Crimes committed by these six offenders from Watford and the surrounding areas have resulted in multi-year jail terms.
While prison overcrowding may be an issue nationally at the moment, crown courts found it warranted to dish out custodial sentences from two to 27-and-a-half years after these offences.
The offences ranged from conspiracy to supply cocaine, guns, and heroin to wounding without intent.
See the list below:
Daniel Harlley – seven years and six months
Daniel Harlley, 29, was one of three men sentenced after a police investigation into a drugs line, called the ‘Chris Line’, which was suspected of being involved in the supply of synthetic opioids under the guise of heroin.
The drugs are believed to have been involved in “several medical episodes’ in Watford, according to Herts Police.
Harlley, of Vicarage Road, Watford, was sentenced, alongside two men from London, for conspiracy to supply class A drugs at St Albans Crown Court on August 29.
Mohammed Waqas Khan – 27-and-a-half years
Mohammed Waqas Khan, 35, received a lengthy prison sentence at Luton Crown Court on April 26 after previously being found guilty of conspiracy to supply cocaine, heroin, and ketamine, possession of firearms with intent to cause fear of violence, and possession of ammunition.
Khan, of Princes Avenue, Watford, led an organised crime group based in Watford and Luton which was responsible for the wholesale distribution of cocaine and heroin nationwide.
Charles Vance – two years and four months
Charles Vance, of Stag Lane in Chorleywood, was the “mastermind behind the conspiracy” that involved three work colleagues used as fictitious characters to terrorise his ex-partner between January and April 2022.
The victim was hounded by hundreds of texts and phone calls, including death threats and threats to get her child pregnant. A lighter was posted through her letterbox, her car windows were smashed, and horror film noises were played down the phone.
The 43-year-old was sentenced for conspiracy to stalk involving fear of violence at St Albans Crown Court on May 10.
Sabaratnam Arulsikamani - seven-and-a-half years
On March 8, following a trial at St Albans Crown Court, Sabaratnam Arulsikamani, of Water Lane, Watford, was sentenced over three counts of sexual activity with a child, which related to a young teenage girl and dated back to 2011.
The 60-year-old will also be on the Sex Offenders Register for life.
Thomas McDonagh - two years, two months and 29 days
Thomas McDonagh, aged 36 at the time of the offence, of Hemel Hempstead, was sentenced at St Albans Crown Court after admitting to one count of wound without intent on January 26.
On the day of the incident, May 4, 2023, Herts Police shared that a man had reportedly been hit by a vehicle and then stabbed, before being taken to hospital for treatment.
A vehicle crashed into a home causing structural damage and forcing an evacuation while a police manhunt, involving a helicopter, was launched as emergency services flooded the area around Little Oxhey Lane.
Another man was also jailed (for 12 months) over the incident, for affray.
16-year-old offender – four years and three months
A 16-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was arrested at his home address in Watford, after stabbing another teenager multiple times in Gillingham High Street on March 9, last year.
Alongside an 18-year-old man from Gillingham who also stabbed the victim, he pleaded guilty to wounding with intent and possession of a knife in a public place at Maidstone Crown Court.
Both were given the same sentence on March 1, 2024.
All ages correct at time of sentencing unless otherwise stated
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