Sutton man jailed for hiding wanted knifeman in girlfriend’s loft told judge: ‘I am happy with that.’
A Sutton man who hid a wanted knifeman in his girlfriend’s loft thanked the judge who jailed him for 16 months and said: “Yeah, I am happy with that," a court heard.
James Pedley repeatedly stabbed his victim in the torso and neck as they brawled on Morven Avenue, Sutton, on October 11 last year.
Pedley, 41, fled in blood-soaked clothes but was tracked down to an address on Dalestorth Street, where Kurt Horton and Tracey Hoff were living, 55 hours after the attack.
He was found hiding between floor beams and behind hatches, which could "only have been locked by another person".
Horton and Hoff were arrested and blooded clothing worn by Pedley was found inside the property.
Pedley, of Elder Street, Sutton, was jailed for 14 years at Nottingham Crown Court in March, after he was convicted of grievous bodily harm with intent and possession of an offensive weapon.
On Tuesday, Mark Achurch, prosecuting, told the court Horton and Hoff, a couple at the time, “may have initially been unaware that Pedley was wanted, but the incident would have undoubtedly attracted publicity.”
Both defendants claimed they didn’t know the precise nature of his offending and neither made searches on their phones until after he was charged.
Hoff was with Pedley thoughout his time in the loft and did her best to conceal his presence, Mr Achurch said.
Pedley used Hoff’s phone to thank Horton and “to acknowledge the difficult position he was putting them in.”
Nottingham Crown Court heard Horton has 11 previous convictions for 18 offences, including cycle theft, battery, and drug driving.
Rebecca Coleman, mitigating, said Horton accepted lying to police about Pedley’s whereabouts but there was no evidence that Pedley dispatched him to collect clothes.
“Since his remand he has lost his property and belongings,” she said. “His dog has also been put down: an additional form of punishment due to his own actions.”
Horton, 34, of Sherwood Street, Sutton, and Hoff, 37, of Newcastle Street, Huthwaite, both admitted assisting an offender at previous hearings.
Judge James Sampson told Hoff a 12-month sentence could be suspended for 18 months, with 20 rehabilitation activity days, because of her personal mitigation, the realistic prospect of her rehabilitation and her previous good character.
Handing Horton a 15-month prison term, the judge added one consecutive month for a bail act offence.