News Room

Latest news Teenager charged with robbery of disabled man 13/04/2016 A teenager has been charged with robbery following an assault on a disabled man in Wolverhampton city centre on Friday 8 April. The 14-year-old, who cannot be named due to his age, is due to appear at Wolverhampton Magistrates Court this morning (13 April). He is also accused of possession of a bladed article in a public place. Detectives have received several calls with information following an appeal which was issued yesterday and would like to thank the public for their help. Officers continue to follow up a number of lines of enquiry. View the full article

Latest news Drug smugglers jailed following covert policing probe 13/04/2016 Two drug dealers have been jailed for over 30 years for their role in a multi-million pound drug smuggling ring. Customer service agent Shafaqat Hussain, 39 of Perry Park Road in Rowley Regis (top left), headed the importation operation which saw more than 40 kilos of heroin smuggled into the UK from Pakistan. Working alongside him were: floor layer Sakander Riaz, 34 of Belchers Lane, Bordesley Green (top centre); unemployed Jason Tremayne, 45 of Latelow Road, Kitts Green (top right); unemployed Andrew Yaqub, 44 of Latelow Road, Kitts Green (bottom left); brothers and shopkeepers Usman, …

Latest news Mother and daughter missing from Walsall 12/04/2016 Police are appealing for information to help find a Walsall woman who has gone missing from home with her 21-month-old daughter. Sandeep Kaur was last seen at Digbeth coach station in Birmingham on Sunday 3 April at around 1.30pm where she is believed to have boarded a coach bound for Glasgow. She told her family that she was going to visit a friend and would be home the next day. Unfortunately she failed to return and was reported missing. Sandeep is originally from Manchester and had recently moved to the West Midlands. Inspector Jack Boardman, from Walsall police station, said: "We need to make su…

Latest news Motorcyclist dies in south Birmingham crash 12/04/2016 A motorcyclist has died after colliding with a telegraph pole in Weoley Castle in the early hours of this morning (Tuesday 12 April). Police were called to Weoley Avenue at 1.45am by ambulance colleagues who were unable to save the 25-year-old and he was pronounced dead at the scene. He has been named as Jake Waldron from south Birmingham. His family have been informed and are currently being supported by officers from the force’s Family Liaison Unit. They have requested privacy after their loss, saying Jake (also known by the surname Osgood) was a "Beloved son, brother, grandson and partner, …

Latest news Appeal to identify thugs who attacked a disabled man in Wolverhampton 12/04/2016 Detectives have released CCTV images of two men suspected of befriending and then assaulting a disabled man in Wolverhampton. The 20-year-old was befriended by the pair at a takeaway on Broad Street at around 2.30am on Friday 9 April. They offered to walk with the man and lured him towards a subway on Wulfruna Street where they attacked him. They pushed him to the ground and kicked and punched him before stealing his mobile phone and some cash. The victim, who is partially sighted and suffers from cerebral palsy, managed to get to a nearby public pay phone where he dial…

Latest news Appeal for witnesses after stabbing in Chelmsley Wood 11/04/2016 Detectives are appealing for witnesses after a man was stabbed on a street in Chelmsley Wood this morning (11 April). Officers were called to Lime Grove just after 11.10am to reports that a 28-year-old man had suffered several stab wounds to the back. The man was rushed to hospital by paramedics and he remains there this afternoon in a critical condition. Detectives have launched an investigation to find the person responsible and at this stage believe a group of between three and five people may have been involved. Detective Inspector Jim Colclough, from Force CID, said: “This happened …

Latest news Man jailed for Coventry nightclub murder 11/04/2016 A man has today been jailed for stabbing an 18-year-old to death at a Coventry nightclub. Tobijah Thompson, of no fixed address, was found guilty of the murder of teenager Daniel Kirkwood at Society nightclub in Tower Street on 15 March 2015 following a nine week trial. Appearing at Leamington Justice Centre today he was jailed for life to serve a minimum of 32 years. Clockwise from top left - Tobijah Thompson, Ramez Murtaza, Ezra Scott, Hasham Ali. Three other men, Hasham Ali, of Amberley Green in Birmingham, Ezra Scott, of Hawksyard Road in Erdington, and Ramez Murtaza of Bordesley Green East in Bo…

Latest news Witness appeal after pensioner robbed in her own home 11/04/2016 Detectives are appealing for information after a 78 year-old woman was pinned to the floor and robbed in her Halesowen home. A group of three men barged their way in and one, wearing a glove, held his hand over the mouth of Joyce Bennett. The others then searched the property in Springfield Drive and then made off with a quantity of cash, a handbag and purses. Joyce was taken to hospital with a fractured arm following the robbery between 9-9.25pm last Wednesday (6 April). Relatives of the grandmother-of-four, a former carer and health administrator, have made a plea for information to …

Latest news Stolen army badges returned to SAS hero’s family 10/04/2016 Army badges stolen from the late John McAleese – the ex-SAS soldier hailed a hero for his role ending the 1980 Iranian Embassy siege in London – have been returned to his family after being recovered by West Midlands Police. The SAS and Parachute Regiment cap badges – stolen from Mr McAleese’s Hereford home during a burglary – were found by officers back in 2010 hidden in the boot of a drug dealer’s car. But before PC Alan Reeves – the man who led the Erdington drug crime crackdown – could reunite him with his army insignia the 62-year-old tragically suffered a fatal heart attack while on hol…

Latest news Dog Unit goes Dutch as Bart hits the streets! 09/04/2016 West Midlands Police’s Dog Unit is going Dutch in its latest move to catch crooks and keep the region’s streets safe. German Shepherds make up the bulk of the force’s four-legged crime-fighting corps but Police Dog Bart is the first Dutch Herder to join the ranks. Jet black Bart (pictured below and as a puppy in training) teamed up with handler Keith Bennett when he was just eight weeks old but has now hit the streets having graduated from West Midlands Police’s award-winning training programme with distinction. He’s one of six Dutch Herder’s bought by the unit last year as trainers explore oppor…

Latest news Police officer sentenced for dangerous driving 08/04/2016 A police officer has been banned from driving for 12 months at Birmingham Crown Court after pleading guilty to dangerous driving at an earlier hearing. PC Ben Penfold admitted the charge after the car he was driving collided with a transit van. The response officer and a female colleague escaped with minor injuries as they responded to an emergency incident in Wolverhampton in June last year. The marked Vauxhall Insignia hit the van at the junction of Bilston Road and Steelhouse Lane and, after crashing into railings, rolled on its side trapping the female officer. PC Penfold managed to fre…

Latest news Appeal over West Bromwich home invasion robbery 08/04/2016 Detectives are appealing for witnesses to come forward after an 87-year old woman who suffers dementia was robbed in her West Bromwich home. A group of five masked men broke into the address in Springfield Crescent at around 9.30pm and pinned down the 87-year old so they could remove her jewellery. The men conducted a search of all rooms in the property and a number of other items including cash and medication were taken during the raid on 30 March. A second woman aged 67 who was staying in the property at the time had cash taken from her purse. Acting Detective Sergeant Julian Hawley who is i…

Latest news Missing woman Judith Wragg from Coventry 08/04/2016 Police are urgently appealing for help to find a 69-year-old woman from Coventry who has been missing since 6pm last night (Thursday 7 April). Judith Wragg has Alzheimer’s and she is considered very vulnerable. She is described as a white woman, slim, around 5ft 6ins tall, with short straight grey hair. She wears glasses and was last seen in a purple hooded jacket, dark trousers and shoes. Anyone who has any information about Judith’s whereabouts is asked to call police on 101 or the charity Missing People on 116 000. View the full article

Latest news West Bromwich man charged with murder of Darren Parker 08/04/2016 A man is due to appear in court today (Friday 8 April) charged with the murder of Darren Parker in West Bromwich earlier this week. Unemployed Demarco Martin, aged 19, from Campville Crescent, Stone Cross, is due at Sandwell Magistrates Court this morning. He is also charged with one count of attempted murder. Police found Mr Parker after being called to Campville Crescent at around 2pm on Wednesday. He was pronounced dead at the scene and a post-mortem showed he died as a result of stab wounds to his chest. Another man in his early 20s also suffered stab wounds. Two other people who …

Latest news Drug dealers jailed for more than 20 years 08/04/2016 Three drug dealers whose £200,000 cocaine racket was rumbled by West Midlands Police have been jailed for more than 20 years. One of the men was discovered with 1kg of cocaine in the waistband of his shorts following a swoop by West Midlands Police in Sutton Coldfield. Officers intercepted the Class A drug exchange between Joshua Thomas and Rahim Uddin in Boldmere Road on 17 June last year. From left to right: Rahim Uddin, Kobir Hussain and Joshua Thomas Thomas got into a Ford Focus being driven by Uddin and then left the car just minutes later. He was stopped by officers who found the bag of coc…