Another week has passed by which means a whole new set of cases have been heard at our region's courts and the M.E.N were there to cover some of the most serious prosecutions.

And as a result, prison sentences were handed out for all manner of criminal offences .

There was the three thieves who snatched a puppy from its home, climbed onto the roof of a cafe then spent three hours in a standoff with police.

In another shocking case, there was the jealous controlling thug who battered his girlfriend with a gym weight for TWO HOURS.

Then there was the story of a man brutally murdered in his own home by a killer who wrongly believed he was a paedophile.

Here is a run-down of the criminals sent down in the last week:

The thug who has violently attacked his mum over and over again - but she hasn't given up on him

Matthew Cowgill

A violent son has been jailed after breaching an indefinite restraining order he had against his own mother - but the court was told that she hasn't given up on him.

Matthew Cowgill, 38, of no fixed address, had repeatedly attacked his mother on a number of occasions over the last eight years, including striking her with a belt and grabbing her by the throat.

The former cocaine addict had a long history of violence against his mother, and despite being placed on numerous restraining orders, he continued to breach them by turning up at his mother’s house unannounced.

Cowgill began his attacks against his mother in August 2010, when the police were made aware that he had attempted to bite her and threatened to smash up the home they previously shared.

At Manchester Crown Square Crown Court, Cowgill pleaded guilty to criminal damage, harassment and breaching a restraining order, and was sentenced to 21 months imprisonment.

Police became aware of the most recent breach in March this year when Cowgill attended at his mother’s address, despite being prohibited from doing so by the imposition of another restraining order.

Cowgill was also ordered to pay £170 surcharge.

Thieves who sparked a three-hour roof top standoff after snatching a 10-week-old puppy have been jailed

(Left to right) Christopher Butler, Jamie Stanton and Muktahir Rahmen

Thieves who snatched a puppy from its home, climbed onto the roof of a cafe then spent three hours in a standoff with police have been jailed.

Jamie Stanton, Muktahir Rahmen and Christopher Butler, stole the 10-week-old shih tzu during a burglary in Chadderton, Oldham, in June.

Rehman, who stayed on the tram, was arrested the following day and charged with burglary.

He was also charged with another burglary that took place on May 30, when he had stolen a fake Rolex watch worth £50 and a pearl necklace worth £100. 

During the break-in he cut himself on the window and dropped a medication box with his name and details on.

Rahmen, 26, of Bamford Street, Oldham, was jailed for two years and six months, after pleading guilty to two counts of burglary.

Stanton, 25, of no fixed abode, was jailed for 16 months after admitting one count of burglary.

And Butler, 25, of Wallshaw Street, Oldham, was jailed for 32 months after pleading guilty to burglary.

No shame, no remorse. The 'dangerous dog' thug who attacked an army veteran in front of his one-year-old son

Lewis Slater

A violent thug has been jailed for attacking an army veteran using a dog’s chain as a knuckle duster - following a disagreement about his aggressive dog.

Lewis Slater, 30, was walking his relative’s dog when there was a confrontation between him and a fellow park user.

Slater, of Oldham, immediately began to punch his male victim to the arm before using the chain his dog was attached to as a knuckle duster; viciously beating him to the head and shoulders with such force the victim fell to the floor.

After the horrendous attack, Slater told his victim to 'wait there' while he ‘went to get a knife to stab him’ – all in front of his victim's partner and 12-month-old infant son.

At Manchester's Minshull Street Crown Court, Slater was sentenced after being found guilty after trial of assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

He was sentenced to 12 months imprisonment as the sentencing judge told him: “You do not accept your guilt or appear to show remorse.”

The 72-year-old with a history of groping young women who ranted in court because he was desperate for a cigarette

Derek Brackenbury, 72, who has been jailed for 12 months

A pensioner said he went on a courtroom rant because he hadn't had a cigarette.

Derek Brackenbury, 72, appeared in front of a judge last week in a 'heightened state of distress'.

He was 'ranting', swore at a prosecutor and repeatedly said 'b*stards', Manchester Crown Court heard.

Explaining the behaviour, his barrister Michael Brady said: "He had not been able to have a cigarette, it was as simple as that."

When the case was heard again on Monday, a sentencing hearing heard that Brackenbury has an 'extensive' criminal history dating back to 1966.

Brackenbury, of Rochdale Road, Collyhurst, was jailed for 12 months, after he admitted failing to comply with sex offenders notification requirements, failing to surrender to bail and breaching a three year conditional discharge.

Jealous controlling thug who battered his girlfriend with a gym weight for TWO HOURS is jailed

Jenna Goddard and (inset) controlling partner Richard Wilson
Jenna Goddard and (inset) controlling partner Richard Wilson

A mum has told how she feared for her life as her jealous boyfriend battered her with a gym weight for TWO HOURS following a row about her Facebook friends.

Jenna Goddard was subjected to a terrifying attack at the hands of her violent and controlling partner Richard Wilson.

He flew into a rage after noticing Jenna, 34, had lost four friends on the social media site.

As she came out of the shower he punched her to the floor and repeatedly hit her on the leg with the 'heavy metal weight' in her daughter's bedroom.

The assault in May ended when Jenna, dressed in just her underwear, managed to run to a neighbour's house and call the police.

It came three months after Wilson had repeatedly punched and stamped on Jenna's face in her front garden following a row about her WhatsApp profile picture.

He only stopped when her 15-year-old daughter and her friend intervened.

Wilson, of Rapier Street West, Oldham, was jailed for two years and nine months at Minshull Street Crown Court after pleading guilty at an earlier hearing to two counts of actual bodily harm.

On his release he must spend two years on licence and he was also given an indefinite restraining order barring him from contacting Jenna.

The court heard he has 19 previous offences, many for violence.

Man brutally murdered in his own home by killer who wrongly believed he was a paedophile

Edward Fitzgerald gave Mr Dixon a 'sustained, vicious and wholly gratuitous beating' which proved fatal

A man was brutally murdered in his own home by a killer who wrongly believed he was a paedophile.

Edward Fitzgerald, 50, has been jailed for life after admitting murdering Raymond Dixon, also 50.

Fitzgerald, who was on licence at the time, burst into Mr Dixon's home in Bury and savagely beat him to death, repeatedly kicking and punching him.

Lee Hopkinson, who told Fitzgerald the unfounded rumour about Mr Dixon being a paedophile, had recruited Fitzgerald and Anthony Dennison to help him rob Mr Dixon, described as a 'frail' and 'vulnerable' man.

Lee Hopkinson

Hopkinson, 30, and Dennison, 45, searched his home on Myrtle Street North for valuables, taking a 40-inch TV, a Playstation and further items in two bags.

The three addicts then left Mr Dixon to die, before arriving at Dean Murray's home about a mile away and using his washing machine to try and get rid of forensic evidence from their clothes.

Mr Dixon's neighbour raised the alarm after finding his friend face down and covered in blood.

Anthony Dennison received a five-year sentence after pleading guilty to robbery

At Manchester Crown Court, Fitzgerald, of Walmersley Road, Bury, was sentenced to a life sentence to serve a minimum of 23 years.

Hopkinson, of no fixed address, was sentenced to 13 years after admitting manslaughter.

Dean Murray's washing machine was used to try and rid the gang's clothes of forensic evidence

Dennison, of no fixed address, received a five-year sentence after pleading guilty to robbery, and Murray, 50, of Heyside Way, Bury, was jailed for two years after admitting perverting the course of justice.

Drug dealer 'under pressure' from family after cancelled home visits decided to just walk out of prison

Paul Gairns

A drug dealer about to be released from his latest jail term walked out of an open prison after complaining that his home visits were being cancelled.

Now Paul Gairns will have to serve the rest of that sentence, as well as another six months for escaping from Thorn Cross open prison in Warrington.

After absconding from the category D prison for 42 days, he was caught driving a car in Manchester and sent back to a secure prison.

Manchester Crown Court heard that Gairns, 42, would now otherwise have been at home on licence.

Instead, he will have to serve a further 15 months in jail, after appearing at Manchester Crown Court on video link from Forest Bank prison in Salford.

Gairns was jailed for six years and six months in 2017 after he sold heroin to an undercover police officer nine times.

He was part of a large drugs ring which police said ‘tore apart communities and ruined lives’, with heroin and crack cocaine being sold.

Thug with 'financial difficulties' jailed after slashing open commuter's chin with six inch knife

Michael O'Neill

A man had a knife put to his throat by a robber as he walked to a Metrolink stop on his way to work, a court heard.

Michael O'Neill, 32, has been jailed for seven years and two months for the early morning attack, which left his victim terrified.

Manchester Crown Court heard how the man had left his home in Moston at about 7.10am, heading to the tram.

He took his usual route across a field when he saw O'Neill running towards him.

O'Neill, who had his hood up and wore a scarf partially covering his face, then pushed the man to the floor.

He saw that O'Neill had a large knife, said to be six inches long.

As he stood over the man, O'Neill shouted 'give me your phone' and 'give me your stuff', prosecutor Julian Goode said.

The man was handing over his possessions as he saw a knife move towards his face.

He felt a sharp pain to his chin, and saw it was covered in blood.

O'Neill, of Provency Walk, Moston, has previous convictions for robbery, burglary and violent offences.

O'Neill pleaded guilty to robbery, section 20 wounding and possession of a blade.

Motorist who drove away from court after being banned from the road jailed again

Saif Shaikh

A motorist who drove away from court minutes after being banned from the road has been jailed again.

Saif Shaikh, 20, appeared before a crown court judge in May to admit causing serious injury by dangerous driving.

He hit a 51-year-old woman on Upper Brook Street in Manchester, after she had visited her son at Manchester Royal Infirmary in November last year.

Shaikh claimed he was being chased by a white car, and was trying to escape just before he hit the woman, who suffered serious fractures to her left leg.

She had to have two operations and had a cage on her leg for months, and said at one point she couldn't even make a cup of tea without help.

When Shaikh appeared at Manchester Crown Court in May to admit the offence, Judge Timothy Smith told him that he was subject to an interim driving ban, with the ultimate length being decided at the sentencing hearing.

But just minutes later, an M.E.N. photographer captured Shaikh leaving a nearby car park headed for his home in Bradford, driving the same Volkswagen Polo he was in when he hit the woman.

He was arrested later that day.

University student Shaikh was then jailed for 12 weeks at Manchester Magistrates Court, after admitting driving while disqualified and driving without insurance.

Now he has been jailed for 15 months, and banned from the road for two years and seven months, for the original offence of causing serious injury by dangerous driving.

David Schwimmer 'lookalike' jailed for theft and fraud

Abdulah Husseini was caught on CCTV carrying cans of beers to the till at an Iceland store

A fraudster described as the 'spitting image' of Friends actor David Schwimmer has been jailed for nine months for theft and fraud offences.

Abdulah Husseini, 36, used a stolen bank card to make fraudulent purchases at four shops in Blackpool last September.

Burnley Crown Court heard that he obtained the bank card after walking into an all-you-can-eat buffet restaurant at the seaside resort and taking a wallet from a customer's jacket while they were away from their table.

The Schwimmer lookalike, who was described in court as a "travelling, wandering, nomadic thief", then went on to make two successful purchases using the card at nearby shops.

He was then caught on CCTV carrying cans of beers to the till at an Iceland store, the court was told.

A month later, Blackpool Police posted a photo of the captured CCTV image on its Facebook page in an appeal to trace Husseini, which showed him holding a crate of beer and staring straight at the camera.

The image went viral on social media after people spotted his resemblance to the 90s sitcom star.

Following a two-day trial, Husseini was convicted by a jury on Thursday of one count of theft and four counts of fraud by false representation.

He was then sentenced by Judge Sara Dodd, who told him he had an "appalling criminal history" and that he was "an habitual thief".

Husseini, an Iranian national, has 32 previous convictions for 60 offences since 2008, including 27 offences for theft and dishonesty.

Lad flew into drunken rage and attacked steward, passengers and police on flight

Adam Whittingham

A lout flew into a drunken rage attacked an air steward, several passengers and a police officer during three hours of 'chaos' on board a flight.

Adam Whittingham, 32, became more and more abusive and violent on a Ryanair flight to Manchester from Agadir in Morocco.

He knocked someone's tooth out when he lost his rag.

Crews considered diverting the plane as other passengers became concerned, including a mother and baby who had to be moved.

By the time the plane landed at Manchester Airport three-and-a-half hours later, the pilot had to lean out of the cockpit window and order police officers to board immediately as 'the situation had got out of control', a court was told.

Whittingham, of Field Street, Wolverhampton, who suffers from several mental health conditions, and has battled booze and drug addiction in the past, spending three different periods in rehab, said in his police interview he couldn't remember anything about the flight.

He pleaded guilty to endangering an aircraft; and assault occasioning actual bodily harm (ABH) at an earlier hearing.

Judge Tina Landale said the offences were so serious, that Whittingham had to go straight to prison, sentencing him to 20 months behind bars.

Paedophile sexually abused children after promising to show them 'magic tricks'

Robert Jackson

A 'vile' and 'wicked' paedophile sexually abused children after promising to show them 'magic tricks', a court heard.

Remorseless Robert Jackson was given a 21-year prison sentence in 2009 after being found guilty of 53 counts of child sex abuse against 12 young girls.

Now Jackson, 59, has been handed a five-year jail term after another victim came forward.

The victim, now a mother, said her ordeal has affected her behaviour towards her children and that she won't let them play out unless they have a panic alarm.

A jury unanimously found Jackson guilty of indecency with a child and indecent assault following a Manchester Crown Court trial.

The 21-year and five year sentences will run concurrently, but the latest sentence will affect Jackson's ability to apply for parole.

Couple enjoyed 'five star' lifestyle funded by crime while claiming benefits

Thomas Campbell

A couple enjoyed luxury holidays and high-powered cars while spending thousands of pounds on home improvements as part of their 'five star' lifestyle - funded by 'dirty money'

Husband and wife Thomas and Coleen Campbell, both 35, splurged £10,000 on ONE holiday; had a double-storey extension to add a bar and bigger kitchen at their house; and spent a fortune on designer clothes and jewellery.

The pair appeared at Manchester Crown Court after pleading guilty to concealing criminal property.

They were brought down by a GMP operation, codenamed Harness. Cops investigated 'the Campbells’ involvement with cocaine supply' in Clayton.

A judge found the couple benefited from crime to the tune of around £100,000. They spent that sum in around five years, police said.

Prosecutors will now try to claw back some of the cash through a Proceeds of Crime investigation.

Passing sentence, Judge Martin Rudland locked up Thomas for two years, while Coleen was spared jail.

She received a 16 month sentence, suspended for two years.