restrictions imposed due to his age lifted.
McGuinness, of no fixed address, pleaded guilty to section 20 assault, section 18 assault, and two counts of possessing a bladed article. He received a nine year extended sentence, comprising of five years in prison, and four year extended licence period.
Four jailed after £830,000 drugs haul and three firearms found in raids
Two Salford men have been jailed as part of a gang of drug dealers. The gang have been jailed for a total of 27 years after guns and drugs worth £830,000 were found in a safe and a freezer in a Darwen industrial unit.
Jay Thomas Carney, 24, from Salford, has been jailed for two years and six months for possession of a shotgun without a certificate, and 32-year-old Ryan O'Donnell, also from Salford, has been jailed for just under eight years for possession of a prohibited firearm, possession of a Class A drug, being concerned in the supply of Class A drugs and possession with intent to supply a Class B drug. The gang as a whole was jailed for 27 years and four months.
An investigation was launched into the gang by Lancashire Police after they seized two handguns with rounds of ammunition and a silencer and a pump action shotgun with shotgun shells when they raided the unit at Kay Street, Darwen, in October 2019. A locked safe box containing £480,000 of cocaine with an 80 per cent purity and a freezer containing £353,000 of amphetamine was also discovered.
Nobody was inside the property at the time of the raid but CCTV footage showed a Ben Snell and Damien Derbyshire entering and leaving the unit in the months prior to the warrant being executed. Mercedes Citan and Citroen Berlingo vans used to drive to and from the unit were both seized during the investigation.
Derbyshire and Snell were also linked to the drug supply conspiracy by paperwork and payments connected to the unit, as well as mobile phone evidence. O'Donnell was later arrested at an address in Corinthian Avenue, Manchester, after his DNA was recovered from the trigger/guard of the handgun. Cocaine, cannabis and a 'dealer debt list' were also found here. Both O'Donnell and Carney pleaded guilty in court.
Carney was arrested on the same day at an address in Fairy Lane, Manchester, after his DNA was also recovered from the trigger/guard of the shotgun. Derbyshire, 43, of Accrington, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply Class A and Class B drugs and was jailed for six years. Snell, 34, of no fixed address, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply a Class B drug, possessing prohibited firearms, possessing ammunition without a certificate and possessing shotgun without certificate. He was jailed for nine years.
Thug robbers who beat up victims and left man fearing he'd be thrown into canal
'Despicable' thugs landed punches on two men and left one fearing he would be thrown into a canal over two terrifying incidents in Manchester. Michal Czerniawski and Michal Kardas attacked two men on the same day in an attempt to steal their belongings, Manchester Crown Court was told.
The court heard how on the afternoon of November 10 last year, Czerniawski and Kardas approached their first victim - a man in his 50s - on Dale Street in the Northern Quarter. The pair demanded his bag before viciously and repeatedly punching the victim to his face.
A member of the public spotted the situation and ran over to help, leading to the defendants running away from the scene. Later on that evening, at around 8pm, the defendants found their second victim - a man in his 30s - who was walking beside the canal in Ancoats.
Kardas, 37, put the victim in a headlock while the pair shouted at him to hand over money. Czerniawski, 36, lifted the victim up by his legs - leaving him fearing that he would be thrown into the canal. Czerniawski then punched the victim to his stomach, while Kardas gripped his neck so tightly that he fell unconscious. When he woke up, the victim heard the pair demanding the pin code to his mobile phone, before they managed to leave with the device.
Czerniawski and Kardas, both of no fixed abode, were found guilty of robbery and attempted robbery. Czerniawski was jailed for four years and five months, while Kardas received a prison sentence of four years and six months.
Gangster's girlfriend jailed after couriering SIX guns for drugs gang
A gangster's girlfriend has been locked up after she transported SIX deadly guns to another criminal gang at the height of lockdown. Former nightclub hostess Holly Caldwell, 27, was jailed for seven years after she drove the terrifying haul of weapons and 180 rounds of ammunition down south to criminals in Luton, days after the first coronavirus lockdown was imposed and people were ordered to stay at home.
Caldwell also couriered drugs for her boyfriend Tareanio Blake, 30, who headed a Cheetham Hill organised crime gang alongside Mohammed Shahid, also 30. Caldwell, who was using the money she was paid to save for a deposit on a house, said she had no idea the package in the back of her car contained guns, instead believing it was drugs.
She drove to Luton in a Honda Civic and was told the password for the exchange was 'covid', to ensure she handed over the horrifying haul to the right people. Shahid, who was organising the handover, spoke with Blake about his girlfriend's role in the crime. "I don't know if you wanted me to send her," he said of Caldwell. Shahid apologised and said he should have asked for Blake's permission. Blake said he 'can't stop someone doing something they want to'.
Caldwell, of King Edward Road, St Helens, pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to supply class A drugs and possession of a prohibited weapon. She was jailed for seven years.
Hamza, of Whiston Road, Crumpsall, pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to supply class A drugs, two counts of possessing a prohibited weapon and one count of possessing criminal property. He was jailed for nine years.
Read more of today's top stories from the Manchester Evening News here.
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