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.
A man who made arrangements to travel abroad and pay to rape children as young as six, and helped others to do the same, has been jailed. The Crown Prosecution Service’s dedicated Organised Child Sexual Abuse Unit prosecuted Edward Gratwick, 68, following an investigation by the National Crime…
Philip Young, 49, formerly of Swindon but now living in Enfield, appeared at Winchester Crown Court today (23 January 2026) and pleaded guilty to the following offences against his former wife, Joanne Young:• 11 counts of rape• 11 counts of…
An Albanian national has been jailed for plotting to bring other Albanians to the UK illegally.Ibrahim Sollaku, 33, admitted conspiring with others to transport five migrants from Belgium to the UK last November after they arrived in Europe from Albania. Sollaku arranged for a taxi driver to…
A professional money launderer, who assisted with the laundering of funds from a high value investment fraud committed in China has been ordered to payback £5,603,305.81 or face extra time in jail – today (Thursday 22 January 2026).Seng Hok Ling, 47, after pleading guilty to one count of a money…
Press ReleaseFraud and economic crimeInternational and organised crimeCPS
A 45-year-old man from Essex and his nephew who were part of an organised immigration crime gang have been sentenced today.Christopher and Jake Crittenden, 30, admitted smuggling six Vietnamese nationals from Calais to Dover in 2019.Christopher Crittenden was sentenced to three years in prison and…
Frank Ferguson, Head of the Crown Prosecution Service’s Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division, said: “We received a file of evidence from Cheshire Constabulary in July 2025 asking us to consider further allegations against Lucy Letby, 36, relating to deaths and non-fatal collapses of babies…
A faith leader who officiated a wedding ceremony for an underage couple has been sentenced in the first case of its kind under new legislation banning child marriage in England and Wales. Ashraf Osmani, 52, carried out a Nikah ceremony - a form of marriage under Islamic law - at Northampton’s…
An 18-year-old from Cwmbran has been sentenced after pleading guilty to possessing a terrorism document, following a thorough investigation by police and prosecution by the Crown Prosecution Service.Morgan Mckenzie's actions included researching violent attacks, discussing targeting an Oasis…
A man, who was found guilty of murdering his wife in a double jeopardy case, has been sentenced to life imprisonment.Robert Rhodes was originally acquitted of killing his wife Dawn in June 2016, after he claimed at his original trial in 2017 that he and a child had been attacked and he had then…
A 55-year-old Romanian truck driver has been jailed for 27 months today after 10 foreign nationals were found in the back of his truck in Dover.Dragos-Gabriel Geangalau was stopped on 21 November last year while trying to make a ferry crossing to France. The ten people in the back of his HGV…
Press ReleaseInternational and organised crimeCPSSouth 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
We will aim to be fair and accurate in all the information we publish. We will aim to correct any inaccuracies as soon as possible.
We are unable to monitor social media round the clock. We are not able to engage with all those who seek a response from us due to resources but also due to privacy and the sensitive nature of some of our work. The best way to contact the CPS is through our website.
Please do not try to report crime using social media. To report crime, please call 101 or visit your local police station. In an emergency, always call 999.
If you follow us on social media we will not automatically follow you back. Being followed by us does not imply endorsement of any kind.
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.
