Man jailed after ram raid on village bank
A man has been jailed for his part in a ram raid on a Henfield bank when an ATM containing more than £50,000 was stolen.
James Sayers, 31, appeared at Hove Crown Court on March 9 charged with theft and receiving stolen goods.
Judge Jeremy Gold QC heard how Sayers, formerly from Guildford, and a group of others stole three vehicles, including a JCB Telehander digger, in the early hours of Sunday April 15 2018.
Police said the men used the digger, minus its bucket, to pull the ATM from the wall of Barclays Bank in Henfield High Street at 2am that morning.
The ATM, which contained £55,000 in cash, was loaded into a stolen Nissan Navara pick-up truck and later dumped, along with the pick-up, and burned out in Oakendon Woods, Dunsfold, said police.
As the stolen Audi A6 estate car left the woods, just before 4am, the men were confronted by a member of the public whose vehicle they rammed.
Sayers admitted one count of theft, relating to the ATM and its contents; and a second count relating to the JCB Telehander.
He also admitted two counts of receiving stolen goods, relating to the theft of the Nissan Navara and the Audi A6, both between 5 and 16 April 2018.
Sayers also admitted a similar ram raid at a Co-op store in Didcot, Oxfordshire, when he appeared at Hove Crown Court.
Sayers was sentenced to 30 months’ imprisonment for both offences.
The sentence will run concurrently to a five year sentence Sayers is currently serving for a similar ram raid in Hampshire in 2019.
A man who pushed a woman to the ground and tried to rape her in Southwater has been jailed.
Christopher Cooper, 29, has been sentenced to nine years in prison for the attack said police.
Around 7.20am on October 27, 2020, a woman had been running along Downs Link when she was passed by an unknown man on a bicycle, said police. The man stopped and propped his bike up against the wall before standing and looking at his phone. As the woman ran past him, he jumped and pushed her to the ground.
A police spokesman added: “The victim screamed as the man began to undress her. He then sexually assaulted her.
“The woman’s screams were heard by a member of the public who intervened, causing the suspect to grab his bike and cycle away.”
Police were called and attended the scene. There they found a surgical face mask that the suspect had been wearing, police said. The DNA on the mask was a match for Cooper, a tree surgeon, of no fixed address.
The spokesman said: “Enquiries began to locate Cooper, who eventually made contact with police after learning officers were looking for him. He was arrested on suspicion of attempted rape and assaulting a woman by penetration.
“A jacket was found among his belongings that matched the description given by witnesses. He was also later picked out of an identity parade.”
Cooper pleaded guilty to two offences relating to the attack and was sentenced at Lewes Crown Court on Wednesday (March 17), police said. He was sentenced to nine years’ imprisonment, three of which is to be served on extended licence.
Detective Sergeant Steve Webb said: “This was an extremely distressing ordeal for the victim, who has shown great bravery throughout.
“We are grateful to her and to all those who have assisted our investigation. Thanks to their support, and a swift response by our officers, we were able to secure vital DNA evidence at the scene and build a strong case against Christopher Cooper.
“His actions that day shows he had clear intent to cause a woman harm, and we are pleased to see him sentenced to nine years’ imprisonment.”