Sussex’s judges, juries and magistrates were busy in July.
These are some of the most serious, high-profile and prolific offenders who were jailed in the seventh month of 2023.
All information comes directly from Sussex Police.
5. Locked up in Sussex: These are some of the criminals jailed in July 2023
A West Sussex man who raped a girl on more than one occasion decades ago has been jailed for 18 years. Brian Hoad, 66, of Kings Road, Lancing, first raped his victim, who was under the age of 16, after he ‘plied her with wine’, a police spokesperson said. Hoad’s victim reported multiple sexual assaults to Sussex Police on June 3, 2021, and received support from specialist officers while an investigation was launched. A police spokesperson said: “Hoad was arrested the next day and, following a thorough investigation, was charged with four counts of rape of a girl under 16 and two counts of sexual assault on a girl under 16. He was found guilty of all charges at Lewes Crown Court on Friday, July 14.” At Lewes Crown Court on Monday, July 17, Hoad was sentenced to 18 years in jail and told he must serve a minimum of two thirds of that sentence before being eligible for parole, police said. Police said Hoad was also given an indefinite restraining order prohibiting him from contacting the victim, indirectly or directly. Photo: Sussex Police
6. Locked up in Sussex: These are some of the criminals jailed in July 2023
Pevensey man Graham Head has been given a 23-year sentence for attempting to rape and sexually assault two women while posing as a taxi driver in Brighton. Head, 66, of Coast Road in Pevensey, prowled the streets of Sussex in his silver Mercedes estate searching for vulnerable women. At Hove Crown Court on Monday, July 24, he was jailed for 18 years, with an additional five years to be spent on extended licence. He was told he must serve at least two thirds of that sentence before being eligible for parole. Head was arrested on 18 November, 2022, after a woman reported waking up in a vehicle, which she believed to be a taxi, to find a man sexually assaulting her. She had earlier got into what she thought was a taxi taking her from Brighton to Hove. She managed to escape, called police at around 3.10am and was able to remember three digits of the car’s registration plate. Within minutes, officers located the vehicle – a silver Mercedes estate - and stopped it in Preston Circus following a short pursuit. Head was arrested at the scene. He was linked to an ongoing investigation from 19 August, 2022, when a woman reported a man dragging her into bushes in Hove Park. She had earlier received a lift from him from Brighton to Hove Park. He attempted to rape her, but fled the scene when the victim’s mobile phone rang. CCTV footage from that investigation showed the victim approaching a silver Mercedes estate, which was then tracked through city centre CCTV and doorbell footage driving slowly along the road near Hove Park. After he was arrested in November, 2022, his internet search history was found to include phrases such as ‘if a mobile phone is switched off can it still be traced’ and multiple searches around nightclub opening times in Brighton, East Sussex and Surrey, as well as information on Brighton student nights. Inside his car were latex gloves, condoms, Viagra tablets and a balaclava. His mobile phone had been placed on flight mode. Photo: Sussex Police
7. Locked up in Sussex: These are some of the criminals jailed in July 2023
A disqualified driver who provided a false name to officers after being stopped in Hove has been jailed for his latest offences. Jamie Marsh was spotted driving a silver Jeep Commander in Old Shoreham Road at about 6.30pm on July 9. Roads Policing Unit specialists PC Neil Hersey and PC Brendan Slattery suspected the vehicle was being driven by a disqualified driver. Marsh claimed to be “Stephen Paul Marsh” with a different date of birth, but the truth quickly emerged that he had been disqualified just three weeks earlier for drink-driving. On that occasion, he had given a different false name and obstructed police who had seen him driving while using a mobile phone in Kings Road, Brighton, on June 16. He was given a suspended prison sentence at Brighton Magistrates’ Court on June 19, and was under a disqualification until 2027. Marsh, 38, unemployed of Phoenix Rise, Brighton, was charged for the latest offences and remanded in custody to appear before Brighton Magistrates’ Court on July 10. He admitted driving while disqualified, driving without insurance, possession of a class A drug, and drink-driving. The court was told how Marsh tested positive for 63 microgrammes (mcg) of alcohol per 100 millilitres (ml) of breath. The legal limit is 35mcg of alcohol per 100ml of breath. Marsh was sentenced to ten weeks in prison, with a further three-year driving disqualification and £156 victim surcharge. Photo: Sussex Police
8. Locked up in Sussex: These are some of the criminals jailed in July 2023
A woman who suffered years of domestic abuse has been praised by police for supporting a prosecution. Lee Messam has been jailed after his former partner bravely came forward to give evidence against him. The 50-year-old, from Seaford, was responsible for a series of violent outbursts, often in the presence of their three children, and inflicted numerous injuries upon her, as detailed in medical notes. The pair had been in a relationship from 1992, but Messam’s behaviour soon became controlling and coercive. This included controlling her finances, what she wore and who she spoke to. The victim was eventually encouraged to report the abuse by one of her children, who was concerned for the welfare of her family. The allegations were investigated by a team of officers from Eastbourne CID, led by Detective Sergeant Amanda Hover. This led to Messam being arrested and charged with engaging in controlling and coercive behaviour between December 2015 and September 2020. He pleaded guilty to the offence in court on April 18, where it was heard how he burnt his partner in the face with a cigarette butt, strangled her with a dressing gown cord, smothered her with a pillow and punched her in the face on numerous occasions. The case was adjourned until July 5 at Lewes Crown Court, where Messam was sentenced to 38 months’ imprisonment, consisting of 19 months in custody followed by 19 months on licence. He was also given a restraining order against the victim and two of their children, which lasts until further notice. Three counts of assault, between 2014 and 2020, are to lie on file. Photo: Sussex Police