Jailed in 2024: Criminals from the Black Country and surrounding areas locked up so far this year

In the first three months of 2024 judges at Wolverhampton and Stafford Crown Court handed down more than 2,000 years of jail time to criminals who were immediately led from the dock into incarceration immediately making our streets safer.

The youngest major criminal jailed so far this year is just 16 whereas the oldest is 73, and some crimes took place more than 35 years ago, whereas a Wolverhampton gangster has already been sentenced to seven years after being caught red-handed with pistols, cash and drugs in his kitchen in November.

Some criminals were sentenced after high profile trials, others pleaded guilty immediately when charged in the hope to get a lighter sentence. Rapists and paedophiles often hope their victims will not want to give evidence and scupper a trial, however, in almost all cases, these Black Country criminals are now living in a cell due to the bravery of their victims and witnesses.

Despite the Ministry of Justice directing judges only to jail the most violent criminals due to the chronic shortage of prison places, the heinous nature of the crimes committed or the shocking previous convictions of those being sentenced meant there was no alternative to custodial sentences.

January

The year started with an international drug cartel from Walsall were jailed at Stafford Crown Court.

James Ross, 37, co-ordinated criminal empire which became so big it ended up in the cross-hairs of national crime agencies and was brought down when officers seized £1,773,065 in cash, 66kg of high purity cocaine with an estimated street value of £8m and 10kg of ketamine with an estimated street value of £40,000.

Kingpin James Ross of Croxdene Avenue, Bloxwich was jailed for 20 years.

Steed Webster, aged 42 of Wolverhampton Road West, Bentley was jailed for nine years and five months. Ben Ellett, aged 35 of Foxglove Close, Lichfield was handed 10 years and five months.

Keeley White, aged 34 of Tintern Crescent, Bloxwich was sentenced five years and seven months, Daniel Rowley, aged 33 of Tintern Crescent, Bloxwich was jailed for five years and seven months.

Marc Lewis, aged 38 of Stanley Road, Darlaston – jailed for six years and eight months. Rocky Webster, aged 43 of Wolverhampton Street, Darlaston – jailed for seven years and seven months. Harry Swann, aged 26 of Beaudesert Road, Burntwood – jailed for 10 years.

Brian Guest, from Aldridge, raped and sexually abused children and adults over 37 years and finally was caged for his crimes in January.

Guest, 65, of Dumblederry Lane, Aldridge, Walsall was found guilty of rape, sexual assault and indecent assault against his victims, who included children.

Guest forced his victims through the ordeal of a trial last summer and was finally jailed for 22 years at Stafford Crown Court.

Hapless burglar Ionut Dobre, 31, almost got away with raiding a Smethwick family's home and stealing their money clothes, electronic tablets, cigarettes and jewellery.

Dobre had even left the country to spend the profits of his ill-gotten gains but was oblivious he had given West Midlands Police an open goal after leaving his DNA at the scene of his crime.

Dobre, of no fixed abode, cut himself on a broken window whilst breaking and entering the property giving forensic officers several droplets of blood.

He was arrested at Luton Airport re-entering the country which led to his being jailed for 12 months at Wolverhampton Crown Court.

It took more than three decades for the sadistic sexual crimes of chaplain and teacher Edward Phillip-Smith to catch up with him.

Known as ‘Father Eddie’ at St Peter’s Collegiate School in Wolverhampton was jailed for 32 months for historic sex offences against two boys in the 1980s.

Now men in their 50s, Phillip-Smith's victims bravely helped convict the 73-year-old whose carefully constructed reputation built on his religious posts and positions was destroyed forever.

February

Robert Mold was sentenced to 24 years behind bars after pleading guilty at Stafford Crown Court to two counts of rape of a child, two counts of sexual activity with a child and six counts of sexual assault of a child.

The 63-year-old, of Waterbrook Way, in Bridgtown, Cannock, was arrested in July 2020 after survivors told Staffordshire Police their abuse at the hands of Mold.

Walsall one-man-crime-spree Karl Wlodarz was jailed for 15 years for a panoply of thefts, attacks, burglaries and other crimes perpetrated against his home town residents.

The 36-year-old's drug fuelled rampage came to an end last after police spotted his abandoned girlfriend's car outside a crack house which he earlier tried to escape his pursuers by driving the wrong way over a single lane bridge in Bloxwich. Police entered the drug den and found Wlodarz smoking himself silly.

Convicted drug dealer Gurvinder Dari was jailed for a further five years after being found guilty of supplying a gun to a fellow hoodlum in Tipton.

Dari, 30, of The Ridings, Cannock, was already serving a 12 year sentence for supplying crack cocaine, heroin and cocaine but will now have another five years in the clink after the 9mm pistol found under a bed by police was traced back to him.

Sedgley conman Shane Rollinson, 35, of Downfield Drive, was jailed for 12 months for again ripping off customers to feed his gambling addiction.

In 2019, he was jailed for two years and two months for leaving a trail of destruction and destitute customers who trusted him with their life savings.

In February he was back in the dock and sent back for jail for taking cash off customers and leaving them in the lurch.

Killer driver Sukvinder Mannan was sent to back in jail after not learning his lesson after his dangerous driving ended the life of Halesowen student Rebecca McManus in 2014.

Mannan ploughed into a bus stop whilst racing a friend on the Hagley Road, Bearwood, killing the talented student who was celebrating leaving university

In December 2015, Mannan from Romsley, Worcestershire, appeared before Wolverhampton Crown Court where he was jailed for eight years and banned from driving for 10 years. He had pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving and causing serious injury by dangerous driving.