Boyfriend Sentenced For St. Valentine's Day Hotel Room Assault

A Peterborough man spat at and kneed his distraught girlfriend twice in the face when a romantic Valentine's Day night at a Hyde Park hotel turned sour during a drunken row.

Self-employed home improvements contractor Robert Rough, 30, of Crowhurst jealously quizzed ex Rebecca Slater about her behaviour at a recent works Christmas party then attacked her in their fifth-floor room at Bayswater Road's Double Tree Hilton Hotel on February 15.


“We are not sending you to prison,” bench chairman Jeffrey Manton told the tearful father-of-one at City of Westminster Magistrates Court today. 

“You kneed someone in the eye, you spat at them and verbally abused them.


“That individual tried to defuse the situation by going outside with you for a cigarette, but you went back and had another go and you can imagine how frightening that was for the individual who went to hospital with bruising and swelling.


“This could have effected someone's eyesight for the rest of their life through your one drunken action.”


Prosecutor Miss Niki Powell told the court: “Police were called after staff received complaints from other guests and when the officers arrived Mr. Rough was in the lobby with his suitcase and was detained.


“He had been in a relationship with Miss Slater for a year and they had been arguing in the lobby and continued arguing in the room.


“She had been at a works do and Mr. Rough was asking her what she had been doing at the party and who she was with at the party and she was pushed against a wardrobe.”


The night manager came to their room to investigate the commotion, but Miss Slater assured him everything was fine and the pair went outside for a cigarette.

“When they returned Mr. Rough attacked her, pushing her to the floor and deliberately kneeing her twice in the right eye and spat at her while verbally abusing her.”


Rough pleaded guilty to assault on the basis of pushing Miss Slater, claiming the kneeing was accidental, but after a Newton hearing during which the visibly upset victim gave evidence the court ruled it was deliberate.


She said the pair had enjoyed a meal and were both drinking when the romantic mood soured. 

“He was becoming aggressive in the foyer and I did not know why and he followed me up to the room screaming and shouting and calling me names.”


He was calling me: 'slag' and everything and he was questioning me about my Christmas party and what time I got in.


“Rob attacked me, he smashed my head against the wardrobe. It was quite forceful. I had roses that Rob threw all over the room.


“He shoved me onto the bed and then shoved me onto the floor by force. He was on top of me, holding me down.


“He was manhandling me, he's a lot bigger than me. He was abusing me, spiting in my face, calling me names.


“He's then kicked me twice in the face,” added the tearful and petite Miss Slater.


Rough's lawyer Mr. Tom Flavin said: “This is an isolated incident that was unfortunate and regrettable. A temporary loss of self-control that was completely out of character.


“There was no pre-meditation, it resulted out of an argument and Mr. Rough left the incident when he was asked to do so.


“These offences occurred through drink and both Mr. Rough and the complainant had a large amount to drink that night and since this offence he has not touched alcohol.


“He is aware how serious this is and doesn't want a repeat in the future and in his pre-sentence report interview he was ashamed and emotional and is deeply ashamed and deeply regrets the incident.”


Rough was placed on a two-year community order, which includes a domestic abuse programme, was ordered to pay £500 compensation to Miss Slater, £195 costs and a £60 victim surcharge.


An indefinite restraining order was also made against Rough, prohibiting him having any contact with Miss Slater and visiting her Peterborough home.

RMT Branch Secretary Cleared Of Picket Line Intimidation

Not Guilty: Mark Harding

A London Underground tube driver, who was picketing Hammersmith station during RMT industrial action, was cleared today of  intimidating a strike-breaking trainee manager who claimed he was branded a "scab".

RMT official Mark Andrew Harding, 51, of Gomm Road, Rotherhithe was standing outside the station with two fellow strikers at 5.47am on February 6 when graduate trainee Gareth Robert Scott, 25, crossed the picket line.

Prosecutor Mr. Sam Roarke told City of London Magistrates Court: "The Crown's case is that Mr. Harding used intimidation to compel Mr. Scott not to do his job."

The prosecution, brought under the Trade Union and Labour Relations Act, was an important one for the RMT and the conviction of branch secretary Harding would have been very damaging.

Union activists saw the prosecution as politically-motivated and it became something of a cause celebre for the movement, with union leaders, plus 15 MP's issuing a statement calling for the end of "anti-union laws."

Mr. Scott told the courtroom, which was packed with RMT supporters: "One gentleman approached me, made a beeline for me. 

"As I approached the station he came very close to me at a fast walking pace.

"At one point he was approximately five inches from my face, he was very close.

"When he got up close to me he shouted at me: 'Can you respect the picket line?'

"I avoided the gentleman and made my way towards the gates and he started shouting that I was a scab.

"He was shouting: 'You are a scab. What happens when your job is on the line?'

Strike Breaker: Gareth Scott

"I felt really shaken and frightened. i was concerned about what he was going to do. I was concerned he would follow me into the station.

"I was working as an incident station supervisor to cover the strikes. I was told to cover the shift as there was no supervisor that day."

The industrial action caused travel chaos across the capital for thousands of commuters and was brought in response to plans to cut the numbers of station staff.

Mr. Scott, who has since abandoned his career with the London Underground called the British Transport Police (BTP) from the station office.

"I was really worried about having to work there that day and be subject to abuse and similar taunts.

"When I got home I got really worried about what would happen next."

Mr. Scott entered counselling as a result and says the incident played a part when weighing up wether to stay with London Underground.

"It was an invasion of my personal space," he explained. "I have not experienced anything as confrontational as that on the Underground.

"I expected to be able to attend work without being called names."

He denied that as an up and coming manager he was "point scoring" against the union to impress his bosses.

Harding admits he challenged Mr. Scott, but simply said: "I'm asking you to show solidarity and not cross the picket line."

He did not give evidence, but was backed by fellow RMT striker Sean McKenzie, who was on the phone with the defendant while picketing King's Cross Station during the incident.

"I could hear him trying to convince someone not to go into Hammersmith Station. He was quite calm and respectful."

When asked if he heard Harding shouting or calling anybody a 'scab' Mr. Mckenzie replied: "I'm quite shocked and relatively appalled by the suggestion.

"He did not shout, he was calm, he did not use the word 'scab' or any other derogatory term."

Harding was picketing Hammersmith Underground Station with his brother Jim and customer services assistant Steve Hardwick, who told the court: "There was no shouting at all, that's the truth.

"He wasn't called a 'scab' at all."

Harding pleaded not guilty to intimidation during a trade dispute, namely used, without legal authority, violence or intimidation towards Mr. Scott.

Chelsea FC Fan Fined For Celebrating On Hallowed Turf

A Chelsea FC fan, who ran onto the pitch where his late father's ashes are scattered after his team hit the goal that put them through to the Champions League semi-final, has been fined.

Mark Warboys, 39, of Windsor Close, Witham, Essex told Hammersmith Magistrates Court: “I enjoy my football, I'm passionate about my football.”

He pleaded guilty to entering the playing area during the Chelsea v Paris Saint-Germain match at Stamford Bridge on April 8 and was fined £320, with £85 costs and was ordered to pay a £32 victim surcharge.

Prosecutor Miss Helen Clutton told the court: “After Chelsea scored a goal he ran onto the football pitch and was detained by stewards and then the police.

“In his own words he said emotions were high and he got carried away.”

Chelsea striker Demba Ba had just hit the second goal in a 2 – 0 win minutes from the final whistle, which clinched the home's team's progress in the competition.

Warboys told the magistrates: “Emotions were running high that night. My dad's ashes were spread on the pitch there in 1989 and he has got a memorial plaque there.

“I go there regularly with my son. I'm a member and my son is a member as well.”

When told he could be made subject to a three-year football banning order, which would prevent him attending any matches Warboys added: “I would be very upset, but I would accept it gracefully.”

The magistrates did not make any football banning order.  

Teacher At Private Primary School Caught Drink-Driving After Hockey Club Celebration

A PE teacher at a private primary school was caught driving in the early hours at nearly double the drinks limit after attending his hockey club's end of season celebrations.

James Figgis, 28, of Highfield School, Highfield Lane, Liphook, Hampshire claims he was looking for a better place to park and sleep for the night after the alcohol-fueled dinner in central London.

He pleaded guilty at Hammersmith Magistrates Court yesterday to driving his VW Golf in Hurlingham Road, Fulham on April 13 with 67 microgrammes of alcohol on his breath – the legal limit is 35.

Prosecutor Miss Helen Clutton told the court: “He was seen driving at 3am with no lights on and that is why he was stopped and it was apparent he had been drinking that night.”

Figgis' lawyer Mr. Ben Holden said: “Mr. Figgis lives in Hampshire, he is a teacher at a school and he was in London to have an end of season meal with his hockey club and intended to sleep in his car afterwards.

“It is something he has done on many occassions in the past and leaves his keys in the boot and has a sleeping bag in the car and sleeps in the passenger seat, that was his intention.

“He has had a few drinks and learned there was a classic car rally in Fulham the next morning and the roads where he was parked would be full and it would take him a long time to get away the next morning.

“He learned that if he drove over Putney Bridge he could park in a residential area, but was stopped by the police three hundred yards after setting off.

“It does seem to be a stupid error by Mr. Figgis. He was not trying to sneak home and dodge the police.

“He is a teacher at an independent primary school and has been there for three years and is looking to pursue a teaching career.

“A conviction like this is going to be on his record for the rest of his life because of his career, working with children.

"He lives at the school and there are no local buses or train links and the disqualification is going to cause a detriment to his private life when trying to visit friends and family in Guildford and London.”

Figgis was fined £405, with £85 costs and ordered to pay a £40 victim surcharge and disqualified from driving for eighteen months.

Top Personal Trainer Caught Sleeping Off Booze In Car

Hammersmith Magistrates Court

A personal trainer at an exclusive club, who needs his driving licence to visit clients at their country estates, was found by police passed out behind the wheel of his car while over the drinks limit.

Lonan O'Herlihy, 24, of Westwood House, Heathfield Avenue, Ascot, Berkshire had left the engine running for warmth and the lights on after pulling over for a kip in a petrol station parking area.

He pleaded guilty at Hammersmith Magistrates Court (pictured) to being in charge of a vehicle while over the alcohol limit - an offence that does not result in automatic disqualification – and was fined £200, with £85 costs, ordered to pay a £20 victim surcharge and was given 10 penalty points on his licence.

The court heard O'Herlihy's Audi R8 was parked in the forecourt of Tesco's, New King's Road, Fulham at 3.30am on April 10.

“The defendant was slumped over the steering wheel and he told police he was using the car to keep warm and admitted he had a few drinks that night,” said prosecutor Miss Helen Clutton.

He gave a breath-test reading of 50 microgrammes of alcohol – the legal limit is 35.

Oxford-educated O'Herlihy, who resides in a £2.5m property, and was chosen for the university's rowing and tennis teams while studying at Malvern College, is employed by Belgravia's White Room Fitness.

“I was parked and trying to sleep,” O'Herlihy told the court. “I was asleep in a parking spot and I had been there for two hours.

“I do use my car for work, I'm a personal trainer and in marketing and many of my clients are in country houses, where I spend a couple of days a week.”

Duo In Court For Dealing In £1.1m Worth Of Stolen Pharmaceuticals

In Court: City of London

A company director and a pharmaceutical dealer, accused of handling £1.1 million worth of medicinal drugs stolen from a lorry nine years ago, have appeared at City of London Magistrates Court.

Vincent Quigley, 67, of Daleside, Thornhill, Dewsbury and Kenyan-born Mahmoud Azizi, 56, of Princess Court, Bryanston Place, Mayfair will appear at the Old Bailey on June 16.

Quigley is charged with one count of handling and one count of receiving stolen goods on or before October 16, 2007, namely 1,620,000 Comtan tablets; 510,000 Lopressor tablets and 480,000 Femara tablets.

He indicated a not guilty plea to both charges and was bailed unconditionally.

The tablets, which had been stolen in 2005, were traced to a warehouse in Yorkshire on October 16, 2007 by a private detective hired by the loser, Swiss-based Norvartis International.

Comtan is prescribed to patients with Parkinson's Disease; Lopressor is for the treatment of high blood pressure and Femara is for breast cancer patients.

Canadian citizen Azizi was extradited from Vancouver and appeared in custody charged with one count of receiving stolen goods on October 16, 2007, namely medicinal products belonging to Norvartis International.

He was bailed on condition he provide a £250,000 surety, surrender his passport, not apply for any travel documents, reside at his recorded address and report three times a week to Marylebone Police Station.

However, this decision was immediately appealed by the Crown Prosecution Service and Azizi will remain in custody until a crown court bail hearing.

Cocaine Courier Jailed For Smuggling Drugs In His Stomach

Cocaine: Gatwick Airport 

A convicted drug dealer, who was caught smuggling £23,000 worth of cocaine he swallowed before boarding a flight from Peru, has been jailed for three years and four months.

Lloyd Iain Powell, 36, of  Greenfields, Sellindge, Ashford, Kent pleaded guilty to smuggling 303gms of the drug at Gatwick Airport on February 14.

Croydon Crown Court heard the cocaine had a purity of between 62% and 76% and a street value of £23,616.

He had flown in from Peru via Spain and x-rays taken by suspicious Border Force officers revealed suspicious contents within his stomach.

While detained at HMP High Down Powell developed deep vein thrombosis in his leg and is awaiting an operation.

He also remains on the prison's 'danger of self-harm programme'.

Powell's lawyer Mr. Nicholas Hamblin asked the court to pass a more lenient sentence, stating the defendant was not an organiser.

“It is a lesser role. There is an element of pressure involved,” he said.

When remanded in custody for a medical report Recorder John Bate-Williams told him: “This is inevitably going to be a custodial sentence.

“Any time you are serving now will be credited against the eventual sentence.”

The court ordered the cocaine to be forfeited and Powell must pay a £120 victim surcharge.

RMT Picket-Line Striker Accused Of Branding Management Trainee A "Scab"

Striker: Mark Harding

A London Underground tube driver, who was picketing Hammersmith station during RMT industrial action, intimidated a strike-breaking trainee manager he branded a "scab" a court heard last Friday.

RMT official Mark Andrew Harding, 51, of Gomm Road, Rotherhithe was standing outside the station with two fellow strikers at 5.47am on February 6 when graduate trainee Gareth Robert Scott, 25, crossed the picket line.

Prosecutor Mr. Sam Roarke told City of London Magistrates Court: "The Crown's case is that Mr. Harding used intimidation to compel Mr. Scott not to do his job."

The prosecution, brought under the Trade Union and Labour Relations Act, is an important one for the RMT and the conviction of branch secretary Harding would be very damaging.

Union activists see the prosecution as politically-motivated and it has become something of a cause celebre for the movement, with union leaders, plus 15 MP's issuing a statement calling for the end of "anti-union laws."

Mr. Scott told the courtroom, which was packed with RMT supporters: "One gentleman approached me, made a beeline for me. 

"As I approached the station he came very close to me at a fast walking pace.

"At one point he was approximately five inches from my face, he was very close.

"When he got up close to me he shouted at me: 'Can you respect the picket line?'

"I avoided the gentleman and made my way towards the gates and he started shouting that I was a scab.

"He was shouting: 'You are a scab. What happens when your job is on the line?'

"I felt really shaken and frightened. i was concerned about what he was going to do. I was concerned he would follow me into the station.

Breaker: Gareth Scott

"I was working as an incident station supervisor to cover the strikes. I was told to cover the shift as there was no supervisor that day."

The industrial action caused travel chaos across the capital for thousands of commuters and was brought in response to plans to cut the numbers of station staff.

Mr. Scott, who has since abandoned his career with the London Underground called the British Transport Police (BTP) from the station office.

"I was really worried about having to work there that day and be subject to abuse and similar taunts.

"When I got home I got really worried about what would happen next."

Mr. Scott entered counselling as a result and says the incident played a part when weighing up wether to stay with London Underground.

"It was an invasion of my personal space," he explained. "I have not experienced anything as confrontational as that on the Underground.

"I expected to be able to attend work without being called names."

He denied that as an up and coming manager he was "point scoring" against the union to impress his bosses.

Harding admits he challenged Mr. Scott, but simply said: "I'm asking you to show solidarity and not cross the picket line."

He did not give evidence, but was backed by fellow RMT striker Sean McKenzie, who was on the phone with the defendant while picketing King's Cross Station during the incident.

"I could hear him trying to convince someone not to go into Hammersmith Station. He was quite calm and respectful."

When asked if he heard Harding shouting or calling anybody a 'scab' Mr. Mckenzie replied: "I'm quite shocked and relatively appalled by the suggestion.

"He did not shout, he was calm, he did not use the word 'scab' or any other derogatory term."

Harding was picketing Hammersmith Underground Station with his brother Jim and customer services assistant Steve Hardwick, who told the court: "There was no shouting at all, that's the truth.

"He wasn't called a 'scab' at all."

The trial was adjourned until June 2 when Harding will hear the verdict.

He has pleaded not guilty to intimidation during a trade dispute, namely used, without legal authority, violence or intimidation towards Mr. Scott.

Sister Batters Brother To Ground During Family's Day Trip To The Capital

Sibling violence broke out yet again during a Lowestoft family's trip to London, which ended with the sister battering her brother to the ground in front of a crowd of onlookers outside Victoria Station.

Voluntary charity worker Caole Ann Watlow, 28, of Whiting Road, Oulton pleaded guilty to assaulting Paul Shackell, 33, in Buckingham Palace Road on October 22, last year and was sentenced to nine months probation, which includes anger management sessions.

“This was a very unpleasant incident that lasted quite a long time,” bench chairwoman Valerie Gorter told Watlow at Hammersmith Magistrates Court. “We understand you and your brother have a history of aggression and conflict with each other that has to end now.”

Prosecutor Miss Helen Clutton said: “The victim is Miss Watlow's brother. They live in Suffolk and were visiting London on the day of the offence.

“They arrived outside Victoria Station and Miss Watlow accused her brother of taking her train ticket.

“The dispute attracted the attention of a security guard and members of the public who witnessed Miss Watlow pulling him onto the floor, hitting him and kicking him as he lay there without fighting back.

“Mr. Shackell sustained a cut above his left eye.”

The court heard Mr. Shackell was convicted of assaulting his sister in 2007 and 2008, on the first occasion punching her in the face several times and pulling her hair and a year later punching her in the forehead.

He was cleared of punching her in the face last year and Watlow herself was cautioned in 2000 for a street assault with a knife on her brother when he received grazes.

She told the magistrates: “Me, my mum and brother were picking up a family member and my brother was drunk and kept going on and on all the way there through the journey.

“I asked for the tickets back and he strangled me and that's when I over-reacted and hit him. I didn't pull him to the floor, he fell over.”

Watlow, who only admitted the offence on the day of the trial after initially pleading not guilty, was also ordered to pay £150 costs and a £60 victim surchage.

Restraining Order Slapped On Ex After Abusive Texts

Henry: Abusive Texts

A Cambridge man, who bombarded his ex with abusive text messages during a twenty-four hour period two weeks after they split-up, has been slapped with a six-month restraining order.

Jobless Jeff Henry, 38, who lives with his grandmother in Fanshawe Road pleaded guilty at Hammersmith Magistrates Court to harassing Laura Flanagan between March 5 and 6 and was placed on probation for twelve months and ordered to pay £85 costs and a £60 victim surcharge.

The restraining order bans him from contacting Miss Flanagan and entering Clarendon Road and Dulford Street, Notting Hill, west London.

Prosecutor Miss Helen Clutton told the court: “Laura Flanagan had been in a relatonship with Jeff Henry for two years and they have two children and split-up two weeks before the offence.

“The victim spotted the defendant in the street on March 5 and he started shouting at her, calling her a 'd***head' and making her feel embarrased and she then received unwanted texts and phone calls from Jeff Henry.”

Police were called, but when the defendant was interviewed officers were unable to check his phone because he smashed it in anger.

However, evidence of the harassment was on Miss Flanagan's phone.

“She does send texts back to Jeff Henry and some are abusive, but not as abusive as the defendant's texts,” added Miss Clutton.

“He told police he did not intend to carry out the threats in the texts.”

Henry, whose children with Miss Flanagan are aged one and two years-old, told the court: “The last eight weeks have been very difficult for me. I have not seen my daughter, who has cystic fibrosis.

“I'm sorry, I did not mean it to get out of control, but I've supported Laura through thick and thin, I've lied for her in court so she can keep the children and and they don't go into care.

“Not seeing my daughter is killing me,” added Henry, urging the magistrates not to impose a restraining order, which would mean all child access would have to be via a solicitor or family court.

Bench Chairwoman Valerie Gorter told Henry: “The harassment by text was persistent behaviour. She asked you to stop and you didn't.

“They were prolific, but not really threatening texts and I think you did not fully appreciate the effect of these texts on your ex.”

Ex-Husband Rips Up Wife's Wedding Dress

A recently-divorced husband ripped his ex-wife's wedding dress to shreds in a symbolic gesture that their marital life was over when she was late returning to relieve him of child-minding duties.

Other clothing was destroyed during the wrecking-spree and was followed-up with a catalogue of abusive phone calls and texts to the ex-wife.

Painter and decorator Anthony Ranford, 48, of Samuel Lewis Trust Dwellings, Ixworth Place, Chelsea pleaded guilty to causing criminal damage to clothing and footwear belonging to Aimee Ranford and Sarah Holliday at Hawthorn House, Townmead Road, Fulham on New Year's Day.

He also pleaded guilty to communicating an offensive message on January 3 after his ex received thirty-one calls and texts from him between 10am and 12am.

Prosecutor Miss Helen Clutton told Hammersmith Magistrates Court the couple had a ten-year relationship, were married for the last four years of it, and had two children.

“On January 1 Mr. Ranford was looking after the children and Aimee Ranford woke up late and called to apologise and he became abusive.

“When she returned home she found her wedding dress was ripped and had blood stains on it, a leather jacket was damaged, other clothing and a pair of trainers belonging to Sarah Holliday.”

Ranford told the court his marriage ended due to his ex-wife's infidelity, claiming she already had another man lined up when they parted.

“We split on October the fifteenth and my wife had her first date on the sixteenth, she says, but I know she started dating in August.

“The offences were due to her adultery, unsuitable babysitters and her Skyping her new boyfriend on Christmas Day and texting him on Christmas Day.

“The damaging of the wedding dress was an acknowledgment that our married life was over.

“I thought the trainers belonged to my ex-wife. All the other items were purchased by me.”

Ranford also complained he was paying excessive maintenance via the Child Support Agency, adding: “I've been paying over the odds in money.

“It's been £100 per week even when I have them five days a week, which means I should pay £38.

“The whole wedding I paid for and I was arrested for stealing the £4,000 wedding ring, but it's since resurfaced.”

Ranford was placed on probation for twelve months and must complete 100 hours community service work; pay £2,500 compensation to Aimee Ranford; £200 compensation to Sarah Holliday; £85 costs and a £60 victim surcharge.

“We feel you have shown no remorse,” bench chairwoman Valerie Gorter told him. In fact, you have sought to justify what you've done, but there is no justification.” 

Violent Ex Behind Bars

Custody: Hammersmith Magistrates Court

A disgruntled former husband, who has waged a violent campaign against his ex-wife and her mother, was remanded in custody yesterday for a probation report after yet another violent incident.

Mohammed Khairul Hoque, 38, of Tudor Street, Cardiff had already pleaded guilty to assaulting his one-time wife Shabana Begum at a flat in Braithwaite Tower, Hall Place, Paddington on October 11, last year.

Prosecutor Miss Helen Clutton told Hammersmith Magistrates Court: “The defendant is someone who has violent tendencies.

“She says he is her ex-husband, which she denies.”

Hoque was remanded in custody until May 29 for sentencing.

The court heard that in 2000 Hoque was convicted of stalking and stabbing both his ex-wife and mother-in-law in the head with a knife.

In 2003 he forced his way into the mother-in-law's address and threatened to kill the pair of them and in 2009 was convicted of wounding in an unrelated violent incident.

Former CPS Case Worker Gets Life For Murdering Elderly Bridge Partner

An ex-Crown Prosecution Service case worker is starting a life sentence for battering to death a fellow bridge club member – one hour before the pensioner was due to leave for a cruise.

Gambling addict Thomas Blazquez, 51, had quit his civil service job after fourteen years of dealing with criminal cases and run up debts as his life went off the rails.

He lived with his parents in Onslow Gardens, South Woodford and still left home every morning as if he was still working and there is no clear motive why he murdered 77 year-old Rosemary Shearman.

Blazquez arrived on the doorstep of her house in Platford Green, Hornchurch at 10.38am on September 3, last year as she waited for a taxi to take her to Dover to set-off on a ten-day cruise of the Norwegian fjords.

He knew her through the bridge club the widow was also a member of and they had been paired together on a handful of occasions.

At 11.45am the taxi arrived and with the help of neighbours who held a spare set of keys the property was accessed and the beaten body of Mrs Shearman was found.

She had been bound with tape and rope and repeatedly beaten around the head and body.

A large handkerchief was also forced into her upper airways.



A post mortem later gave the cause of her death as mechanical obstruction of the upper airways and multiple chest wall fractures.



She had earlier returned from the hairdressers and her bags were packed for the trip.

As the shocked neighbours waited outside they became aware of a silhouette moving around an upper floor bathroom.



When police officers arrived they discovered Blazquez in the bathroom covered in blood and suffering from self-inflicted wounds to his wrists, abdomen and neck.

Investigating officer Detective Chief Inspector Noel McHugh said: “The death of Rosemary Shearman has been a huge loss to her family and the local community, who are still coming to terms with her murder. 



“Her family described her as a typical loving grandmother.

“Blazquez is a highly manipulative and evil man, who subjected a defenceless woman to an unthinkable death.



“I would like to thank Rosemary’s family and the local community for their tremendous support during this very difficult investigation.

“In particular, I would like to recognise the bravery of the neighbours and emergency responders who entered the house whilst Blazquez was still inside the property.

“In particular, I’d like to praise the actions of Rosemary’s neighbour, Raymond Lomas, who was honoured by the judge for his courage and bravery.”

Greg Shearman and Carol Lewis, Rosemary Shearman’s son and daughter, said after sentencing: “We feel the sentence is some small justice following the tragic murder of our mother.

“We are relieved that the jury reached a guilty verdict and that a very dangerous man has been removed from the community.

“We pay tribute to the bravery of Ray Lomas, a neighbour of our mother, who went to her aid and helped raised the alarm.

“We also thank the murder investigation detectives and prosecution team. Their tireless work helped secure the result at court today.”

Blazquez denied murder on the grounds of diminished responsibility, but was convicted by a jury at Southwark Crown Court and must serve a minimum of eighteen years before he is considered for release.

Lorry Driver In Court After Pedestrian Seriously Injured

A HGV driver, whose vehicle struck a 65 year-old woman who had to be flown by air ambulance to hospital with a serious head injury, appeared in court for the first time yesterday.

Liam Higgins, 65, of Meadway, Halstead, Sevenoaks is charged with driving the Scania lorry, without due care and attention, in Lewisham Road, Lewisham on November 19, last year.

He pleaded not guilty during his first appearance at Bromley Magistrates Court and will stand trial at Bexleyheath Magistrates Court on September 1.

Oxford University Theology Grad Charged With Rape

A former Oxford University theology student, who trained to be a Church of England priest, appeared in court for the first time today charged with rape and other serious sexual offences.

Timothy Storey, 34, South City Court, Peckham Grove, Peckham appeared in custody via video link at Bromley Magistrates Court.

Dressed in a dark blue top a pensive-looking bespectacled Storey, who kept his head down, spoke only to confirm his name, age, and address during the six-minute hearing.

He is charged with one count of raping a woman on or about March 25, within the jurisdiction of the Central Criminal Court, and two counts of attempting to rape the same complainant.

Storey is also charged with assault by penetration and sexual assault of the woman on or about March 25.

He is further charged with breaching a Sexual Offences Prevention Order, imposed at Woolwich Crown Court, by using the internet and deleting the internet history on his phone between May 13 and 17 and failing to make his phone available to police on May 17.

No bail application was made and Storey was remanded in custody to appear at Woolwich Crown Court on June 2 for a preliminary hearing.