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.
Latest news
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.
Working with the media
To make criminal court reporting more open, the CPS, police, and media representatives created a joint protocol (agreement) for working together. We are currently working on an updated version of the protocol.
Showing 21 - 30 of 58 results for area "South East"
A convicted criminal has been found guilty of murdering the man he blamed for sending him to prison.Stephen Castle had a chance encounter with Wayne Woodgate in the centre of Tunbridge Wells on 17 October 2024 and was then seen by witnesses arguing with him, before driving off with him. Wayne’s…
A man who controlled women over a four-year period has been convicted of a string of charges, including rape, controlling or coercive behaviour, and actual bodily harm.Portsmouth Crown Court heard that George De Bathe, 25, would cut the victims off from their family and friends and control them in…
Press ReleaseViolent crimeDomestic abuseSexual offencesSouth East
Five men have been sentenced to a total of five years for their roles in running a vehicle “chop shop” in Surrey with the stolen vehicles and parts estimated to be worth around £750,000.High-value cars, including Porsches, Mercedes and BMWs were stolen from various parts of the UK by thieves…
A woman has been found guilty of murdering her husband, after his body was found in a holdall in the garden of the property where they lived in Canterbury, Kent.Jeremy Rickards, who was stabbed repeatedly in June 2024, was the victim of domestic abuse at the hands of his wife Maureen in the lead-up…
A man who murdered a lone woman walking her dog on an isolated footpath in Kent has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 25 years.Harrison Lawrence-Van Pooss killed Claire Knights on 23 August 2023, as she walked back from the beach at Minnis Bay, Birchington. He sexually assaulted her and…
A man who caused the death of a woman in a high-speed crash has been jailed. Jack Cracknell, 22, was driving with four other passengers in his car in the early hours of the morning on 3 December 2022. Cracknell, of Faversham, Kent, reached speeds of 117mph as he drove along the New Dover…
A man who deliberately drove over another man, following a fight, has been convicted of his murder.Kyle Dumble, 27, was a passenger in a car when the driver spotted a group of people walking home after celebrating a birthday in Hailsham, Sussex, in November 2023. Dumble’s friend, who was driving,…
Christopher Latham was driving at speeds estimated to be between 70 and 90 mph in a residential area of Caterham with a 30-mph limit and was on the wrong side of the road just before losing control and crashing his car into a wall.A woman who was in the rear of the car died, while the other two…
The father and stepmother of a 10-year-old girl whose body was discovered in her bed after the family had fled to Pakistan have today been jailed for her murder.A jury found Urfan Sharif and Beinash Batool guilty of murdering Sara Sharif following a ten-week trial where they heard Sara was…
A man has admitted murdering a woman after ambushing her while she walked back to her car from a Kent beach.Harrison Lawrence-Van Pooss attacked Claire Knights, 54, on 23 August 2023, who had spent the afternoon at Minnis Bay with her dog. She did not know the attacker.Lawrence Van-Pooss had…
Press ReleaseViolent crimeSouth East
Press Office contact details
Please note that our Press Office is NOT able to deal with issues or queries from members of the public - these contact details are for accredited journalists ONLY. Do not call this number unless you a member of the press. For all general enquiries, please visit contact.cps.gov.uk.
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).
For out-of-hours media enquiries please call 020 3357 0906 to reach the duty press officer.
If you follow us on social media, you can expect posts covering some or all of the following:
Operational updates on decisions to prosecute or take no further action;
Reactions and statements on trial outcomes;
Policy updates from the Director of Public Prosecutions and other prosecutors;
Updates on media appearances by CPS staff
Content that explains the role of the CPS and how we work
Highlighting of relevant work by our criminal justice partners and other stakeholders
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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.
