Wigan's week in court

A warrant has been issued for the arrest of a local man accused of dishonestly keeping £7,500 in benefits.

Daniel Warrington, 37, of Claremont Road, Billinge, had been due to appear before borough justices to face five charges of dishonestly failing to notify the authorities of wrongful credits, each of around £1,500 between August 2019 and January 2021 and failing to take steps to cancel the payments, but he did not turn up for the hearing.

The bench duly issued an arrest warrant.

A provisional trial date has been set for a man accused of murdering Skelmersdale teen Dylan Bragger.

The 15-year-old was pronounced dead after officers were called to reports of a stabbing in Digmoor Road at around 9pm on Thursday June 29.

A 28-year-old man was arrested shortly after.

Felipe Figueiredo, 28, of Birleywood, Skelmersdale, was later charged with murder and appeared before Preston magistrates.

Now he has made his first appearance at Preston Crown Court. During a brief hearing it was ruled that a pre-trial preparation hearing would take place on September 4 and a pre-trial review on September 13.

Should Figueiredo deny the charge – he has not yet entered a plea – then a trial has been scheduled to begin on January 2.

In the meantime the defendant is remanded in custody.

Paying tribute to Dylan, his family described him as a “gentle giant” with a “heart of gold” who was “working towards becoming a car mechanic and had his whole life ahead of him”.

Lancashire Police are continuing to appeal for anyone with information about the investigation to call police on 101, quoting log 1526 of June 29.

A Wigan man accused of peddling hard drugs will only enter his pleas later this month after two co-accuseds confessed.

Craig Gee was due to respond to charges of possessing heroin and crack cocaine with intent to supply, plus another of cannabis production at a Liverpool Crown Court hearing.

But he had no legal representation and so the hearing was adjourned until July 24.

However Thomas Prior, 32, of Victoria Road, Formby, and Mark Keogh, 35, of North Mount Road, Kirkby, pleaded guilty to the dealing class A drug charges against them and will be sentenced on the same date.

A 26-year-old man from Wigan has been sentenced for exposing himself to four women in the space of a year.

Courtney Havill approached his victims in a car in various locations in Wigan, while naked from the waist down.

When he had their attention, he looked them in the eye as he performed a lewd act. It was on October 2 2021 at 11am he approached the first woman, who was in her 20s, in his silver Audi on School Lane at Haigh Woodland Park, and asked her for directions.

When she looked into the car, she saw he was not wearing any trousers or underwear and was touching himself as he spoke to her.

On October 23 the same year at 4pm he stopped a second woman, who was in her 40s, in his Audi as she walked along Aspinall Road in Standish.

He asked her for directions while not wearing any lower clothing and pleasuring himself.

On March 8 2022 at 11.45pm he followed a third woman, who was in her 20s, in her car from traffic lights at the junction of Wigan Road and Cale Lane, New Springs.

He flashed his car lights until she pulled over.

He then walked over to her car, opened her passenger door and sat in the passenger seat.

He was not wearing any lower clothing.

He took her phone and put his snapchat details into it, asked her for a kiss, and started touching himself.

She told him to leave, and he got out of the car.

He later apologised to her via snapchat.

On September 9 2022 at 9.30pm Havill was in a parked BMW with no lights on Shevington Lane in Shevington, Wigan.

As the fourth woman, in her 40s, walked past the car, he put the internal light and as he looked at her, he touched himself.

She tried to take a photo of the car, but he drove away at speed.

Each women described the man as in his 20s with curly ginger hair.

When he was identified and interviewed by police, Havill – of Cedar Drive in Hindley - gave several false alibis stating he was at work or in another location at the time of the offences, but this was quickly disproved.

He also claimed it must be a case of mistaken identity but the cars he has using to commit these offences are registered to him.

On July 6 Havill was sentenced at Manchester magistrates to 52 weeks in custody, suspended for two years, with a Horizons Programme Requirement and 20 rehabilitation days.

He must pay a total of £500 compensation.

He was also issued with a Sexual Harm Prevention Order with a condition that he must keep police notified of any vehicle he owns or drives and he must sign the Sex Offenders’ Register for 10 years.

Philippa Jones, senior Crown prosecutor for CPS North West, said “Courtney Havill carried out a series of extremely alarming offences by targeting females who were alone in public places and exposed himself to them.

"He initially denied being responsible for the offences and provided false alibis, but when faced with the overwhelming evidence, he was left with no other option than to plead guilty.

"Every woman should feel free and safe to go about their daily business, including driving or walking alone, without fear of harassment or sexual offences.

"The CPS is committed to bringing offenders who commit crimes against women to justice."