A man who blackmailed children into sending him indecent images of themselves over social media has today been jailed.

Ishmael Lance Duncan, 24, was sentenced to 18 years imprisonment plus a six-year extended licence at Inner London Crown Court on 1 December 2023 after he pleaded guilty to a total of 50 charges relating to child sexual abuse. The charges included blackmail, causing a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity, sexual communication with a child and making and possessing indecent images of children (IIOC).

Four members of an organised crime group and a criminal associate have been imprisoned today (Thursday 7 December 2023)  for their roles in the importation and distribution of huge quantities of cocaine and cannabis, at Stafford Crown Court.

The Crown Prosecution Service has entered into a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) today (Tuesday 5 December 2023) with Entain plc, a global online sports betting and gaming business (owner of Ladbrokes and Coral bookmakers) headquartered in London, to settle the HM Revenue & Customs investigation into the Company (and its group).

This agreement was approved by Dame Victoria Sharp DBE, President of the King’s Bench Division, at the Royal Courts of Justice, sitting as the Crown Court at Southwark. 

A former Shropshire hotel manager has been jailed for five years after defrauding almost £2 million from businesses using invalid cheques.

Christopher Peach, 51, from Ellesmere, entered into a plea agreement with the Crown prior to being charged with 18 counts of fraud and one of money laundering between October 2016 and November 2019.