Crackley Republican Army tattoo man jailed for attacks
A VIOLENT teenager who proudly sports a 'Crackley Republican Army' tattoo has been jailed and handed an Asbo for a string of vicious assaults.
Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court heard yesterday 19-year-old Shawn Willshaw kicked a youth's head "like a football" during one of the attacks.
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He was jailed for a total of three-and-a-half years after admitting possession of an offensive weapon – a CS gas spray – an assault and two charges of affray.
The court heard Willshaw, of Heath Street, Chesterton, was first found in possession of CS gas last December.
Then on January 30, he attacked Kayleigh Stanton in Chesterton, after she confronted him and a group of others about bullying her brother.
Willshaw attacked Miss Stanton, then when she got into her car to escape, he jumped on the roof and kicked in the windscreen.
Her two-year-old son was in the car at the time.
Then, on June 17, he launched an unprovoked attack on Daniel Collinson, while he was walking on London Road, Chesterton.
Mr Collinson was knocked to the floor, then punched and kicked repeatedly during a sustained attack. Willshaw stamped on his head between four and 10 times.
Prosecutor Philip Beardmore told the court: "He was kicking Mr Collinson's head like a football. Mr Collinson was unconscious."
Although Mr Collinson's injuries were not as severe as first suspected, he was left with a perforated ear drum and bruises.
Finally, on June 9, Willshaw, pictured, was in a group of five who approached the driveway of a home in Chesterton.
When resident Annette Kirkham threatened to set a dog loose if they didn't leave her property, Willshaw pulled out a knife.
Mr Beardmore told the court: "He said 'Do it, I'll slit (the dog's) throat and then your's'."
Willshaw later threw a house brick which hit Ms Kirkham on the ankle, causing swelling and bruising.
Mr Beardmore added: "The defendant had a tattoo "I'm CRA", which stands for the Crackley Republican Army."
Patrick Thompson, mitigating, told the court: "He wants to receive his sentence, then get on with his life.
"He has spent some time in custody and has not enjoyed it. I asked him if he is going to behave like this again and he said 'absolutely not'."
Judge Paul Glenn told Willshaw he had behaved "like an animal".
He said: "I think an anti-social behaviour order is necessary to protect the public.
"The many good people who live in and around Chesterton deserve some safeguard against you."
Willshaw was sentenced to four months in prison for possession of an offensive weapon, 20 months for assault occasioning actual bodily harm, and eight months and 10 months for each of the affrays, all to run consecutively, for a total sentence of three-and-a-half years.
Under the terms of his Asbo he is not allowed to approach any of his victims or enter an area of Chesterton bordered by London Road, Castle Street and Church Street; or the area known locally as Sandon Hill.
The Asbo will run for five years.
208 Comments
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by ghosts
Friday, February 24 2012, 9:24AM
“I agree with "zoiders".....the army doesn't need idiots like this.....but some kind of bootcamp could be an idea.....last resort, experiment on his brain to see what is different about his...I'me still laughing at the thought of someone having a C R A tattoo.....idiot...”
by zoiders
Monday, February 20 2012, 5:32PM
“The armed forces do not tolerate thieves and thugs so I do wish people would stop putting forward silly ideas about National Service for young men like this. It is now the year 2012 and even being an infantry man is far more demanding, educationaly than it was 50 years ago. Gone are the days of the 1950's when dead wood could be carried at the tax payers expense just to keep the numbers up, every soldier must be trusted to do his or her job and recidivist criminals are entirely unsuited to life in the Army. The British forces do not use the ludicrous gung-ho US model of recruitment and training - they do not "break people down and rebuild them" they simply develop existing potential. If you had been in the forces you would know this - petty thieves and thugs don't get past basic training, they end up getting packed off to military prison and then booted out at the end of it as they have failed at the first hurdle of adapting to military life.”
by Godhelpus1
Monday, February 20 2012, 3:43PM
“Honestly, words fail me at times. The council is as bent as a spoon, people are creating their own "armies" and there appears to be no consequence to wrong-doing. It's no wonder people avoid Stoke-On-Trent. Will the last one out, please turn off the lights?
Reading this paper and the constant barage of people trying to do positive things (only to be beaten down by thugs / the council or lack of opportunities) whist thieves, muggers and benefit cheats get light sentances or "a telling off", it makes me think that there's one good thing about this area.. the road out.”
by E_D_Wivens
Monday, February 20 2012, 5:26AM
“Possibly, Bill. Assuming that's there's even a spark of humanity left in his sorry carcass that could be rescued. And at least he would be off the streets, doing something useful, and who knows? in other times his destiny could easily have been cannon fodder. But of course we'll never know now, will we? We'll just have to keep paying for this little ******'s worthless existence whilst the bleeding hearts lavish the milk of human kindness on him (at taxpayers expense.)”
by william1956
Sunday, February 19 2012, 10:33PM
“National service (well the Army), could well work. Don't underestimate the capacity of the Army to achieve what probation officers, social workers and do-gooders never could. They would deconstruct what he now is, then reconstruct him as they wish him to be. Much worse (and harder) characters than Shawn have had their lives turned around by the Army. Certainly he would be better off there than with his loving family and friends, constantly reinforcing his perceived status as the one being victimised.”
by E_D_Wivens
Sunday, February 19 2012, 8:04PM
“They wouldn't take him; even for National Service he would be unsuitable.”
by GDM77
Sunday, February 19 2012, 4:00PM
“C.R.A. Dont make me laugh. Put him in the real army! Wonder how long he'd last?”
by Wozzer101
Sunday, February 19 2012, 3:14PM
“Thetruth, have you seen the price of rope, how about just kicking him the death. Ohhh! sorry, we are doing that already.”
by proudmamma
Sunday, February 19 2012, 2:57PM
“Wow, after reading the comments on here dated 2009 including Shawn's mum supporting her son, I feel sorry for her as he has shown his true colours in a comment he made in October 2011. I wonder if she still supports him as she did in 2009? Can't help but think Shawn is a career criminal.”
by Munkee17
Saturday, February 18 2012, 6:48PM
“The headline confuses me. The last Army Tattoo I went to was in Edinburgh. They played bagpipes and drums. Nobody got their head kicked in. What instrument does young Shawn play?”