Preston court: these are some of the cases heard at the city’s magistrates court this week

Preston Magistrates Court heard a series of cases this week, including a man charged with assault a woman and a pensioner accused of sexually assaulting a woman. Here are some of the cases heard during the week of May 1.

Teenager charged with strangling woman

A 19-year-old from Chorley has been charged with strangling a woman.

Wiktor Karabasz, 19, of Bolton Street, Chorley, is accused of intentionally strangling a woman on January 4 this year. At a previous hearing at Preston Magistrates Court, on January 6, he entered a plea of not guilty. Mr Karabasz has also been charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm to which he also pleaded not guilty.

He has been remanded on conditional bail until his court hearing at Preston Magistrates Court on Friday, May 12 at 10am. The conditions of his bail are that he is not allowed to contact directly or indirectly the alleged victim except through solicitors and has to live and sleep each night at his address.

Man admits stealing Hugo Boss, Ted Baker and Lyle & Scott t-shirts from Preston's TK Maxx

A man has pleaded guilty to stealing designer t-shirts from TK Maxx in Preston.

Luke Joshua Roberts, 26, from Thornsgreen Road, Manchester, stole two Hugo Boss t-shirts, one Lyle & Scott t-shirt and one Ted Baker t-shirt from the Fishergate store on April 24. The t-shirts had a combined value of £83.96.

Roberts, who is also known as Luke Foster and Fozzy, pleaded guilty the next day. He has been remanded on bail until May 5, when he will appear at Preston Magistrates Courts to be sentenced.

Leyland man Dane Pointon accused of caravan park stabbing appears at Preston Magistrates' Court

A 23-year-old man accused of stabbing a woman in Leyland has appeared in court.

Dane Pointon, of Bannister Drive, Leyland was arrested on Wednesday (May 3) and charged with section 18 wounding, possession of an offensive weapon and criminal damage. He was wanted by police after a woman in her 20s was stabbed at Croft Park, a caravan park off Wigan Road, Leyland, on Sunday, April 16.

The victim suffered serious stab wounds and was taken to hospital for treatment. Pointon was remanded to appear at Preston Magistrates Court on Thursday (May 4) where his case was sent for trial at Preston Crown Court on June 1.

No plea was entered and he was remanded in custody. Two other men, aged 21 and 23, were arrested on suspicion of attempted murder 24 hours after the stabbing. No charges were made and they remain on bail.

Highfield Priory School fire: Court date for four teenage boys charged with £700,000 arson

Four teenage boys accused of starting a fire which caused £700,000 to a private school will have their case reviewed in court next month.

The boys, who cannot be named for legal reasons, are all from Preston. Three are aged 15 and one is aged 14. They have been remanded on conditional bail until 9.45am on June 6, when a case management hearing will take place at Preston Magistrates’ Court.

The boys are not expected to appear in court, but have been told not to associate with one another or to enter Highfield Priory School.

Young Preston woman ordered to pay nearly £500 for failing to buy an £11.20 train ticket

A 20-year-old Preston woman has had to pay nearly £500 after failing to buy what would have been an £11.20 train ticket.

Cassidy Addison from Ashton-on-Ribble appeared at Preston Magistrates Court on April 14 faced with one charge. On Thursday, December 8 2022, Ms Addison is accused of travelling by rail between Preston and Bolton and failing to show a ticket when asked, contrary to section 5(1) of the Regulation of Railways Act 1889.

The court heard how the Ms Addison boarded the train at Preston Railway Station, where the ticket purchasing facilities were functioning. The defendant was issued with a Penalty Fare Notice for either £20.00 or twice the single fare, whichever is greater.

Payment or an appeal must be made within 21 days and when this was not received, a further reminder letter was sent. Ms Addison was ordered to pay £11.20 for the fare, £88 for victim services, £150 for prosecution costs, and a £220 fine, taking the total payments to £469.20.

Scott Fitzgerald: This is when champion boxer will go on trial for assault, GBH and affray

A trial date has been set for former champion boxer Scott Fitzgerald.

The 2014 Commonwealth Games gold medallist from Preston will appear at Preston Crown Court on Tuesday, May 16, where he will face three charges. They are:

• Assault by beating against a male victim
• Grievious bodily harm (GBH)
• Affray – which is when someone uses or threatens unlawful violence towards another, and their conduct is such that it would cause an average person present at the scene to fear for their personal safety.

All of the alleged incidents are said to have happened on Sunday, November 27, 2022. The trial is expected to last three days and involves two victims.

Separately, on June 2, Fitzgerald will appear at Preston Magistrates’ Court, where he will be on trial for three common assaults – all on the same person. Fitzgerald, 31, is currently in custody and no longer has a licence to fight professionally in the UK after it was suspended by the British Boxing Board of Control in April 2020.