SEVERAL people have been in Reading Crown Court this week for hearings.

From being sentenced to pre-trial preparation, here are some of the cases that have been in court:

-

A MAN charged with criminal damage and possession of a weapon was almost arrested for contempt of court after refusing to get into the dock.

Waseem Malik, of Handover Way in Windsor, has been charged with criminal damage and possession of a stun gun in Windsor on December 8, 2020.

Read the full story here: Windsor man almost arrested for refusing to enter courtroom

The 58-year-old appeared in Reading Crown Court on Monday (July 31) for trial preparation but refused to leave the public gallery, stating he ‘would not cross the bar’ and ‘enter a contract’ with the courts.

Resident Judge Heather Norton warned Malik that if he did not enter the dock he would be arrested for contempt of court.

After he refused three times, Judge Norton asked a police officer to arrest Malik before he decided to properly enter the courtroom.

-

A PAEDOPHILE has been handed a 20-year jail sentence after blackmailing a 13-year-old girl into sending him naked photographs and a 15-year-old girl into touching him.

Dean Yates, of Oxford Road, Reading, was sentenced at Reading Crown Court on Monday (July 31) to nine charges: making an indecent photograph of a child, two counts of sexual activity with a 15-year-old girl, two counts of assault on a female, two counts of causing/inciting a 15-year-old girl into sexual activity, and two counts of causing a female to engage in sexual activity.

Read the full story here: Reading paedophile Dean Yates jailed for 20-years

Judge Emma Nott sentenced the 34-year-old to a 20-year extended sentence with a 15-year custodial sentence due to the seriousness of the offences.

The incidents happened in 2019 when Yates was about 30 years old. The court heard that Yates would hack into young girls’ social media accounts to obtain private photographs of them to blackmail them into sending more.

-

TWO men have been jailed for their involvement in the barricading of a flat, throwing missiles at police, setting fires, and causing a school to be closed.

Vuitton Robbins, 18, known as Tom, and Akay Coaker, 20, were sentenced at Reading Crown Court on Friday (August 4) for several counts of thefts, burglary, and violent disorder offences.

A third defendant, Reiss James, 21, was also due to be sentenced but his hearing has been adjourned due to the delay in obtaining a pre-sentence report.

Read the full story here: Reading men jailed for violent disorder and thefts

The violent disorder incident occurred on December 8, 2022, at flat 145A on Caversham Road. Police had arrived at the address to arrest the three men for a string of bike and electric bike thefts across Berkshire and Oxfordshire.

However, the men resisted arrest by barricading the door and beginning to launch missiles at police with Robbins being the main instigator, according to the Crown, and Reiss providing him support.

Coaker was previously acquitted of violent disorder by a jury but did plead guilty to damaging the flat during the incident.

-

A PAEDOPHILE who was once jailed for attempted murder has been jailed a second time for raping a seven-year-old girl.

Attila Dombi, of Saffron Road, Bracknell, was found guilty after a trial at Reading Crown Court in June of several sex crimes against a child.

Read the full story here: Bracknell paedophile Attila Dombi jailed for rape of girl, 7

He was jailed for 18 years on Friday, August 8 by Judge Sarah Campbell with an extended licence period of five years.

When interviewed by police about why he had taken the indecent photographs, Dombi said he was ‘curious’.