IslesLedger

Canterbury Crown Court sentenced Chan Atak, 19, on 18 September 2026 to two years and three months in prison for endangering lives at sea. He had pleaded guilty on 24 August. The Crown Prosecution Service brought the case. The National Crime Agency issued the official bulletin on the day of sentence.

On 23 July a 14.3-metre boat with two outboard engines — only one of them working — picked people up along the French coast. It carried 165 men, women and children and was at sea for almost 24 hours. Food, drinking water and medical stores were short. Lifejackets were inadequate. Batteries sat close to fuel cans. The NCA said it was a record overcrowded vessel at the time of the crossing.

Footage showed Atak at the tiller for a long stretch. Shortly before interception he cut the engine, went into the boat, and came back without the jacket he had been wearing. A Border Force command vessel intercepted the boat and towed those on board to Dover Western Jet Foil.

NCA senior investigating officer John Turner called Atak “unimaginatively reckless” and said the vessel was “entirely unsuitable for crossing one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes.” Andrew Stephens, a senior district prosecutor at the CPS, said anyone sentenced to more than a year in prison faces deportation, and that a conviction is taken into account if an asylum claim is made. Ministerial remarks on the same bulletin are they-said, not the sentence.

Antrim Crown Court sentenced Stephen Ritchie to 34 months and Joel Gordon to four years on 18 September 2026. Both men had been convicted of riot.

The court dealt with serious disorder at Harryville Bridge and Bridge Street, Ballymena, on 11 June 2025. The Police Service of Northern Ireland is the source for this report. Northern Ireland is UK.

Southwark Crown Court sentenced Kuldip Singh, a former Metropolitan Police officer, on 18 September 2026 to four years and five months in prison. He was also disqualified from being a company director for five years.

The Crown Prosecution Service said that while still a serving officer Singh took part in a crash-for-cash fraud: collisions arranged in advance, then dishonest insurance claims. He pleaded guilty at the same court on 7 April 2026 after extradition from Georgia on 4 March. Co-suspects had already been prosecuted.

Tjay O'Neil and Dean Smith pleaded guilty to attempted theft of an ATM at the Morrisons store on Kingstown Road, Carlisle. The court listed sentence for 14 October 2026.

A guilty plea is an admission. It is not the sentence. This report stays on plea until a judge passes term. The Crown Prosecution Service is the source.

Dungannon Crown Court sentenced Dorjan Ago and Oktavian Shkombi to two years in prison each on 17 September 2026. The offences included cultivating cannabis and possessing a Class B drug with intent to supply.

Police searched a commercial unit in the Knockroe Road area of Strabane and recovered 575 plants and 105 kilograms of herbal cannabis, with an estimated street value of £1.2 million. Northern Ireland is UK.

The Old Bailey sentenced Paul Street, a former Cambridgeshire sergeant, on 16 September 2026 to four years in prison for misconduct in public office. The Crown Prosecution Service published the official note.

Street had been convicted of two counts of misconduct in public office after trial. He had earlier pleaded guilty to unlawful disclosure of personal data. A co-defendant, former PC Josh Williams, was sentenced to 16 months.

Antrim Crown Court sentenced Adam Connolly to four years on 16 September 2026 for burglary with intent to cause unlawful damage at a house on Clonavon Terrace, Ballymena.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland said its systems captured him entering the house unlawfully on 9 June 2025 and causing damage inside. The family hid in the attic for almost five hours. Connolly later handed himself in after images were issued. Northern Ireland is UK.

Laganside Crown Court sentenced Wilson Lee on 16 September 2026 for attempted sexual communications with a child and related attempted offences. The Police Service of Northern Ireland is the source.

The case concerned online contact with an undercover officer, not a meeting with a child. Northern Ireland is UK. This report records the court result, not a charge sheet.

Ennis Circuit Court sentenced Ryce Clohessy, 23, of Kilrush, County Clare, on 18 September 2026 to 28 months in prison, with the last six months suspended. Judge Francis Comerford passed sentence.

Clohessy had pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual assault and to using information and communication technology to facilitate sexual exploitation of a child. The offences were in Kilrush in 2023. This is the Republic of Ireland desk, filed separately from the United Kingdom.