Lady-Killer Gets Life For Battering Pensioner To Death

The killer of a widow, who she battered to death with a hammer and heavy glass jug during a row over unfinished gardening work, has been jailed for life – with a twenty-four year minimum.

Pensioner Jean ‘Pat’ Jobson, 86, (pic.top) was murdered in her South-East London home by 46 year-old Karen Williamson (pic.bottom) who also tried to strangle the victim and set fire to the property afterwards.

Williamson, of Rangefield Road, Downham pleaded guilty at the Old Bailey to murdering Mrs Jobson between February 18 and 19, last year at the house in nearby Oakridge Road.

The crack-cocaine addict also stole the victim’s purse and several items of jewellery, which she pawned for £61.

Mrs Jobson, who was commonly known as Pat, had lived in the Downham area for much of her life. 



She was extremely popular with her neighbours, who knew her as a friendly and caring woman, who would not hesitate to help those in need.



On the evening of February 20, last year, Pat was found murdered in her home by police officers who had been contacted by concerned family members and friends who had been unable to contact her.



Mrs Jobson had been struck about the head with a hammer and a heavy glass jug, which had caused her skull to collapse and facture.

A post-mortem examination also revealed strangulation marks and various other bruises and fractures to Mrs Jobson’s hands and body.



An attempt to set fire to the house was also made by placing a tea-towel over the fire in the lounge.



A murder investigation was immediately launched and it was established Williamson had been hired by Mrs Jobson to do some casual gardening.

Following a disagreement concerning unfinished work Mrs Jobson had paid Williamson upfront for, she was brutally murdered.



Williamson a self-confessed crack-cocaine user also stole Pat’s purse and several items of jewellery, which she later pawned for just £61.



Detective Chief Inspector Cliff Lyons of the Homicide and Serious Crime Command said: “Pat Jobson was a popular and well loved member of the community.

“Her violent death caused shock and disbelief and many wondered why a lone and vulnerable woman would be attacked in this way.

“Karen Williamson, a drug user, killed Pat for a measly £61.

“I am pleased with the sentence she has received today and hope that this is some comfort to Pat’s family who have been left devastated by her murder.”

Two Jailed For Bolivian Cocaine Concealed In Drill

Two cocaine dealers, caught with over £1m worth of the drug cunningly concealed within a drilling tool shipped from Bolivia, have been caged.

Agim Recica, 39, (pic.top) of Douglas Court, Squires Lane, Finchley and Ilir Qefalija, 36, (pic.2^nd top) were caught in a police swoop empting the cocaine into a black bin liner.

Recica received nine years imprisonment at Harrow Crown Court for importing and intending to supply 6 kilos of cocaine and Qefalija received six years for possession, with intent to supply.

The operation was conducted by officers from the Middle Market Drugs Partnership (MMDP) - a unit made up of officers and staff from the Metropolitan Police Specialist Crime Directorate, the Serious Organised Crime Agency and the Border Force.

The court heard how on August 2, last year officers from MMDP observed Recica accepting delivery of a large wooden crate at the Fortis Green Car Valeting Services, East Finchley.

He dismantled the crate and removed a large metal industrial 'packer'- a specialist tool used in the drilling industry- before loading this into his van and driving away from the car wash.

Police watched him park at the rear of his home address, with his van parked towards the end of the parking area, in a position where the side of the vehicle could not easily be observed.

At this point he had been joined by his accomplice Qefalija and the men were actively dismantling the packer and decanting a white powder from within the heavy industrial tube.

Officers quickly moved in and arrested the pair.

The packer was found in the nearside side door of the van (pic.bottom) having been stripped down to reveal an extremely sophisticated concealment.

Traces of white powder were found inside the van and on the floor of the car park and close to the front passenger’s door there was a black bin liner containing six kilos of white powder that had been removed from the packer.

Recica was found in possession of a mobile phone and the screen showed that there had been four missed calls from a Bolivian telephone number.

Investigations revealed the packer had been sent from Bolivia and had arrived at Heathrow Airport on July 29. 


Laboratory tests were conducted on the white powder and revealed the substance to be 6 kilograms of high purity cocaine with a street value of 1.2 million pounds.

Detective Inspector Steven Miles of Middle Market Drugs Partnership said “The sophistication of the concealment methods used by this organised criminal network shows a determination to evade detection and flood the streets of London with harmful class A drugs.

“The vigilance of the United Kingdom Border Agency and Middle Market Drugs Partnership thwarted this criminal enterprise and resulted in these convictions.”

Assistant Director Peter Avery, of Border Force, said: “This smuggling attempt shows the lengths criminals are prepared to go to in their attempts to transport drugs around the world.

“Working with our law enforcement partners here in the UK and around the world, we are determined to prevent this terrible trade which can have such a destructive impact on the lives of so many.”

Killer-Rapist Jailed For Demo Deception

A killer and double-rapist, who had sexual relationships with unsuspecting women protestors at the Occupy London camps, was jailed for six months on Friday for using an alias and given a lifetime ban from similar demos.

Jobless Leeds-born Stuart Durkin, 50, (pic.top) received six years in Sweden for killing his wife, 12 years for the bedsit rape of a virgin and thirteen years for the rape and attempted murder of a 30 year-old tourist in Rome, who he beat with a rock when she resisted.

He was repatriated to the UK on April 14, 2003, released on June 1, 2007 and given a council flat in Derry House, Church Street Estate, St. John's Wood, where he has remained on housing benefit.

"You are someone who has a history of violent offences, including sexual offences, and you are at the highest-risk end of offences involving sexual matters and violence," Old Bailey Recorder Nigel Peters QC told Durkin.

"You were passing yourself off as someone known as 'Troy' at the Finsbury Square camp and were using that when texting and chatting-up other people."

As a dangerous sex offender Durkin must keep police informed of his address and is subject to spot-checks by the Met's Jigsaw Team.

He was given a police escort to collect his belongings from his tent (pic.mid. and bottom) after he was charged and bailed on the condition he does not visit the camp.

He pleaded guilty that being a relevant offender under the Sexual Offences Act, failed to comply with a notification requirement, namely tell police he was using the name 'Troy' between October 12 and November 14, last year.

"Mr. Durkin was involved in the community activity with the London Stock Exchange protest camp at St. Paul's Cathedral and had a tent pitched at the Finsbury Square camp, which he used as a base," said prosecutor Mr. Marcus Rickard.

"He had been attending at these locations and there was an occasion he was arrested for assault and there was a comment made by Mr. Durkin that he had been staying at the camp for three weeks.

"That was looked into further and as a result there were further investigations and the phone records of Mr. Durkin were looked into," added the prosecutor.

"The phone that was seized indicated there was the use of two names, 'Stoo' and 'Troy'.

"Troy is a name this defendant was using to befriend females at the protest camp and there were at least twenty-four text messages over that period to females predominantly using the name Troy.

"Troy is a pseudonym he uses to target women," added Mr. Rickard. "The pre-sentence report makes much of the manipulative character of this defendant."

Detective Constable Richard Butcher said: "He has informed us in interview that he has formed sexual relationships with women he does not want the police to notify. Mr. Durkin has made sexual relationships with women at the camp."

Durkin had been sharing his tent with one particular woman in Finsbury Square, but she left for a similar demo in the west country before his arrest.

Durkin has been in custody since April 24, when he was arrested by police at his flat for not obeying on two occasions his conditions of bail, which included an electronically tagged residence and night time curfew requirement.

He refused to answer his front door to police, who eventually smashed it open. "Inside Mr. Durkin was on a sofa with his head in his hands," explained Mr. Rickard.

Durkin received two months' concurrent for breaching his bail conditions.

A similar charge that he deliberately failed to inform police he set up residence at the Finsbury Square camp was dropped.

After his arrest at St. Paul's for assaulting a tramp on November 13 Durkin texted a friend from Bishopsgate Police Station the message: 'In the hands of the beast.'

Durkin's lawyer Mr. Stephen McCabe said: "Many people at these camps use false names and street names.

"He was not aware of the name condition of the order, but ignorance of the law is no defence.

"The name is used in the context of a demo camp so is not as serious," added the lawyer. "He has brought this on himself. He knows that.

"He says he has suffered an awful lot of stress during these proceedings and has had trouble with the neighbours since his name was published in the Evening Standard in November.

"He has been suffering depression and feels hemmed-in and thought to go out and join the camp was no problem.

"There was no sinister intent. This was a casual camp, with people coming and going."

Businessman-From-Hell Gets Another Six Months For C.V. Lies

A notorious bankrupt rogue trader was jailed for an additional six months yesterday for lying on his c.v. to secure a sales job he was subsequently sacked from.

Royston Rees, 61, (pictured) of Glanmor Road, Llanelli was fired by mobility scooter firm Forever Active for "gross misconduct" and was sued for the return of a company van.

He pleaded guilty at Croydon Crown Court to fraud on or before February 16, 2007 by dishonestly misrepresenting to the company he had been employed by Windmill Plastic Injection Mouldings (WPIM) of Sunbury-on-Thames between 1999 and 2004.

Rees, who was made bankrupt in 1986, 1992 and 1998, was brought from HMP Ford open prison where he is currently serving a thirty-month sentence for illegal trading, which he received in December, last year.

Prosecutor Mr. Edmund Burge told the court Rees landed the £15,000 a year sales job, plus bonuses, after a successful interview with the managing director on February 16, 2007.

"He deliberately lied on his c.v.," added the prosecutor, explaining Rees had only been with WPIM four months when remanded in custody on other offences.

Those nineteen charges, which included fraud, deception and illegal trading, landed the defendant with a five-year jail term at Cardiff Crown court in January 2001.

Rees was fired by forever active after six months. "He was dismissed for gross misconduct following complaints by customers concerning his dealings with second-hand mobility scooters," said Mr. Burge.

"He also retained the company van for four months and they had to take legal action to secure its return."

As well as £7,500 in wages the company lost up to £5,000 in compensation they had to pay disgruntled customers and the van's hire fees.

"This offence, to which you have had the good sense and decency to plead guilty to is so serious only an immediate custodial sentence is justified," Judge tim Stow told Rees.

"This was a totally separate offence, involving you deliberately deceiving your employers by stating that you had been employed, when in fact you had been dismissed by WPIM after four months.

"Forever Active would not have dreamt of employing you had you told them what the true position was.

"You have a bed criminal record and you worked all this out in advance, exactly what the deception would be.

"You were dismissed for gross misconduct for an allegation of theft of a mobility scooter, which you apparently took."

The six month sentence is consecutive to the thirty months Rees is already serving.

On Monday he is being allowed to travel alone from HMP Ford to an open prison in Wales to complete the sentence nearer home.

Rees also has nine-and-a-half years of a ten-year company director disqualification to run.

"Gold Dust" Cocaine Courier Caged

A cocaine smuggler, who had £423,000 worth of the drug stashed in a side panels of his cases as he stepped off a plane at London City Airport, was jailed for four-and-a-half years today.

Malcolm Sayers, 49, (pictured) of Bute Street, Cardiff initially claimed he thought he was smuggling gold dust, but this was dismissed as "hogwash" by a judge.

He pleaded guilty at Croydon Crown Court to importing almost 3.5 kilos of cocaine on January 30.

Prosecutor Mr. Julius Capon told the court Sayers was stopped after flying in from Paris, which was the final leg of a journey, which began in Dakar, Senegal.

"The drug were found in the side panel of his suitcase and briefcase," explained Mr. Capon. "The defendant claims he believed he was smuggling gold dust and the prosecution say that proposition is ridiculous."

Judge Jeremy Gold QC agreed, announcing: "It sounds like hogwash."

Sayers' lawyer told the court his client has a girlfriend in Dakar, but did not have enough money to fly home.

"He did not have the funds to return to the U.K. to his eighty-three year-old mother who lives alone. Initially he was told it was gold dust and did not ask any questions.

"He does accept there was something suspicious about these cases."

Ex-heroin addict Sayers was also suffering withdrawal symptoms after running out of his methadone prescription in Dakar and was anxious to return home for more medication.

"He has a history of drug abuse in his earlier years," added the lawyer, revealing Sayers has been on heroin-substitute methadone for ten to fifteen years."

The defendant was also ordered to pay £300 prosecution costs and £240 cash seized from him at City Airport was forfeited.

Cocaine Bulk Brothers Jailed For Supplying Chemicals

Two brothers, who supplied over one tonne of cocaine cutting agents to large-scale dealers who sold up to £90m worth of the drug, have been jailed.

Saleh Ahmed, 29, (pic.top) and Siddique Ahmed, 23, (pic.bottom) both of Herbert House, Old Castle Street, Whitechapel supplied the chemicals via a company they created.

Saleh received five years-and-seven months and Siddique three years at Snaresbrook Crown Court for committing an act capable of assisting the commission of an indictable offence, namely drug supply.

Whilst cash seized from the Ahmeds was found to be heavily contaminated with cocaine, no actual controlled drugs were seized. 



The jury heard that the brothers formed a company, Simply Benzo Limited, that sold benzocaine (an anaesthetic), phenacetin (a painkiller) and procaine (an anaesthetic), as well as other chemicals via the Internet.

Saleh also sold cutting agents from his car. 



Following information provided by the Serious Organised Crime Agency Project Kitley, the Met
investigation, named Operation Amo, took action on March 29, last year.

On that date officers from the London Regional Asset Recovery Team (LRART), part of the Specialist and Economic Crime Command, supported by units from the Territorial Support Group, executed a series of search warrants.

At the Ahmeds’ home 38kg of cutting agent were found plus a further 213kg of cutting agent at a rented storage facility.

A 1kg-measuring jug and a large quantity of self-seal bags were also recovered.

The chemicals, in powder form, were imported by the Ahmeds from China.

Saleh had earlier admitted that he had possibly sold cutting agent to drug dealers, but insisted that he supplied the bulk of it for legitimate medical uses in the UK and overseas. 



Extensive enquiries with the pharmaceutical and medical supply industries showed that there was no legitimate commercial use for the chemicals in the form the Ahmeds sold them in.



Analysis of sales made, often using PayPal to receive payment from Internet sales, showed that the cutting agents were supplied to customers across the UK and as far away as the United States.

At least 900kg of cutting agent, in addition to that seized, had been sold by the Ahmeds before their arrests.



A confiscation investigation is now underway to recover the profits made by the Ahmeds.



The officer in the case, DC Steve Everson, of the Economic and Specialist Crime Command, said: “This conviction and sentence serves as a stark warning to those thinking of starting a trade in these types of products outside the pharmaceutical industry.

“In their raw form, they are destined for one purpose only, the illegal drugs trade.

“The London RART and its partner agencies will actively pursue those involved in this trade.”



DI Jeremy Tizard, Head of the London RART, said: “The overwhelming evidence showed that the brothers knew they were supplying cutting and bulking agents to be used in the supply of cocaine.

“Whilst the chemicals imported, in a prepared form, have some legitimate medical uses, pharmaceutical manufacturers were never going to buy 1kg bags of raw powder from an unlicensed dealer operating from a storage facility. 



“The sheer scale of the activity is staggering. They imported more than one tonne of cutting agents over a two year period which, mixed at a conservative ratio, assisted in the production of 1800kg of street level cocaine valued at least £90 million.

“Whilst neither brother was ever involved in the physical sale of cocaine, their ability to source and import cutting agents in these quantities contributed hugely to the drug trade in London and beyond.”



Top Lawyer Jailed For £1.2M Travel Expenses Scam

A top City lawyer, who masterminded a £1.2m travel expenses scam after spending a fortune on his Lebanese lover, has been jailed for three years.

Christopher Grierson, 60, (pictured) of Rodean Crescent, Putney pleaded guilty at Southwark Crown Court to a £1,274,414 travel expenses fraud in relation to 57 bogus claims for international travel.

He admitted furnishing false information to Hogan Lovells Solicitors of 50 Holborn Viaduct between January 1 and December 31, 2008 in relation to 11 travel claims totalling £167,211.

He pleaded guilty to three similar counts regarding 25 claims relating to £526,887 between January 1 and December 31, 2009; 19 claims relating to £516,705 between January 1 and December 31, 2010 and 2 claims relating to £63,611 between January 1 and May 12, last year.

Grierson was litigation partner instructed in collapse of Bank of Credit and Commerce International and runner-up in 2010's Lawyer of the Year competition.

Also acted for Sultan of Brunei's brother and advised the Financial Services Authority on the administration of Lehman Brothers.

He was sacked from his £830,000 a year position in May, last year and reported to the Solicitors Regulatory Authority.

Grierson repaid the money to the firm before his arrest in June.

The father-of-four gave his lover £280,000 cash and paid her rent at a New York apartment for eighteen months, totalling over £300,000.

Grierson's monthly outgoings totalled £40,000 and he began the bogus travel fraud to cover his losses.

Living The Champagne Lifestyle - The Croydon Way

An angry nightclub customer, who smashed a champagne bottle and used the shard to attack a man who had fallen into him, has dodged jailed with a suspended sentence.

Daniel Ewenighi, 25, of Waters Road, Catford fought outside the 'Shooshh' club, (pictured) Crown Hill, Croydon before returning with the improvised weapon, cutting the victim's ear as he lunged toward him.

He pleaded guilty at Croydon Crown Court to wounding scaffolder and amateur boxer Glen Bowden on August 7, last year and was sentenced to twelve months imprisonment, suspended for two years, and ordered to perform 300 hours community service.

Prosecutor Mr. Hamish Reid told the court the victim was in a smoking area outside the club at just before 2am and fell into the back of the defendant as he climbed the steep flight of stairs to re-enter.

Mr. Bowden told police later:"Even though I apologised he tried to grab hold of me and was up for a fight."

Bouncers split up and ejected the brawling pair, but Mr. Bowden explained how the confrontation escalated in the street.

"I heard shouting and saw him smash a large champagne bottle. He swung the broken bottle at me and as I got my arm up the bottle caught me on my left ear and by my neck."

The victim was rushed to Mayday A&E, where he receives six sutures to the wound.

Ewenighi was arrested on August 15 via driving licence details he had given entering the club.

Midnight Pedestrian Tragedy: Mini-Cab Driver Cleared

A mini-cab driver was cleared of blame by a jury on Friday in relation to the tragic death of a pedestrian - struck just after midnight at a notorious accident blackspot.

Syed-Ajamal Syedzadah, 29, (pictured) of Clarence Road, Croydon had just exited the Wellesley Road underpass when his vehicle hit Manchester man James Worthe as he crossed the duel carriageway.

The pedestrian - who had consumed up to a dozen pints of Guinness during a night out with a friend - suffered fractures to his ribs, spine, skull and face, causing brain trauma and a collapsed lung.

Syedzadah had pleaded not guilty at Croydon Crown Court to causing the death of Mr. Worthe on January 23, last year by driving without due care and attention and was found not guilty by the jury.

The court heard there had been a meeting in a private room between the defendant and Mr. Worthe's family within the building, which was hoped would go some way to healing the wounds of the tragedy.

Prosecutor Mr. Philip Rule told the court Syedzadah, who had been driving a mini-cab for over a year, was travelling to the Jury's Inn hotel at 12.30am to collect a fare.

Mr. Worthe, who was working in London, had been watching football with a friend in a pub half a mile away from the tragedy.

The pair were seen walking and singing in the street afterwards and Mr. Worthe, whose blood alcohol level was equivalent to three times the drink-drive limit, decided to cross the road alone.

"He crossed the road where he should not have been," explained Mr. Rule. "It was the head of Mr. Worthe that struck the windscreen and his body struck the bonnet and the roof."

A police accident investigator estimated Syedzadeh's speed at the time of impact as between 40mph-50mph.

When quizzed the defendant told police he tried to brake to avoid the collision on the road, which has a 30mph limit.

Rapist Who Tried To Dodge Justice Is Jailed

Justice finally caught up with a rapist, who went on the run after attacking a 25 year-old woman, when he was caged for seven years on Friday.

Laurence Chris Chinagu, 37, of Albert Square, Stratford was convicted by a Wood Green Crown Court jury and was also placed on the Sex Offenders' Register for life.

Chinagu (pictured) was found guilty of raping the woman at an address in Great Amwell Lane, New River Village, Hornsey at 10.30pm on December 1, 2009.

He was arrested, questioned and bailed, but failed to return to his police station appointment in June 2010 and there was a publicity campaign to trace him a year later.

On-The-Run Paedo Caught And Caged

A paedophile, who jumped bail after police caught him with over one thousand sick pornographic videos and images of children, was jailed for eight months yesterday.

Sean King, 43, of Chancellor Gardens, South Croydon must also sign the Sex Offenders Register for ten years.

He pleaded guilty at Croydon Crown Court (pictured) to seven sample counts of possessing level one to four indecent images of children at his home address on or before September 6, last year.

Police investigating the Limewire online file-sharing service identified King as a potential suspect and officers visited his home at 2.15pm.

The defendant answered his front door and after claiming he left his laptop at work it was found stashed in a living-room wardrobe.

"This what you are looking for," King told the officers, adding: "I'm stupid sometimes. You might find a couple."

Police identified a total of 1,054 indecent images of children involved in various sexual acts.

King was quizzed and bailed, but failed to return for his police station appointment and was circulated as wanted.

He was arrested on May 3 and charged the next day.

Judge Daniel Flahive told him: "You had over one thousand images in your possession, which included sexual activity between adults and children."

Scumbag Sentenced For Double OAP Scam

A "mean and callous" serial rogue trader, who targeted elderly and vulnerable victims in a gardening and roofing scam, was jailed for fifteen months today.

Irish traveller Harry Smith, 22, of Bloxham Road, Milton, Oxfordshire conned £4,000 out of a Kent couple in their eighties who suffered with dementia and plotted to extract £800 from an 85 year-old Croydon pensioner.

"It is such a mean offence, it is callous," said the Recorder of Croydon Judge Warwick Mckinnon. "It is pre-meditated, planned and he has done it before."

Smith pleaded guilty to fraud by false representation between July 30 and August 2, 2010 in relation to James and Jean McBride - aged 86 and 83 - of Sevenoaks.

He also pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud Charles Hammond, 85, of Park Road, Kenley and fraudulently failing to to disclose information to the victim, namely his cancellation rights on April 11, last year.

Prosecutor Miss Francesca Levett told the court the Kent couple were approached by the defendant to carry out gardening work at their home of thirty years and convinced them to write him a £4,000 cheque.

"They are vulnerable and elderly people and no work was ever carried out."

Police were only called after the couple's son, Chris, spotted the payment and it was traced to an account in the name of J Smith, which the defendant had opened.

Illness has since forced Jean into a care home and James is visited by a carer twice a day.

When arrested Smith denied the scam, but records of a police stop in Goathurst Common, Ide Hill placed him in the vicinity.

To save the victims giving evidence Smith was given a chance to refund the £4,000 in return for the charge being dropped, but he simply vanished and was circulated as wanted.

He later claimed a fundraising attempt at a Christian Travellers Convention failed to raise the necessary compensation.

Smith and an accomplice cold-called Mr. Hammond, with the defendant claiming he was the son of the roofer who worked on the victim's garage two years earlier and wanted to check its condition.

"Mr. Smith said he felt the roof would not survive the summer," said Miss Levett. "In reality the felt was in good condition and no work was required."

After initially trying to scam Mr. Hammond - who has since passed away - out of £2,250 for the £30 job an £800 fee was agreed.

Smith's accomplice - who was jailed for eight months - then used a broom to spread cheap bitumen over the roof.

When Smith demanded payment and the victim had no money in the house the accomplice drove the pensioner to the bank while the defendant remained alone in the property.

The money was not available and the two conmen agreed to return the next day, but Mr. Hammond was now suspicious and police were waiting when they arrived.

Officers seized their unregistered VW Passat van, which will now be confiscated.

In 2008 Smith received a suspended youth custody sentence in Somerset for a similar scam when he charged a lady £4,000 for covering her drive with £35 worth of tarmac.

Judge McKinnon told a tearful Smith, who will now miss the birth of his wife's twins: "These offences are similar and you have a previous conviction.

"They are mean and nasty because they prey on the age and vulnerability of elderly victims who do not have the same shield as young, healthy people.

"There was an obvious degree of planning, pre-meditation and deception by saying you were the son of the roofer. A deliberate lie."

Smith repaid the £4,000 the day before he was sentenced, but no order for costs was made against him despite Croydon Council alone spending over £20,000 to investigate and prosecute the case.

Over a dozen travellers were in court for the sentencing.