A Basingstoke man who subjected a 14-year-old girl to three months of “sustained” harassment has avoided jail.

Dennis Patton, of Wentworth Crescent, Beggarwood, saw his 22-week sentence suspended for two years at Reading Magistrates’ Court on Thursday.

The same court had found the 50-year-old guilty of two counts of harassment on May 20 following a two-day trial. The case came three years after Patton produced a film on the impact of bullying on young people.

Patton contacted the unnamed girl and her family, who all live in the Reading area, on a number of occasions between September and December last year after first approaching the teenager via social media.

He threatened to visit the victim’s home and speak to her family to “discuss matters of a sexual nature”, before sending her abusive text messages after she blocked him on Facebook.

The victim was contacted via a range of mobile phone applications, including Snapchat and WhatsApp – receiving 36 messages in two days in September.

On September 29, a hand-delivered letter was received by the victim’s parents from Patton, before another letter and flowers were found outside the girl’s front door on October 6.

The teenager’s mother was sent a series of abusive text messages over a three-day period at the start of December, relating to her daughter.

And on December 19, the victim received text messages from someone, a stranger, passing on messages claiming to be from Patton’s son, via Snapchat.

Investigating officer, PC Kris Couzens, of Reading CID, said  the “consistent and sustained harassment” had left the victim feeling “very vulnerable and distressed”.

Patton wrote educational movie “Teenage Kicks” in 2013 to help raise awareness of the impact that bullying could have.

The NSPCC condemned his actions with its spokesman saying: “Dennis Patton has shown real hypocrisy in his relentless harassment of his young victim and her family. He more than most should have understood the impact of his actions.”

The family of a grandad killed in a head-on collision caused when a man drove round a corner on the wrong side of the road said it feels like a nightmare from which they have not woken up.

The children of 71-year-old Raymond Malyon, of Bradley, near Basingstoke, were speaking after Tiberiu Miclea was jailed for 16 months at Winchester Crown Court.

Miclea, 42, of Cornwall Road, Bordon, pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving.

Mr Malyon’s family said: “It is with much sadness we heard about this sentence. It has brought everything back afresh and our pain continues.

“We are still very much in shock and reeling from the impact of this dreadful and awful experience, the result of which has taken away a dearly-loved husband, father, grandfather, brother, colleague and friend.

“This still all feels very unreal, like a nightmare we haven’t yet woken from. Dad should be enjoying his life with his family.

“He and mum should be planning their next holiday, along with the annual family summer party and a special birthday.”

Miclea rounded a bend in a blue Honda Civic heading towards Alton on the A339 at Lasham and collided with Mr Malyon and his wife travelling in the opposite direction on February 12 at 7.30pm.

All three were taken to hospital where Mr Malyon died two days later. His wife and Miclea were treated for serious injuries.

Mr Malyon had spent the day with two of his grandchildren building Lego, drawing superheroes and taking them swimming.

His family added: “He should be here helping look after his grandchildren and watching them grow.

“We all should be having many more occasions filled with love and laughter and instead there is just a big gap in our lives, which hurts all the time.

“The sentencing doesn’t bring dad back and it doesn’t result in any less pain for us all. The other driver has to live the rest of his life with the consequences of his actions, as do we.”

Mr Malyon had been an engineer throughout his working life and enjoyed music, travelling and food, with a particular love for anything Spanish.

At court last Tuesday, July 12, Miclea was also disqualified from driving for two years and eight months.

Sergeant Adrienne Jerram said: “This was a tragic loss of life which could have easily been avoided if Miclea had been taking more care on the road.

“Due to his carelessness, a family has been left devastated by the unnecessary loss of a loved one.”

A police stop and search of a Basingstoke man uncovered a string of rapes against vulnerable women in north Hampshire.

Romeo Cummins, of Fountains Close, Popley, was jailed for 13 years and six months today by Recorder Michael Bowes QC for attacks on five women, some of whom did not know they had been victims.

Cummins, 46, pleaded guilty to 16 counts of rape, one sexual assault and five drugs offences at Winchester Crown Court.

Officers discovered evidence of the attacks when Cummins was stopped and searched in Aldershot in February and found he had crack cocaine, heroin, sleeping tablets and prescription medicine.

When they examined his phone, they found more than 100 videos of the sexual offences.

The court heard it was clear from the footage some of the women were unconscious and may not have known they had been assaulted.

After the court hearing, one of the victims said: “When I found out I felt completely numb and sick – I went through a whole range of unpleasant feelings in the space of five minutes.

“Since then I have completely withdrawn. I would like to say I have stayed strong but it’s been a difficult few months.”

The victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, urged anyone who believes they have been a victim of a sexual offence to report it.

When officers uncovered the footage, an investigation was launched to identify the women.

Cummins’ offences spanned three years from 2013 to 2016.

Detective Constable Paul Jarrett, from Aldershot CID, said: “He preyed upon vulnerable females convincing them he had their best interests at heart.

“Nothing could have been further from the truth, with him abusing their trust to sexually assault and film what he had done to them, whilst they were in an unconscious state.

“Due to the bravery of his victims, they were able to endure the traumatic experience of being told and shown what he had done to them.

“Their courage has stopped him from continuing his serial sexual abuse and prevented him from doing this to others.”

A van driver who ran over and killed a Basingstoke cyclist while reading a text message on his mobile phone has been jailed.

Dad of two Lee Martin, 48, was cycling in the left hand lane on the A31, near Bentley, on August 12 last year when he was hit from behind by a white Ford Transit van travelling at around 60mph.

Christopher Gard, 30, of Linnet Way in Alton was driving the vehicle, and after pleading guilty to a charge of causing death by dangerous driving, he was handed a nine year prison sentence this afternoon.

The court heard how the defendant, whose four-year-old son was sitting next to him in the van at the time of the incident, had just finished reading a message on his phone when he looked up to find Mr Martin “two or three feet” ahead of him.

Gard had eight previous convictions for driving while using his phone before the fatal collision, and actually managed to avoid losing his licence for an offence just six weeks earlier.

In the seconds following the crash, Gard deleted several texts from his mobile, while he also initially claimed to have been distracted by his son – a move labelled by prosecutor Charlie Gabb QC as “callous”.

He said: “He was perhaps hoping against hope that the police wouldn’t find the messages he’d deleted at the road side.

“He knew jolly well what he was doing, and even though he may have been remorseful, he was still trying to cover up his tracks.”

Mr Gabb also criticised the defendant for only pleading guilty to the charge four days before the trial, having originally only admitted to causing death by a lack of due care while driving.

This meant that the family of popular cycling fanatic Mr Martin were forced to wait over a year for justice, with the victim’s brother Darrell weeping as he told the court how he couldn’t forgive Gard for “stealing my brother’s life”.

He said: “His two little girls have been robbed of a dad, and nothing will ever be the same again for any of us.

“To find out he already had eight convictions makes the whole thing so much worse, as it was so senseless and avoidable.”

Wife of 24 years, Jo Martin, added: “My whole world has been rocked to its foundations.

“I never wanted to lose my husband, and my children never wanted to lose their father, but that’s what we must live with for the rest of our lives.”

Gard, who broke down in tears several times as the witness statements were read, has also been banned from driving for 14 and a half years, and will then have to retake his driving test.

Passing the sentence, Judge Susan Evans QC, said: “What happened has been utterly devastating.

“The whole family had to wait a year for you to change your plea.

“Not only have you killed Lee Martin, but you have put Jo Martin through all of this pain when you knew the truth all along.

“In a calculated manner you deleted texts you didn’t want police to see.

“You were thinking of no one other than yourself.”

A “dangerous” paedophile from Basingstoke that live streamed child sex abuse from the Philippines has been jailed for 11 years.

Thomas Sloman, of Cairngorm Close, in Buckskin, was found to have around 12,000 indecent images of children by the National Crime Agency (NCA).

More than 2,000 of the images found on the father of two’s computer and other electronic devices have been classed as “category A” – the worst forms of abuse possible.

Chat logs showed that the 43-year-old had been actively asking for pictures to be sent to him online, while he had also arranged to view abuse over the internet.

The NCA’s Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Command also discovered many images screen grabbed from live webcam streams after raiding Sloman’s home in January last year.

He was charged with 10 counts of making indecent images of children, and nine counts of commissioning or attempting to commission sexual offences against children.

Sloman pleaded not guilty court, instead claiming that his computer had been hacked, and the images weren’t his, before a four-day trial at Winchester Crown Court then found him guilty of all charges on May 26.

And the child sex offender appeared before the same court to finally be sentenced on Friday, where he was sentenced to 11 years in jail.

He has also been handed a further two and a half years supervision order, and will stay on the offenders register for the rest of his life.

Jason Booth, from the NCA’s CEOP Command, said: “Thomas Sloman is a dangerous child sex offender who arranged the abuse of vulnerable children.

“The fact he was thousands of miles away makes no difference to his guilt.

“It was all done for his personal gratification.

“The NCA is actively targeting offenders who pay for live streaming of abuse, because our priority is protecting children, whether they are in the UK or abroad.”

A Basingstoke man who caused another motorist to be seriously injured after mistakenly driving the wrong way up the motorway has been jailed for nearly three years.

Krzysztof Stopko, of Ascension Close, in Popley, admitted to colliding head on with a Skoda Fabia “at motorway speed” on the M20, after not sleeping or eating properly for 49 hours straight.

The crash took place on the afternoon of April 7, and came a full two days after the 35-year-old set off on the long trip home from visiting family in Poland, during which time he didn’t stop to rest.

After driving his black Seat Leon through Germany, Belgium, Holland, and France, he arrived at Dunkirk to catch a ferry over to the UK in the early hours of April 7.

Although he stopped in a layby on the A20 for five hours after driving out of Dover, Stopko again crucially chose not to sleep or eat properly during this time, before again setting off.

Police then received calls from members of the public at around midday saying a black car, matching the description of Stopko’s Seat was driving in the wrong direction along the M20, coastbound on the London-bound carriageway.

Following these reports, he then continued to drive for more than two miles along the carriageway, before colliding head on with the Skoda, causing both occupants of the vehicle to be injured, with the passenger suffering multiple fractures.

And after pleading guilty to causing serious injury by dangerous driving, Stopko was sentenced to 32 months in jail at Canterbury Crown Court on Monday, while also being disqualified from driving for five years.

Following the sentence, Kent Police highlighted the incident as an example of what could happen if motorists get behind the wheel while tired.

PC Simon Masterson, from the Serious Collision Investigation Unit, said: “Stopko had been travelling in the correct direction, and then performed a U-turn in the main carriageway.

“Too little sleep radically affects your ability to drive safely, increasing reaction times, reducing attention, and reducing your ability to control the vehicle.

“Motorists need to plan their journeys carefully to enable you to have sufficient rest beforehand, and to avoid driving at times when you’re likely to feel more tired.

“Allow enough time to take breaks, and if you feel tired on your journey, find somewhere safe to rest as soon as possible; never try to fight off tiredness.”

All charges have been dropped against a Basingstoke man accused of stabbing another man to death on a Popley street.

Kempshott resident Dean Evans, 31, was found lying in the middle of Benham Road suffering from severe stab wounds on the morning of April 8.

Paramedics from South Central Ambulance Service (SCAS) were called to the scene, and Mr Evans was then rushed to Basingstoke hospital, where he died a short time later.

Hampshire police arrested and charged Liam Darvill, 20, of Beaconsfield Road and Thomas Harris, 22, of Eastrop Way, with the murder three days later.

Both men then pleaded not guilty to the crime on July 11, although charges against Harris have now been dropped due to a lack of evidence, and no further action will now be taken against him.

Darvill is due to stand trial for the murder today at Winchester Crown Court.

A man charged with the murder of Kempshott resident Dean Evans has pleaded guilty to manslaughter.

Liam Darvill, 20, of Beaconsfield Road in Basingstoke, entered the plea at Winchester Crown Court today.

Dean Evans, 31, was found lying in the middle of Benham Road suffering from severe stab wounds on April 8, and died a short time later at Basingstoke hospital.

The guilty plea to manslaughter comes after the charges against a second man – 22-year-old Thomas Harris of Eastrop Way – were dropped on Tuesday.

Hampshire police arrested and charged Darvill and Harris with the murder three days after Mr Evans was found, before both men pleaded not guilty in court on July 11.

But all charges have now been dropped against Harris, due to a lack of evidence, meaning no further action will be taken against him.

Darvill is due to be sentenced this afternoon.

A man previously charged with murdering a fellow Basingstoke resident has today pleaded guilty to manslaughter.

Liam Darvill, 20, of Beaconsfield Road, admitted to stabbing Dean Evans, 30, in the bedroom of a house in Benham Road, in Popley, on April 8.

He denied murdering Mr Evans, of Kempshott, and was due to stand trial this morning, until registering a guilty plea for committing manslaughter – insisting instead that he acted in “self defence”.

Winchester Crown Court heard how Darvill had fatally injured Mr Evans, after the deceased had entered the property uninvited to see former girlfriend Jodie Deans at around 5.30am.

The defendant was sleeping downstairs at the time, and took a knife with him from the kitchen when he went to investigate a disturbance upstairs that led to a physical altercation between Mr Evans and two other men.

Darvill was then punched to the ground when he became involved, and in a moment described by his defending barrister as “a momentary lack of control”, he stabbed him twice.

The victim then managed to make his way out of the property, before collapsing on the pavement, and dying a short time later from his injuries at Basingstoke hospital.

Following the incident, Darvill, who is due to be sentenced tomorrow at the same court, washed the weapon, and his clothes, before handing himself in to police at around 10pm later that day.

And while admitting that there was “no evidence to suggest” that the defendant was a “danger to the public”, Adam Feest QC, prosecuting, insisted he “did not accept” the defence’s argument that there was a high level of provocation.

He added: “We accept that there was a threat presented by Mr Evans to others, including the defendant.

“[But] he fetched the knife from the kitchen in anticipation of possible use, at a time when he was unaware of an intruder.”

The court was also read a psychiatric report on the defendant, which expressed the opinion that his mental state was such that he would “not be able to react sensibly to the situation he found himself in”.

And William Mousley QC, defending, pleaded with judge Lord Justice Nigel Sweeney to consider the threat posed by the deceased when making his sentence.

He said: “He saw Dean Evans, a big man of who he knew nothing.

“He then caused two stab wounds, but had no intention to kill, [and] was acting in defence of himself and others.

“This is a case of unlawful violence as a result of loss of control in circumstances where there was a substantial degree of provocation. “

A second man, Thomas Harris, 22, of Eastrop Way, had previously also been charged with murder, before all charges against him were dropped, due to a lack of evidence, on September 9.

A gifted Basingstoke DJ hanged herself in the same spot of woodland a friend committed suicide at two years earlier, an inquest heard.

Former Basingstoke College of Technology (BCoT) student Carys Murdock’s body was found on August 5, at Jeffrey’s Copse, in Kempshott.

The 22-year-old, better known to those following her music as Enfuza, left a note to her friends and family, in which she stated that “the pain was too much for me”.

It read: “I’m sorry, I tried my best. This is the end for me. Didn’t want to be selfish, but the pain was too much for me.”

A friend of Miss Murdock, Mark Newman, was found dead in the same secluded woodland, on August 26 2014, having also hanged himself.

And a statement from the DJ’s partner of three years, Alex Hinton, revealed that the pair had talked about suicide, following Mr Newman’s death.

He said: “She told me she had tried to kill herself several times when she was younger.

“She said she didn’t need counselling, but I think she was in denial.”

Mr Hinton told today’s inquest, at Basingstoke Law Courts, that the loss of Miss Murdock’s estranged father, who died on the same day that she attempted to make contact with him on Facebook in 2014, had also “affected her deeply”.

Miss Murdock began drinking heavily, and taking cannabis and MDMA, and “refused to accept help from anyone” other than her partner, with Mr Hinton then moving out to give himself “some space”, around a week before her death.

Mr Hinton said: “She was an accomplished DJ, but felt guilty about these unknown people liking her.

“She had so much going on in her life, [and] I don’t know if I could do anymore to help her.

“It all became too much, [but] I never wanted to end things permanently, I just needed to clear my head.

“I was heartbroken when I found out.”

While confirming his verdict of suicide, North East Hampshire coroner, Andrew Bradley, added: “She had a lot going for her, but then she began to disintegrate. “There’s no clinical depression, but she was clearly in a low frame of mind when she takes herself away to the lonely woodland.

“It’s just sad that she couldn’t find a hand to take hold of.

“She clearly perceives her life in despair.

“She had so much to live for.”

A Basingstoke man that pleaded guilty to 16 different counts of rape has had his jail sentence extended to life imprisonment.

Romeo Cummins, of Fountains Close, Popley, will now serve a minimum of 18 years behind bars, following a decision by the Court of Appeal.

The 47-year-old preyed on a string of vulnerable women in north Hampshire between 2013 and 2016, and pleaded guilty to 16 counts of rape, one sexual assault, and five drugs offences at a previous hearing.

This led to him being sentenced to 13 years and six months at Winchester Crown Court on August 15, although this punishment was deemed too lenient by the Attorney General’s office, who appealed the decision.

And Lady Justice Rafferty arrived at the same conclusion following the appeal hearing at the Court of Appeal in London today – instead handing Cummins a life sentence.

The court heard how Cummins’ offending originally came to light in February, when Hampshire Constabulary officers discovered more than 100 videos on his phone of sexual offences taking place, following a stop and search in Aldershot.

He was also found in possession of drugs, including crack cocaine, heroine, and sleeping tablets, with the phone footage clearly showing that some of the women were unconscious as he assaulted them, and may not have known it had happened.

Speaking after today’s sentencing, Detective Sergeant Lisa Cronin, from Northern CID, said: “Romeo Cummins preyed on vulnerable women over a period of three years, and convinced them he had their best interests at heart.

“The trusting relationship he had developed with these women was completely destroyed when he sexually assaulted them while they were in an unconscious state, and filmed the ordeal.

“We are very pleased with the sentence delivered today.

“It is an accurate reflection of the nature of Cummins’ offending, and the impact it has had on his victims.”

Det Sgt Cronin added: “Their courage and bravery, and the fact that they were able to endure the traumatic experience of being told and shown what he had done to them, has stopped this man from continuing this horrendous behavior, and devastating the lives of his victims.”

A lorry driver who killed three children and a mother after ramming into the back of a queue of cars while distracted by his phone on the A34 in West Berkshire has been jailed for 10 years.

Tomasz Kroker, 30, of Tarjan Walk in Andover, was sentenced at Reading Crown Court this morning.

Tracy Houghton, 45, her two sons Ethan, 13, and Josh, 11, and her partner’s daughter Aimee Goldsmith, 11, all died in the crash near the East Ilsley junction at 5.10pm on August 10.

Dashcam footage from Kroker’s lorry showed he was looking on his phone until less than a second before triggering the eight-vehicle crash, by which point he had no time to stop.

Kroker’s lorry piled into a queue of four cars at 50mph that had slowed to a standstill behind three lorries, the first of which was struggling to get up the hill at East Ilsley.

The front car, a Vauxhall Corsa with Tracy, Ethan, Josh and Aimee inside, was forced underneath the third lorry in the queue.

They were killed instantly.

Another man who was driving the car that was first hit by Kroker’s lorry suffered life-threatening injuries that included a broken back, multiple rib fractures and a collapsed lung.

Prosecuting, Charles Ward-Jackson said: “This queue of seven vehicles should have been clearly visible to Kroker as he approached.

“For the last 16 seconds all three lorries in the queue were stationary, presenting an obvious blockage to Kroker’s route, yet still he failed to see the queue.

“It is apparent that he was scrolling through music selections on his phone, and that this is what caused him to be so fatally distracted for this extended period.”

The court also heard Kroker signed a driver’s declaration an hour before the crash which included the passage: “I will never use a hand-held mobile phone or hands free kit whilst driving.”

Judge Maura McGowan said Kroker “might as well have had his eyes closed” as he did not see the vehicles ahead of him for “something in the order of 45 seconds”.

She continued: “This was excessive speed for the conditions, with signs along the road to suggest lorries would be slowing.

“Use of a handheld device such as a mobile phone is an unlawful act in itself, and in a very short period of time he has done significant damage.”

Family members of those killed were present in court for the sentencing, with some crying as dashcam footage of the crash from inside and outside Kroker’s lorry was shown.

Gavin Hernandez, district crown prosecutor for Thames and Chiltern Crown Prosecution Service, said: “This is not just a tragic accident, but death caused by Kroker’s inattention and distraction.

“Only 0.75 seconds before impact does he look up with sudden horror on his face, but it was too late for him to take any avoiding action.

“Kroker initially claimed at the scene that his brakes had failed and answered ‘no comment’ to two police interviews, but when confronted with the dashcam footage he admitted he had been playing with his mobile phone.”

A van driver who was jailed for nine years for running over a Basingstoke cyclist as he read a text message is attempting to appeal his sentence.

Father of two Lee Martin was taking part in an organised timed trial along the A31, near Bentley, on August 12 last year, when he was ploughed into from behind and killed by Christopher Gard.

Both men had been travelling in the left hand lane at the time of the fatal collision, with Gard, of Linnet Way, Alton, only breaking when he looked up from his phone to find Mr Martin “two or three feet” ahead of him.

It later emerged that Gard, who was travelling at around 60mph at the time of impact, had had eight previous convictions for using his phone while driving – the latest of which took place just six weeks earlier.

The 30-year-old initially denied being at fault, with Judge Susan Evans, while passing sentence on September 5, insisting he acted in a “calculated manner” by deleting texts from his phone immediately after the crash.

In addition to being jailed for nine years, Gard was also banned from driving for 14 and a half years, although he is now set to challenge his sentence at the Court of Appeal.

The court confirmed to the Observer that an application from Gard for leave to challenge his sentence would be heard by a full court of three judges, although a hearing date had not yet been decided.

Mr Martin’s family were forced to wait over a year for justice, after Gard only pleaded guilty to the charge of causing death by dangerous driving four days before he was due to go on trial.

Brother Darrell Martin spoke for the family in court ahead of sentencing, where he condemned Gard for “keeping this horrible affair hanging over us”.

But he was especially critical of the magistrate who had allowed Gard to retain his licence, after he promised them that he would lock his phone in the boot of his van in future while he drove.

Mr Martin said: “The magistrate has failed my brother, and failed my family.

“To find out he had eight previous convictions made the whole thing so much worse.

“I don’t believe this man has learnt any lessons, and has any regard for anyone else.”

A Basingstoke man has been jailed for 20 years for sexually abusing three children over the space of 15 years.

Steven Beddoes, of St Peter’s Road, in South Ham, was found guilty of committing 23 different offences against two girls and a boy.

The offences included rape, attempted rape, indecent assault, and indecency with a child, and all took place in the Basingstoke area between 1999 and 2014.

Beddoes, 46, denied each of the 24 offences put against him during his trial at the end of August at Winchester Crown Court.

And following a guilty verdict, Judge Susan Evans sentenced him to 20 years imprisonment at the same court on Friday, November 18, with an extended licence period of six years.

He was also ordered to be placed on the sexual offenders register for life as part of the sentence, which came about following a joint investigation carried out by Hampshire Constabulary’s Child Abuse Investigation Team (CAIT), and Basingstoke CID.

Detective Constable Timothy McSpadden, of CAIT, said: “The sentence handed down reflects the gravity of the offences committed by Steven Beddoes, and how seriously the court takes these matters.

“The victims in this case have been very courageous in both speaking to the police and giving evidence in court.

“By doing this they have allowed justice to be served, and have prevented Beddoes from causing any more harm to the most vulnerable people in our society.”

Detective Constable Alex Hall, of Basingstoke CID, added: “The police and the CPS would not have been able to prosecute Steven Beddoes if it had not been for the bravery of the victims coming forward.

“We would like to thank them for speaking to us, and trusting us to help them.”

A Basingstoke woman that murdered her boyfriend at the same time she was attempting to report him to a police operator has today been jailed for a minimum of 13-and-a-half-years.

Deborah Napier, of Amazon Close, stabbed Jolyon Wray, 46, in the back with a steak knife, on June 13, following a drunken fight at his home in Ryde, Isle of Wight.

The 53-year-old rang 999 shortly before the incident, after being woken up and dragged out of bed in order to go on a walk by an intoxicated Mr Wray, who then hit her across the face with a boot when she refused.

A scuffle was then heard to break out in the living room before the phone line then went dead, with Napier admitting to stabbing the dad-of-one when operators called straight back by saying she was “just so fed up of him hitting me”.

Napier pleaded guilty to manslaughter at the start of the 10-day trial, but denied murdering her partner of three years, with a jury taking nearly six-and-a-half hours to reach a majority decision at Winchester Crown Court on Thursday.

And when sentencing the defendant to a life sentence of 13-and-a-half years at the same court today, judge James Dingemans blamed her alcohol intake of two-and-a-half times over the limit for the murder.

He said: “The evidence shows, and I find, that both Ms Napier and Mr Wray were capable of hard work and kindness, but they were, when drunk, very abusive and unpleasant to each other.

“I accept that Ms Napier had stabbed Mr Wray in part because she was fed up with having been hit, and was angry at having been hit so hard.

“I am sure that Ms Napier intended to cause really serious bodily harm to Mr Wray, but I do not believe that Ms Napier intended to kill Mr Wray.”

The court was told during the trial that there was a “history between [the couple] of mutual violence”, with the prosecution claiming Napier had previously attacked Mr Wray with a hammer while he slept.

And in an impact statement read out immediately following Thursday’s verdict by Charles Gabb, on behalf of the victim’s 14-year-old daughter Violet, she insisted she was “not really surprised” when she was told of her father’s death.

She added: “I always knew she was evil.

“I never liked Deborah, she was always so nasty.

“I’ve [since] found it difficult to sleep, and I have this recurring nightmare whenever I close my eyes of Deborah stabbing my dad, and I see her killing me.”

Investigating officer, Detective Constable Luke Donovan, said: “Deborah and Jolyon clearly had a troubled relationship, which, following a vicious attack, resulted in the tragic loss of Jolyon’s life.

“Despite it being clear from the outset who was responsible for Jolyon’s death, and that Deborah Napier had already pleaded guilty to manslaughter at the beginning of the trial, the investigation team worked hard to present evidence for the jury to consider murder.

“I hope today’s guilty verdict goes some way to giving Jolyon’s family closure and that they can now put the terrible events of this day behind them.”

A former teacher has been jailed for sexually abusing a pupil at a school on the Basingstoke and Deane border.

Martin Eggington regularly sexually assaulted the same boy at Cheam School, in Headley, between 1992 and 1993.

The 58-year-old taught at the school, on the Hampshire and West Berkshire border, from 1987 to the 1993, with Winchester Crown Court hearing how he used his position as a head of department to isolate the child and abuse him.

Eggington, of Plantation Close, in Arnold, Nottingham, also acted as a “friend” of the victim to sexually assault him at different locations around the mixed preparatory school.

This included the store cupboard of his faculty classroom, the darkroom for the photography club, and within a secluded area of the school grounds, near to the flowing river known as “camps” by the pupils.

And after being found guilty of two counts of indecent assault on a male child, and two counts of gross indecency with a male child, Eggington was sentenced to three years in prison at the crown court last Friday.

The former teacher has also been handed a sexual harm prevention order, and will be on the sex offenders register for the rest of his life.

Case officer Detective Constable Craig Ferguson, said following the sentencing: “This was a very detailed investigation, which required the continued strength and support of the victim and his family.

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank the victim and to commend him for the courage and resolve he has demonstrated throughout this difficult investigation.

“I am aware that this case was at times very difficult for the victim and his family, but I hope now that we have seen justice, he can start to try to rebuild his life, and move on.

“Hampshire Constabulary remains absolutely committed to supporting the victims of non-recent sexual abuse, and bringing to justice those responsible.”

A spokesperson for the NSPCC added: “It was Eggington’s job to nurture the children in his care.

“Instead he sought out opportunities to commit abuse.

“His victim has shown tremendous courage in coming forward.

“This case sends a clear message that victims will be listened to and perpetrators brought to justice, regardless of when the abuse occurred.”

Two police officers responsible for helping bring the man who ran over and killed a Basingstoke cyclist to justice have been presented with an award.

Christopher Gard, of Linnet Way, Alton, was reading a text message on his mobile when he drove his white Ford Transit van into the back of dad-of-two Lee Martin on August 12 last year.

Mr Martin was hit at around 60mph, while cycling in the left hand lane on the A31, near Bentley, with Gard then immediately deleting the texts, and initially pleading not guilty to causing death by dangerous driving.

But Gard, who had eight previous convictions for using his phone behind the wheel, later changed his plea, and was sentenced to nine years in jail in September.

The work of PC Emma Clifford, from the Forensic Collision Investigation Unit, and PC Dave Mitchell, from the Serious Collision Investigation Unit, was honoured with an award at a police awards ceremony on Friday night.

Chief Superintendent Stephen Williams said: “It is testament to the quality of evidence submitted that Gard had no option but to plead guilty to causing death by dangerous driving.

“Their outstanding work and meticulous investigation skills not only provided a positive outcome for the victim’s family, but ensured a dangerous offender, who had tried to escape the consequences of his actions, was brought to justice.”

A Basingstoke man who was part of a gang that blew up 10 cash machines across the south east has been jailed.

Daniel Dorkin, of Baynard Close, was one of four men involved in the theft of around £120,000 from ATMs during a month-long crime spree.

The group pumped a combustible gas into the machines, and then ignited them from a short distance using an electrical charge, with police insisting it was “sheer luck” that no bystanders were hurt in the blasts.

Cash machines in Marlborough, Twickenham, Uxbridge, Windsor, Harrow, and Frimley were all targeted from August 9, with the group then arrested on September 8, after exploding an ATM in Denham, Buckinghamshire.

In half of their known attempts, the gang failed to reach the cash compartment, with Dorkin being identified by detectives, after being captured on CCTV at two of the crime scenes, wearing a t-shirt bearing the words “Seasoned Offender”.

And the 26-year-old was sentenced to 11 years in prison at Kingston Crown Court, in London, on Tuesday, after pleading guilty to conspiracy to steal, conspiracy to commit criminal damage, and recklessness endangering of life.

Ray Abraham, 36, of Hobart Drive, Hythe, was sentenced to 11 years and 14 months in prison, following the investigation from the Met Police’s Flying Squad.

And Trevor McCarthy, 43, of Barlby Road, London, and Gary Mills, 40, of Fleetwood Close, Chalfont St Giles, were both also jailed for 10 years and eight months.

Detective Inspector Mark Bedford, of the Flying Squad, said: “This crime network caused a series of large explosions in petrol stations, and it was by sheer luck that no unsuspecting members of the public were injured as they passed by.

“There has been substantial inconvenience caused to local communities who rely on the services of the ATMs, and also extensive damage to small business properties estimated to be in excess of £200,000.

“The substantial sentences handed down today reflect the danger posed to the public by the action of this reckless gang.”

A 14-year-old boy has received an eight-month detention and training order for setting fire to a Basingstoke church.

The teenager, who can’t be named for legal reasons, was last week convicted of causing the blaze that destroyed a wooden shed at St Joseph’s Catholic Church, in St Michael’s Road, South Ham.

Nobody was injured during the fire on July 27 last year, which saw a 15-year-old boy also receive a 12-month referral order for the same arson offence at a hearing at Basingstoke Youth Court in December.

And the 14-year-old appeared at the same court on Friday, where he was also convicted of seven offences of criminal damage to the church, as well as offences of assault by beating, possession of a knife in a public place, and theft by finding.

His detention and training order will include a period of custody and supervision, with Hampshire police insisting the ruling showed they would take “appropriate action” to anti-social behavior.

Inspector Ben Taylor, from Basingstoke’s Neighbourhood Policing Team, said: “This teenager’s actions have caused significant anxiety for people in Basingstoke for a considerable period of time.

“We, along with partners within the Safer North Hampshire Community Safety Partnership, have made efforts to work with him to address his behavior.

“But unfortunately he has continued to act in a manner that is not acceptable to the community.

“This court result shows that we will not tolerate anti-social behaviour and will take the appropriate action.”

A van driver that ran over and killed a Basingstoke cyclist while looking at his phone has had his appeal to reduce his sentence rejected.

Christopher Gard, of Linnet Way, Alton, was travelling at around 60mph when he drove into the back of dad-of-two Lee Martin on August 12 2015.

Mr Martin had been taking part in an organised time trial along the A31, near Bentley, at the time, with Winchester Crown Court hearing in September how Gard had looked up from his mobile to find his victim “two or three feet” in front of him.

The 30-year-old denied being at fault initially, due to his having eight previous convictions of using a phone behind the wheel, with the final hearing coming just six weeks before the fatal crash.

After being sentenced to nine years in prison for the crime, it was then revealed in November that Gard would be challenging his sentence at the Court of Appeal.

But the court elected to dismiss his appeal today, meaning that his sentence for causing death by dangerous driving will remain.