Thug on run in Spain, man with gun in biscuit tin and ranting dad jailed

These are the faces of defendants from our region who were locked up over the past seven days

04:00, 18 Aug 2025

A ?500,000 drugs minder, a thug who went on the run to Spain after a stabbing and a man with a gun in a biscuit tin were among the Merseyside criminals jailed this week. Also locked up was a dad who ranted "I've got spiked by a 46-year-old woman and you send me to jail" as he was sent down.

Meanwhile, Liverpool Crown Court[1] heard that a family feud over a litter of puppies ended with one man being stabbed and a grandson being locked up and banned from going to his nan's house. Here are the faces of the 11 defendants from across our region who were locked up over the past seven days:

Kirk Hallsworth

A driver was caught with nearly ?500,000 of cocaine in Adidas and Dior branded blocks after being stopped on a motorway. Kirk Hallsworth[2] confessed to having the huge stash of drugs after he was pulled over by police on the M53.

He was said to have become involved in minding this haul of illicit class A substances after a "menacing" gang made threats against his family while brandishing a gun, an incident which reportedly left him "terrified".

A judge labelled him "a very vulnerable individual who was exploited by others".

Hallsworth pleaded guilty to one count of possession of cocaine with intent to supply. Appearing via video link to HMP Liverpool, he was jailed for four years.

Andrew Maguire

A feud over a litter of puppies ended with one man being stabbed and a grandson being locked up and banned from going to his nan's house. Andrew Maguire[3] battered his own cousin before brandishing a kitchen knife in the street while protesting that he had been "persecuted".

Another relative's partner then suffered a stab wound during the ensuing melee while small children passed on their way to school. The incident was said to have come against the background of an "unusual dynamic" within the family.

Maguire admitted assaulting his cousin and possession of a bladed article in a public place.

He had earlier faced a further charge of inflicting grievous bodily harm with intent against the victim of the stabbing, although this count was ultimately dropped due to the injured man not cooperating with the prosecution.

Appearing via video link to HMP Liverpool wearing a grey prison issue jumper, Maguire was seen with his head in his hands and taking deep breaths at times during the hearing before he was jailed for 13 months. He was also handed a restraining order which will ban him coming within 200 metres of his grandma's street for five years.

Alan Bell

A dad was caught with hundreds of pounds of heroin and crack cocaine hidden down his trousers. Alan Bell[4] confessed to the police that he had swallowed a quantity of drugs before his stash was discovered once he had been taken into custody.

The father-of-three was said to have turned to dealing in order to fund his own habit, having fallen into the use of illicit substances following his daughter's death. However, he now says that he is "feeling better than he ever has before" after taking steps to combat his addiction behind bars.

Bell pleaded guilty to possession of heroin and crack cocaine with intent to supply.

Appearing via video link to HMP Hindley wearing a grey Zavetti Canada t-shirt, he was jailed for 28 months.

Carl Povey

Police raided a man's home expecting to find drugs but instead discovered a gun hidden inside a biscuit tin. Carl Povey[5] was caught minding the "rusty and defective" converted blank-firing revolver on behalf of drug dealers after racking up debts for his heroin use.

He then "panicked" and falsely claimed that he had found the firearm in a park. A judge told him that he had been selected as a "reliable" guardian of the revolver due to his past involvement in the supply of class A substances.

Povey admitted possession of a prohibited weapon and possession of ammunition without a certificate. Appearing via video link to HMP Liverpool wearing a purple polo shirt, he was jailed for five years.

Tony Carty

A father-to-be drove to pick his girlfriend up following a night out but left her injured after she was dragged along the road by his car. Tony Carty[6] was said to have driven his vehicle towards pedestrians when "all hell broke loose" following his arrival at a house which she had attended with friends in the early hours.

This saw him brandish a metal pole in the street and another man punch him in the face as he sat behind the wheel.

A judge told the convicted domestic abuser and drug dealer that "there could have been much more serious consequences", including a "real risk" that he could have killed his own partner.

Carty admitted dangerous driving and possession of an offensive weapon in a public place. Appearing via video link to HMP Liverpool wearing a navy blue Nike jumper, he was jailed for a year.

Anthony Sawtell

A dad ranted "I've got spiked by a 46-year-old woman and you send me to jail" to a judge as he was locked up. An intoxicated Anthony Sawtell[7] entered a stranger's home uninvited in the early hours before being repeatedly sick in her garden.

The former window cleaner then returned once he had sobered up and accused her of stealing from him, threatening the mum: "I'm going to petrol bomb your house with your kids in it.

You're not getting out alive. I'm going to burn your kids alive."

Sawtell admitted criminal damage, making threats to damage or destroy property, threatening violence to secure entry to a premises, possession of an offensive weapon in a public place and a public order offence. Wearing a black and blue Montirex tracksuit, he was jailed for two years.

After being told he was being imprisoned immediately, Sawtell ranted: "Ridiculous.

I've got spiked by a 46-year-old woman and you send me to jail. A 46-year-old woman spiked me with a line of ketamine. What I done is wrong, but no.

I think it's a disgrace. Don't worry, smash its head in judge."

Sawtell then climbed onto a chair in order to hug a supporter in the public gallery over the back of the dock and handed him a pair of sunglasses before he was led to the cells. He was also handed a five-year restraining order.

Delton Jones

A thug fled to Spain after he and his friends "behaved like a pack of animals" and left a boxer fighting for his life outside McDonald's.

Anthony Dodson was left with life-threatening injuries when he was stabbed in the heart after fighting broke out in a Liverpool city centre[8] nightclub and spilled out into the street.

While six men and a 17-year-old boy were previously locked up for a combined total of more than 50 years in connection with the incident, Delton Jones[9] remained at large for nearly a year before finally being apprehended on the continent. It came after others who became embroiled in the vicious incident burned their designer clothing in a park and attempted to abscond to France[10] as illegal stowaways on a lorry in the aftermath of the near fatal assault.

Jones admitted wounding with intent and violent disorder. Appearing via video link to HMP Liverpool, he was jailed for nine years and handed an additional five years on licence.

Thomas Jennings

A thug was caught on camera subjecting his girlfriend to a "chilling" assault on a residential street.

Ring doorbell footage captured Thomas Jennings[11] forcefully striking his partner with a mobile phone, seemingly without provocation.

Having knocked her to the floor, the dad then delivered a sickening kick to the head which rendered her immediately unconscious and left her with a broken jaw and eye socket. Rather than seeking help, he instead callously left her lying motionless in the street, threatening to burn down a stranger's house as he simply walked away from the scene of his "cowardly" attack.

Jennings admitted causing grievous bodily harm with intent. Appearing via video link to HMP Liverpool wearing a white Asics t-shirt, he was jailed for four years and handed an extended licence period of three years.

Robert Forshaw

A man who created a web of fake social media accounts to stalk his ex-partner has been jailed. Robert Forshaw[12] was sentenced to two years and nine months behind bars and handed a 10-year restraining order.

Jamie Rothwell

Jamie Rothwell has been sentenced to 43 years behind bars[13] after ordering shootings, trafficking guns and arranging huge drug deals from his plush apartment in Spain.

The 38-year-old, a notorious figure in the criminal underworld, became one of the National Crime Agency's most wanted after Encrochat messages revealed he had organised a shooting in Warrington[14] in furtherance of a gangland feud, all orchestrated from his bolthole in Barcelona.

Elliot Harris

A boy racer broke his 16-year-old passenger's spine after crashing into a fence, leaving her "injured, terrified and in unimaginable pain". Elliot Harris[15] was travelling at more than 80mph in a 30mph zone when he lost control and crashed, injuring two girls who he had been "showing off" to moments beforehand

The teenager, who was 17 at the time but is now aged 19, had been driving for just four days before the horror crash took place, having passed his test just three weeks earlier.

His passengers begged for him to slow down as he drove over speed bumps and directly over a roundabout before the horror collision.

Harris pleaded guilty to causing serious injury by dangerous driving.

He was sentenced to 12 months in a young offenders' institute and disqualified from driving for five-and-a-half years.

References

1. ^ Liverpool Crown Court (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
2. ^ Kirk Hallsworth (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
3. ^ Andrew Maguire (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
4. ^ Alan Bell (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
5. ^ Carl Povey (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
6. ^ Tony Carty (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
7. ^ Anthony Sawtell (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
8. ^ Liverpool city centre (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
9. ^ Delton Jones (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
10. ^ burned their designer clothing in a park and attempted to abscond to France (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
11. ^ Thomas Jennings (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
12. ^ Robert Forshaw (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
13. ^ Jamie Rothwell has been sentenced to 43 years behind bars (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
14. ^ Warrington (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
15. ^ Elliot Harris (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)