A total of 13 East Lancashire criminals were put behind bars in August following sentencing hearings in the crown courts.
From a machete attacker, to evil rapists, robbers to paedophiles, we've put together a summary of the 13 men banged up for committing crimes across the region.
Blackburn dad-to-be jailed after providing false details to dodge 103mph speeding fine
A father-to-be who paid someone £150 to take the rap for him after he was caught speeding on the M65 has been jailed.
Abdul Habib, of Grindleton Road in Blackburn, was clocked travelling along the M65 at 103mph – 33mph over the legal limit - in November 2020.
At Preston Crown Court at the beginning of August, Beth Pilling, prosecuting, said Habib, who had just turned 21 at the time, had been told about a man in Oldham who was, for a cash fee, offering to provide a false address to help people avoid penalty points and fines.
Admitting at the first opportunity to perverting the course of justice, it was heard that Habib provided false information on a prosecution form sent to his address, and returned the documents to police, nominating a Raheem Khan of Kelverlow Street in Oldham, as the person who was driving the vehicle at the time.
Habib, who began crying in the dock, was sentenced to 80 days in prison
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Accrington man taped-up victim before carrying out 'ruthless and horrific' rape
A "dangerous" man who "ruthlessly and horrifically" raped a woman after hitting her over the head with an axe and taping both her arms and legs together so she could not move, has been jailed.
Mark Yeates, 51, of Nuttall Street, Accrington, was jailed at Preston Crown Court in early August.
Prosecuting, Julian Goode told the court that on February 28, Yeates, who, according to his distraught victim, was "off his head" and "stank of stale beer", had entered the woman’s home and cornered her in the living room.
Yeates, who has nine convictions for 12 previous offences, pleaded guilty to three counts of rape, as well as assault, and was jailed for 12 years with eight years on extended licence once released.
He was also made subject to notification requirements for life and was handed an indefinite restraining order against his victim.
In a victim personal statement, the woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons said: “I have not returned to work as I cannot face people. I don’t want to speak to anyone, and I don’t want to speak about what has happened as I become upset and distressed.
“He made me feel unsafe in my own home. I have had so much support from my family, and I only hope that one day this nightmare is behind me, and I can move on with my life.”
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Accrington man hacked at victim 9 times during frantic machete attack
A drink and drug-fuelled man carried out a frenzied machete attack on another man in the middle of a busy road, leaving him with life-changing injuries.
Martin Gilheaney hacked at his victim, James Irwin, 34, nine times with the weapon, following a night of boozing in Accrington on December 4 last year.
Gilheaney, 21, said it was his victim calling him a ‘pervert’ that triggered him to lash out in the way that he did.
On Monday August 8 Preston Crown Court heard how the two men had been drinking separately in a nightclub in the town on the evening of December 3, but around 5.30am the following day after the club had closed, CCTV taken from Warner Street showed the pair embroiled in a fight in the road.
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Accrington rapist used 'the peaceful religion of Islam as excuse' for crimes
A 'dangerous offender' who inflicted a 'campaign of rape' on his terrified victim, reducing her to a shadow of her former self, has been jailed.
Faran Abbas subjected his victim to multiple rapes over a period of nine months, and controlled parts of her life and her behaviour.
The woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said she had her "innocence taken away and her body mauled" while she felt her "spirit had been crushed" and considered herself "ugly, un-loveable" and had "lost trust in others".
Prosecuting, David Traynor, said Abbas had inflicted a "campaign of rape" on his victim with his heinous crimes being "persistent over a prolonged period of time".
Abbas pleaded not guilty to five counts of rape but following a trial in May, the jury found the 28-year-old, of Church Street, Accrington, guilty.
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Nelson man robbed Spar shop at knifepoint while on the run from police
A prolific offender who robbed a Spar shop at knifepoint while on the run from police over a 90mph motorway chase has been jailed.
Craig Mellor, formerly of Garrick Street, Nelson, appeared at Preston Crown Court on Tuesday August 9 charged with robbery and possession of an offensive weapon, dangerous driving, driving while disqualified and driving without insurance.
The court heard that on May 11 2020, two years before the robbery, Mellor was seen by police driving in Burnley Road in Accrington at around 9.30am.
Prosecuting, Beth Pilling, said: “Officers believed the vehicle he was driving was linked to a theft and followed it.
“Mellor then tried to lose the police by heading onto the A56, travelling at around 90mph, before joining the M65 in the direction of Nelson, where he undercut cars by driving on the hard shoulder and sped through a 50mph section of the motorway.
“He drove in such a way that the police could not understand how he didn’t cause an accident.
He was due to appear in court over the offences in March last year, but failed to attend and spent the next 15 months evading police, missing opportunities to turn himself in.
It was during this 15-month period, the court heard, that Mellor decided to carry out a robbery of a Spar shop in Nelson.
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Knifeman at Blackburn station is jailed by judge
A man who was spared prison after threatening a shopkeeper with a knife has been jailed after he was caught carrying another weapon at Blackburn Railway Station.
Bolton Crown Court heard how 20-year-old Dane Fort was given a suspended prison sentence in October last year but he failed to do unpaid work.
Fort has now been before the court again and re-sentenced.
Full story here
Man jailed after harassing and threatening Blackburn mosque worker
A mosque worker who was ‘trying to show kindness’ was left terrified after a homeless man harassed him and turned up at his home, before threatening him in a takeaway with a knife.
The family of Hassan Mota were also afraid to leave their family home after Usman Rasul began bombarding Mr Mota with phone calls, turning up at his home and following him around.
Rasul, 30, turned to alcohol and cocaine and got involved with 'the wrong people’ when his relationship broke down and he lost access to his children
Prosecuting, Rachel Faux told Preston Crown Court how Rasul had turned up homeless at the Khanqah Mosque in November 2021 pleading for help, with Mr Mota taking him to the Premier Inn in Blackburn.
More here
Blackburn paedophile found with more than 1,500 images of children jailed
A paedophile who stored thousands of extreme and indecent images of children online, and bragged about how he liked incest, has been jailed.
Bilaal Saghir, of Providence Street, Blackburn, set up online accounts seven years ago, saving more than 1,500 images of child pornography.
Amanda Johnson, prosecuting at Preston Crown Court, said in June 2020, police from the child abuse team were tipped-off to an account which had sent out images of child sexual abuse, and linked it to Saghir’s old address on Whalley Old Road.
Saghir also had a number of extreme videos involving animals, and police found folders he had named ‘child porn’, ‘child porn young teens’ and ‘child porn video brutal’.
Additionally, police accessed a chat on Google Hangouts which showed Saghir talking about how he was ‘into incest’ and 'liked young children'.
Full story available here
Burnley rapist, Shaun Collins, jailed again after another victim comes forward
A rapist who had previously been dubbed East Lancashire’s “most dangerous sex attacker” has been jailed again after another of his victims came forward.
Shaun Collins, also known as Shaun Greenwood, is already serving a life sentence for three historical rapes
But after being found guilty of two counts of rape, and pleading guilty to one count of indecent assault, Collins was jailed for a further 12 years on August 17.
The 58-year-old was originally sentenced in 2006 for three attacks, including the rape of a teenager from Great Harwood on her birthday in 2002.
More details here
Clitheroe man jailed over cocaine and MDMA supply spanning six years
A 49-year-old man has been jailed for supplying cocaine and MDMA over a six year period.
Kevin Wells, of Whipp Avenue, Clitheroe, appeared at Preston Crown Court on Wednesday August 17 and was sentenced to 27 months in prison.
The court heard that on June 5 2020, officers from the Pendle task force executed a warrant at Wells' home address after he was found with a quantity of cannabis.
The cannabis was seized and Wells was subsequently arrested and released under investigation.
More here
'Violent and monstrous' Blackburn man jailed for attacking dad
A violent alcoholic who was jailed for six years in 2014 for assaulting his sister has been jailed again - this time for attacking his mother and father, as well as hitting a stranger with the handle of a machete.
Shoayb Patel was handed 30 months in prison on Thursday August 18 after Recorder Imran Shafi QC branded his behaviour “monstrous” and told him to take the help on offer for the “sake of your family”.
Patel, of Gloucester Road, Blackburn, appeared at Preston Crown Court charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm and criminal damage, as well as two separate offences of possessing an offensive weapon in public and threatening a person with a weapon in a public place.
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23-year-old jailed for burgling house of friend's ex-girlfriend
A man has been jailed for his part in a targeted burglary in which a woman’s house was trashed and her sofa and bed slashed with a knife.
Shakeel Hussain, along with three others, carried out the burglary at the end of March 2020, whereby the now 23-year-old broke into the victim’s home in Nelson.
Once in, he helped to steal her TV, rip out her CCTV system, slash her living room sofa and bed with a knife, smash her bedroom mirrors and steal her bank cards.
Full story here
Burnley man jailed after attempting to break into two homes while high on drugs
A man who was high on drugs consumed with the intention of taking his own life has been jailed for attempting to break into two homes.
Carl Pollitt had taken a large dose of medication and told police he thought he was going into his own house when the incidents occurred on Westgate in Burnley at around 6am on May 31.
Burnley Crown Court heard that Pollitt, 46, was in a confused state when he tried the front door handles of two neighbouring properties, and afterwards said he had no recollection of what had actually happened.
Pollitt, of Mitre Street, Burnley, which is around a five minute walk from the properties he tried to enter, pleaded guilty to two counts of attempted burglary.
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