HERE'S a round-up of some of the biggest court cases to have taken place in Carlisle and West Cumbria this week. 

1) REPEAT Carlisle drugs offender who was caught with heroin and cocaine worth £27,5000 has been jailed.

The class A drugs – the cocaine being 77 per cent pure - were found inside a van which Kevin Dodd was driving along a residential street in the city on January 27 last year, the city’s crown court heard.

2) CARLISLE tradesman banned from working on other people’s homes following his conviction for fraud offences did exactly that – after being encouraged to set up his own business by Probation staff.

Ralph Brook, 49, was given a 43-month jail term in 2021 for defrauding a 96-year-old dementia sufferer in Kendal. He fleeced the man out of more than £5,000, an earlier court hearing was told.

3) MAN from Liverpool has been jailed for six years and eight months for drug supply offences.

Gary Long, 35, of Eagle Dene, Liverpool, pleaded guilty and was sentenced on May,10 at Carlisle Crown court for possession with intent to supply a controlled drug of Class A – Cocaine.

The court heard how on March 23 2023, officers observed Long’s vehicle driving needlessly in the middle lane travelling northbound on the M6 between junctions 39 and 40.

4) CONTROLLING partner deliberately wrecked a teddy bear and a memorial tree planted in memory of his partner’s friend.

That cruel act of criminal damage came amid a two-year relationship in which Martin Vickers subjected the woman to violence and coercive behaviour which left her feeling degraded and intimidated.

The 58-year-old defendant repeatedly interrupted the judge who was sentencing him for three offences. Vickers earlier admitted criminal damage, harassment, and coercive and controlling behaviour in an intimate relationship.

5) A BANNED Carlisle driver illegally borrowed his girlfriend’s car because he was late for work, a court heard.

The lawyer for 24-year-old tyre fitter Charlie Stark, caught by police as he drove to his job in Denton Holme, said he will now cycle to work as he was unable to "fly like Iron Man", the Marvel Comics superhero.

The defendant, of Percy Road, Longsowerby, admitted disqualified driving, taking a vehicle without consent, driving while not insured, and possessing cannabis.