Pub Landlord CCTV Pervert Jailed For Spying On Customers

Court In The Act: Ron Hall Outside Bromley Magistrates'

A pub landlord, who installed CCTV in the gents toilet and secretly recorded close-up images of his customers using the urinals, was jailed for nine months today.

Under the pretence of combating drug use at the popular south-east London pub Ronald Hall, 50, persuaded brewery bosses to install a CCTV camera by the toilet door.

However, once contractors arrived he insisted they place the camera inside the lavatory and then deliberately disabled a privacy function, which allowed him a full view of the urinals.

He pleaded guilty at Bromley Magistrates’ Court to thirty-two counts of voyeurism at the Plough & Harrow pub, Bellegrove Road, Welling between February 20 and December 6, last year.

Hall, of Stanley Road, Folkestone, lost his accommodation and job when arrested at the pub on December 17 and moved to the Kent coast where he got a job as a bus driver.

“Your attitude demonstrates a woeful lack of respect for privacy,” District Judge Sarah Turnock told an obviously shocked Hall. “There must be a sentencing uplift to reflect the sheer volume and scale of your actions.

“There is no realistic prospect of rehabilitation. When given the opportunity to express remorse you have refused to do so and minimised your actions and behaviour and suggested that people would not have even minded.”

Prosecutor Colette Hanna told the court the National Crime Agency alerted police to an online dropbox containing potentially illegal images and recordings that were traced to Hall.

Officers seized and examined his mobile phone, which contained recordings from the pub’s toilet with sixteen male victims identified.

The thirty-two charges relate to Hall recording each of those sixteen victims and operating equipment to observe them.

Hall was able to use his phone to remotely zoom in to the urinals and record footage of his customers using them.

When questioned by the officers he claimed: “It’s not voyeurism because it is not distributed.”

Sunglasses Ron: Future Not Bright

“He admitted it was a ‘silly mistake’ and denied it was for sexual gratification,” added Ms Hanna.

Hall admitted going online to seek adult gay porn, but claimed when he clicked a link his dropbox was immediately shut down.

The landlord said it was common knowledge amongst regulars that there was a CCTV camera in the toilet and they would joke: “Have you been watching my k***?”

In total police found 105 separate video clips, with Hall claiming his customers “would not be bothered” by the recordings.

“He made light of it and thought there was nothing wrong with what he was doing and they would have consented anyway because they knew they were being filmed,” said Ms Hanna.

“There is planning and persistence and apparently a lack of remorse.”

District Judge Turnock announced: “He deliberately disconnected the privacy settings of the contractors. This seemed to have been planned throughout.

“The offences are very serious and I am satisfied there are factors that raise culpability. 

“There was a significant degree of planning by you, that is overwhelmingly clear to me,” she told Hall. 

“Added to that the images were shared on your dropbox and accessed at your convenience as you abused your position as the landlord of a public house to record customers.

“You directed the installation and then tampered with the CCTV camera to remove the privacy settings order to view mens’ genitalia.”

The CCTV system came with a ‘grey area’ that prevented users having a clear view of the urinals on the screen, but this was removed by the landlord.

Hall was unprepared for a prison after the pre-sentence report (PSR) recommended a non-custodial disposal of the case and failed to bring his medication and overnight bag.

“Who is going to look after my animals? I have got no-one to look after my dog and parrot,” he complained. “My car is in the car park. How are we going to sort that out?”

His lawyer Christina Barath told the court: “He has shown a lot more remorse for his actions than is in the PSR. He does not think probation wrote down everything he said.

“He no longer works at the pub and is a bus driver and would not have done this if he had not been drinking. This has had a massive impact on his life.

“CCTV was only in the toilet due to drug use and he accessed the CCTV when he was drunk through his phone and zoomed in using his phone.

“He appreciates the severity of his actions and accepts the seriousness of this and that he could receive a custodial sentence.”

The lawyer said Hall attempted suicide before his first court appearance and its currently on an increased prescription for depression.

“Custody would impact his physical and mental health,” added Ms Barath. “He would lose his home and has complex needs and is vulnerable.”

Hall has also had liver and kidney issues and suffered abuse as a teenager, the court heard.

District Judge Turnock also ordered Hall to sign the sex offenders register for ten years; made him subject to a five-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order and he must pay £85 costs and £187 victim surcharge.

"Violent And Dangerous" London Underground Robber Admits Spree

A machete-wielding prolific robber, who targeted six victims on the London Underground system in just four days, has admitted his crime spree.

Teddy Kelt, 20, of Bower Close, Romford pleaded guilty at Inner London Crown Court to three counts of robbery and three counts of attempted robbery.

He also pleaded guilty to two public order offences, two counts of possessing a knife or bladed article in public, and common assault.

He will be sentenced at Inner London Crown Court on October 16.

The court heard how on December 4, last year at around 9.30pm, Kelt followed a 22-year-old man onto the platform of Mile End Underground station and approached him, telling him he had a knife.

He said he would stab the victim if he called for help and demanded his mobile phone. 

After the victim handed it over, Kelt patted down the victim and went through his pockets before slapping him in the face, pushing him onto the floor, and leaving the station.

The following day, Kelt sat next to a 16-year-old boy on a Jubilee Line train, where he asked about his mobile before showing him a machete and demanding he hand his phone over.

Two days later, Kelt attempted to rob three people on a Northern Line train towards Totteridge and Whetstone Underground station, sitting opposite a 21-year-old man and a 13-year-old boy and asking about the man's watch, threatening the pair.

He then approached a 19-year-old man and asked about his headphones before threatening to stab him for his phone. 

He dropped his knife on the floor in front of the man before leaving the train.

The next day, Kelt approached another man on the platform of Finchley Central Underground station and asked to use his phone to call a friend. 

He then followed the victim onto the train showed him the handle of a knife in his waistband, threatening to kill him.

The victim handed over his phone, laptop, and iPad out of fear before Kelt demanded the victim get off the train at Tufnell Park with him. 

Kelt led the victim into a newsagent before further robbing him of his headphones and rucksack.

Later that day, Kelt attempted to rob a 17-year-old of their phone on an Elizabeth Line train, again threatening to stab him. 

When other passengers intervened, Kelt attempted to punch one of them. 

Not long after, on another Elizabeth Line train, Kelt tried to rob another man of his phone and said he would "slash his neck" before walking off.

In total, over four days Kelt robbed three people of items worth nearly £4,000.

Kelt is already serving a 3-year and 9-month sentence for three more robberies of items worth around £2,000, two more attempted robberies, two counts of possessing Class C drugs, and possessing a corrosive substance in a public place.

These robberies and attempted robberies took place at Ilford, Gidea Park, Goodmayes, Bexleyheath, and Seven Kings between November 29 and December 9, 2024.

Officers identified Kelt after they were called to Gidea Park on December 9, following a robbery he had committed. 

Officers recognised him in the CCTV footage and attended his address early in the morning, finding him in the garden wearing a stolen coat with several stolen phones in his home.

Detective Sergeant Steven Ridpath-Mitchell said: "Kelt is an exceedingly violent and dangerous individual, who spent four days mostly targeting teenagers, threatening them at knifepoint, for his own benefit. 

“I hope that his guilty plea provides some sense of closure to the victims after he put them through such an awful ordeal.

"He's shown no remorse for his actions, either refusing to be interviewed or providing no comment or reply. 

“The threats that he made against innocent commuters and the violence he used to rob them of their belongings is frankly sickening.

"There is absolutely no tolerance for robbery on the railway network, and we have regular patrols on trains and in stations of uniformed officers alongside our specially trained plain-clothed officers to detect and deter robbery around the clock."

Knifeman "Laughed" About Double Tube Station Stabbings

A violent knifeman, who entered a tube station and repeatedly stabbed two passengers waiting for a train, has been convicted of GBH.

Nicholas Orlando Green, 36, did not know the male victims, who were part of a larger group that had just departed a local Kennington dance class at approximately 10.30pm.

An Inner London Crown Court jury cleared him of the attempted murder of the victims.

Green, of Kennington Park Road will be sentenced in December for two counts of inflicting grievous bodily harm, with intent, possession of a bladed article and assaulting a female as he exited the station.

The first victim, 44, was already in Kennington Underground Station when Green tapped in using a bank card, which later identified him.

On the platform he launched a ferocious and unprovoked attack on the man, attacking and stabbing him for around 20 seconds with a knife clenched in his right hand. 

He continued the attack even after the victim fell to the floor.

Hearing the commotion, the second victim, 42, rushed over to intervene. 

Green then began attacking him in the same way, knocking him to the ground before other horrified members of the public intervened.

Green then got up and made his way to a lift, where he assaulted the 31-year-old woman before leaving the station.

Both of the first two victims were rushed to hospital. 

The first victim suffered multiple stab injuries to his chest and a fractured humerus bone in his left arm.

The second victim also suffered 13 stab injuries in total.

Detectives launched an urgent investigation and quickly established Green's identity from the bank card he had tapped into the station with.

He was arrested the following day by BTP officers and taken into custody.

During a search of his address officers located the card he had used to tap in and the trainers he had worn during the attack. 

They also found the jacket that he had been wearing, which had been freshly washed.

Detective Chief Inspector Paul Attwell said: "This was a truly horrific and unprovoked attack that left two innocent men with life-altering physical and psychological injuries that they continue to recover from.

“Green’s torrent of violence that day has never been satisfactorily explained.

“During police interviews Green repeatedly laughed, lied, argued and tried to frustrate our investigation as much as he could, but our officers worked tirelessly to gather crucial evidence that helped the jury see through his lies and bring him to justice.

“I hope this outcome brings some measure of justice and reassurance to the victims and their loved ones. 

“We will stop at nothing to ensure violent offenders like Green are held to account and removed from the streets.”

Anyone who is the victim of or witness to an offence on the tube or railway network should text 61016 or call 0800 40 50 40. In an emergency always call 999.

£2M School Arsonists Receive Suspended Prison Sentences

Louis Hall-Simper

Two young arsonists, responsible for burning down a £2m school building, received suspended prison sentences today.

Louis Hall-Simper, 23, and Harry Shearman, 22, are former pupils of Hinchley Wood Primary School, Esher, Surrey and fought the charge.

They were both convicted of arson by a Kingston-upon-Thames Crown jury, who found they were to blame for the fire in the early hours of September 26, 2021 when The Woodies Building was destroyed.

Unfortunately court staff failed to comply with the direction of Recorder Aiden Eardley QC, who ordered a live online link of the sentencing hearing to be made available to the media.

Hall-Simper received ten months imprisonment, suspended for twelve months and Shearman nine months imprisonment, suspended for twelve months.

Hall-Simper must also complete 200 hours community service work and Shearman 180 hours.

Both defendants were also each ordered to pay £1200 costs.

When prosecutor Tim Sleigh opened the trial he told the jurors both defendants had been drinking that night and later told police they lit a disposable BBQ to keep warm on the school premises.

However, the prosecution say there was no evidence of a BBQ in the debris and even if the ex-pupils’ account is true they were at least reckless in starting the fire.

“On that night the wooden building burned down, causing over two million pounds worth of damage,” said Mr Sleigh. “These two defendants were past pupils of the school some years earlier.

“They had met that night, drank some alcohol and decided to break into their old school at 11.00pm and having entered the grounds they sat in a courtyard.

Harry Shearman

“That area was partly covered by wooden struts and having sat there for a while they broke into the school building and CCTV evidence shows them looking around.

“Meanwhile, a fire developed outside the building while the defendants were inside and when they realised this they fled.

“The fire brigade extinguished the fire, but were not able to save the building and it was destroyed,” explained Mr Sleigh. 

“You will have to decide if their behaviour was reckless or deliberate,” he told the jurors.

“No disposable BBQ was found, but one would not necessarily be discovered. 

“Experts will tell you the fire could have burned at 430 degrees centigrade.”

When initially questioned by police neither defendant mentioned anything about a BBQ.

“Shearman initially said they had sat in the area, but he did not know how the fire started and then he said in his second interview they had lit a disposable BBQ to stay warm.

“He said they left it when they decided to enter the school , but he had urinated and poured water onto it.

“In his second interview Hall-Simper gave a similar account about the BBQ and that they had left it pretty much extinguished.

“Did these defendants see a risk at leaving that BBQ there and was it unreasonable to take that risk?” asked Mr Sleigh. 

“You will be invited to consider by the prosecution that these two defendants committed arson on that day.”

Banned: Speeding Mayfair Art Photography Gallery Owner Caught On Camera

Caught On Camera: Art Photography Dealer Jefferies

The speeding Bentley-driving ex-husband of Koo Stark was banned from driving today, despite fighting for his licence to save his teenage children from mobile phone thieves.

Mayfair art gallery-owner Tim Jefferies, 63, was caught on camera speeding in a 20mph zone while behind the wheel of his silver 6.75 litre Bentley Continental.

Known as a smooth talker, who sells valuable photographs
for up to £500,000 to wealthy customers, he failed to talk his way out of a six-month disqualification.

Wearing a smart blue jacket, jeans and a mauve shirt he told Lavender Hill Magistrates he needed to keep his licence for the school run; to continue operating his gallery and visiting his 83 year-old mother at her Sussex retirement village.

He married Prince Andrew’s ex Koo when he was aged twenty-one years-old and she was twenty-eight, but the marriage barely lasted a year.

Jefferies, who lives in £4.2m West House, Addison Crescent, Kensington reportedly went onto date pop star Kylie Minogue, and models Claudia Schiffer, Sophie Dahl and Elle ‘The Body’ Macpherson.

He pleaded guilty to speeding at 25mph on the A4 Cromwell Road on February 22 in the twenty-four year-old luxury vehicle, which brings three penalty points.

With nine points already on his licence for speeding on May 8, 2022 and using his mobile phone while driving on July 20, 2022 that brought him to twelve points - triggering an automatic six-month ban.

He told the court his licence was vital to enable him to drive his 16 year-old daughter and 13 year-old son to their school in Barnes, a responsibility he shares with their Swedish model mother Malin Johansson, 48.

Asking not to be disqualified under exceptional hardship grounds Jefferies told the court: “They live with their mum and they come to me every other weekend and once during the week.

“We share the responsibility of taking them to school. She has a business making cashmere jumpers, cashmere clothing and falls back on me and vice versa, it is an important thing.

Court Out: Jefferies Leaves Lavender Hill Magistrates'

“The school is in Barnes and Hammersmith Bridge is closed so that makes it forty-five minutes each way, using Chiswick Bridge.

“As the evenings are drawing in I am concerned for the kids walking home in the dark for thirty-five minutes. 

“Some have had their phones taken from them by other kids.

“Their mother’s work commitments are fluid and that is why we split it between the two of us. If I did not drive it would impact her business.

“My daughter is very involved in her school’s drama and that is going to keep her occupied for several months, staying at school until 6.00pm.

“They are at an age, thirteen and sixteen and I do not have that bond of living with them. 

“The driving, taking them back and forth and driving them around is time I cherish and that time, if it were taken away, I would not want to think about.

“To not see them as frequently for six months if I couldn’t drive is a long time in kiddie years.”

His Hamiltons Gallery business would also be hit if he was disqualified, claimed Jefferies, explaining he personally takes his valuable photographs to Islington framers approximately once a week or three times a month.

“My Mayfair gallery specialises in exhibiting and the sale of late twentieth century photographs and some paintings to, but the photography is what I am best known for.

“I take the photos for framing to Islington. I know how they should look and none of my seven employees are qualified to do that.

“They can be extremely valuable, five to ten thousand pounds up to half a million pounds.

“I also need to collect and deliver to clients in and around London and the countryside and they expect to see me, I’m front of house, I make the sales and I am at the beginning and end of the transaction.

“I do not have an insurance policy that allows me to transport the art by taxi and certainly not by bus or the tube.

“There is no doubt in my mind the business would be affected. It is a tough time to be an art dealer or in any business at the moment and losing my licence would definitely have some impact on my business.

“I am looking at ways to cut corners and costs. Maybe I would have to let somebody go and it concerns me not being able to conduct the business as I always have.”

His licence is vital to continue visiting his octogenarian mother Hilary, who depends on his visits for her mental health and spirits, said Jefferies.

“My mother had a catastrophic breakdown and was in a mental ward for six months,” he told the magistrates.

“She is in a facility with other elderly people and lives there now and I see her twice a month. I drive there.

“She refers to it like a prison, but there are no bars on the windows and she likes it if I take her out to lunch or for a coffee.”

Both Hilary and Malin wrote letters to the court, with his mother saying it would cause her “upset, anxiety and pain,” not to see her son.

“I see how much she responds to and enjoys my visits and I also take my kids once a month and that brings great joy to her.

“She says I am her only contact with the outside world.

“I am not a medical professional, but I see the difference my visits make to her demeanour and she would be very depressed for sure if I did not visit.

“It is really in the middle of nowhere. It is quite isolated,” added Jefferies, saying his sister visits every six weeks from her Devon home.

Earlier prosecutor Susan Carnegie told the court it was 4.12pm when Jefferies was caught on a speed camera driving at 25mph in a 20mph zone.

His lawyer Ben Langley said: “We ask for full credit for the guilty plea. You have heard there were nine points on the licence at the time and it is a clean licence now.

“Mr Jefferies had to loan away his BMW for six weeks and he only uses this car very occasionally and that is maybe why he edged over the limit.

“He has never been to court before and has had a licence for forty-five years and asks you not to disqualify him today.”

Bench Chairman David Simms announced: “We have carefully considered everything that was said and we are not persuaded on the balance of probabilities that a disqualification would cause exceptional hardship.

“As for your business there are alternatives to get to the framers and clients and for your children there is public transport and taxis.

“For visiting your mother there are alternative means of transport and you could co-ordinate visits with your sister and there are visiting facilities on the site.”

Jefferies was fined £317, with £130 costs and ordered to pay a £127 victim surcharge and disqualified for six months.

“You must not attempt to drive or actually drive while you are disqualified,” Mr Simms told Jefferies. “Driving while disqualified is a very serious offence.”