The following individuals were sentenced to prison time in January 2026.
‘Paedophile tourist’
Mitcham man Edward Gratwick, 68, arranged to travel abroad to rape children.
He described himself as a “paedo tourist” and had discussions online regarding “prices” for abusing children and travel arrangements to commit abuse.
He was found guilty of 38 offences including arranging or attempting to arrange the commission of a child sex offence, attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child, distributing indecent images of children and possessing indecent images of children following a trial at Guildford Crown Court.
Gratwick sent child porn to others and planned to abuse specific children in the UK and abroad. These arrangements were often had with relatives of the children targeted.
Gratwick also facilitated and helped others arrange to abuse children.
In one conversation with a person based in Romania, the defendant discussed how much extra it would cost a customer to beat a 10-year-old child he purported to be managing.
In March, he was arrested at Stansted Airport as he attempted to board a flight to Romania after officers were informed about a UK national who had been discussing with another person online about meeting up to sexually abuse a nine-year old girl.
When Gratwick was arrested, officers found items they believed he was planning to use to abuse children.
Gratwick was handed a life sentence with a minimum term of 20 years.
Read the full story – Mitcham paedophile jailed after arranging to rape children
Train station attack
Career criminal Warren Easterbrook was jailed after he picked a fight with an older man at Bexleyheath train station.
Easterbrook entered the station and sat next to a 65-year-old man whilst staring intently at him, a court heard.
An argument ensued and when the man got up to walk away, Easterbrook racially abused him, flicked his hat from his head and pushed him.
A fight began during which Easterbrook repeatedly punched the man in the face, but the man managed to arm himself with a broken bottle of alcohol belonging to Easterbrook and used it to slash his attacker’s neck.
Easterbrook, 32, of Bonham Close in Belvedere, was jailed for one year and four months for the attack as well as various other assaults and shoplifting offences.
Read the full story – Bexleyheath train station racist attack sees man jailed
Rapper jailed for life
Deptford rapper Nathan Tokosi, known professionally as DigDat, shot 27-year-old Daniel Offei-Ntow six times in the head, mouth, and body as he sat in his car.
The victim was fortunate to survive the attack.
The 26-year-old rapper was found guilty of attempted murder and firearms offences after two trials last year, with the court hearing that his history of violent behaviour stretches back to his childhood.
The court heard that Tokosi had eight previous convictions for 13 offences, including violent attacks dating back to when he was 11, including punching a girl in the face and, in separate incidents four months apart, punching and kneeing a boy in the head.
At the age of 13, Tokosi stabbed a victim in the ribcage during a fight for which he was convicted of attempted murder and sentenced to seven years’ youth detention and three years on extended licence.
In mitigation, the court heard that Tokosi was a “laidback” young man swept up in the rapid success of his music career and the “fast-paced and chaotic” lifestyle it brought.
Shannon Revel, defending, said: “He described that his job as a rapper effectively became an existence, rather than something that he could take time off from”, and that “rising to success so quickly” gave the defendant no real time for reflection.
The court also heard that Tokosi had been diagnosed with ADHD when he was 11 and “struggled” with his behaviour at school.
Read the full story – Deptford rapper DigDat jailed for life over ‘mindless’ drive-by shooting
Predator jailed for rape threats
Greenwich man Shabaz Khokar threatened to rape a girl and encouraged her to self-harm .
Last August police in Staffordshire discovered that the 24-year-old had been speaking to a teenage girl in their area.
He threatened to rape her and sent her screenshots of a train ticket he had booked to her home.
When he arrived at Stafford train station, officers were waiting for him.
He answered no comment to all questions in interview and was later released with strict bail conditions not to communicate with the victim.
But Khokar continued to message the victim, inciting her to self-harm and to drop the case against him.
He was then arrested again and was charged with encouraging or assisting serious self-harm by another and sending communication threatening serious harm.
Khokar, 24, of Eastney Street, was jailed for two years and five months.
Read the full story – Greenwich man threatened to rape teen girl and encouraged her to self-harm
Stalker
Herne Hill man Sean Murphy stalked a woman using her Ring doorbell.
Murphy, 39, of Langston Hughes Close, was jailed for one year and three months after he pleaded guilty to stalking involving fear of violence and battery.
Murphy initially denied stalking the woman, who lives in Suffolk, before changing his plea.
In a statement which was read out in court, the victim said: “I often cry when I think about what Sean has put me through… I regularly suffer from nightmares… I am scared that I will never be able to trust anyone again.”
Following the sentencing, investigating officer PC Amy Hart said: “Murphy is a manipulative and dangerous man, who subjected his victim to a campaign of relentless intimidation and physical abuse.
“He would force the victim to add him to her Ring doorbell account so he could monitor her movements and connections.
“He would harass her with persistent phone calls, despite her blocking his number and made repeated threats to physically harm her.
“Stalking is a serious and distressing crime which can escalate into dangerous and destructive behaviour, and I would like to praise the courage and strength of the victim.
“I hope this sentence provides her with the chance to rebuild her life.”
