THESE criminals from across west Wales were all put behind bars in August.
The defendants were in court charged with offences including sexually assaulting a child, having indecent images of children, heroin dealing, attempting to incite a child to do a sexual act, and terrorism offences.
Others faced the wrath of the courts for assaulting police officers, criminal damage, breaching court orders and shoplifting.
These eight defendants were sentenced to a total of just under 42 years.
- For the latest crime and court news for west Wales, you can join our Facebook group here.
Here’s a round-up of the cases.
Richard Lewis
Paedophile Richard Lewis has been locked up for sexually abusing a girl for several years from the age of four.
Lewis, 50, previously of Haverfordwest, was charged with six counts of assaulting a child by penetration – all when the girl was aged between four and eight years old, as well as attempted sexual assault of the same child when she was aged between eight and 12 years old.
He denied all charges, but after just over two hours of deliberations, the jury returned to find Lewis guilty on five of the sexual assault charges. He was found not guilty of the remaining offences.
At trial, the jury had been told that Lewis, now of Priory Street in Carmarthen, sexually assaulted the victim in a field, around the back of a garage complex, and in his vehicle between 2004 and 2009.
When the victim was in her teens – after having sex education in school – she told her parents what had happened, but “was adamant she didn’t want to report it” at the time.
Lewis was arrested and interviewed on March 6, 2022, and was interviewed again on August 26, 2022.
Addressing Lewis, Judge Thomas said: “When [the victim] was as young as four years old, you started to systematically sexually abuse her.
“You carefully planned your abuse, getting her isolated and defenceless.”
He sentenced Lewis to 14 years in prison, with an additional one year extended licence period. Lewis must register as a sex offender for life, and the victim was granted a 15-year restraining order against him.
Gareth Waite
Cardigan neo-Nazi Gareth Waite has been jailed for terrorism offences following a trial in London.
Waite, 47, was convicted of six offences under the Terrorism Act after a three-week trial at Woolwich Crown Court on May 15.
Following an investigation led by Counter Terrorism Policing Wales, Waite was found guilty of four offences of disseminating a terrorist publication and two offences of possession of material of a kind likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism.
He had also previously pleaded guilty to one offence of supporting a proscribed organisation, relating to his support for National Action – a racist neo-Nazi group established in 2013 that was banned in December 2016.
Waite was jailed to a total of nine years and nine months.
Andrew Chapman
Farm worker Andrew Chapman has been jailed for sexually assaulting a 16-year-old girl and breaching a restraining order.
Chapman, 29, of Troed Yr Ynys in Bronwydd Arms, had gone on trial at Swansea Crown Court charged with sexually assaulting the teenager in Carmarthenshire on September 21.
He was accused of, while sitting in his vehicle, asking the teenager for a kiss and then reaching out the window and touching her jacket around the area of her chest.
In March, a jury was discharged after they were unable to reach a verdict following the initial trial, and it was confirmed that a retrial would take place.
Chapman was also accused of harassment by breaching a restraining order, which was imposed by Swansea Crown Court on November 17, after viewing the teenager’s TikTok account on June 24.
He admitted breaching the order at Llanelli Magistrates’ Court on August 6.
At Swansea Crown Court on August 7, Chapman was jailed for six months for the sexual assault, and a further 14 months for breaching the restraining order.
He must register as a sex offender for seven years, and was made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order for five years.
The teenager was also granted a new 10-year restraining order against Chapman.
Christopher Brockway
Heroin dealer Christopher Brockway was busted after he was caught shoplifting and driving a car that wasn’t his.
Brockway, 44, was identified as making off with more than £500-worth of items from Boots in Pembroke Dock on February 11, and was caught driving a Vauxhall Insignia that wasn’t his – without a licence or insurance – in the Burton area.
Police found 18.5 grams of heroin at Brockway’s home address on Church Street in Pembroke Dock, where there was also used syringes, rotting food, and bottles of urine in each room.
Officers also found morphine and cannabis at the address, as well as £2,260 in cash stuffed inside a sofa cushion, and a set of weighing scales.
Brockway admitted driving without a licence or insurance, cannabis possession, shoplifting, and criminal damage – relating to him throwing coffee and food around his police cell – at the magistrates’ court, before admitting possession with intent to supply heroin on the day his trial was due to begin.
He was sentenced to four years in prison, and was banned from driving for two-and-a-half years.
Paul Chesher
Predator Paul Chesher was caught messaging who he thought was a 12-year-old girl telling her to record herself doing a sex act and send it to him.
Chesher, of Herbrandston, began messaging schoolgirl ‘Ellie’ on the social network site Kik on August 31, 2021. It was actually an undercover police officer.
Chesher would repeatedly refer to ‘Ellie’ as being “too young”, that he would “get in to trouble”, and that he “could go to jail”, as well as referencing that ‘Ellie’ “could be the police” and stating “this is so wrong”.
Despite this, he continued to ask the decoy for pictures, about her underwear and about her sexual experiences. He also told ‘Ellie’ to delete their conversations.
Chesher also directed the ‘girl’ to masturbate, and asked her to film herself doing it and send it to him.
Police were able to identify Chesher’s email and then his IP address. He was arrested at his home on October 22, 2021.
Chesher was sentenced to 27 months in prison. He must register as a sex offender for 10 years, and was made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order for the same period.
Alfie Davies
Persistent sex offender Alfie Davies was found with almost 700 indecent images of children on his secret phone after he had been banned from having access to the internet.
Davies, of Taliaris, was made the subject of a sexual harm protection order in 2019, which banned him from owning an internet enabled device and from holding social media accounts in names other than his own.
Officers seized Davies’ only registered internet enabled device last November, but between then and May, enquiries showed Davies had been logging in to his email account.
The police searched Davies’ home on May 16. Despite initially maintaining he did not have any internet enabled devices, he eventually admitted he had a smartphone in his room.
When his phone was examined, officers found 361 Category A indecent images and videos of children, 214 Category B images, and 111 Category C images.
The indecent images and videos included babies less than a year old being raped.
He also had a Snapchat account under a name not approved by the police.
27-year-old Davies was handed a six-year sentence, made up of a three-year custodial period and a three-year extended licence period. He must continue to register as a sex offender for life, and is subject to a lifelong sexual harm prevention order.
Charlie Moxon
Charlie Moxon has been jailed for causing damage to a converted barn and attacking two police officers.
Moxon, 37, of Golwg Y Castell in Cardigan, was accused of causing damage worth more than £5,000 to a converted barn in Drefach Velindre, as well as damage worth £50 to a man’s Toyota.
He was also alleged to have assaulted the police officers in Drefach Velindre on that same date.
He had initially been due to appear at Swansea Crown Court on Monday, March 11, but he didn’t turn up. This led to Judge Paul Thomas KC issuing a warrant for Moxon’s arrest.
Moxon was subsequently arrested, and pleaded guilty to affray, two offences of criminal damage, common assault of an emergency worker and assault by beating of an emergency worker, as well as admitting to breaching his bail.
He was sentenced to a total of 30 months in prison.
Martin Waite
Shoplifter Martin Waite has been jailed after stealing electronics from a Pembrokeshire store.
41-year-old Waite was accused of stealing electronics worth £1,276.97 from Currys in Haverfordwest on March 27.
He pleaded guilty at Llanelli Magistrates’ Court on August 14.
Waite, of Centenary Gardens in Havant, Portsmouth, was sentenced to 23 weeks in prison and must pay £1,276.97 in compensation and £650 in costs.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article