It is 2025 and a Happy New Year to everyone. But of course, not everyone is able to celebrate the new year, as there are a raft of criminals who are spending the festive season behind bars.
There are plenty of people who have spent the Christmas period in jail and with no Merry Christmas on the cards after judges at Taunton and Bristol Crown Courts have been dispending justice to those who have broken the law and dishing out prison sentences
The latest tranche of criminals includes men involved in the horrific murders of two Bristol teens and Sara Sharif, one of the UK’s most wanted men, and a brazen women beater.
Here SomersetLive looks at some of the criminals jailed in December
CRAIG CONEY
A man has been jailed for sexually exploiting a vulnerable child in Wiltshire. Craig Coney, 37, from Devizes, has been sentenced to nine years in prison after being found guilty of grooming a 15-year-old girl who he treated as if he was in a relationship with for more than six months in 2021.
At Salisbury Crown Court on Friday, December 20, Coney, of no fixed abode, was found guilty under S9 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 of five counts of penetrative sexual activity on no fewer than 13 occasions.
He is also subject to the requirements of being a registered sex offender and an indefinite sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) which prohibits him from contacting the victim and having any unsupervised contact with any females under 16.
Craig Coney jailed
Read More
Related Articles
RILEY TOLLIVER, KODI-SHAI WESTCOTT AND TWO BOYS AGED 15 AND 16
Two boys aged 15 and 16 have been detained for life for the murders of two best friends who were stabbed to death in a case of mistaken identity. Mason Rist, 15, and Max Dixon, 16, died from stab wounds after being chased by four armed teenagers in the Knowle West area of Bristol at about 11pm on January 27 this year.
Their attackers – Riley Tolliver, 18, Kodi-Shai Wescott, 17, and two boys aged 15 and 16, who cannot be named due to their age – had been driven to Ilminster Avenue by Antony Snook, 45. All five were convicted of two counts of murder last month following a six-week trial at Bristol Crown Court. Snook was later jailed for life and ordered to serve a minimum of 38 years.
Mrs Justice May detained the 15-year-old boy for life with a minimum term of 15 years and 229 days, and the 16-year-old boy for life with a minimum term of 18 years and 44 days. Tolliver and Westcott were each given life with a minimum term of 23 years.
“You were part of a group who attacked and killed two boys,” the judge told the defendants. “The boys you killed were Mason Rist and Max Dixon. They were your age. They had done nothing wrong. They didn’t attack the house, they had nothing to do with it.
“You have heard how much pain you have caused to their families. “Max and Mason’s families must go on without them in a different way. Your lives will change too. As Mason’s sister said, there are no winners here.”
Riley Tolliver
(Image: Avon and Somerset Police/PA)
Kodi Wescott
Read More
Related Articles
ALEX MALE
One of the UK’s most wanted men, known to other criminals as ‘Viking’, has been jailed after supplying huge quantities of drugs across the south of England. Alex Male, aged 32 and from Weston-super-Mare, was on the run in Spain, Portugal and Morocco for four years.
He was jailed for 18 years at Exeter Crown Court after pleading guilty to supplying cocaine and ketamine. Male also admitted to laundering the large sums of money he made from dealing drugs. It is estimated that Male oversaw the supply of at least 130 kilos of high-purity cocaine worth £4.5 million.
He was originally arrested in June 2020 before being released on bail, fleeing abroad and going on the run. Male was then added to the National Crime Agency’s (NCA) Most Wanted list in January 2022 before finally being arrested earlier this year in Morocco.
The original arrest was part of the South West Regional Organised Crime Unit (SWROCU) investigation into class A drugs supply. Male used the encrypted messaging service Encrochat, which was used by criminals worldwide.
Alex Male has been jailed after four years on the run
(Image: National Crime Agency)
Read More
Related Articles
MARCO PIERRE WHITE JR
Former Celebrity Big Brother star Marco Pierre White Jr has appeared in court charged with theft and burglary. Marco Xavier Pierre White, the son of celebrity chef Marco Pierre White, appeared at North Somerset Magistrates’ Court on Friday (November 29).
Magistrates sentenced him to a 30-week prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, a nine-month drug rehabilitation order, as well as ordering payment of fines and costs.”
In a statement, Avon and Somerset Police said he was sentenced for carrying out a non-dwelling burglary at the studio in Meadow Street, Weston-super-Mare on Thursday (September 19), and at a store in Cheap Street, Bath, on Thursday (October 24).
Pierre White, of Weston-super-Mare, also committed a theft from a store in Winterstoke Road, Weston-super-Mare on Tuesday (October 22). The force statement said: “In the Weston-super-Mare burglary, he was seen leaving the premises with goods in his hands, including electronic items and a jewellery box, and was spotted by officers in a nearby street. He dropped the items and ran off but was stopped and arrested a short time later.”
Marco Xavier Pierre White was sentenced for burglary
(Image: Avon and Somerset Police)
Read More
Related Articles
NEHEMIAH BROWN
A woman beater has been jailed for a brazen attack on his female partner that left her in agony. Nehemiah Brown, 36, kicked the woman in the face before encouraging three large dogs to attack police officers who had been alerted to a domestic incident.
Police were called to a report that a couple were having a loud verbal argument behind houses in Devizes Road, Holbrook, in Wiltshire, on July 25. The argument soon became physical and Brown was seen to punch and kick the woman in the face.
The brutal attack was witnessed by an off-duty police officer. As officers tried to arrest Brown, he ordered his three dogs to attack them. Luckily no one was injured.
Brown pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 12 months in prison at Salisbury Crown Court on Friday, November 22. He was also given a five-year restraining order.
Nehemiah Brown woman beater has been jailed
(Image: Wiltshire Police)
Read More
Related Articles
JOHN WATKINS
Two bungling crooks attempted to rob Post Office with a large kitchen knife but fled empty handed. John Watkins, 40 and of no fixed address, has been jailed for his role in the robbery but his accomplice is still on the run after the botched robbery in Congresbury, between Weston-super-Mare and Bristol.
The pair threatened the sub postmaster and demanded cash on January 25 this year in what was described as “a terrifying ordeal”. However, they left empty-handed and fled the scene after being disturbed by members of the public.
Avon and Somerset Police said an employee suffered minor injuries in the robbery. However, it has had a significant effect on their mental health. Watkins was identified by police in August following forensic, CCTV and witness enquiries. He was then arrested before being charged with robbery.
He initially pleaded not guilty to robbery but changed his plea when he appeared in court in November. The judge sentenced him to six years and four months in prison at Bristol Crown Court on Wednesday, December 4.
John Watkins
(Image: Avon and Somerset Police)
Read More
Related Articles
TAI and NAIYAHMI YASHARAHYALAH
A couple who caused the death of their three-year-old son by following an “extreme” vegan diet and then buried his body in their garden have both been handed lengthy jail terms. Tai and Naiyahmi Yasharahyalah, aged 42 and 43, showed no obvious emotion in the dock as a judge said they had both “played a part in starving” Abiyah Yasharahyalah when it would have been obvious he needed medical care.
A High Court judge, sitting at Coventry Crown Court, sentenced Tai to 24-and-a-half years and Naiyahmi, who appeared in court wearing a white fur-style coat, to 19-and-a-half years. Mr Justice Wall said the fact the couple had taken no photographs of the boy in the last four months of his life was “a clear sign that you realised by then how sick he was.”
The couple were sentenced on Thursday, a week after they were found guilty of perverting the course of justice, causing or allowing the death of a child, and what was described as “breathtaking” child neglect. A two-month trial was told Abiyah died in early 2020 from a respiratory illness, with a more than minimal cause of his death being severe malnourishment which led to rickets, anaemia and stunted growth.
Jurors also heard London-born Tai, a medical genetics graduate who also used the first name Tai-Zamarai, and former shop worker Naiyahmi shunned mainstream society and left Abiyah’s body buried at their property in Handsworth, Birmingham, when they were evicted in March 2022. The pair were arrested in Glastonbury in Somerset the same year.
Passing sentence on the couple, Mr Justice Wall said: “Abiyah died as a result of your willful neglect of him. He was severely stunted in his growth – at almost four years of age he was buried in the clothes of an 18-month-old. I accept that there was no deliberate infliction of physical injury by either of you.”
But the judge added: “It is difficult to imagine a worse case of neglect than that which the court has encountered in this case.”
Naiyahmi (left) and Tai Yasharahyalah outside Coventry Crown Court have been jailed for causing the death of their son Abiyah
(Image: PA)
Read More
Related Articles
DAWID DANKIEWICZ
A man from Taunton has been jailed for selling illegal drugs through his dietary supplements business. Dawid Dankiewicz, 34, of Staplegrove Road, admitted 13 counts of being concerned in the supply of class C drugs and one count of possessing a class A drug.
He was arrested in January after police raided his home and a business property in East Reach. Officers seized large quantities of morphine, prescription-only medication and tens of thousands of pounds in cash.
Investigating officers then discovered that Dankiewicz was selling the drugs through his business. He pleaded guilty to all of the offences and was jailed for 26 months
Dawid Dankiewicz has been jailed
(Image: Avon and Somerset Police)
Read More
Related Articles
DANIEL O’SULLIVAN
A man has been jailed for more than two years after assaulting a woman and four police officers. Daniel O’Sullivan, 35, of Greenacres Mobile Park, Littleton, Semington, was sentenced at Swindon Crown Court on Wednesday, December 11.
Police were called to the home of O’Sullivan on June 5 after reports concerning the welfare of a woman in her 30s. O’Sullivan fled the scene before jumping a fence into the woods near the A350. He was carrying knives at the time he fled, police have said.
As he was caught by officers, he kicked one and attempted to headbutt a second. While being taken into custody, he headbutted and spat on the cage multiple times, and made violent threats against one of the officers he had assaulted.
While in police custody, O’Sullivan punched a third officer, which caused their lip to split. A fourth officer was also attacked and required hospital treatment for their injuries.
O’Sullivan was charged with assault by beating and threatening a person with a bladed article in a private place. He was also charged with four counts of assaulting an emergency worker.
He pleaded guilty to all offences and has been sentenced to 27 months imprisonment. O’Sullivan was also ordered to pay a surcharge of £228 and was handed a restraining order upon release.
Read More
Related Articles
CHRISTOPHER FLAVIN
A former Somerset-based teacher and youth football club chairman with a track record of years of child abuse has been jailed again. Christopher Flavin, who has already served two long sentences in prison in the past two decades, has been called a ‘committed, calculating and dangerous paedophile’, despite now being 72.
Flavin’s most recent offending occurred in 2023 when he was living on a caravan park in Carmarthenshire, Swansea Crown Court has been told. The court heard he groomed and repeatedly sexually assaulted a schoolboy, asked the child for intimate photographs, and got the youngster to perform a sex act on himself while he filmed it.
Flavin has six previous convictions for 33 offences and the prosecutor said his record “establishes beyond reasonable doubt that the defendant is nothing other than a committed, calculating, and dangerous paedophile”. He has been jailed again, this time for 10 years, with an extra five years supervision after that
Christopher Flavin, who has been jailed for ten years for more child sexual abuse offences.
(Image: Dyfed Powys Police)
Read More
Related Articles
EWAN COTTRELL
A man from Minehead who was connected with the supply of class-A drugs has been jailed after pleading guilty. On Monday, September 2, Ewan Cottrell, 21, was observed by an officer with another individual in what was believed to be a suspected drug deal.
Cottrell was then stopped and was found during a search to be in possession of an illegal substance. He was arrested and taken into custody. Officers later searched his address in Bampton Street and found a quantity of drugs and a number of bladed weapons, too, including a sword, all of which were seized.
Since the search, legislation has since been introduced to make the possession of such a weapon in a private place a criminal offence. Cottrell pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of crack cocaine and cocaine.
He also received a single charge each of possession of a class B drug (cannabis) and possession of criminal property after being found to have £1,900 in cash. Cottrell received a prison sentence of three years and four months at Taunton Crown Court
Ewan Cottrell, 21, was observed by an officer
Read More
Related Articles
URFAN SHARIF AND BEINASH BATOOL AND FAISAL MALIK
Court artist sketch by Elizabeth Cook of (left to right) Sara Sharif’s stepmother Beinash Batool, uncle Faisal Malik and father Urfan Sharif appearing for sentencing for the 10-year-old’s death, at the Old Bailey in London. Sharif and Batool have been jailed for life at the Old Bailey for her murder, with a minimum term of 40 years and 33 years respectively. Malik was jailed for 16 years
(Image: PA)
Sara Sharif’s father and stepmother have been jailed for life for years of horrific “torture” and “despicable” abuse which ended in the little girl’s murder. The 10-year-old suffered “unimaginable pain, misery and anxiety” as she was repeatedly beaten, burned, bitten and restrained at the family home in Woking, Surrey, the court heard.
Urfan Sharif, 42, and Beinash Batool, 30, had tried to cover up the abuse, twice taking her out of school, and then fled to Pakistan after she died, prosecutor Bill Emlyn Jones KC said. On Tuesday, the couple were jailed for life for her murder, with Sharif handed a minimum term of 40 years and Batool given 33 years.
Sara’s uncle, Faisal Malik, 29, who was found guilty of causing or allowing her death, was jailed for 16 years. There were cries of “yes” from the public gallery but the defendants made no reaction and stood with heads bowed in the dock as they were sentenced.
In a televised sentencing at the Old Bailey, Mr Justice Cavanagh said Sara’s death “was the culmination of years of neglect, frequent assaults and what can only be described as torture”, mainly at the hands of Sharif.
The senior judge said her “despicable treatment” took place in “plain sight and in front of the rest of the family”.
Undated handout custody photo issued by Surrey Police of Urfan Sharif.
(Image: PA)
Undated handout custody photo issued by Surrey Police of Beinash Batool.
(Image: PA)
Undated handout custody photo issued by Surrey Police of Faisal Malik.
(Image: PA)
Read More
Related Articles
Join Somerset Live’s WhatsApp community for top stories and breaking news sent directly to your phone
Somerset Live is now on WhatsApp and we want you to join our community.
Through the app, we’ll send the latest breaking news, top stories, exclusives and much more straight to your phone.
To join our community you need to already have WhatsApp. All you need to do is click this link and select ‘Join Community’.
No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Somerset Live team.
We also treat community members to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out at any time you like.
To leave our community, click on the name at the top of your screen and choose ‘Exit group’.
If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
Click here to join our WhatsApp community.