Last Updated: 5 minutes ago
More than 30 people were sentenced by courts across Wales between April 13th and April 19th, 2026, including a Merthyr man jailed for 15 years for historical child sex offences and a Pontypool man handed an extended 16-year sentence for raping a teenager.
Sex offences dominated the week’s cases, with eight defendants sentenced for crimes ranging from grooming and child sexual abuse to rape and indecent exposure. Elsewhere, courts dealt with violent domestic assaults, dangerous driving, drug supply and a string of thefts and burglaries.
Here is a round-up of some of the most notable cases.
Sexual offences
Phillip Harris, 58, of Merthyr, received the longest sentence of the week, jailed for 15 years at Newport Crown Court for historical sexual offences against a child committed between 1989 and 1991. He was convicted of multiple counts of indecent assault, gross indecency, buggery, and possessing indecent images of children.
Jay Jenkins-Lang, 23, of Pontypool, was given an extended sentence of 10 years’ custody and six years on extended licence at Cardiff Crown Court after raping a 17-year-old girl. He had escaped from support workers, bought an air pistol, and attacked the teenager in Cwmbran. He was also convicted of assault, weapons offences, and perverting the course of justice after forging a letter claiming the victim had framed him.
Adam Ezalden, 30, of Swansea, was jailed for seven-and-a-half years after being convicted of raping and assaulting a sex worker. Ezalden approached the woman on High Street before attacking her in a nearby lane. He was found guilty of rape and assault occasioning actual bodily harm at Swansea Crown Court and will be a registered sex offender for life.
Owen Evans, 39, of Barry, groomed a 13-year-old girl online before meeting and sexually abusing her in a car park. He pleaded guilty at Newport Crown Court to four offences including grooming and sexual activity with a child, and was sentenced to seven years in custody with three years’ extended licence.
Toby Haslam, 30, of Old Newcastle Road, Willaston, was jailed for six years after admitting grooming and sexually abusing a pupil at the Wrexham school where he worked. Haslam contacted the girl through social media before the abuse escalated. He was sentenced at Mold Crown Court and handed a ten-year sexual harm prevention order.
Alfie Lee, 19, of Ebbw Vale, was sentenced to an extended four-year custodial term at Cardiff Crown Court after being convicted of raping a 16-year-old girl while she was unconscious in 2023. Lee was classified as a dangerous offender and must register as a sex offender for life.
Andrew Over, 46, of Great Barrow near Chester, was sentenced to two years at Caernarfon Crown Court after being convicted of sexual assault by penetration. The offence occurred in Queensferry in September 2024 after Over called the victim over to his vehicle. A 10-year restraining order was also imposed.
Ryan Thomas, 33, of Abercarn, Caerphilly, was jailed for 13 months at Cardiff Crown Court. He followed a 14-year-old girl home from a supermarket before kissing and hugging her, and later sent an adult woman an unsolicited explicit image. He must register as a sex offender for 10 years.
Violent offences and domestic abuse
Richard Thomas, 41, of Ffordd Powell, Caego, was jailed for six years and three months after subjecting his partner to a violent assault at her home in Wrexham. He admitted ABH, inflicting GBH without intent, and intentional strangulation at Mold Crown Court. An indefinite Domestic Abuse Protection Order was also imposed.
Jordan Howe, 31, of Pontypridd, was jailed for six years after holding his stepfather hostage in a bedroom for 15 hours while pressing a kitchen knife to his throat. Howe, who had taken drugs, blocked the door with a wardrobe and repeatedly threatened to kill his victim. Armed police were deployed before the ordeal ended. He pleaded guilty to false imprisonment at Cardiff Crown Court.
Zulfkar Ahmed, 67, from Grangetown, Cardiff, was sentenced to three years at Cardiff Crown Court after being convicted of stalking two women. Ahmed sent thousands of unwanted messages to a cafe worker over two and a half years and also stalked a shop employee. He was also given 15-year restraining orders.
Michelle Jones, 51, of Wrexham, was sentenced to 28 months at Mold Crown Court after her two unmuzzled XL bully dogs attacked a neighbour, causing severe injuries requiring surgery. In a separate incident, she broke into another neighbour’s home armed with a knife and BB gun. Jones was also banned from owning dogs for life.
Oguzhan Ozcan, 41, a Merthyr taxi driver, was jailed for 21 months at Cardiff Crown Court after admitting coercive and controlling behaviour towards his long-term partner over a 20-month period. He monitored her movements, made baseless accusations of infidelity and assaulted her on several occasions. A five-year restraining order was also imposed.
Zack Ian Craig High, 26, of no fixed abode, was jailed for 18 months at Swansea Crown Court after admitting assault occasioning actual bodily harm. He attacked a man inside a caravan in Pembroke Dock during a cocaine deal, leaving him with a suspected fractured jaw. A five-year restraining order was also imposed.
Dangerous driving and road offences
John Lamont, 28, from Newport, was jailed for 16 months at Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court after reversing a stolen car into an ambulance in Cardiff and later exposing himself to a mother and daughter at a children’s play area. He admitted dangerous driving, outraging public decency, and related offences. He was also banned from driving for two years.
Kaylem Longhurst, 18, was sentenced to 14 months at Mold Crown Court after admitting dangerous driving when his motorbike struck five-year-old Arlo Buckley in Shotton, leaving him critically injured. Longhurst fled the scene, and three family members who helped him evade justice and destroy evidence were also jailed for between nine and 26 months.
Joshua Thomas, 20, of Cwmbran, was sentenced to nine months in a young offender institution at Cardiff Crown Court. Thomas led police on a dangerous high-speed chase through Cwmbran, running red lights and narrowly avoiding collisions, before fleeing on foot. Despite two previous suspended sentences, he continued to reoffend, including driving whilst disqualified.
Marcin Depka, 42, of Newport, was jailed for 38 weeks after being caught driving while disqualified and without insurance on Duffryn Drive last November. He also refused to provide a specimen for analysis. Depka was found guilty in his absence at Newport Magistrates’ Court and disqualified from driving for two years and four months.
Drug offences
Jac Cadman, 23, and Jamie Cook, 31, both from Ammanford, were jailed for supplying cocaine in Swansea. Buyers used the codeword “Chinese” to place orders via phone. The pair were caught with drugs and cash during a police stop in Blaenymaes. Cadman received 28 months and Cook 40 months at Swansea Crown Court.
Kian Meredith, 22, of Townhill, Swansea, was jailed for three years and eight months at Swansea Crown Court after pleading guilty to being concerned in the supply of cocaine. He was caught with wraps of cocaine after fleeing officers near Prince of Wales Road, while on licence from a previous drug conspiracy sentence.
Ylber Bery Shquti, 25, of no fixed abode, was sentenced to 30 months at Swansea Crown Court after admitting to producing cannabis at an industrial unit in Resolven, where 147 plants worth £162,000 were found. It was his second conviction for the same offence in just over a year.
Jayden Berry, 18, from Newport, was sentenced to 27 months in a young offender institution at Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court after admitting possession with intent to supply cocaine. Officers found 12 wraps of cocaine during a raid at his family home. The court heard Berry had turned to dealing to fund his own addiction.
Lee Dickenson, 23, of no fixed abode, was sentenced to two years and four months at Cardiff Crown Court after crashing an off-road bike into a car in Barry and fleeing the scene, leaving behind a bag of crack cocaine. He admitted possession with intent to supply, careless driving, and driving without a licence or insurance.
Emiljan Doci, 38, was caught tending a cannabis crop worth an estimated £88,000 at a property in Hanover Street, Uplands, just 10 days after being smuggled into the UK in a lorry from France. Officers found 205 plants during a raid on 23 March. Doci pleaded guilty to producing cannabis at Swansea Crown Court and was sentenced to 20 months.
Theft, burglary and fraud
Daniel Giles, 30, of Merthyr Tydfil, was jailed for 11 months after repeatedly targeting shops on Pengarnddu Industrial Estate. Sentenced at Merthyr Magistrates’ Court, he was also issued with a Community Protection Notice banning him from the estate and its retail premises, including ASDA and B&M.
Barry Winters, 47, of Holyhead, was sentenced to two years and four months at Caernarfon Crown Court after admitting to smashing a window at a dental surgery and burgling a garage, from which two bicycles worth £1,100 were stolen. Winters had 35 previous convictions for 66 offences.
Jordan Robson, 32, was jailed for 26 weeks after a six-month theft spree across Bridgend. He admitted 11 counts of theft and one count of theft from a motor vehicle, stealing more than £1,000 worth of goods from supermarkets, a games shop and cars. He was sentenced at Cardiff Magistrates’ Court on April 14th.
Kieron Davies, 39, was jailed after breaking into McCann’s bar in Newport city centre on 7th December last year and making off with cash, alcohol and a charity collection box. He pleaded guilty to burglary at Newport Magistrates’ Court and was handed a 14-week custodial sentence, along with £250 in compensation.
Imtiaz Fazal, 40, from Newport, was sentenced to eight weeks after stealing £200 worth of alcohol from Sainsbury’s in Cwmbran on April 13th. Fazal admitted the offence at Newport Magistrates’ Court and was ordered to pay £200 in compensation.
Martin McDonagh, 27, of Queensferry, Flintshire, was fined at Liverpool Magistrates’ Court after being caught selling counterfeit designer perfumes and fake Apple products to passers-by on the streets of Liverpool. He was convicted of six counts of selling counterfeit goods and issued a Criminal Behaviour Order banning him from possessing fake items anywhere in Merseyside.
All of the individuals named in this round-up have been convicted or have pleaded guilty to their respective offences. If you have information about crime in your area, you can contact South Wales Police, North Wales Police, Dyfed-Powys Police or Gwent Police, or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
