CPS News Brief

Man sentenced for threatening to blow up G4S vans

A 20-year-old has today (29 September) been sent to a young offenders’ institution for two years for blackmailing his employer by threatening to blow up their vans. 

Daniel Garland, from County Durham, admitted to sending an anonymous letter to G4S’s Teesside depot on 11 January this year.

In the letter, Garland threatened to detonate a number of remote-controlled ‘mini-bombs’, which he said were attached to G4S vans and staff vehicles, if a demand for £1 million in cash was not met. He also threatened to cause harm to the partner and new-born baby of a fellow employee. 

Garland was working for G4S at the time. Suspicions were aroused during a police interview while a major hunt for the explosives was under way. His home was searched and a copy of the anonymous letter was found behind a poster. He admitted sending the bomb hoax, but denied it was in an attempt to blackmail G4S. 

Helen Cox from the CPS said: 

“Daniel Garland knowingly caused a huge amount of disruption for his employer, along with untold terror and anxiety for those he threatened. 

“He intended to frighten and distress his employer and colleagues but his actions had far-reaching consequences. They resulted in the deployment of a significant amount of police resources at the public expense, the near shut down of the G4S Teesside depot and subsequent losses of around £15,000 to the company.

“The CPS presented a case to court that made his actions, and the very serious impact they had, abundantly clear and he must now face the consequences of his behaviour.”

Man sentenced after importing childlike sex doll

A man has been sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment, suspended for two years after importing a childlike sex doll he bought online. 

Simon Glerum, 33, admitted to arranging the import of a prohibited indecent or obscene article after purchasing the doll from Hong Kong and attempting to have it delivered to his Essex home. 

The doll was intercepted by Border Force officers at Stansted Airport in January this year and Glerum was arrested by Essex Police officers.   

Glerum also admitted three offences of making, or downloading, indecent images of children between 1 July 2014 and 19 January 2017, and the possession of eight prohibited images of children.

The CPS provided early advice to investigators, as well as specific guidance on how officers could establish - by tracking Glerum’s website use - that he intended to purchase a childlike doll, rather than a smaller adult doll as he originally insisted.  

Sarah Freeman, from the CPS, said: 

“Following the interception of the childlike sex doll, further serious offending was uncovered which was subsequently admitted by Simon Glerum. 

“The close ongoing work between the CPS, the police and other law enforcement agencies is proving crucial to identifying and investigating this type of offending and bringing it before the courts.”

Disability benefits cheat who spent holidays quad biking and scuba diving sentenced

A woman who claimed £65,000 in disability benefit over 21 years but spent holidays scuba diving and riding quad bikes has been sentenced to 18 months in prison, suspended for two years today (25 September).

Linda Hoey, 58, claimed £65,224 in Disability Living Allowance (DLA) from 1995 to 2016 declaring arthritis and back problems meant she could only walk four metres, could not walk unaided, was unable to bend, and would be housebound without the help of her husband.

However an investigation found Hoey had been in full time employment since 1997, performing physical tasks at odds with a person who had a severe disability. 

No walking aids were found at her home and family photos showed her playing pool and sitting on the back of a quad bike. A personalised calendar had images of her scuba diving and Hoey had regularly been playing badminton since 2011.

Hoey also avoided £15,690 in fees from the M6 Toll as she was using a Disability Living Allowance Mobility Exemption Pass Scheme to use the road to travel to and from work.

Ana Coomansingh, from the CPS, said: “Over an extensive period, Linda Hoey lied about her care needs to claim more than £65,000 in disability benefits whilst taking part in activities that people suffering in the way she claimed to be would not be able to do.

“These benefits were for people who were genuinely disabled. The evidence put forward by the CPS showed Hoey was leading a life of physical activity both at work and on holiday.”

Ends

Notes to editors:

• Linda Hoey denied two counts of cheating the public revenue and evasion of liability by deception but was convicted by a jury on 28 July after a trial at Stafford Crown Court.

• Ana Coomansingh is a Specialist Prosecutor in the Specialist Fraud Division

• Linda Hoey will now face a confiscation hearing under the Proceeds of Crime Act.