Latest news with #criminalDamage
BBC News
10-07-2025
- BBC News
North Belfast: Sammy Ward charged over serious assault
A 21-year-old man has appeared in court in connection with a serious assault in north Ward from Chester Manor, Belfast, has been charged with grievous bodily harm with intent, common assault and criminal charges are in relation to an assault that took place in Brucevale Park in north Belfast. Police say the incident left a young woman in a critical condition in hospital. The attack happened at about 16:40 BST on Tuesday. In Belfast Magistrates' Court on Thursday, Mr Ward spoke only to confirm the charges against told the court that they could connect Mr Ward to the was no application for bail and the case is due to be heard again on 7 August.
The Independent
30-06-2025
- The Independent
Reform UK councillor charged with assault after Pride event
A Reform UK councillor has been charged with assault and criminal damange following reports from a Pride event. Amanda Clare, from Malpas, represents the Winsford Dene ward on Cheshire West and Chester Council; she is to appear before magistrates in Crewe on 8 August. Cheshire Police attended reports of a disturbance at Winsford Pride at 4.30pm on Saturday where they arrested a 54-year-old woman. Clare has since been charged with assault and criminal damage, after which she received bail. A force spokesperson said: 'Officers from Cheshire police have charged a woman following reports of an incident at an event in Winsford. At around 4.30pm on Saturday 28 June, police were called to reports of a disturbance at Winsford Pride. Officers attended and arrested a 54-year-old woman. 'Amanda Clare, of Malpas, has since been charged with assault and criminal damage. Clare has been bailed and is next due to appear at Crewe Magistrates' Court on Friday 8 August. 'Cheshire Constabulary and the Crown Prosecution Service would like to remind everyone that criminal proceedings against Clare are live and that she has a right to a fair trial. 'It is extremely important that there should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information online which could in any way prejudice ongoing proceedings.'
BBC News
30-06-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Reform's Amanda Clare charged with assault and criminal damage
Reform UK councillor Amanda Clare has been charged with assault and criminal damage after an incident at a Pride councillor who represents the Winsford Dene ward on Cheshire West and Chester Council, is to appear before magistrates in Crewe on Friday 8 Police said they were called to reports of a disturbance at Winsford Pride at around 16:30 BST on Saturday, where they arrested Ms Clare, who is known as Mandy Clare, 54, from Malpas, has been bailed pending her court appearance. Cheshire Police said that they and the Crown Prosecution Service "would like to remind everyone that criminal proceedings against Clare are live and that she has a right to a fair trial."It is extremely important that there should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information online which could in any way prejudice ongoing proceedings." Listen to the best of BBC Radio Merseyside on Sounds and follow BBC Merseyside on Facebook, X, and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.
South China Morning Post
22-06-2025
- South China Morning Post
3 arrested in Hong Kong over alleged graffiti spree across Kowloon in June
Three people have been detained on suspicion of criminal damage after graffiti was spray-painted in various locations across Kowloon, Hong Kong police have said. Advertisement Police said on Sunday that a local couple and their friend, a Taiwanese passport holder, had been arrested the previous day in connection with the graffiti. The arrest of the trio, aged 26 to 40, followed a report on Thursday that a road sign near Prince Edward Road East and Hip Yip Street in Ngau Tau Kok had been defaced with graffiti. Officers from the force's Sau Mau Ping division took over the case, reviewing CCTV footage and analysing intelligence to identify the suspects, police said. Officers searched an industrial unit in Kwun Tong and seized three bicycles and spray paint. Photo: Handout During the arrest operation, officers also searched an industrial building unit in Kwun Tong, seizing multiple cans of spray paint and three bicycles believed to be connected to the vandalism, the force said.
Daily Mail
07-06-2025
- Daily Mail
Taxpayer foots huge bill to prosecute 66-year-old grandmother for accidentally smashing the leg off a neighbour's garden gnome... that she'd already tried to pay for
A neighbourly feud involving a damaged garden gnome resulted in a 15-month legal ordeal for a law-abiding grandmother. Lorraine Hutton branded the draconian saga 'an enormous waste of time and public money', after being accused of deliberately damaging the 18-inch ceramic ornament. Mrs Hutton, 66, admitted she had accidentally broken off one of the gnome's legs while moving it from a communal pathway outside her flat in Bournemouth, and said she had already apologised to its owner, Lilijana Cekauskiene. She also said she posted £20 through her neighbour's letterbox to cover the damage. But Mrs Hutton was horrified when Mrs Cekauskiene reported the damage to Dorset Police and accused her of breaking the gnome 'provocatively'. The 66-year-old was then ordered to attend a police station for interview and formally charged with criminal damage. A convoluted court saga followed, which is thought to have cost the taxpayer thousands of pounds – including £4,000 to pay for Mrs Hutton's legal aid, £1,000 for her psychiatric evaluation, a £55-per-hour Lithuanian interpreter for Mrs Cekauskiene and magistrates' court costs, which can be upwards of £1,000 a day. Fifteen months and three court dates later, and Mrs Hutton has been formally exonerated of any crime – and she criticised the police and the Criminal Prosecution Service (CPS) for wasting taxpayers' cash by allowing the case to go to court. 'This has just been an enormous waste of time and public money,' she said. 'We have been to court three or four times for this case. I have never been in trouble with the police in my life, not even a parking ticket, and for people of my generation to have to go to court is embarrassing. 'I'm 66 and disabled. I don't see how it was in the public interest to take it to court.' Official statistics show that Bournemouth had the worst crime rate in the south-west of England in 2024. Crimes involving possessing an offensive weapon were up 22.9 per cent and shoplifting offences rose by 5.5 per cent. Meanwhile, in 2022/23, 77 per cent of burglaries went unresolved. But Wessex CPS, which brought the case against Mrs Hutton, insisted it was in the public interest. A spokesman said: 'In this case, we decided that there was sufficient evidence and that it was in the public interest to proceed.' A spokesman for Dorset Police added: 'We will always carry out an investigation into reported criminal damage incidents irrespective of the type of damage alleged to have been caused. A case is then submitted to the CPS, who will then decide whether or not to bring a case before the courts.'
