Criminal cases that the Crown Prosecution Service take to court are in the news every day. This section also covers many issues related to our work, including violence against women and girls, hate crime, support for victims and witnesses, statistics, and speeches by the Director of Public Prosecutions and other senior staff.
Latest news
You can find our latest news stories here and search for older stories. You can also find more information about high-profile cases and the work of the CPS.
Working with the media
To make criminal court reporting more open, the CPS, police, and media representatives created a joint protocol (agreement) for working together. We are currently working on an updated version of the protocol.
Showing 1 - 10 of 58 results for area "South East"
An Iraqi man who had been extradited to Italy and convicted of terrorist offences there, has been jailed for two years and three months today for returning to the UK illegally in a small boat.Rebwar Hamad, 48, arrived with others on 19 September this year and eventually pleaded guilty to coming to…
Press ReleaseInternational and organised crimeCPSSouth East
A director of a care home agency based in East Sussex who repeatedly employed immigrants with no right to work in the UK has been jailed today. Between 2017 and 2018, Benoy Thomas, 50, recruited Indian nationals to work as care assistants through Bexhill-on-Sea based A Class Care Recruitment…
Press ReleaseFraud and economic crimeInternational and organised crimeCPSSouth East
A man has been sentenced to life imprisonment for murdering a woman in her sleep and committing a sexual offence against her body afterwards.Ernestas Juska, 21, was sentenced today (Friday 28 November 2025) at Maidstone Crown Court to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 26 years, after…
Press ReleaseSexual offencesViolent crimeSouth East
New measure to upskill prosecutors in the South East to better recognise patterns of domestic abuse and its impact on victims have been announced today as part of the Crown Prosecution Service’s rollout of its five-year Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) strategy.The new strategy, which will…
A man has been convicted of multiple rapes of another man. Derek Rowley, 45, and the victim met on Grindr and arranged to meet at Rowley’s home in Gillingham, Kent for sex and to take drugs in May 2024. This is known as “chem sex”. They took GHB, crystal meth and ketamine.  …
A nursery worker who raped a three-year-old boy in his care has been detained for 10 years and must serve an additional five years on licence.Thomas Waller, 18, started work at the nursery in Surrey in July 2024, having just completed qualifications. Within weeks, he had raped one boy and persuaded…
A man who killed a wife and her husband at their home in Newhaven has been found guilty of their murder. Derek Martin, 67 and from Brighton, had admitted killing both Josh and Chloe Bashford at their home in Newhaven in June 2023 but had denied murder on the grounds of diminished…
A man who forced his way into a stranger’s home in Hastings and raped her has been sentenced to 15 years imprisonment, extended for a further seven years.Jason Wren, 32, was seen by witnesses acting suspiciously outside the property in November 2024, while the woman was home alone.He knocked at the…
A man has been jailed today following a heist that saw 159 luxury watches worth £1.4 million stolen from a shopping centre watch shop. David Buisson, 56, has been sentenced to six years and one month imprisonment at Maidstone Crown Court after admitting his role in the carefully planned…
Two men have been found guilty of the murder of two e-bike riders after they were driven into deliberately following a pursuit by a pick-up truck on a motorway slip road in Surrey.Alex Rose, 30, was driving the Ford Raptor which hit them and he was convicted, along with Charles Pardoe, 25, who was…
Press ReleaseViolent crimeSouth East
Press Office contact details
Please note that our Press Office is NOT able to deal with issues or queries from members of the public - these contact details are for accredited journalists ONLY. Do not call this number unless you a member of the press. For all general enquiries, please visit contact.cps.gov.uk.
If you are a national or international journalist with a media enquiry, you can contact the CPS Press Office on 020 3357 0906 or email [email protected] (9am-5pm weekdays only).
For out-of-hours media enquiries please call 020 3357 0906 to reach the duty press officer.
If you follow us on social media, you can expect posts covering some or all of the following:
Operational updates on decisions to prosecute or take no further action;
Reactions and statements on trial outcomes;
Policy updates from the Director of Public Prosecutions and other prosecutors;
Updates on media appearances by CPS staff
Content that explains the role of the CPS and how we work
Highlighting of relevant work by our criminal justice partners and other stakeholders
We will aim to be fair and accurate in all the information we publish. We will aim to correct any inaccuracies as soon as possible.
We are unable to monitor social media round the clock. We are not able to engage with all those who seek a response from us due to resources but also due to privacy and the sensitive nature of some of our work. The best way to contact the CPS is through our website.
Please do not try to report crime using social media. To report crime, please call 101 or visit your local police station. In an emergency, always call 999.
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Media protocol
To ensure greater openness in the reporting of criminal proceedings, the CPS, the police and media representatives developed a joint protocol for working together. We are currently in the process of updating the protocol.
