CRIMINALS jailed in November for Dorset offences include a rapist, an arsonist and a family who attempted to pervert the course of justice. 

Despite the lockdown affecting many parts of daily life in November, the courts continue to operate and deal with cases.

The list below includes some of the offenders that were put behind bars by judges last month.

While all of the criminals committed offences in Dorset, some of the cases were heard in courts outside of the county, including Salisbury crown courts.

The offenders' names and a summary of what led to them appearing in the dock are as follows:

Man raped 11-year-old girl and then cycled away from the scene

Bridport and Lyme Regis News: James Connell Loveman was jailed for a sexual assault of a 11-year-old girlJames Connell Loveman was jailed for a sexual assault of a 11-year-old girl

James Connell Loveman, 23, attacked a 11-year-old girl in the Old Windmill near Easton on a night in August last year.

Loveman, of Portland, was convicted of charges of rape and assault by penetration following a trial at Bournemouth Crown Court in September.

He had previously admitted an offence of sexual assault of a female aged under 13.

The victim, who was 11 at the time of the incident, was with her 14-year-old friend and they had spent the evening walking around Portland.

At around 1.30am on Saturday, August 31, they were in the area of Easton Square when they met a man who was sitting on a bicycle.

They walked with him to an old windmill to the south of Park Road, where they chatted for a time before the victim’s friend went outside. Once he was alone with the victim, Loveman sexually assaulted her and then raped her before riding off on his bike in the direction of Weston.

Following an investigation led by detectives from the Force’s Major Crime Investigation Team (MCIT), Loveman’s DNA was found to be a match of a profile obtained from the victim’s clothing and he was arrested on Saturday, September 7, 2019.

He was jailed for seven years.

Masked knifeman stabbed shop worker in attempted robbery

Bridport and Lyme Regis News: Benjamin Thabo CarruthersBenjamin Thabo Carruthers

Benjamin Thabo Carruthers, of no fixed address, entered Wallisdown News in Wallisdown Road, Bournemouth and pulled a balaclava down over his face on Friday, November 29 last year.

The 40-year-old produced a knife and pointed it at the shop worker, before demanding money.

The victim took a box of paper that was nearby and hit Carruthers’ hands with it in an attempt to knock the knife out of his hand.

Carruthers grabbed the victim around the neck and lunged toward him with the knife.

Bournemouth Crown Court was told that during the struggle the victim managed to knock the knife out of Carruthers’ hand and grabbed his balaclava and jumper. Carruthers left the shop empty-handed.

During the incident, the victim suffered a stab wound to his hand.

Carruthers previously pleaded guilty to offences of attempted robbery, assault, and possession of an offensive weapon in a public place.

He was jailed for four years and 10 months at Bournemouth Crown Court on Tuesday, November 24.

Former businessman jailed for historic sex offences

Formerly a successful businessman, Eric Alan Amey, from Puddletown, was sentenced yesterday at Bournemouth Crown Court, days after being convicted of four counts of indecent assault of a child aged under 12.

The offences occurred on one occasion at some time between July 10 1984 and July 10 1988 in the Puddletown and Crossways areas.

Amey, 92, was a successful businessman in the local community and was well-known under the nickname 'Giant'.

Police officers said they hoped Amey's jail sentence would give some sense of closure to the victim and her relatives.

Amey was sentenced to five years and three months in prison at Bournemouth Crown Court on November 9. He has also been placed on the Sex Offenders Register for life.

Thief armed with three kitchen knives caught attempting to steal from WHSmith

Bridport and Lyme Regis News: Jonathan William Tagart was jailed for breaking into WHSmith in Weymouth town centreJonathan William Tagart was jailed for breaking into WHSmith in Weymouth town centre

Jonathan William Tagart, aged 41 and of Park Estate Road, Portland, was sentenced to 12 months in prison at Bournemouth Crown Court on Friday, November 20 after admitting offences of burglary and possession of a bladed article in a public place.

At around 4.45am on October 21, Dorset Police received a report of an alarm sounding at WHSmith on St Thomas Street, Weymouth.

A dog handler who was on duty in the area responded and found a glass door to the shop has been damaged.

The officer entered the store with his dog and Tagart was located on the first floor. Another officer attended to assist and Tagart was arrested at the scene.

He was searched and found to be in possession of three kitchen knives.

A number of bags were subsequently located inside the store into which an estimated £1,300 worth of tobacco had been loaded.

Man wearing red wig set fire to a furniture shop in Halloween attack

Bridport and Lyme Regis News: Guy Laurence AndrewGuy Laurence Andrew

Guy Laurence Andrew wore a bright red wig, a red coat and leggings as a disguise as he set fire to a second-hand furniture shop.

The 52-year-old of Garfield Avenue in Bournemouth, set South Coast Living alight on Thursday, October 31, 2019 before cycling away from the scene.

At 11.57pm, members of the public walked past South Coast Living on Christchurch Road and noticed there were items inside ablaze.

One of them smashed the window and removed the items that were on fire. Firefighters described the shop as being full of smoke and believed the fire had been started deliberately.

CCTV enquires by police identified a man on a bicycle stop, who stopped in the pedestrian area next to the shop. Andrew was in possession of a long thin white pole and was seen to wrap a sheet around it.

Bridport and Lyme Regis News: Guy Laurence Andrew outside the shop Guy Laurence Andrew outside the shop

Andrew was arrested and during police interview admitted to attending South Coast Living and setting fire to it. He explained that he did this by dowsing a sheet in accelerant and using a pole to poke the lit sheet through the letterbox.

He found guilty of committing arson with intent to endanger life at Bournemouth Crown Court on Thursday, October 1 and was put behind bars for four years at Salisbury Crown Court on Friday, November 20.

Drug dealer caught with Class A drugs and £5,000 in cash at home

Bridport and Lyme Regis News: Muhammed Iqbal VincentMuhammed Iqbal Vincent

A man found in possession of class A drugs when his car was stopped by police officers in Poole.

Muhammed Iqbal Vincent, aged 26 and of Columbia Road, Bournemouth, after admitting two charges of possessing class A drugs with intent to supply.

At around 10pm on Friday 20 July 2018, officers stopped his silver Audi TT on Blandford Road, Bournemouth. 

A search was carried out and hidden in a green Smint tin officers found 29 wraps of what appeared to be class A drugs. The wraps were later analysed with 19 found to contain crack cocaine and 10 containing heroin.

The defendant was arrested and officers subsequently carried out a search of his then address in Astbury Avenue, Poole, where they found more than £5,000 in cash.

A number of Mobile phones were seized from the defendant and submitted for data analysis. Messages were found on the phones that appeared to relate to the supply of drugs.

He was sentenced to three years in prison at Bournemouth Crown Court on Friday, November 20.

Family perverted the course of justice following stabbing

Bridport and Lyme Regis News: Andrew Hatchard (left),Joanne Hatchard (centre) and Hayley Hatchard (right)Andrew Hatchard (left),Joanne Hatchard (centre) and Hayley Hatchard (right)

Andrew, 37, and Joanne Hatchard, 60, sought to pay Hayley Hatchard, 33, and Stuart Dominey £1,000 each to retract their statements after Andrew Hatchard stabbed Mr Dominey following an altercation in October 2018.

Andrew Hatchard, of Bowden Road, Poole, was also sentenced for inflicting wounds with intent to cause grievous bodily harm at Bournemouth Crown Court on November 13.

Prosecuting, Nicholas Hall told the court that on Saturday, October 7, 2018, Hayley Hatchard, of Douglas Gardens, Poole, and Mr Dominey were living together with Andrew Hatchard, and they had been drinking together from 10.30am.

“As time wore on Stuart and Hayley started to have an argument about an event that had occurred some two weeks previously, and which had involved Stuart and Andrew,” Mr Hall said. “Andrew then came out of the bedroom and was armed with a kitchen knife.”

The court heard how Andrew Hatchard shouted at Mr Dominey, saying “you think you are hard don’t you” and “I will ******* kill you”.

The defendant then lunged at Mr Dominey and stabbed him three times.

Mr Hall continued: “It is alleged that Andrew, his sister Hayley and their mother Joanne, conspired together to, in effect, wreck the ongoing criminal proceedings against Andrew.

“It came to light on October 31, 2018, when both Stuart and Hayley attended the police station and made retraction statements in relation to the allegations that Andrew had assaulted Stuart.

“During this time, Joanne was in contact with both of them. An agreement was made that Hayley, and indeed Stuart, would each receive £1,000 if they were to retract their statements. And that is exactly what happened on October 31.”

The court then heard how neither Hayley Hatchard nor Mr Dominey turned up to court on April 8, 2019, for the first day of the Andrew Hatchard’s trial. An alternative trial date of October 29, 2019 was fixed.

All three were then arrested for perverting the course of justice and pleaded guilty.

Andrew Hatchard was sentenced by Judge Brian Forster QC to consecutive prison terms for the two offences, lasting a total of four years and three months.

Judge Forster said: “The offence of unlawful wounding is serious, the offence of perverting the course of justice is very serious.”

Sentencing Hayley and Joanne Hatchard to 12 months behind bars, Judge Forster said: “It is impossible to avoid an immediate prison sentence, you must both go to prison.”

Woman stole £437,000 from her employer to fund house renovation and fund lavish lifestyle

Bridport and Lyme Regis News: Emma Elizabeth Rhodes, of Manor Lane, Verwood, stole £437,000 over a two-and-a-half year periodEmma Elizabeth Rhodes, of Manor Lane, Verwood, stole £437,000 over a two-and-a-half year period

Emma Elizabeth Rhodes, of Manor Lane, Verwood, stole £437,000 over a two-and-a-half year period from Norco Holdings, a group of companies in Dorset that employ around 150 people.

When police raided her home, the former financial controller was living in a caravan and wooden chalet at the rear of the property, while her house was being extensively rebuilt and modified.

Officers also found documents relating to the purchase of an £80,000 Range Rover Sport and a receipt for an £8,300 Rolex watch.

Rhodes, who only changed her plea to guilty at the last minute, even tried to blame her employer for being complicit in the theft – an allegation which was completely unfounded.

She had also used her ill-gotten gains to pay for luxury hotel breaks, holidays in the sun and skiing trips. The only available assets recovered were two shotguns and a diamond ring.

A detailed financial investigation was carried out into the company accounts, which revealed that the theft offences were committed between Friday 18 December 2015 and Tuesday 8 May 2018. All 29 thefts were concealed in legitimate transactions and ranged from £1,632 to just over £35,000.

In total, £7,000 was stolen in 2015, £91,000 in 2016, £233,000 in 2017 and £194,000 up to her dismissal in 2018.

The 37-year-old had been set to go to trial at Bournemouth Crown Court, but on Monday, November 2 she pleaded guilty to an offence of fraud.

She was jailed for five years at the same court on Friday, November 20.

Man threatened and assaulted a woman

Bridport and Lyme Regis News: Ashleigh Jordan PeggAshleigh Jordan Pegg

Ashleigh Jordan Pegg assaulted and threatened a woman in a domestic violence incident has been jailed for more than two years.

The 29-year-old admitted committing offences of affray and assault by beating at a Dorset address on the evening of Sunday, June 28.

While criminal court proceedings had begun in relation to these offences, he went on to breach a condition of his bail by contacting the victim.

Pegg, formerly of Moorfield Grove, Bournemouth, and most recently of Hornsea Road, Driffield, Yorkshire, appeared at Bournemouth Crown Court for sentencing on Thursday, November 5.

The defendant was jailed for 24 months for the affray, four months concurrent for the assault by beating, and two months consecutive for the bail breach – an overall sentence of 26 months imprisonment.

A judge also issued Pegg with a two-year restraining order and ordered him to pay a £156 surcharge.