CRIMINALS jailed in February include a paedophile, a gang which kidnapped and blackmailed a man and prisoner caught with a mobile phone in prison.

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

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

Group posed as police officers and kidnapped man

Bridport and Lyme Regis News: Ashley Beeden (top left), Leslie Richardson (top right), Nigel Moors (bottom left), Lewis Needham (bottom right) were jailedAshley Beeden (top left), Leslie Richardson (top right), Nigel Moors (bottom left), Lewis Needham (bottom right) were jailed

FOUR men were jailed after posing as police officers to kidnap a victim from outside his Bridport home, then assaulting and blackmailing him.

Leslie Richardson, also known as Leslie Ades, aged 53 and of Westcliff-on-Sea, Lewis James Needham, aged 29 and of Dorchester, and Nigel Geoffrey Moors, aged 51 and of Puddletown, were all sentenced at Bournemouth Crown Court in late-January after being found guilty at an earlier trial of conspiracy to kidnap, assault occasioning actual bodily harm and blackmail.

Richardson was sentenced to 11 years in prison, Needham and Moors both received a nine-year jail term.

A fourth defendant, Ashley David Beeden, aged 33 and of Enfield, pleaded guilty to an offence of conspiracy to kidnap in June 2020 and was sentenced to nine years in prison on Friday, February 19, 2021.

On Wednesday, January 8, 2020 the victim left his home address in Bridport at 7.40am to go to work and as he walked into a communal area of his building he was confronted by a group of several men who claimed they were police officers and that he was under arrest.

The men went to put him in handcuffs and the victim tried to resist their efforts but was overpowered and dragged into the rear of a vehicle.

The vehicle travelled to the Maiden Newton area before then driving to the Bovington area, where the victim was removed from the car.

The men demanded he pay them £7,000, to which he replied he did not have that much but would make efforts to get them the money.

The victim was then violently assaulted, leaving him with multiple face injuries and a wrist injury from the handcuffs.

Threats were made to harm his loved ones and the men took his flat keys and wallet, forcing him to give them his PIN. The men then left him by the roadside and drove off.

The victim was able to contact a friend and was picked up at around 10.30am, but rather than go to hospital for treatment to his injuries, he asked to be taken home as he was concerned about his loved ones. He did not report the matter to police.

At 5.05pm that same day he went to the enquiry office at Weymouth police station for an unrelated matter.

The enquiry officer noted his injuries and asked what had happened but he refused to disclose anything.

He was advised to attend hospital to seek medical treatment and it was discovered that he had sustained a fractured nose, as well as severe swelling and bruising to his right eye and markings to his wrists consistent with handcuffs being applied.

Officers spoke to the victim and took an account from him but he was reluctant to provide a formal complaint for fear of reprisals.

Detectives went to see the victim again the following day and he was still reluctant to engage. Call data from his phone was obtained, which showed numbers that had been used to send threatening messages the victim.

Through enquiries, detectives linked one of the phones to Beeden and further investigations revealed the involvement of Needham and Richardson.

All three men were arrested on Tuesday, January, 12020.

On Friday, February 21 officers located the vehicle involved in the incident in Weymouth and the driver confirmed they had recently purchased the car, a Volkswagen Golf, from Moors.

Moors was also then arrested and a forensic examination of the vehicle produced blood samples matching the DNA profile of the victim

Thug attacked man with baseball bat

Bridport and Lyme Regis News: Grant Chase of WeymouthGrant Chase of Weymouth

Grant Edward Chase, aged 29 and of Commercial Road, Weymouth, entered a commercial premises off Newbury along with another man at around 2.30pm on Tuesday, October 13, 2020.

The victim, a man aged in his 50s, was working at the premises and recognised Chase, who was carrying a short baseball bat, as someone he knew and initially thought it was a joke.

Chase approached the victim and demanded money before striking him several times to the head with the bat.

The defendant also threatened to stab the victim, put his hand into his pocket and showed a handle. The victim believed he was showing him a knife.

The victim was able to push the defendant away and ran out of the premises. He was taken to hospital where he received a total of 12 stitches to injuries to his head.

Following enquiries, Chase was located in the Blandford area on Thursday 15 October 2020 and arrested.

Chase also admitted to a separate assault by beating, two counts of threatening words or behaviour, possession of cannabis and breaching a suspended sentence on a separate occasion.

Chase was sentenced at Bournemouth Crown Court on Wednesday, February 24, where he received a total jail term of nine years, with an extended licence period of a further three years.

Prisoner caught with iPhone in prison

Bridport and Lyme Regis News: A prisoner at HMP Guys Marsh was caught with an iPhone 5 in his cell. Picture: PA

Allysson Caixeta, 36, claimed he was only holding onto an iPhone 5 when he was caught by prison officers at HMP Guys Marsh on Thursday, July 2, 2020.

Prosecuting, Jason Spellman, told Weymouth Magistrates’ Court how Caixeta was sentenced to several years imprisonment in January 2020 for an offence of possession with intent to supply drugs.

Mr Spellman said: “Officers went to search the cell. An officer says they saw him holding a mobile phone and the defendant dropped it."

Caixeta ‘did as he was told’ and handed the iPhone 5 over. A broken phone charger was also recovered.

Mr Spellman added: “He was asked why he had it, but he claimed the phone wasn’t his and he was only holding onto it as he was trying to repair the charger. He did not say who the phone owner was.”

It was discovered that Caixeta had used the device to make phone calls to his wife and sister.

Chairman of the bench Robert Ford called the possession of a phone a ‘serious offence’ and extended Caixeta’s imprisonment.

Caixeta was sentenced to another three months in prison, consecutive to his existing sentence, and was ordered to pay a £128 victim surcharge.

Prisoner kicked prison officer during brawl

Bridport and Lyme Regis News: Ancel was found guilty of beating a prison officer

An inmate has been sentenced to an extended prison sentence after being found guilty of kicking an officer during a prison brawl.

Tyreece Ancel, aged 20, kicked a prison officer in HM Prison Portland on April 23 after a conflict broke out between inmates and staff.

The officer, who was restraining a prisoner during an in-yard altercation, was kicked in the ribs by Ancel, who was then restrained himself.

In a previous hearing, prosecutor Andrew Newman said the strike to the ribs caused bruising and the officer had to sign off work for a month.

During his return to work, the prison officer was regraded to a different role within the prison because he 'did not want to put himself in harm's way again'.

Ancel will now serve an additional 12 weeks in prison consecutive to his current sentence.

Burglar broke into home and stole items as occupants slept

Bridport and Lyme Regis News: Colin GillColin Gill

A man who broke into a home in Bournemouth while the occupants slept has been jailed for three years.

Colin Wayne Gill, aged 47 and of St Peters Road, Basingstoke, was sentenced at Bournemouth Crown Court on Thursday 25 February 2021 after being found guilty of burglary and admitting three counts of fraud by false representation.

The burglary occurred between 10.30pm on Saturday, October 19, 2019 and 4.30am the following morning at a property in Cambridge Road.

Access was gained to the property while the family living there were all asleep and a purse containing bank cards was taken.

They were subsequently notified that their cards had been used at nearby stores including petrol stations in Bath Road and Holdenhurst Road with the transactions totalling £48.76.

Gill was identified by an officer from CCTV of the one of the card transactions and was subsequently arrested.

Thug killed man with one punch

Bridport and Lyme Regis News: Carl Stuart WoolleyCarl Stuart Woolley

A man has been jailed for six years following a serious assault in Bournemouth where a man died.

Carl Stuart Woolley, 33 and of no fixed abode, was sentenced at Bournemouth Crown Court on Friday, February 26. He previously appeared at the same court on Tuesday, December 22, 2020 and pleaded guilty to a charge of manslaughter.

At around 10pm on Sunday, September 13, 2020 officers received a report of an assault at the entrance to The Avenue car park at the junction of Avenue Road and Norwich Avenue.

Officers attended and located 59-year-old local man Stephen Jeffries with a life-threatening head injury. He was taken to hospital for treatment.

It was reported that prior to the assault, Mr Jeffries was involved in a verbal altercation with a group of people near to the Flirt Café in The Triangle.

Mr Jeffries walked off along Avenue Road, but was followed by Woolley who was part of the group.

Woolley punched the victim to the face, causing him to collapse to the floor.

A full investigation into the incident was launched and a cordon was put in place to allow for an examination of the scene to be carried out.

At 6.10am on Monday, September 14, 2020 Woolley presented himself to officers at the cordon and stated that he was responsible for the incident. He was arrested on suspicion of causing grievous bodily harm and taken into police custody.

Mr Jeffries died in hospital during the evening of Tuesday, September 15, 2020. His family was informed and received continued support from specially trained officers.

Woolley was subsequently charged with murder. Following his plea of guilty to a charge of manslaughter, Dorset Police and the Crown Prosecution Service confirmed that the plea was acceptable and they would not be seeking a trial on the murder charge.

Paedophile snared in undercover Kik Messenger police sting

Bridport and Lyme Regis News: Nigel Peter Grigg Nigel Peter Grigg

A former teacher has been deemed to pose a significant risk to members of the public after he made arrangements to commit sexual acts on an ’11-year-old girl’.

Nigel Peter Grigg communicated on messaging platform Kik with a man called ‘John’ who had said he was willing to provide his ‘daughter’ for sexual activities.

‘John’ was in fact an officer from the police South East Regional Organised Crime Unit (ROCU).

Grigg arranged to meet ‘John’ and his ‘daughter’ with the intention of committing child sex offences.

The 69-year-old purchased presents for the ‘girl’, including items from Ann Summers.

Shortly after arriving at the agreed meeting point – McDonald’s in Totton – he was arrested by police.

Sentencing Judge Robert Pawson said: “The facts of this case make chilling reading for any parent, or any person in fact.”

Grigg was jailed for five years and issued with a two-year extended licence period at Bournemouth Crown Court after Judge Pawson deemed him to be a dangerous offender.

This was after he admitted a single charge of arranging or facilitating the commission of a child sex offence between March 4 and March 12 last year.