Wigan's week in court

The case against a Wigan man accused of sexual assault has been dismissed.

Mark Vernal, 43, of Dumbarton Green, Beech Hill, had pleaded not guilty to sexually assaulting a woman over the age of 16 on March 7 and assaulting a woman by beating her the following day.

A trial was due to be held at Manchester City Magistrates' Court, but the case was instead dropped when no evidence was offered.

A Wigan man who denies stalking a woman, causing her serious alarm or distress, will have to wait until next year to stand trial.

Anthony Prior, 39, of Sefton Road, Ashton, is alleged to have gone to the woman's home and workplace and contacted her numerous times between August 1 and January 22.

Prior was remanded on conditional bail until a trial is held at Tameside Magistrates' Court on January 10.

A banned driver who got behind the wheel after drinking has been given a suspended prison sentence.

Francis Curran, 69, of Hope Carr Lane, Leigh, pleaded guilty to driving a Nissan Micra on January 13 with 62mcg of alcohol in 100ml of breath, above the legal limit for driving of 35mcg.

He also admitted driving while disqualified and without insurance.

Wigan justices imposed a 12- week prison sentence, which was suspended for 12 months.

Curran was banned from driving for four years and was told to attend six days of rehabilitation activities.

He must pay a £154 surcharge and £85 prosecution costs.

A woman has been ordered to carry out unpaid work after attacking a man at Wigan Wallgate railway station.

Jessica Connor, 23, of Wardley Square, Tyldesley, pleaded guilty to assaulting a man by beating him on January 16.

Wigan magistrates imposed a 12-month community order, with 30 days of rehabilitation activities and 60 hours of unpaid work.

She must pay £85 prosecution costs.

A Wigan man who assaulted two detectives will find out his punishment next month.

Kyle Johnston, 20, of Thirlmere Avenue, Ince, has admitted assaulting Det Con Carl Smith by beating him and the common assault of Det Con Paul Hesketh.

Both attacks took place on March 21, while they were working as police officers.

Johnston was remanded on unconditional bail until he is sentenced at Wigan and Leigh Magistrates' Court on May 10.

A 38-year-old Wigan man will appear in the crown court after being accused of making threats to kill.

Damien Shaw, of Sycamore Drive, Winstanley, is alleged to have threatened a man on March 24.

Wigan justices sent his case to Bolton Crown Court, where Shaw will appear on May 10.

He was remanded in custody until then.

A shoplifter who targeted two stores has been ordered to have drug rehabilitation treatment.

Carl Reardon, 56, of Greenhey, Orrell, pleaded guilty to stealing razors and deodorant worth £96 from Boots on March 17 and meat worth £62 from Lidl on April 4.

Wigan magistrates sentenced him to a 12-month community order with drug rehabilitation requirement and 10 days of rehabilitation activities.

He must pay £96 compensation and a £10 fine.

A man has been jailed after using threatening or abusive words or behaviour.

Lee Hales, 35, of Leigh Road, Atherton, pleaded guilty to using the words or behaviour and causing a woman harassment, alarm or distress on April 3.

He also admitted causing criminal damage to a police van on the same day.

Hales was jailed for 14 weeks and told to pay £150 compensation.

A woman has pleaded not guilty to having a knife in public and damaging a car.

Kayleigh Martin, 21, of Viscount Road, Marsh Green, is charged with causing criminal damage to a Ford Fiesta car and possessing an offensive weapon on Heather Grove on April 3.

She was remanded on conditional bail until a trial at Wigan and Leigh Magistrates' Court on December 17.

A motorist caught behind the wheel at a supermarket car park while more than double the drink-drive limit has been banned from the roads.

Tadas Januska, 41, of the Greyhound hotel in Leigh, pleaded guilty to driving a Mercedes 220 saloon at Tesco Extra, on Derby Street, Leigh, on July 22 with 88mcg of alcohol in 100ml of breath.

The legal limit for driving is 35mcg.

Bolton justices imposed an 18-month driving disqualification and ordered him to pay a £700 fine, £280 surcharge and £85 prosecution costs.

A Wigan man breached the requirements of the sex offenders' register by failing to register that he was homeless.

Scott Parkinson, 36, of no fixed address, pleaded guilty to failing to comply with notification requirements on February 20.

Wigan magistrates handed down an 18-month community order with a drug rehabilitation requirement, 25 days of rehabilitation activities and a £50 fine.

He must also pay a £114 surcharge and £85 prosecution costs.

A man caught carrying a knife has been sent to jail for 21 weeks.

Neil Gerrard, 50, of Kermishaw Nook, Tyldesley, was found with a lock knife on Mealhouse Lane, Atherton, on June 21.

Wigan magistrates jailed him for 21 weeks, as it was his second knife offence, and ordered him to pay a surcharge of £154.

A woman has been ordered to pay more than £800 after being caught driving at 100mph.

Kerry Elstone, 38, of Brandreth Delph, Parbold, pleaded guilty to speeding on the M62 in Salford on December 4, when the speed limit was 70mph.

Manchester justices told her to pay a £554 fine, £221 surcharge to fund victim services and £90 costs.

Her driving licence was endorsed with six penalty points.

A woman must pay more than £1,000 after failing to tell police who was driving a car.

Holly Hawkins, 33, of Rugby Road, Leigh, was convicted of not providing information about the driver of an Audi who was alleged to have committed an offence.

She was ordered to pay a £660 fine, £264 surcharge and £90 costs, while her driving licence was endorsed with six points.

A Wigan man will appear in crown court accused of trying to arrange sexual activity with a child and attempting to engage in sexual communications.

Gordon Derricot, 56, of Millers Lane, Platt Bridge, is charged with attempting to cause a child to engage in sexual activity in Wigan on April 5 and trying to engage in sexual communication with a boy under the age of 16 between January 13 and April 8.

Wigan magistrates sent the case to Bolton Crown Court, where Derricot will appear on May 13.

He was remanded in custody until then.

A man who went to Robin Retail Park - despite being banned - has been sent to prison.

Bobby Garry, 30, of no fixed address, pleaded guilty to breaching a criminal behaviour order by going to the retail park on April 8.

He also admitted stealing steak worth £28 from M&S on the same day.

Wigan magistrates imposed a 14-day prison sentence.

A Wigan teenager who is accused of five serious sexual offences, including three rapes, has pleaded not guilty.

The 17-year-old - who cannot be named due to his age - faces two charges of raping a woman aged 16 or over on January 11, 2022 and one of raping a 13-year-old girl in June 2021. He is also charged with sexually assaulting a woman over 16 and assault by penetration on January 11, 2022.

He was remanded on unconditional bail until a hearing at Manchester City Magistrates' Court on May 21.

A Wigan man has been accused of sending a bullet in the post to a woman who was a potential witness in criminal proceedings.

Jordan Beach, 24, of Swan Lane, Hindley Green, is charged with intimidating a witness on March 15, intending to obstruct or pervert the course of justice.

He is also charged with stalking the woman and causing serious alarm or distress between January 7 and March 15 and harassment which put her in fear of violence between the same dates.

Beach was remanded in custody until a hearing at Bolton Crown Court on May 15.

A Wigan man charged with a string of criminal offences, including rape, will have his case heard in the crown court.

Connor Gaskell, 25, of Knightshill Crescent, Springfield, is accused of raping a woman over 16 in March 2021.

He is also charged with controlling or coercive behaviour between August 1, 2020 and May 23, 2021, which is alleged to have included physical assaults, damaging property, threatening to reveal private information, monitoring phone use and hacking online accounts.

He is alleged to have threatened to disclose private photographs and films between November 1, 2020 and May 23, 2021, and caused criminal damage to a car in October 2020.

Gaskell is charged with an assault occasioning actual bodily harm and criminal damage to a television, both on December 5, 2020.

He is also accused of committing affray and damaging a door, windows and two cars on May 23, 2021.

Wigan magistrates sent the case to Bolton Crown Court, where Gaskell will appear on May 15.

He was remanded on unconditional bail.

A Wigan borough man has been charged with sexually assaulting a woman nearly two years ago.

John McManus, 43, of Birchfield Avenue, Atherton, is alleged to have touched the woman without her consent on May 13, 2022.

He was remanded on unconditional bail until a hearing at Bolton Crown Court on May 15.

A Wigan man caught carrying a knife and drugs on Christmas Eve has been given a suspended prison sentence.

Lewis Dunn, 25, of the Oak Hotel in Wigan, pleaded guilty to possessing a knife and class A drug cocaine on Avon Road, Norley, on December 24.

Wigan magistrates imposed a 16-week prison sentence, suspended for 18 months. Dunn is also subject to supervision for 16 months, must attend the Thinking Skills programme for 26 days, do 20 days of rehabilitation activities and 50 hours of unpaid work.

He must pay £85 prosecution costs and a £154 surcharge.

The rape and assault trial of one-time Wigan and Great Britain rugby league star Gareth Hock has been postponed for 15 months.

The 40-year-old had been due to appear before a Bolton Crown Court jury this week to face 12 charges in total, including two rapes, five counts of causing actual bodily harm, assault by beating, coercive and controlling behaviour between January 1, 2009 and November 11, 2022 and perverting the course of justice.

He had denied these allegations at a previous hearing and has also entered not guilty pleas to leaving the scene of a road traffic collision and failing to report such an incident.

Ten days had been set aside this month by Judge Martin Walsh during which the ex-Super League forward was to have been questioned by prosecutors and presented his defence against the allegations.

But that time has now been vacated and the trial rescheduled for July 14. 2025.

The case will, however, be revisited at a mention hearing on June 13 this year.

Hock remains bailed under specific conditions that include surrendering his passport, wearing a GPS tracking tag and sleeping every night at his home address in Orrell.

As far as the motoring offence charges are concerned, it is alleged that Hock was at the wheel of an Audi A6 which crashed on Gathurst Road in Orrell, on November 11, 2022 and then drove off without stopping.

He was arrested by police in February last year.

Hock began his career with his hometown club Wigan Warriors in 2003 and made almost 200 appearances for the Cherry and Whites.

He earned four caps for Great Britain and five for England, for whom he played in the 2008 World Cup in Australia.

He later went on to play for Widnes, Salford, Featherstone, Barrow and Leigh.

He retired as a player in 2019 after he had made a total of 313 career appearances, scoring 81 tries.

Since quitting the sport Hock had been involved in several business ventures, the most recent being in 2022 when he established a skip hire firm.

A Wigan pensioner has appeared before a judge to deny historical sex abuse charges.

Rab MacDonald, 73, of Broadmead, Parbold, is alleged to have indecently assaulted the same girl 12 times between 1993 and 1998 between the ages of 11 and 16.

On his first appearance at Preston Crown Court he entered not guilty pleas to eight of the charges.

He has yet to plead on the other four.

The complainant cannot be named for legal reasons.

A trial date of June 9, 2025 was set and MacDonald was bailed until then.

Sentencing of a Wigan man who admits taking a kitchen knife to a convenience store has been delayed again.

Anthony Donnelly, 44, of Church Street, Golborne, had appeared before borough justices to plead guilty to having taken the knife to a Morrisons Daily store in Lowton on February 5 last year.

He was due to learn his fate first in February and then on April 12, but now sentencing has been put back to May 10.