A child abuser, a would-be child abuser, a gun-toting angry man and violent bully have been locked up at Teesside Crown Court.
The Northern Echo has pulled together a list of some of the most serious offenders facing justice.
See them below and find out why they were jailed.
Sick pervert
A pervert who groomed a vulnerable teenager before driving for two hours to carry out a sickening sex attack on her has been branded a ‘domineering and bullying’ man.
Aaron Scanlon manipulated the girl into believing that he loved her before threatening to send an intimidating message to her mother to tell her he was going to ‘f*** her daughter’ all over.
Teesside Crown Court heard how the 30-year-old sexually assaulted the girl in his BMW after driving from Rochdale to pick the teenager up before she went to school.
The court heard how the defendant had travelled to Darlington on an earlier occasion but the teenager ignored his pleas to meet him.
Scanlon, now of Newbiggin-by-the-Sea, Northumberland, pleaded guilty to assault by penetration and engage in sexual activity without consent following the incident on March 5 last year.
“You travelled to her home twice and both of those journeys were motivated by your sexual desires - whether she consented didn’t matter to you,” he said.
“She was making it clear to you that she didn’t want sexual contact. There was no room for misinterpretation.”
Scanlon will serve a maximum of 11 years and one month in custody before being released on an extended four-year licence.
He was also issued with an indefinite sexual harm prevention order and restraining order.
Rifle threat
A row about unsightly rubbish ended with a man picking up an air rifle and pointing it at a team of council workers.
David Langan reacted angrily to being confronted about the mess at his Darlington room before grabbing the weapon and aiming at the unsuspecting colleagues.
Teesside Crown Court heard how the 53-year-old’s behaviour was witnessed by a neighbour who alerted the council staff to the potential danger.
Paul Newcombe, prosecuting, said the council staff moved to safety and armed police were called to Langan’s home on Richard Court where the weapon was recovered on May 21 last year.
Mr Newcombe said the defendant had intimidated a witness when he confronted them on February 2 this year.
Langan, was convicted of possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear or alarm and witness intimidation.
Judge Timothy Stead jailed Langan for a total of two years for both offences.
He said: “They were trying to get you to deal with the rubbish in the area. They were doing nothing wrong."
Violent bully
A violent and domineering bully who threatened to shoot his partner after posting a sexual video of her online has been locked up.
Jack Geldart’s 16-month relationship with the woman was interspersed with custodial sentences when he was recalled on licence for incidents of domestic abuse.
The 25-year-old, who has a long history of violence against women, also turned his anger onto another former partner after he had been remanded in custody.
Teesside Crown Court heard how Geldart flew into a jealous rage when his partner received a Snapchat message when she was visiting him at his bail hostel in Gateshead.
Geldart also published a sexual video of his former partner with her face blurred out in an attempt to embarrass and humiliate his victim, she said.
And on August 17 another of Geldart’s former partners received a call from him while he was on remand and he warned her ‘he would come for her’.
The judge heard how the defendant had previously been sentenced to four years and nine months for carrying out a campaign of terror on the second victim.
Judge Howard Crowson told the defendant he has an ‘appalling record’ for violence and domestic abuse before locking him up for five years and six months.
“You assaulted her for no reason other than jealousy. She ended the relationship and you refused to accept it,” he said.
Child groomer
A sick pervert who turned up to meet up with a 12-year-old girl while carrying a sex toy and lubricant was shocked to find a team of paedophile hunters waiting for him.
Lee Wright-King shared a number of sexually explicit messages with two young girls, including sending a picture of his penis to one of them, without realising he was actually talking online to two adult women.
The 34-year-old made his sick sexually intentions abundantly clear to his intended victims as he attempted to groom them to fulfil his depraved needs.
Emma Atkinson, prosecuting, said Wright-King, using the name Dom Green, contacted the women pretending to be a 12 and 14-year-old girl in August and September this year.
The defendant arranged to meet the girl on September 20 at railway station and was confronted by male members of the paedophile hunting team who had also alerted the police.
Miss Atkinson said when Wright-King was arrested it was discovered that he was carrying a sex toy and lubricant.
Wright-King, of Straker Street, Hartlepool, pleaded guilty to two charges of attempted sexual communication with a child and a further charge of attempt to meet a child following sexual grooming.
Judge Jonathan Carroll locked the sex offender up for 27 months for attempting to groom the decoys.
He said: “I say decoys because they don’t in fact exist, there were adult women who are members of an online group who attempt to flush out people like you who groom young girls to sexually abuse.”
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