A MAN has been jailed for 18 weeks after breaching his Criminal Behaviour Order (CBO).

Lewis Cooper-Gray, 31, was issued with a criminal behaviour order on 28 February this year, which prevented him from begging and acting in an anti-social manner that causes harassment, alarm or distress throughout the Harlow district.

He was sentenced at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday 2 October.

Cooper-Gray breached his CBO on five occasions between Friday 27 September and Tuesday 1 October.

He begged for money from members of the public, entered locations he was not permitted to, and behaved in ways which intimidated people going about their daily business.

A HARLOW man has received a suspended sentence after attempting to meet a child on social networking site Grindr.

Kyle Elston-Hooper, aged 31, of Arkwrights pleaded guilty at Chelmsford magistrates court to the following.

He was sentenced on Friday October 4th.

Eston-Hooper pleaded guilty to the following.

On 03/10/2017 at Harlow you attempted to intentionally meet a child, known as ‘Now’, having communicated with him via Grindr messages, intending during or after the meeting to commit a relevant offence, namely to touch him sexually,

He received 12 months imprisonment suspended for 24 months with requirements (40 hours unpaid work).

He will sign Sexual Offender Register for 10 years. Sexual Harm Prevention Order for 10 years.

Victim surcharge of £140.00.
To pay £110.00 towards the costs of prosecution.

ESSEX Police are investigating after a teenager was assaulted in Harlow in what we are treating as a hate crime.

It was reported the 17 year-old boy was assaulted with a knife at around 8.30pm on Wednesday 9 September in Northbrooks and sustained a cut to his arm.

He went to hospital for treatment but has since been discharged.

We are treating the incident as a hate crime as the victim reported he had been assaulted because he is a muslim.

The assault followed a confrontation between the victim and a group of five to seven men and boys thought to be in their late teens to early 20s who all had their faces covered and were wearing hooded tops.

The person who assaulted the victim is described as being white, slim, around 5ft 7ins tall, in his late teens and with curly brown hair.

One of the other members of the group has been described as white, slim, in his late teens to 20s, around 6ft tall and wearing a big puffed jacket.

Chief Inspector Natalia Ross, District Commander for Harlow, said: “We are treating this incident very seriously and working to establish the circumstances which led up to it.

“There will be additional patrols in the area so to provide extra reassurance to the local community.

“We appreciate incidents like this cause concern and we have a team of officers working hard to identify those responsible.

“There were a number of vehicles in the area at the time and I need anyone who has any dash cam footage of the incident or the moments leading up to it to come forward.”

If you saw anything, have any CCTV or dash cam footage, or have any other information please call us on 101 quoting the crime reference number 42/161312/19 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

A HARLOW teenager has been banned from keeping pets for two years and given a court order after he threw a cat over a fence by its tail reports the BBC.

The 15-year-old from Harlow, who cannot be named for legal reasons, admitted causing unnecessary suffering to an animal at Chelmsford Youth Court.

The incident on 5 September, which was filmed, created “outrage” on social media, the court heard.

He also admitted robbing a former friend of his motorbike with a weapon.

The boy brandished an object thought to be either a bayonet or a crowbar in the attack on 12 February, after shoving the other boy from the bike, prosecutor Ashley Petchy said.

In a video played to the court, a boy can be heard encouraging the youth to throw the feline before the cat can be heard “crying” as it is flung by its tail.

Mr Petchy said: “He said the cat was friendly when it came over to him. He said he saw the cat again after and it was injured.”

Chairman of the bench Ian Andrews said the boy, who was also given a restraining order preventing him from contacting the robbery victim, had narrowly avoided a custodial sentence as both were serious offences.

Sentencing he said: “You showed no hesitation in throwing that cat over the fence. We don’t know if it sustained any injury but we must assume that it would have been affected by what we have seen in the video.”

Elliot Moulster, in defence, said the boy was “emotionally immature” and was susceptible to peer pressure.

The teenager was also ordered to pay £400 compensation for damage to the bike and a £20 victim surcharge as well as to fulfil the 12 month referral order.

Today, Saturday 12 October, marks the start of this year’s National Hate Crime Awareness Week.

THROUGHOUT the next seven days, Essex Police will be raising awareness of different hate crime offences, how to report them and organisations you can go to for support if you don’t want to talk to them straight away.

An Essex Police spokesperson said: “We’ll be looking into how our officers investigate these offences, and what justice can look like after a hate crime has been proven – both in and out of court.

Between September 2018 and August 2019, a total of 2846 hate crimes were reported to us.

“These varied from reported verbal attacks, to written or online communication that was deemed to be criminally offensive, to different types of assaults. Regardless of the manner of hate crimes, they’re unacceptable and we will work to get justice for any of these victims.

This was an increase of 554 reports from the previous year, but we know that hate crime is still underreported. We hope that this increase is a step in the right direction, with more victims of hate crime feeling comfortable to talk to us about their experience and, where possible, seek justice.

Whether you’ve been targeted for your disability, race, religion, sexuality, or because you’re transgender, we want to ensure that you get the support you need.

“If you don’t feel comfortable with reporting hate crime to us in the first instance, you can call the Stop Hate UK hotline on 0800 138 1625. You can also visit one of our Hate Incident Reporting Centres and speak to one of our trained Hate Crime Ambassadors.

Alternatively, you can speak to Victim Support, a national charity who can signpost you to organisations who can help you. They can be reached on 0808 1781 694 or you can request support through their website.

If you wish to report hate crime you can submit information online through the True Vision website: www.report-it.org.uk, through our own website or by calling 101 or 999 in an emergency.

“If you report a hate crime to us, you may come into contact with one of our three Hate Crime Officers (HCO). One of our three HCOs covers each area of the county – North, South and West. They review hate crimes that have been reported to ensure that they’re progressing in the most effective way and that victims are being referred to support organisations. They also assist our officers with their investigations, train and visit our Hate Incident Reporting Centres and engage with local community groups to raise aware of hate crimes and support networks on a regular basis. We’re going to introduce you to them now.

TWO teenagers who vandalised and stole from the grave of a much-loved teenager have both escaped jail but have been fined heavily.

Harry Kings, aged 18, of Upper Mealines, Harlow and Jack Tucker, aged 18, of Great Leylands, Harlow pleaded guilty at Chelmsford magistrates court of the following.

On 15/08/2019 at Harlow without lawful excuse, damaged property laid at the grave of Marcel Honiss, namely: a football, a canvas picture of the deceased, a cross and solar lights. to the value of unknown belonging to Alan Honiss intending to destroy or damage such property or being reckless as to whether such property would be destroyed or damaged.

On 15/08/2019 at Harlow stole two footballs and an engraved pebble of a value unknown belonging to Alan Honiss.

Kings was fined £500.00 and will have to carry out 250 hours of unpaid community work over the next twelve months.

Tucker was also fined £500.00 and will have to carry of 200 hours of unpaid community work over next twelve months.

A CHURCH Langley man has been found guilty of drug-driving in Harlow.

Darryl Ambrose, aged 31, of Challinor, Church Langley, Harlow pleaded guilty to the following at Chelmsford magistrates court.

On 24/04/2019 at Harlow drove a motor vehicle, namely Volkswagen Golf, on a road, namely Manston Road, when the proportion of a controlled drug, namely Delta-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol, in your blood, namely 4.8 micrograms of drug per litre of blood, exceeded the specified limit

Ambrose was fined £339.00 and disqualified from driving for twelve months.

ALL charges against a man accused of assaulting two women in Harlow have been dismissed.

Tawakal Hassain Shah, aged 49, of Ladyshot, Harlow had faced two charges in relation to two alleged assaults on May 11th, 2019.

The courts reported that the case was dismissed as no evidence was offered.

Mr Shah, who had always maintained his innocence, was paid costs of £20.00

ESSEX Police arrested four people on suspicion of conspiracy to commit burglary after we stopped a vehicle in Harlow on Saturday 12 October.

They stopped a vehicle in Staple Tye at around 11.20pm and found a hammer, screwdriver and a knife inside.

They arrested a 26-year-old man from Stratford on suspicion of conspiracy to commit burglary, possession of an offensive weapon, going equipped and possession of drugs.

A 17-year-old boy from Rainham, London, has been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit burglary, going equipped and possession of drugs.

A 17-year-old girl and a 16-year-old boy, both from Dagenham, were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit burglary and going equipped to steal.

They have all been interviewed and have been released on bail until Friday 1 November.

A HARLOW man is set to stand trial over a number of charges including child neglect as well as assaulting a woman.

Adam Lawal, aged 28, of Carters Mead, Harlow has been charged with the following.

On 11/09/2019 at Harlow, with intent to cause a woman harassment, alarm or distress, used threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour or disorderly behaviour, thereby causing that person or another harassment, alarm or distress.

On 23/09/2018 at Harlow assaulted a woman thereby occasioning her, actual bodily harm

On 23/09/2018 at Harlow, being a person who had attained the age of 16 years, and having responsibility for a child under that age, wilfully assaulted, ill treated, neglected, abandoned or exposed the said child in a manner likely to cause him unnecessary suffering or injury to health

A court date at Chelmsford magistrates court of November 1st has been set.

Lawal has pleaded not guilty.

FOUR people have been arrested in connection with a robbery in Harlow where it was reported a man was pulled into a vehicle and threatened with a knife.

It took place in Katherines Hatch on 9 October.

His phone, wallet, and keys were stolen.

A car was stopped by officers in The Cloisters, Braintree at around midnight on Wednesday 15 October and four men from London were arrested on suspicion of robbery and theft of a motor vehicle.

One has since been eliminated from the investigation and released without charge.

Three others – two 19 year-olds and a 20 year-old – remain in custody

By Inspector Tony Walker

AS mentioned previously it is this time of the year when reports of house burglaries increase, as the darker nights are almost with us and I would urge everyone to consider their home security. We still receive reports of homes being entered when windows have been left open or doors not correctly locked. Please do lock UPVC doors, lift the handle, lock the door with a key and remove the key, if not correctly locked these doors are easily opened and they have been targeted in overnight burglaries. Over the coming months we will be posting home security information on our social media sites, there is also a wealth of crime prevention advice on the Essex Police internet site please do take a few minutes to have a look www.essex.police.uk. You may also wish to consider joining a local neighbourhood watch scheme but as always if you do see anything suspicious please call police. On a separate note over the last month there was an increase in garage burglaries if you do have a garage please review your current security, are those locks secure? Do you have valuable items stored in a garage that is easy to break into? Security devices and garage alarms are available from most DIY stores and are worth investing in.

The local community continue to express their concerns over anti-social behaviour in the Town Centre and we have been working hard to tackle this issue in partnership with the Council Community Safety Team. During the month of September five persons were arrested for possession of controlled drugs with intent to supply, these investigations can be complex but in all cases we apply for bail conditions to prevent offenders from returning to the Town Centre. A persistent & aggressive beggar was arrested for breaching his Community Behaviour Order and sentenced to 18 weeks imprisonment, his activity continued despite a number of other agencies offering him support and assistance.

We have also increased our patrols in the Town during the night time and in the early hours to tackle issues relating to the night time economy this has resulted in an increase in both arrests and stop and search. A dispersal order was put in place last month to tackle anti-social behaviour and was effective, the order gives police officers and PCSO’s a power to issue a direction to leave notice and restricts return to a specific area for up to 48 hours if persons have committed or are likely to commit anti-social behaviour. Two persons were arrested for failing to comply with this notice and were arrested and put before the court. This is the time of year that we also see an increase in calls regarding anti-social behaviour connected to Halloween and fireworks, the Community Policing Team will have additional resources on duty to deal with the increase in demand.

The Community Policing Team regularly receive complaints regarding parking around schools in the area especially around drop off and collection times. All schools work hard to educate parents about the dangers of inappropriate parking, most have some form of parking restrictions in place and they are there for a reason, to keep children safe.

If you drive to a local school please think about where you are parking and the safety of others.

At 8.30pm on Wednesday 9th October an altercation took place between two groups of youths in the park area off Harberts Road as a result a 17 year old male was assaulted and stabbed in the arm, he was treated in hospital and released later the same day, an investigation is being conducted by CID officers from Harlow, if you have any information regarding this offence please contact police on 101 or anonymously via crime stoppers on 0800 555111 or www.crimestoppers-uk.org.uk. As a result of this incident police and Council Community Support Officers increased patrols in the area over the following week, an arrest has been made and enquiries continue.

TWO people have appeared in court today to face drug-related charges.

Aaron Yeboah, 24 and 44-year-old Barry Kent were arrested in Hadley Grange, Harlow on Monday 14 October.

Yeboah of Connaught Avenue, Chingford was charged with two counts of possessing a Class A drug and possessing cannabis while Kent of Hart Road, Harlow was charged with two counts of being concerned in the supply of Class A drugs and two counts of possession with intent to supply a Class A drug.

The pair appeared at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday October 16 and were remanded in custody. They will reappear at court later this year.

MINDLESS vandals have damaged play equipment at Cooks Spinney school near The Stow.

The damage was done on Wednesday night.

The items damaged include sports equipment as well as a number of items in the nursery garden.

A spokesperson for Cooks Spinney has stated on social media that they have contacted the police and have also asked that people should contact the school, if they have any information.

http://www.cooksspinneyacademy.org

DETECTIVES have launched an attempted murder investigation following a road traffic collision in Harlow during the early hours of Friday 18 October.

Police were called around midnight with reports that a man was seriously injured on Potter Road after being struck by a car.

The man, aged in his 30s, was taken to hospital with life-threatening injuries and remains in a critical condition.

Police were later called around 12.40am with reports that a blue BMW 1 Series was on fire at a playing field near to High Street in Roydon.

Officers believe the car is linked to the collision.

They would like to hear from anyone who was in the Potter Street area of Harlow around midnight or the High Street area of Roydon, shortly after this time and has any information about either incident. They would particularly like those with dash cam footage to get in contact.

Please contact the Serious Collision Investigation Unit on 101 quoting incident 3 of 18 October or you can report information by visiting https://mipp.police.uk/operation/4201020119P07-PO1

Information can also be given completely anonymously to independent charity Crimestoppers by calling 0800 555 111 or visiting crimestoppers-uk.org

TWO police cars responding to reports of a break-in at a forecourt in Essex have been rammed by another car.

Officers were called to a suspected break-in at the Harvest Service Station on High Road, North Weald at about 3.25am on Thursday October 17.

It was after they arrived at the scene that the cars were hit by another car.

No-one was injured during the incident but the station was taped off for several hours while officers carried out enquiries.

Essex Police said a 17-year-old boy has been arrested on suspicion of burglary and theft of a motor vehicle.

A spokesperson said: “We were called to reports of a group of people trying to break into a petrol station in High Road, North Weald at around 3.25am on Thursday, October 17.

“We attended and during the incident it was reported two police cars were rammed by another vehicle.

“A 17-year-old boy from Harlow has been arrested on suspicion of burglary and theft of a motor vehicle while a 41 year-old woman from Harlow has been arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender.”

Anyone who saw anything, or has CCTV or dash cam footage or any other information is asked to call 101 quoting incident number 107 of October 17 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.

EIGHT men, including seven from Harlow, have been sentenced to a total of 55 years following investigations into a crime group that carried out cash machine thefts, burglaries and car thefts across the eastern region.

Walter Mitchell Junior, Shane Stanley, Walter Mitchell Senior, Levi Mitchell, William Mitchell, Sid Clark, Jack Mitchell and Ross Whitford were sentenced at Chelmsford Crown Court today, Friday 18 October.

Mitchell Junior was found guilty of two counts of conspiracy to commit burglary, conspiracy to commit theft and conspiracy to handle stolen goods on Tuesday 17 September. The other eight men previously pleaded guilty to a conspiracy offences at an earlier date.

Scott McManus, 43, of Chapelfields, Stanstead Abbots, was found not guilty of conspiracy to commit burglary on Tuesday 17 September. A jury were unable to reach a decision on conspiracy to handle stolen goods and we agreed to dismiss the case against him.

In April 2018, our Serious Crime Directorate launched an investigation into a series of cross border commercial and dwelling burglaries, car thefts and ATM thefts.

These offences spanned numerous counties including Essex, Hertfordshire, Surrey, Cambridgeshire, Thames Valley and London between 24 March 2018 and 5 March 2019.

The ATM offences we investigated the men for took place between February and August 2018 in Broxbourne, Corringham, West Kingsdown, South Ockendon, Rainham in London, Gravesend, Epsom, Hutton, Loughton, Pilgrims Hatch and Redbourn. They have admitted to nine of these.

Following these offences, specialist officers focused on the activities of a family living at Fern Hill caravan site in Harlow and their associates.

We then successfully secured powers to search properties in Brentwood, Harlow and Stansted Abbots on 5 March this year.

During these warrants, eight men were arrested with two more questioned over coming weeks.

They were quickly charged and continued to remain on remand in prison ahead of sentence.

Superintendent Andy Waldie, of the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate, said: “These men were highly organised and dangerous, we believed they would put our officers and members of the public at risk of harm and violence in their attempts to escape.

“They were able to get away from scenes quickly, leaving very little forensic opportunities before destroying the stolen vehicles they used.

“Even when the whole ATMs were stolen, sometimes they were able to get away from scenes in under a minute.

“We estimate that theft and damage costing more than a £1million was caused by this group of men over the course of a year.

“The case file involved over 100 investigations including 35 commercial burglaries and burglaries across 14 towns and villages in the eastern region.

“A 500-page timeline and presentation was compiled and presented to the Crown Prosecution Service as evidence.

“The case was investigated by the Serious Crime Directorate, which used a variety of policing tactics including support from the Eastern Region Special Operations Unit.

“Despite the challenges posed by this organised crime group across the region, we worked around the clock to collate an overwhelming amount of evidence against the Mitchells, Clark, Stanley and Whitford, who have since been jailed for a total of 55 years.”

Marc Terry, International Managing Director for Cardtronics, said: “Let these sentences be a warning for anyone out there contemplating an attack on our Secure ATMs.

“These results show that our Secure ATM initiative is exceptionally effective in helping the police track down, catch and send to jail those who attempt to attack Cardtronics machines.

“Congratulations and our thanks go to the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate for its excellent work in helping us to protect access to cash for local and rural communities, who rely on ATMs for basic banking services.

“Our work does not stop here – we are fighting to protect access to cash across the whole of the UK and will not rest until ATM crime is eradicated and ceases to be a threat to communities and their residents.

“Those considering an attack should think again, as they will be caught and sent to jail for a very long time.”

Walter Mitchell Junior, 22, of Fern Hill Lane, Harlow, received eight years custodial for conspiracy to commit commercial burglaries, conspiracy to commit dwelling burglaries, conspiracy to handle stolen goods and conspiracy to commit theft of motor vehicles;

Shane Stanley, 37, of Fern Hill Lane, Harlow, received a nine year custodial sentence for conspiracy to commit commercial burglaries and conspiracy to handle stolen goods;

Walter Mitchell Senior, 42, of Fern Hill Lane, Harlow, received a nine year custodial sentence for conspiracy to commit commercial burglaries and conspiracy to handle stolen goods;

Levi Mitchell, 35, of Fern Hill Lane, Harlow, received a seven year custodial sentence for conspiracy to commit commercial burglaries;

William Mitchell, 30, of Fern Hill Lane, Harlow, received a seven year custodial sentence for conspiracy to commit commercial burglaries;

Sid Clark, 32, of Broadfield Harlow, received a four year custodial sentence for conspiracy to commit commercial burglaries;

Ross Whitford, 24, of Rock Lane, Hastings, received a four year custodial sentence for conspiracy to commit commercial burglaries;

Jack Mitchell, 20, of Kingsmoor Road, Harlow, received a seven year custodial sentence for conspiracy to commit commercial burglaries.

Tommy Mitchell, 19, of Fern Hill Lane, Harlow, is due to be sentenced on Friday 25 October for conspiracy to commit commercial burglaries, conspiracy to commit dwelling burglaries and conspiracy to handle stolen goods.

The Met’s Flying Squad successfully sentenced five members of an Organised Crime Group for more than 50 offences across the South East, including 17 ATM thefts across London, Hertfordshire, Cambridge, Essex and Kent.

Alfie Smith, 41, of Staines Road West, Ashford, Middlesex, Alfie Stanley, 41, of Beech Drive, Cambridgeshire, Levi Smith, 36, of Yeldham Road, Halstead, and Kiah Roberts, 42, of Glamorgan Road, Ipswich, were jailed with their total custodial sentence reaching over 30 years.

Four men will also be sentenced on 6 December in connection with a series of cash machine thefts across Kent and Essex between 24 February and 22 July this year.

Adrian Gowers, 55, Derwent Way, Gillingham, Phillip Barnard, 25, High Street, Chelmsford, John Lee, 49, New Waverley Road, Basildon and David Eves, 48, Larch Road, Dartford all admitted charges of conspiracy to commit burglary.

THREE men have been arrested after a man was hit by a car in Harlow.

The 38-year-old victim remains in hospital in a critical condition after being found injured in Potter Street at about midnight on Friday 18 October.

A blue BMW 1 Series was found alight in a field near Roydon High Street a short time later, and we believe the car is linked to the collision.

A 35-year-old man from Harlow was arrested today, Saturday 19 October, on suspicion of conspiracy to murder.

Two men aged 24 and 34, both from Harlow, have been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and failing to stop following a road traffic collision.

They remain in custody for questioning.

The police continue to appeal for witnesses who were in the Potter Street area of Harlow or High Street area of Roydon in the early hours of yesterday and saw what happened.

Contact the Major Crime Team on 101, quoting incident 3 of Friday 18 October.

You can also report information online at https://mipp.police.uk/operation/4201020119P07-PO1

Alternatively, contact the Crimestoppers charity 100% anonymously on 0800 555 111 or use the anonymous online form at Crimestoppers-uk.org

ESSEX Police are appealing for information after a burglary in Harlow in which distinctive trainers were stolen.

An address in Guilfords was broken into between 8.30am and 3pm on Tuesday 10 September.

The burglars stole two Playstation 4 consoles with a blue controller and a silver controller, as well as four pairs of distinctive trainers.

They also took a pair of black and white Jordans, Guiseppe Zanotti Frankie trainers, red Jordans and blue trainers.

Anyone who has been offered similar items for sale recently or has any information about the burglary is asked to call Harlow CID on 101 quoting reference 42/145111/19.

A MAN has sadly died after being hit by a car in Harlow.

The 38-year-old victim was found injured in Potter Street at about midnight on Friday 18 October.

He died in hospital last night, Saturday 19 October.

Three men from Harlow who were arrested yesterday have now also been arrested on suspicion of murder.

They remain in custody for questioning.

Police continue to appeal for witnesses who were in the Potter Street area of Harlow or High Street area of Roydon in the early hours of Friday and saw the collision.

Contact the Major Crime Team on 101, quoting incident 3 of Friday 18 October.

You can also report information online at https://mipp.police.uk/operation/4201020119P07-PO1

Alternatively, contact the Crimestoppers charity 100% anonymously on 0800 555 111 or use the anonymous online form at Crimestoppers-uk.org