Seven sentenced to more than 78 years in prison after a man was subjected to a sustained attack in Telford
Seven people have been sentenced to a total of more than 78 years in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to cause grievous bodily harm with intent after a man was subjected to a sustained attack in Telford.
The man, aged in his 20s, was held for a number of weeks at an address in Willowfield, Woodside, Telford, before he was found by police on Thursday 1 September 2016.
Whilst held at the address the man, who must not be identified for legal reasons, was the victim of sustained and degrading assaults. The defendants had latched onto a vicious lie that the victim was a paedophile and used this to try to justify their violent actions.
Today at Stafford Crown Court, Nathan Peter Bates, aged 19, of the Victoria Road area of Madeley, Telford, was sentenced to 10 years and a 23 year-old man from Telford, who police are not naming for legal reasons, was sentenced to 12 years in custody with an extended licence period of four years. Both had pleaded guilty to conspiracy to cause grievous bodily harm with intent at Birmingham Crown Court Crown Court on February 3.
Stephanie Christine Titley, aged 26, of Willowfield, Telford, was sentenced to 13 years and four months for conspiracy to cause grievous bodily harm with intent and five years for false imprisonment, to run concurrently. She had pleaded guilty to both counts on January 10 at Stafford Crown Court.
On the same date Gavin Smith, aged 19, of Southgate, Sutton Hill, and a 17 year old boy, from Telford, who cannot be named for legal reasons, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to cause grievous bodily harm with intent. Today Smith was sentenced to 10 years and the 17 year-old was sentenced to four years detention.
Dean Butler, aged 23, of no fixed abode, was today sentenced to 13 years and four months and Daniel Louis Doyle, aged 24, of Smallwood, Sutton Hill, was sentenced to 12 years. Both had pleaded guilty to conspiracy to cause grievous bodily harm with intent at a hearing held at Birmingham Crown Court on 9th December 2016.
Detective Inspector Mark Bellamy, the senior investigating officer, said: "The victim in this case was subjected to a truly shocking and senseless attack over a prolonged period of time, the like of which I have never seen in 21 years as a police officer.
"The horrific ordeal that he experienced will have a long-lasting effect, both physically and psychologically, and I would like to pay tribute to his outstanding bravery. I would also like to make it clear that no allegations of sexual assault have ever been received by police regarding this man.
"Incidents of this nature are fortunately rare in the area served by West Mercia Police and a robust and comprehensive investigation was conducted by our officers to ensure the perpetrators faced justice for their despicable actions."
Superintendent Tom Harding, Local Policing Commander for Telford and Wrekin, said: "Within a number of hours of a report being made to police that an unknown male had been assaulted at an unknown location, officers located the victim. We immediately put the necessary resources in place and our officers worked effectively and quickly in order to find him and detain those responsible.
"While the nature of this horrific crime will undoubtedly shock the local community I would like to reassure people that our response and investigation was immediate, robust and effective. In conjunction with our partner agencies, we will always work tirelessly to protect people from harm and ensure offenders are held accountable for their actions through the criminal justice system.
"This was a large scale investigation during which every single officer involved played their part in securing the convictions."
No further action will be taken against a 21-year-old woman, a 13-year-old girl and a 16 year-old girl, all from Telford, who were arrested on suspicion of attempted murder in connection with the incident.
Related Article: Seven people from Telford charged with conspiracy to murder
