By James Simons-
It took the intervention of the Solictor General, Robert Buckland QC MP, before a man who beat another unconscious and then stole from him was jailed . Buckland referred the case of criminal waste man, Craig Scarpellini to the Court of Appeal under the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme.
26 year old Scarpellini was jailed for 4 years today after his original trial ended in the in sentencing being deferred until November this year. That deferral amounted to the possibility that he may eventually be given a sentence that was too low, thereby prompting the intervention of the Attorney General, who stepped in get Scarpelleni behind bars.
Scarpellini was walking through Christchurch when he came across his victim, who was drunk, and offered him cannabis if he came to Scarpellini’s flat. After the pair proceeded back to the block of flats where Scarpellini resided, another man emerged with his face covered, prompting the victim to attempt an escape by running. Scarpellini punched him to the side of the head, and the pair proceeded to continue punching until he fell unconscious.
The victim eventually discovered that his phone and wallet were missing. He suffered minor injuries to most of his body, as well as experiencing nausea and pain in his temple. His left thumb was fractured. When questioned, Scarpellini claimed to have acted in self-defence after the victim had gone ‘beserk’.
Scarpellini’s original hearing took place at Bournemouth Crown Court in July, where his sentencing was deferred until November 2018. Today, after the Solicitor General’s referral, the Court of Appeal sentenced him to 4 years immediate custody. One burning question is why the Solicitor General did not wait until November to see what the judge’s sentencing would be.
A spokesperson for the solicitor General’s office told The Eye Of Media.Com:
”Scarpellini’s sentence was referred to the Solicitor General under the Unduly Lenient sentencing Scheme. Each case is different and in the vast majority of cases, judges get it right, but in this case the Solicitor General felt that an immediate custodial sentence would be a better reflection of the harm caused by Scarpellini. He is pleased that the Court of Appeal agreed and increased the sentence to four years imprisonment”
Speaking after the hearing, the Solicitor General said“Scarpellini launched an unprovoked attack against his victim, and I am pleased that the Court of Appeal has today agreed that the risk he poses to the public warrants immediate custody.”