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CPS News Centre

Criminal cases that the Crown Prosecution Service take to court are in the news every day. This section also covers many issues related to our work, including violence against women and girls, hate crime, support for victims and witnesses, statistics, and speeches by the Director of Public Prosecutions and other senior staff.

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You can find our latest news stories here and search for older stories. You can also find more information about high-profile cases and the work of the CPS.

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To make criminal court reporting more open, the CPS, police, and media representatives have created an agreement: the Media Protocol: Working together to support open justice.

Showing 1 - 10 of 68 results for area "Wessex"

Date format: dd/mm/yyyy
Date format: dd/mm/yyyy
Norbert Maiksner custody image 1

Man who murdered ex-partner and fled the scene is sentenced

A man who murdered his ex-partner then fled the scene has been sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 24 years.Norbert Maiksner was previously found guilty of murdering Frances Obiefuleh at her home in Havant, Hampshire, on the evening of 16 April 2025.Maiksner was also convicted by a…
Press Release Violent crime CPS Wessex

Romance fraudster jailed after conning multiple men in £180,000 fraud operation

A woman has been jailed for seven years and seven months after deceiving multiple men out of tens of thousands of pounds over four years.
Press Release Fraud and economic crime Wessex
Custody images of Yafeng Dong and Wei Gong Li

Husband and wife jailed for operating brothel network

A husband and wife who ran a network of brothels and advertised sex workers online, have today been jailed for a combined total of nearly five years.
Press Release Fraud and economic crime CPS Wessex
Timothy Girling custody image

Sexual health doctor sentenced after assaulting and secretly filming patients for his own sexual gratification

A doctor who exploited patients by sexually assaulting them and secretly filming them during routine examinations has been sentenced to six years in prison.Dr Timothy Girling, 55, of West Molesey, Surrey, carried out intimate physical examinations at at a medical centre in Bournemouth.During one…
Press Release CPS Wessex
Image of a concrete canal underpass with graffiti on the wall. Text reads: Proven guilty: Three teenage boys, 13, 14 and 14, guilty of rape and taking indecent images of children

Group of boys as young as 13 convicted for raping girls, 14 and 15, in separate attacks

Three teenage boys have today been convicted of a knife-point rape and other serious sexual offences against two teenage girls in Hampshire.
Press Release Sexual offences Youth crime CPS Wessex

Fake French tourists jailed for smuggling migrants to UK

Three men and three women from France who pretended to be tourists were jailed today (Friday 27 February) after they were caught in a convoy of cars bringing three Vietnamese nationals into the UK.
Press Release International and organised crime CPS Wessex
Musafar Hotak custody image

Rapist who targeted woman after she left nightclub is sentenced after he blamed family member for the attack

A man who raped a woman after she left a Southampton nightclub has today been sentenced for his horrific crimes – after trying to blame his actions on a family member.
Press Release Sexual offences CPS Wessex

Funeral directors sentenced after robbing families of chance to say goodbye with dignity

Two fraudulent funeral directors have been sentenced today after storing bodies in unrefrigerated conditions and denying families lawful burials.
Press Release CPS Wessex

Man jailed after befriending women on dating apps to sexually abuse children

A man who befriended women online to take part in sexual abuse against children has been sentenced to 26 years in prison.Elliot Jones, 49, of Norfolk, previously pleaded guilty to 21 offences including sexual activity with children.He also encouraged the women, from different parts of the country,…
Press Release Sexual offences Wessex

Man admits raping and drugging wife over 13-year period

Philip Young, 49, appeared at Winchester Crown Court and pleaded guilty to 48 serious sexual offences committed against his former wife.
Press Release Sexual offences CPS Wessex

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If you are a national or international journalist with a media enquiry, you can contact the CPS Press Office on 020 3357 0906 or email [email protected] (9am-5pm weekdays only).

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Media protocol

To ensure greater openness in the reporting of criminal proceedings, the CPS, the police and media representatives developed a joint protocol for working together. We are currently in the process of updating the protocol.

Read the current protocol

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