THESE six defendants from across west Wales have been jailed for a total of 35 years recently.
Four of the criminals were found guilty of sex offences, while another bit a good Samaritan who offered him a place to stay, and the other was caught on camera attacking his partner.
As well as the prison sentences handed out, four of the defendants will serve an extended sentence with an extended period on licence beyond the original sentence.
Here’s a round-up of the cases.
Dominic Dewick
Paedophile Dominic Dewick was found guilty of 20 historical offences against two young girls between 1993 and 2017.
Dewick, 45, of Harrier Road in Haverfordwest, had denied all charges, maintaining that both girls had fabricated their evidence – calling the charges “sick”.
Following a four-day trial, the jury returned unanimous guilty verdicts on each of the charges on August 4.
The court heard during the trial that one victim had been just seven years old when her abuse started, with it continuing until she was 15. The second victim was abused between the ages of nine and 12.
Dewick was jailed for four years for the abuse of the first victim, and a further 13 and a half years for abusing the second victim. He will also serve an additional two years extended licence period.
He was made the subject of an indefinite sexual harm prevention order, and must register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.
Following the sentencing, PC Paul Kelly, the investigating officer for Dyfed-Powys Police, said: “I hope that both the female victims in this case, and their families, who have been effected greatly by the actions of Dominic Dewick, can now try and move on with their lives and this gives them some kind of closure.”
Nigel Yates
Convicted sex offender Nigel Yates, 57, was described by the judge as having “a deviant and unhealthy” interest “embedded in him for teenage and pre-pubescent girls”.
The court heard the girl did not tell anyone about the abuse until she was next told they would be going to the defendant’s house.
In interview, Yates denied the offences and made disparaging remarks about the victim. He later pleaded guilty.
Yates has four previous convictions for five offences, including being convicted in 2001 of indecent assault of two children, making indecent images of children in 2015, and failing to comply with notification requirements - also in 2015.
The court heard that Yates would refuse to disclose his previous convictions to others.
“You have persisted in displaying an unhealthy relationship in young girls,” Judge Huw Rees said, addressing the defendant.
Yates was jailed for 42 months – running concurrently for each offence. He was made the subject of a restraining order and a sexual harm prevention order, each for 10 years. He must register as a sex offender indefinitely.
Rhys Long
Sex offender Rhys Long’s crimes were described as indefensible, with his own barrister admitting: “Nothing I can say about the offending or these offences will assist the defendant”.
Long, 22, was sentenced to a total of five and a half years in prison, with an extended sentence of a further three years on licence.
Long admitted causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, sexual communication with a child, three offences of making indecent images of children, three offences of distributing indecent images of children, four breaches of a sexual harm prevention order.
The police attended Long’s address on March 22 and found he had six social media accounts in names other than his own – which put him in breach of his 10-year sexual harm prevention order.
On a phone seized from a safe in his bedroom, officers found Long had sexual conversations with a 14-year-old boy from Lincolnshire who he referred to as “kiddo” and “little one”.
The child later told police the defendant was aware of his age, and that they had masturbated with each other over FaceTime.
Also on the phone were conversations with at least three other Snapchat users discussing and sharing links to images of child sexual abuse.
On Long’s original phone, officers found indecent images of children, where the youngest child was three years old, and eleven internet searches using the term “underage”.
There was also an application that wiped cached data – also banned by his sexual harm prevention order – which had been open and appeared to be in the process of deleting data when officers arrived.
Long, of Cynghordy Road, Llandovery, was made the subject of an indefinite sexual harm prevention order, and must register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.
Darren Connolly
Darren Connolly, who was homeless, bit a “vulnerable” good Samaritan who had offered him a place to stay.
Connolly, 39, admitted a charge of unlawful wounding relating to an incident on Fleming Crescent in Haverfordwest on January 22.
He had been drinking in the same pub as the victim on the evening of January 21, and despite not knowing each other, shared a taxi back to the victim’s house at just past midnight on January 22.
At between 1pm and 2pm that day, a neighbour noticed the victim’s front door was open, and could hear him calling for help.
Inside, he found the victim “lying on his bed covered in blood” and with a part of his left cheek missing from what appeared to be a bite mark.
He also had two black eyes, bruising to his arms and pain in his side, back and hip. It was later found that he had suffered a fractured hip.
A phone was found on the bed, and an email notification revealed it was the phone of Darren Connolly.
Officers arrested Connolly in the early hours of the following day at a homeless pod at Nantucket Church in Milford Haven – where he was living at the time. There, they found the victim’s phone – which Connolly had picked up by mistake.
The police also found the victim’s blood on one of Connolly’s jacket.
The court heard that the victim, aged 54, had limited mobility and a series of health issues that caused him to have no short-term memory.
Connolly was jailed for three years and four months, and the judge – Recorder David Harris – ordered that he will serve a further period of 18 months on extended licence. The victim was granted a restraining order.
Aaron Turvey
Aaron Turvey was caught with almost 1,500 illegal images, posed as a young woman on Snapchat to trick children in to sending him explicit pictures, and expressed a desire to “kidnap, rape and kill children”.
Police visited Turvey’s home on May 21 last year and was arrested on suspicion of possessing indecent images. His laptop, a mobile phone and a USB stick were seized.
The police attended again on December 22, where he was arrested for a second time and another phone and USB stick were seized.
Across the devices, 1,411 illegal images and videos were found. 432 of these were Category A images – the most extreme type, 431 were Category B, 545 were Category C, two were extreme pornographic images, and there was one more prohibited image.
Officers believed 39 of the images and videos were created by Turvey. The police later identified the children in these images, and they told officers the defendant had “showed [them] his penis” and had “bribed” them by promising to teach them to play a video game.
Turvey’s phone revealed he posed as a 20-year-old woman on Snapchat in order to solicit indecent images of children – one of which was a 12-year-old. When the child became suspicious, Turvey admitted he wasn’t a woman and sent them a picture of his genitals.
Officers also discovered Turvey’s conversations on the Telegram app, where he repeatedly expressed a desire to “kidnap, rape and kill children” and where illegal images were being shared.
On the phone seized in December, a conversation was found where Turvey said: “Might be a bit risky planning to rape and kill kids when I’m under investigation lol”.
Turvey had told the author of the pre-sentence report that the conversations on Telegram were him “trying to prevent others from kidnapping, raping and killing children by talking about the matter”.
Judge Wayne Beard described this as “fanciful” and “plainly nonsense”.
Turvey, 24, of Heol Llethryd in Pontyberem, was jailed for a total of four years. He will then serve an extended period of a further four years on licence. He must register as a sex offender for the rest of his life, and was made the subject of an indefinite sexual harm prevention order.
Mark Hambrook
Mark Hambrook was drinking at his partner’s address in Hakin on the night of July 29-30.
Swansea Crown Court heard that when she returned home, Hambrook “opened the door quickly” and – “before she had time to do anything” – grabbed her head and smashed it against the wall.
He then continued to hit her.
The court heard that at one stage during the incident, Hambrook’s hand was “covered in blood”.
The complainant did not support the prosecution, but the case was able to go ahead as the incident was caught on a neighbour’s doorbell camera.
“It seems to me that a significant reason for [the complainant] not wanting to be actively involved in the prosecution is out of fear of you,” said Recorder David Harris.
Hambrook, 38, of Waterloo Square in Hakin, pleaded guilty to a charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm.
“It was, in my judgement, a sickening assault. The footage is quite shocking,” Recorder Harris said, addressing Hambrook.
“There is no application for a restraining order. Had there been one, it would have been inevitable.”
He sentenced Hambrook to 20 months in prison.
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