Rapist window cleaner, pedophile priest and Showcase Cinema shooter arrested

Merseyside criminals jailed in the past week included a rapist window cleaner, a paedophile priest and the Showcase Cinema shooter.

Also jailed was a man who was part of a gang that kidnapped and brutally attacked two men, one of whom “barely survived”. Meanwhile, Liverpool Crown Court heard a pervert watched videos of children being raped because it was “a relief and release”.

Here are the faces of seven criminals from our region who were imprisoned in the last seven days:

READ MORE: Pastor who sexually abused boys was fined £500 and then promoted

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Michael Swann

A paedophile told police that he watched videos of rapes of children, some as young as three years old, because it was “a relief and a release” for him.

Michael Swann downloaded thousands of indecent images over the course of around 15 years to satisfy his “insatiable, perverse and depraved interest in children”. The three-times convicted sex offender also secretly filmed young girls naked and in their underwear.

Swann admitted making indecent images, possessing indecent images, possessing prohibited images and three counts of making indecent images. He was sentenced to five years in prison.

Anthony Morrissey

A window cleaner showed a girl adult videos on Pornhub and then raped her.

Anthony Morrissey subjected the young woman to a series of sexual assaults and then told her to “keep it all secret.” He shook his head when he was sent to prison for his heinous crimes.

Morrissey was found guilty by a jury after a trial of rape, inciting a child to engage in a sexual act, engaging in a sexual act in the presence of a child and causing a child to watch a sexual act. He stood shaking his head as he was sentenced to 13 years in prison plus a further year of probation, then waved to his supporters in the gallery as he was led to the cells.

Egidijus Savickas

Four kidnappers armed with knives and baseball bats attacked two men so brutally that one of them “barely survived.”

The gang travelled from different parts of the country to meet their victims in Staffordshire. They had hatched a plan to kidnap and rob the pair. They were then brutally beaten with batons and knives, bound with duct tape and interrogated before being thrown into the boot of two different cars.

Egidijus Savickas from Bootle was found guilty of kidnapping and wounding with intent, among other things. The 28-year-old was sentenced to 14 years in prison.

Jamie Crawford

A shoplifter who set fire to his prison cell boasted: “I’m going to play the mental health card and get out of here.”

Jamie Crawford, an inmate at HMP Risley in Warrington, had been moved to a new wing of the prison for drug use. He started the fire because he was apparently unhappy with this decision and was caught by guards rubbing a liquid, believed to be shower gel, all over his body.

Crawford admitted arson. He was sentenced to an additional two years and seven months in prison.

John Roberts

A paedophile priest who “used God to hide the monster he is” could spend the rest of his life behind bars after being convicted of sex offences against a fifth victim.

John Roberts was found guilty of five counts of sexual assault in a trial that found that while he was a priest at St Peter’s Church in St Helens in the 1970s, he “abused the power and authority of his position to commit sexual abuse.” The now 89-year-old attempted to grope the boy in the rectory and during a drive.

He was sentenced to three years in prison, which he must serve retroactively to a nine-year prison sentence imposed on him in 2020 for similar offenses.

Leslie Garrett

Showcase Cinema shooter Leslie Garrett screamed “K***head” as he was locked up.

The 49-year-old, of Ternhall Road, Fazakerley, raided Sangha’s newsagents in Norris Green in his flip-flops on the evening of January 3 this year, firing an AK47 into a protective wall. He then went into the pub for a drink before heading to the Showcase Cinema in Croxteth, where he had worked as a security guard before losing his job three months earlier for being “under the influence of alcohol” and firing further shots outside.

Garrett pleaded guilty to eight charges, including possession of a firearm and ammunition with intent to endanger life, two counts of possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence, attempted robbery and possession of ammunition without a licence. He appeared in the dock wearing a grey Nike sweatshirt and a cross around his neck and was sentenced to 14 years in prison plus an extended period of probation of four years.

As he was led into the cells, he gave his supporters in the stands a thumbs up and said: “See you later. Everything will be fine.”

Garrett was also heard screaming “f***ing head” as he left the dock.

Craig Hill

A man who used Encrochat to sell cocaine and cannabis was caught after mentioning his resemblance to a cartoon character on the encrypted communications platform.

Craig Hill was arrested at his home where police discovered a cannabis farm. Under the encrochat name “Lewdvine”, he was selling kilos of Class A and B drugs.

Police were able to track down Hill as the man behind the account by storing a number of clues on his Encrochat device, including references to protective goggles and his resemblance to Penfold from Danger Mouse. Hill was sentenced to seven years and eight months in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to traffic cocaine, conspiracy to traffic cannabis and cannabis production.

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