Court round-up: Good Samaritan's killers jailed, handyman run over and £450m cocaine gang sentenced

Two men jailed again over fatal stabbing of Good Samaritan in Sheffield

Two men have been sent back to prison following a retrial over the fatal stabbing of a Good Samaritan who intervened to protect a teenage girl in Sheffield.

Reece Radford, 26, was attacked by Dereck Owusu and Louis James on September 29, 2022, after stepping in when he saw Owusu assaulting a 17-year-old girl in Sheffield city centre.

James stabbed Mr Radford during the attack, and he died in hospital six days later.

Both men were originally convicted of murder in April 2023, but their convictions were overturned following an appeal, leading to a retrial at Leeds Crown Court.

On Thursday (Oct 22), 2026, a jury found James guilty of murder and Owusu guilty of manslaughter.

James, 50, previously of Manor Lane, Sheffield, was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 23 years.

Owusu, 43, previously of Strathmore Grove, Rotherham, received a 14-year prison sentence.

Senior Investigating Officer Detective Inspector Adam Watkinson, of South Yorkshire Police's Major Crime Unit, welcomed the outcome.

He said: “I am so glad that Reece’s family finally have closure, and that the pair responsible for an innocent man’s death have once more been returned to jail where they belong.”

Mr Radford had intervened to defend a teenager he did not know.

Barnsley father jailed for nine years after deliberately running over handyman

A Barnsley father who deliberately ran over and killed a handyman after setting out to “teach him a lesson” for knocking on his mother's door has been jailed for nine years.

Mark Wigley, 60, of Royston Road, Cudworth, was convicted of manslaughter following the death of Liam Green, 45, on Rose Tree Avenue on April 3, 2026.

Sheffield Crown Court heard that Mr Green had been offering to mow lawns for £7.50 when he knocked at the home of Wigley's elderly mother.

Although Mr Green had been “polite and respectful”, a screenshot from the woman's Ring doorbell camera was shared with relatives, who assumed he was a drug user pestering elderly residents for money.

Wigley, his daughter Sarah Wigley, 39, and brother-in-law Neil Shaw, 54, went looking for Mr Green.

The court heard that Wigley threatened to kill Mr Green during a confrontation with his mother, Lori Hilton.

After finding Mr Green, Wigley assaulted him and slammed him against a van.

Minutes later, as the family prepared to leave, Mr Green approached them carrying a metal table leg.

Wigley deliberately drove his Volkswagen Touareg into Mr Green, causing fatal injuries.

Mr Green's mother came outside to find her son beneath the vehicle and held his hand as he died.

Following a three-week trial, Wigley was convicted of manslaughter at Sheffield Crown Court on Thursday (Oct 29).

Sentencing him to nine years in prison, Judge Richard Reeds criticised the “breath-taking arrogance” of Wigley and his relatives.

He told Wigley: “You had the time and space to drive around him and get away if you chose to do so. You chose the opposite.”

The judge added: “Your actions caused the death of a much-loved son, father, brother.”

Seven jailed over £450m cocaine smuggling network using wheels of cheese

Seven members of a major drugs network which smuggled cocaine hidden inside wheels of cheese have been jailed.

The organised crime group imported around 4.5 tonnes of cocaine, with an estimated street value exceeding £450 million, into the UK.

The drugs were concealed inside shrink-wrapped pallets of cheese transported through Dover before being distributed across northern England.

An investigation by West Yorkshire Police began after officers seized cocaine and ecstasy worth £2 million in Leeds in 2023.

Detectives uncovered a sophisticated network involving industrial units in Huddersfield, Cleckheaton, Halifax and Blackburn.

At one premises in Blackburn, officers discovered 217kg of cocaine, some of it still hidden inside large blocks of Gouda cheese.

Each cheese block had been hollowed out to conceal two bricks of cocaine.

Following police raids, the gang switched to using chocolate spread and frozen fish mince to hide later consignments.

A total of 18 people have been convicted of conspiracy to supply cocaine following two trials.

Seven defendants were sentenced during the final week of October.

Harry Johnson and Darren Johnson, both from Leicester, were jailed for 16 years and 15 years respectively.

Jordan Miles, 32, of Coventry, received 12 years and eight months, while Arran Gowans, 28, of Darlington, was jailed for five years and 11 months.

On Friday (Oct 30), three couriers were also sentenced.

Brandon Eley, 31, of Tamworth, was jailed for ten years, Aaron McNally, 38, of Manchester, received ten years and nine months, and Antony Etheridge, 70, of no fixed address, was sentenced to 18 months.

Eight other members of the network had previously been jailed, while three defendants are awaiting sentencing.

Man jailed after repeatedly following teenage boy and shouting Bible verses

A man who repeatedly followed a teenage boy, filmed him and shouted Bible verses at him has been jailed for 29 weeks.

Paul Davey, 57, admitted harassment and breaching a sexual risk order which prohibited him from contacting anyone under the age of 18.

North Yorkshire Police said Davey had followed the boy over several months, driving alongside him as he walked along the street and sometimes filming him.

He also slowed his vehicle so the teenager had to walk past it and approached him while quoting Bible verses.

Davey had worked out the routes the boy regularly walked and continued following him even after the victim changed his journey.

During their investigation, detectives discovered approximately 500 images of the teenager on Davey's phone.

They also found a printed photograph of the boy attached to a chair in Davey's bedroom.

Although none of the images was sexual in nature, Davey's actions breached the restrictions imposed by the court to protect children.

He appeared at Harrogate Magistrates' Court on Thursday (Oct 29), where he was sentenced to 29 weeks in prison.

Detective Constable Jack McCabe, of Scarborough CID, said: “No one should have to live in fear because of another person’s behaviour. The victim was frightened and distressed by Davey’s actions, which affected his day-to-day life.”

He added that Davey had caused considerable emotional harm and deliberately breached an order intended to protect children.