Edinburgh’s courts dished out sentences last month for crimes including domestic abuse, possessing child sex abuse images, and one man was sent to jail for murdering his wife.
A firefighter escaped a driving ban and instead was handed penalty points and a fine after he drove his car through a give way junction and crashed into a truck carrying more than 250,000 eggs while travelling home from a family holiday, leaving his wife and two family members with serious injuries.
And, a disabled man who smashed a laptop over the head of his terrified partner during a shocking campaign of domestic abuse escaped a jail sentence. Ross Queripel, 27, was instead placed on a two-year supervision order and will have stay within his home between 7pm and 7am for the next four months as part of a restriction of liberty order.
And, a disabled man who smashed a laptop over the head of his terrified partner during a shocking campaign of domestic abuse escaped a jail sentence. Ross Queripel, 27, was instead placed on a two-year supervision order and will have stay within his home between 7pm and 7am for the next four months as part of a restriction of liberty order.
5. Father who murdered his son convicted of sickening child abuse haul
Lukasz Czapla shot, stabbed and smothered tragic tot Juliusz in a horror attack at his home in the Muirhouse area of Edinburgh in November 2020. Following his arrest for the brutal killing, police seized a computer tower belonging to Czapla that was subsequently examined by Police Scotland cyber crime officers. The computer experts found the device had folders containing 445 indecent images of children with some rated at Category A - the worst end of the scale. Czapla, originally from Gdańsk, Poland, admitted the vile images were on the computer but denied possessing and viewing them and stood trial on indictment at Edinburgh Sheriff Court in early November. Sheriff Julius Komorovski imposed a 18 month custodial sentence that will run concurrently to Czapla’s current life term. Photo: Bill Henry
6. Sexual abuse
Mark Fordham was handed two-and-a-half years behind bars and an Order of Lifelong Restriction for the series of online offences. The 52-year-old pleaded guilty at the High Court in Edinburgh on Thursday, 9 November, 2023. Officers arrested Fordham for his ‘despicable’ crimes following an intelligence-led police operation. Photo: Police
7. Domestic abuse
A disabled man who smashed a laptop over the head of his terrified partner during a shocking campaign of domestic abuse has escaped a jail sentence. Ross Queripel, 27, repeatedly abused and assaulted the woman over 16 months when the pair lived as a couple at his Edinburgh home. Queripel constantly monitored the victim’s movements and mobile phone use and took control of her social media accounts.He also battered his partner over the head with the computer during one savage assault while in a separate attack he attacked her with a glass candle. Edinburgh Sheriff Court also heard on one occasion Queripel forced the woman into his car at night and dumped her at a deserted car park while she was only wearing pyjamas. Queripel, who attended court on November 30 for sentencing in a wheelchair, was placed on a two year supervision order and will have stay within his home between 7pm and 7am for the next four months as part of a restriction of liberty order. The sheriff also ordered him to engage with the domestic abuse organisation the Caledonian Men’s Programme and issued a non-harassment order where he is banned from having contact with the woman for the next 10 years. Photo: Alexander Lawrie
8. Child abuse
A West Lothian man who worked as a caretaker at a Fauldhouse community centre was jailed for child sexual abuse crimes which started in the 1970s. A court heard that Ronald McMillan, 79, used his employment and links within the local community to target and abuse young boys both at Fauldhouse community centre and at his home. The crimes were committed between 1974 and 2002. At the High Court in Edinburgh on November 13, Mr McMillan, from Fauldhouse in West Lothian, was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment and his name was added to the Sex Offenders Register indefinitely. Prosecutors said he was guilty of an increasingly serious catalogue of sexual abuse over three decades. Photo: Stock