There have been a number of serious convictions in Somerset this year. They range from a man who bit off another man’s arm during a raid on supportive housing, to a rapist who attacked with “pure hate in his eyes”.
Also behind bars is a man who assaulted his girlfriend before leading police on a car chase, and another case involved three men raiding a house armed with knives and a sock with a ball of billiards indoors.
You can read more about these and other cases below.
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Rapist broke into Somerset woman’s home with ‘pure hatred in his eyes’
An intruder forced his way into a woman’s home and raped her twice “with pure hatred in his eyes”, a court heard. Stuart Mansell was allegedly drunk and drugged when he assaulted the victim both sexually and physically at an address in Somerset.
Mansell, 32, of Masefield Road in Warminster, admitted to being assaulted and scrambled. He denied two rapes but was found guilty after a trial.
Judge Michael Cullum jailed him for 10 years. He told Mansell: “You broke a window and entered her home. It was a show of power over her. You had taken alcohol and/or drugs. You completely lost it in your behviour.” Mansell was given a restraining order barring him from contact with the woman.
Prosecuting Nikki Coombe told Bristol Crown Court that Mansell forced his way into the woman’s home. The court heard the woman describe how he was “raging”, reeked of alcohol and also appeared to have taken cocaine.
Ms Coombe told the court Mansell grabbed her, pulled her hair and slapped her face before raping her twice. The court heard he also put his hands around her throat, squeezed her and headbutted her.
Ms Coombe said: ‘He lost complete control of himself. Court heard the terrified woman fled the property, but Mansell continued to assault her outside before police arrived.
Assaulted girlfriend, 21, then led police in car chase Jay Hotson
A 21-year-old assaulted his girlfriend then led police on a car chase through rural Somerset. Jay Hotson was driving so fast that the wheels of the Ford Fiesta left the ground as he drove through bumps near Odcombe.
He was arrested a few days later in his trailer in Axminster. Turns out he had stolen the car after a party a month earlier.
Hotson, who has a history of criminal driving, was jailed for 17 months at Taunton Crown Court. He pleaded guilty to auto theft; beating; dangerous driving; and conduct while disqualified.
Prosecutor Eshan Oarith said Sept. 10 that Hotson and his partner were visiting his mother when an argument began. Police were called to reports that a man had assaulted and dragged his partner into a car.
The victim and her friend had called the police to say they were frightened by her actions. Police saw Hotson driving the car with two passengers to Watercombe Lane.
The police turned on their blue lights but Hotson put his foot down and fled. The chase headed out of Yeovil on rural roads. At one point the police thought he was pulling over, only to have the Fiesta speed away when an officer approached.
Eventually, the police had to drop the chase because he was going too fast. But a few days later, Hotson was arrested. He had taken the car keys at a house party.
Three men who raided a house with knives and a sock containing a pool ball David Archer, Alfie Kayan and Chad Walker (Image: Avon and Somerset Police)
Three men who raided a house with knives and a sock containing a pool ball have been jailed for a combined 24 years. David Archer, 54, Alfie Kayan, 33, and Chad Walker, 31, all from Weston-super-Mare, forced their way into the hallway of supportive housing and threatened two vulnerable residents by April last year.
One of the three thugs bit one of the victims on the arm, and the wound then became infected, a court heard. They eventually got away when residents pressed a panic button – but were arrested and convicted after the three’s DNA was found on one of the knives they used.
After an extensive search via CCTV of the area, Avon and Somerset police officers located a second address in the town where the three men had congregated prior to the attack. Kayan and Archer’s DNA was also found on one of the victim’s clothes.
Investigator-in-charge Lucinda Darby said: “This is a harrowing incident in which three violent men with guns forced their way into the home of two vulnerable people, threatened them with knives, assaulted and stole one of them. Biting one of the victim’s arms was a cowardly attack and it was only luck that the infection that developed later did not cause him to lose his arm.”
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Source: www.somersetlive.co.uk
This notice was published: 2022-03-25 15:56:22
