A man described as being a ‘dangerous sexual predator’ who raped lone women at knifepoint in Manchester city centre has been jailed for life.
It comes after a thorough investigation by Greater Manchester Police‘s (GMP) dedicated Longsight Criminal Investigation Department.
In the early hours of the morning on Tuesday 31 January 2024, GMP received a 999 call from a victim stating that she had been raped at knife point on Mancunian Way, in Manchester city centre, and as police attended the scene, they were also approached by a second victim who had also been raped at knife point too.
It didn’t end there though, as throughout that same day, two more reports of a rape and an attempted rape at knife point, also in the same location, were reported.
But, with extensive witness statements and descriptions of the offender, the suspect was identified as Stuart Thomson from Stockport, and an urgent manhunt was subsequently launched to find him.
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/ Credit: GMP
Investigating detectives trawled CCTV to build a picture of his movements in the lead up to the attacks.
On several occasions, Thomson was captured on CCTV wearing distinctive items of clothing, including a hoodie with a grey insert on the back, a coat with green lining, a wool hat, and a high vis style t-shirt, and at the scene, police also recovered a wool hat – which was mentioned in one of the victim statements.
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The hat was seized for forensics, and while at first it came back matching someone who did not match the description of our offender, police went to the address to conduct enquiries, and upon attending found Thomson wearing the distinctive green jacket that had been identified during the CCTV trawls.
Thomson was arrested at the scene, and several other items of clothing relating to the violent offences were seized.
#JAILED | Stuart Thomson (15/03/1990) of Buxton Road, Stockport, has been sentenced to life imprisonment after being found guilty of three counts of rape, attempted rape, sexual assault, three counts of threatening another with a bladed article, and possession of a bladed article pic.twitter.com/ESSsJBfO49
Despite answering “no comment” to every question put to him by detectives, and pleading ‘not guilty’ last during a 10-day trial at Manchester Crown Court, a jury found 34-year-old Thomson guilty of three counts of rape, attempted rape, sexual assault, three counts of threatening another with a bladed article, and possession of a bladed article.
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He was jailed for life and ordered to serve a minimum of 18 years.
Speaking following the sentencing, Detective Sergeant Jennifer Savazzi, from GMP’s Longsight Criminal Investigations Department, commented: “It’s clear that Stuart Thomson is a dangerous sexual predator. He forcibly imposed himself upon these women in a violent and callous way with no consideration for the damage he was doing to them.
“By not accepting responsibility, Thomson forced [his victims] to relive their pain throughout this trial.
“The harm offenders like Thomson cause are incalculable, but I hope this result goes some way in reassuring our victims, survivors, and members of the public that a dangerous man is off our streets, and i welcome this sentence today.”
Featured Image – GMP
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Street parties and Red Arrows fly-over planned for four-day VE Day 80th anniversary celebrations
Emily Sergeant
Street parties and fly-pasts by military aircraft including the famous Red Arrows are planned for the 80th anniversary of VE Day.
Victory in Europe (VE Day) – which takes place on 8 May each year, and marks the Allied victory in Europe – resulted in millions celebrating the end of the war in 1945, with street parties, dancing and singing all across the country.
And now, 80 years later, similar events and celebrations are set to take place.
The commemorations set to take place over four days at the start of May will pay tribute to the millions of people across the UK and Commonwealth who served in the Second World War, telling the stories of those who fought, the children who were evacuated, and those who stepped into the essential roles on the Home Front.
On 8 May the nation will come together to mark the 80th anniversary of VE Day
— Department for Culture, Media and Sport (@DCMS) March 5, 2025
The early May bank holiday on Monday 5 May will see the beginning of the events to mark VE Day 80, with events planned including a military procession, flypast of current and historic military aircraft, and the return of the poppies to the Tower of London.
Also on bank holiday Monday is when street parties, barbecues. and community get-togethers are being encouraged to be held by communities across the country to echo the celebrations 80 years ago.
The Government has also issued a nationwide call for families to ‘delve into their lofts’ and discover their own stories from the Second World War.
On actual VE Day itself, on Thursday 8 May, a service will take place at Westminster Abbey that the Government says will be both an ‘act of shared remembrance’ and a ‘celebration’ of the end of the war.
Street parties and a Red Arrows fly-over is planned for 80th anniversary celebrations of VE Day / Credit: Vicki Burton (via Flickr)
All the planned events will conclude with a concert at the historic Horseguards Parade, with more than 10,000 members of the public expected to attend, and well-known stars of stage and screen and military musicians set to perform.
“80 years ago, the freedoms we enjoy today were defended by our remarkable Second World War generation,” commented Defence Secretary John Healey MP as the planned celebrations were announced.
“Our duty today is to safeguard the British values they sacrificed so much to uphold.
“As we mark 80 years since the end of the Second World War, our grateful nation looks forward to joining our brave Armed Forces and veterans to reflect, rejoice and remember.”
Featured Image – Jason Garcia (via Flickr)
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Manchester has been named one of the UK’s top car theft ‘hotspots’
Emily Sergeant
Manchester has unfortunately been named one of the UK’s top car theft ‘hotspots’, according to a new analysis.
In recent months, Greater Manchester has been earning itself some rather impressive new titles, with wins across areas such as property prices, arts and culture, and so much more… but when you win some, it seems like you also lose some.
That’s because a data analysis of car theft statistics across the UK in 2024 has sadly seen Manchester named in the top 10 ‘hotspots’.
Although motor thefts were found to have decreased by 6% in the previous year, there was still a whopping 61,343 cars reported stolen to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) in 2024, which marked the third-highest annual total in the past decade.
The number of car thefts in 2024 was actually more than twice the number recorded in 2015.
Manchester has been named one of the UK’s top car theft ‘hotspots’ / Credit: Wikimedia Commons
Analysis of the data from This is Money and MailOnline, as shared by the RAC, highlighted that East London was the worst affected area in the UK, but Manchester wasn’t too far behind.
Manchester took the third spot on the top 10 list, with a total of 912 cars reported stolen in 2024 alone, while some of the other northern cities on the ranking include Leeds and Sheffield.
It comes as no surprise, however, that at the top of the list is the capital of London, with a shockingly-high 8,145 cars stolen last year.
Top 10 UK car theft ‘hotspots’ 2024
London – 8,145
Birmingham – 3,220
Manchester – 912
Leeds – 901
Sheffield – 899
Coventry – 862
Wolverhampton – 616
Leicester – 533
Walsall – 521
Bristol – 506
According to the analysis, there are several ways that criminals are choosing to steal cars nationwide, with one of the most popular being key cloning, where a thief creates a copy of a car’s key fob or key to gain access to the vehicle.
This technique is particularly common with modern cars that use keyless entry and push-to-start systems, which communicate with the car through radio signals.
Emily Sergeant -
20th January 2025 
