Forty-six defendants from the region were imprisoned during September, including a man who bit part of another man's ear off, a killer who battered his 83-year-old father, and a mother who stabbed her victim to death before trying to blame her ex-boyfriend.
Among those also locked up was a drug smuggler caught with more than £400,000 of cocaine in his suitcase on a flight from Portugal to Liverpool John Lennon Airport. Liverpool Crown Court also heard how a teenager fired a bullet through the window of a home where a mum lived with her 10-month-old baby and elderly mother.
Fatal e-bike crash and drug raids
Leon Jones, 20, of Ford Way in Woodchurch, was jailed for five years and 10 months in a young offenders' institute after admitting causing death by dangerous driving and arson. He was the rider of a Sur-Ron electric bike involved in a head-on crash on Hoole Road in Woodchurch, Wirral, which killed 17-year-old Spencer Crofts. Jones also suffered serious head injuries and was left fighting for his life. He gave a thumbs up to a judge as he was locked up for causing the death of "one of his best friends" as they "rode competitively against one another".
Jerome Mayers, 22, of Hannan Road, was handed 2,045 days behind bars after admitting possession of heroin and cocaine with intent to supply. The three-time convicted trafficker was found in an "agitated, confused and intoxicated" state when police raided his room at the Adelphi Hotel, where a makeshift heroin and cocaine packaging line was discovered. Sarah Dunne, 35, of Fraser Street, was jailed for three-and-a-half years after pleading guilty to possession of heroin and cocaine with intent to supply and breaching a suspended sentence order. The pregnant street dealer was caught with drugs stashed in her mouth and a key card to the hotel room in her pocket.
Neglect, violence and smuggling
Laurence Tchapong, 54, of Penroyson Close in Manchester, was jailed for four years after being found unanimously guilty of wilful neglect of a patient. The mental health nurse was supposed to carry out observations on Amy Barber every five minutes inside a psychiatric care unit at Clatterbridge Hospital but neglected her duties for nearly 25 minutes. During that time, the 22-year-old was found unresponsive by another nurse. Analysis of Tchapong's observation notes showed she had "deliberately lied in those records to try and evade justice".
Kieran Scholes, 21, of Duke Street in New Brighton, was jailed for seven years after being found guilty of wounding with intent and affray. He bit part of a man's ear off over "something to do with a girl" during a mass brawl outside a convenience store. May Taylor, 22, of Rowan Place in Lancaster, and Daryush Yavari, 20, of Blackstock Road in Sheffield, were each handed six years behind bars after admitting being knowingly concerned in the fraudulent evasion of a prohibition on the importation of cocaine. They attempted to conceal 34kg of the drug, worth more than £750,000, in their suitcases by masking the stash with coffee.
Other notable sentences
William Wallace, 37, of Teal Grove in Warrington, was jailed for six years after admitting being concerned in the fraudulent evasion of a prohibition on the importation of cocaine. He was caught with more than £400,000 of cocaine in his suitcase on a flight from Portugal to Liverpool John Lennon Airport, claiming he was offered £10,000 by a stranger to bring the stash back to the UK. Robert Hampson, 37, of Cambridge Road, Bootle, was jailed for eight years after pleading guilty to possession with intent to supply cocaine, ketamine and cannabis. He was stopped on the M62 and found with ten individual kilogram-sized compressed blocks of cocaine hidden in a shopping bag.
Ian Griffin was jailed for five years and handed an extended licence period of a further year after admitting inflicting grievous bodily harm and threatening to destroy property. The killer battered his 83-year-old dad, who already had a brain injury from a car crash, leaving him with a broken nose and knocking out his gold tooth. Kayleigh Smart was handed a life sentence with a minimum term of eight years after admitting manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility. The 40-year-old stabbed 34-year-old Liam Collier nearly a dozen times during a schizophrenic episode, then tried to blame her ex-boyfriend. She was also given a Section 45A hospital order, meaning she will remain in a secure mental health hospital until deemed fit for discharge.
Jama Yusuf, 19, of Eversley Street, was handed 13-and-a-half years detention in a young offenders' institute after being unanimously convicted of possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life, possession of ammunition without a certificate and two counts of criminal damage. He fired seven gunshots towards two men while cycling through the streets of Toxteth, with rounds also hitting another house and a parked van. As he was led to the cells, he shouted: "See you guys, bye."
