A Derbyshire man who subjected a woman to a vicious three-hour attack, leaving her in intensive care has been sentenced to life in prison. Accomplices who conspired with him to try and stop her giving evidence have also been sentenced for their parts in the conspiracy.
Christopher Magee pleaded guilty to Attempted Murder for the attack on his victim. Martin Clarke, Zackree Williams, Sara Bennett, Michael Holmes, Liam Curtis and Robert Wyatt were all convicted in December 2016 for a series of planned attacks on the victim to try to stop her giving evidence. Find out more about the case here .
Michelle Mannion, District Crown Prosecutor at CPS East Midlands said:
“Today’s sentence is an important conclusion to this case. In addition to the extreme violence Christopher Magee used towards this victim, we have presented evidence to the court of the danger he poses to women. He has a prolific record of violence and, despite serving sentences for these offences, his attitude and behaviour has not changed. If anything, it has escalated. He pursued his agenda against this victim to the point of obsession - with his intentions towards her and her family becoming increasingly violent as he involved his accomplices in his schemes.
“As well as making the extent of Magee’s offending clear to the court to assist with sentencing, we applied for a Restraining Order restricting Magee from having any direct or indirect contact with the victim and her family.
“Martin Clarke and the other defendants in this case have followed Magee’s violent agenda without question and without thought for the consequences to those they targeted. The severity of the sentences handed down to them reflects the relentlessness and the lack of remorse in their actions towards the victim.
“Given all the she was subjected to and the risk posed by Magee, the victim has demonstrated a huge amount of courage throughout this process. I hope that today’s sentence and the Restraining Order imposed indefinitely will give her and her family confidence in the Criminal Justice System so they can move forward.”
Notes to Editors
All defendants were sentenced today at Nottingham Crown Court.
Christopher Magee was given a life sentence with a minimum term of 13.5years.
Martin Clarke was sentenced to a total of ten years, four years for conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm and six years, consecutively for conspiracy to commit arson being reckless as to whether life was endangered.
Holmes, Bennett, Curtis and Wyatt were jailed for their part in the conspiracy while Williams received a suspended sentence.
