Local News

A man who repeatedly stamped on his former partner’s head during a violent assault near Rochester has been jailed.

Aaron Boon also pulled a clump of hair from his victim, during a sustained ordeal which was witnessed by two young children.

Boon, aged 29, carried out the assault on the evening of 29 November 2021, after an argument with his victim had spilled into a communal area outside a flat where she lived. After pulling her hair, he pushed the woman to the floor as she shouted for help from neighbours. He continued the assault in the presence of children stamping on her head at least six times.

Boon then left the scene after taking the victim’s watch and £20. He returned shortly after and in an effort to get back inside the flat caused damage to a front door. When police attended Boon violently shoved a female officer causing her to almost fall down a flight of stairs. He also elbowed her head. He then kicked, punched and bit a male colleague, before being successfully restrained and arrested. 

At Woolwich Crown Court, Boon pleaded guilty to charges of assault occasioning actual bodily harm and two counts of assault of an emergency worker. He further admitted charges of criminal damage and possessing cannabis. The court heard Boon, previously from Kemsley, had also breached a previous suspended sentence and on Thursday 3 March 2022, he was sentenced to 21 months’ imprisonment.

PC Sophie Marshall, of the North Kent Vulnerability Investigation Team, told SFM News: "I would like to thank and commend the victim, who has shown immense courage and strength to give evidence, having also endured previous physical and mental abuse from Boon. Thankfully, she was not left with any serious long-term injuries, however Boon’s actions will no doubt leave profound psychological scars and have also caused a huge amount of distress to her children. The victim’s continued support in this case as well as her children’s bravery should be recognised and acknowledged and provide other victims of assault the courage to support a police investigation. Domestic violence is a priority for Kent Police and nobody should ever feel they have nowhere to turn. I would encourage anyone who finds themselves in a similar situation or relationship to report it to someone and get help. There is a range of support and information available, just phone us or ask a trusted friend or relative to do it. Nobody should ever feel they don’t have the option to walk away or get help."

The 'Sittingbourne Supporters Of Ukraine' held their two collection events yesterday (Saturday 12th March) at St Peter's Primary School (9am - 3pm) and Iwade Village Hall 10am-2pm.

Thousands of items were donated and dispatched later that day (via Croydon) directly to people in need of assistance in Eastern Europe fleeing the war in Ukraine.

Find out more about the local volunteer effort on the 'Sittingbourne Supporters Of Ukraine' Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/378705797002538.

Well done to all the volunteers who gave up their time to get these essential items out to the people in immediate need - a fantastic effort that shows that Sittingbourne is a caring community!

A suspected burglar has appeared at court following an attempted break-in at a pharmacy in Milton Regis.

At around 10.15pm on Monday (7th March), Kent Police received a report that a window had been damaged at the business on Milton Regis High Street. Officers went to the scene and then started a search of the area. At around 11.35pm, a patrol saw a suspicious vehicle and requested the driver to stop.

It is alleged the car did not stop and, following a pursuit, it came to a halt in Basser Hill, Lower Halstow, where the driver was arrested.

George Bignall, aged 42 and of Middletune Avenue, was later charged with attempted burglary, dangerous driving, failing to stop when required by a police officer, driving otherwise than in accordance with a licence, driving without insurance and failing to provide a specimen of blood for a test.

Mr Bignall appeared before Medway Magistrates’ Court yesterday (Wednesday 9th March) where he was remanded to a hearing at Maidstone Crown Court on Thursday 7th April.

A brutal, pre-planned and unprovoked assault which saw a teenage girl stabbed 60 times in Sittingbourne has led to a judge imposing a discretionary life sentence on a teenage boy.

The 17-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, assaulted the victim in July 2021 and left her with numerous life-threatening injuries. 

Following an investigation by the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate, he admitted attempted murder and was sentenced at Maidstone Crown Court earlier today (Friday 4th March).

He will serve a national tariff of 10 years and, should he be released from prison, he will be the subject of a whole life licence.

The victim of the case, a teenage girl, was found seriously injured in a field off Highsted Road, near the junction with Swanstree Avenue, by a dog walker at around 7.30am on Tuesday 22 July 2021.

She is likely to have been laying seriously injured in the spot for at least seven hours.

Kent Police officers were immediately deployed to the scene and were joined by crews from South East Coast Ambulance Service and Kent Surrey Sussex Air Ambulance, who airlifted the victim to a London hospital.

At hospital, she was found to have 60 stab wounds across her body. A total of 99 injuries were recorded by a pathologist who reviewed the case. 

Numerous people who knew the offender, and the victim, identified him as a possible suspect and officers detained him later that day.

A review of his phone led to detectives uncovering numerous deleted text messages which had been shared between the pair on the evening of the offence. Other messages saved on the phone showed he had a desire to stab the victim.

Immediately after the offence, he also carried out internet searches to try and learn how the police investigate murders.

A review of privately held CCTV, which was provided from numerous properties, captured the teenage boy walking to meet the victim late on 21 July. Most of the footage showed a silhouetted figure walking in the distance but, from it, officers were able to track his movements to and from the scene.

They were also able to establish that the pair met at around 11pm on Monday 21st July, with the girl last seen on camera at around 12.10am on Tuesday 22nd July.

With all the evidence in hand, Kent Police was granted authority to charge the offender the next day and he has been held on remand since.

Detective Chief Inspector Neil Kimber, the senior investigating officer for the case, told SFM News: "The brutality inflicted on the victim of this case was abhorrent and managing this investigation has been exceptionally harrowing. It is worrying that someone so young could have coldly calculated carrying out this sickening attack. Throughout the course of our enquiries, providing the victim with the best possible support was our absolute priority. She has demonstrated exceptional bravery throughout and her fighting spirit is shown by the physical recovery she has made. Despite being presented with a horrific case, the relentless professionalism of my officers meant we were able to unravel the crime, and detain the offender, within several hours".

He went on to add: "The officers who first responded to the call for help also reacted with exemplary professionalism, despite being presented with a dire set of circumstances. Their actions ultimately led to the victim surviving this horrific attack. I am pleased to see that this teenage boy has now been held to account. He presents a clear danger to the public and I sincerely hope that the support available to him in prison gets to the root cause of his dangerousness and prevents him from committing any further harm.’