Major crime stories in and around Bristol you may have missed

Here at the Bristol Post we have been following a number of major crime stories in and around our city and the last couple of weeks have seen court appearances from a Celebrity Big Brother contestant, a failed gunman, a paedophile who went on the run and one of the UK's most wanted men.

Alex Male, from Weston-super-Mare, who oversaw the supply of at least 130 kilos of high purity cocaine worth £4.5 million, was jailed after spending four years on the run. Likewise, a Bristol pervert who also fled the country to evade justice has also been locked up for many years after pleading guilty to a series of horrific crimes.

Below are just a few of the big cases we've been covering here at the Bristol Post in recent weeks. To see even more crime stories head to our crime channel here.

Gunman plotted to kill police officers

A man who plotted to kill cops using his arsenal of homemade guns failed in his bid to have his life sentence reduced. Reed Wischhusen penned a chilling 1,700-word essay detailing how he would get his revenge on the police force that repeatedly refused his request for a shotgun licence.

He wrote of targeting former schoolmates and shooting random members of the public to lure officers to him, before setting off bombs at Avon and Somerset Police's headquarters. In November 2022 police visited his home near Weston-Super-Mare. The 33-year-old then tried to shoot himself in the head.

He survived and - with a bullet in his head - stormed downstairs with the pistol pointing at officers, who shot him in the chest then battled to save his life. A search of the house unearthed more guns, bomb-making gear and a police uniform, which Wischhusen had photographed himself wearing.

On Wednesday, December 11, his barrister told the Court of Appeal that a Bristol judge was wrong to give him a life sentence in January. Adam Vaitinlingam KC, defending, said: "The discretionary life sentence is the sentence of last resort. An extended sentence was the appropriate sentence in this case. There was no reason to extend it [to a life sentence]."

These arguments were thrown out by Lord Justice Davis. He told Wischhusen: "This was in our judgment a paradigm case for a life sentence."

Wischhusen - who followed the hearing over video link from prison - will be eligible for release in 2035.

Paedophile jailed for 12 years

Peter Woolley, 41 from Bristol, has been jailed for 12 years after he pleaded guilty to three counts of attempted rape of a child under 13 and one count of sexual assault of a child under 13. Woolley was also handed a Sexual Harm Prevention Order, a restraining order, and lifetime ban on working with children and vulnerable adults. He will also be on the Sex Offenders Register.

Bristol Crown Court heard how he sexually assaulted and attempted to rape the victim in Bristol. She told her mother in 2020 who then alerted police, but Woolley had fled to Jamaica the day after the most recent attack had taken place.

In a statement from the victim, she said: “I am sensitive to things that never used to worry me. I cry sometimes and get angry and annoyed at little things which wouldn’t have affected me before.

“I like to spend time alone in the dark in my bedroom these days. It is silent and I feel like I am at peace. I sometimes listen to some music when I’m in my room to help me be at peace. I feel uncomfortable around men. I am conscious of what clothes I’m wearing and I feel like men are always looking at me.”

Officer in the case, Detective Constable Elizabeth Howell said: “I have to commend the continued bravery shown by the victim. No one should be subjected to attacks of this nature, but to have had this happen at such a young age, makes this all the more horrific.

“She has shown incredible endurance and courage over the past few years while we attempted to bring Woolley back to the UK from Jamaica and into our custody. In the end, he returned to the UK of his own volition, but we were waiting for him.

“The judge described Woolley as robbing the victim of her childhood, and I only hope this sentence will give the victim and her family some justice as she continues to come to terms with what happened to her.”

Most wanted man is finally jailed

A wanted man who supplied huge amounts of cocaine to Bristol has been jailed. Alex Male, 32, was arrested earlier this year in Morocco after spending four years on the run from police.

He headed two organised crime groups which dealt drugs across the south of England. Male, from Weston-super-Mare, used the encrypted messaging service Encrochat, which was used by criminals worldwide, to organise both of the conspiracies.

Male oversaw the supply of at least 130 kilos of high purity cocaine worth £4.5 million between March and June 2020. His involvement made him one of the UK's most wanted men.

Detective Inspector Adrian Hawkins, who led the investigation, said: “The volume of drugs we evidenced Alex Male as sourcing and supplying through our investigation, together with his actions while on the run over the last four years, show what a serious criminal he is.

“It’s easy to look at images of kilo blocks of cocaine or piles of cash and be detached from the misery behind them – people that have been victims of robbery, burglary, theft, gang crime or other violence will know that drugs featured heavily in the cause.

“Alex Male’s time on the run has meant we’ve waited a long time to see him get sentenced, but we, together with our partners in the NCA, CPS and abroad, were never going to give up on bringing him back to face justice.”

Celebrity Big Brother star sentenced for burglary

Former Celebrity Big Brother star Marco Pierre White Jr has appeared in court charged with theft and burglary. Marco Xavier Pierre White, the son of celebrity chef Marco Pierre White, appeared at North Somerset Magistrates’ Court on Friday, November 29.

Magistrates sentenced him to a 30-week prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, a nine-month drug rehabilitation order, as well as ordering payment of fines and costs.

In a statement, Avon and Somerset Police said he was sentenced for carrying out a non-dwelling burglary at the studio in Meadow Street, Weston-super-Mare on Thursday (September 19), and at a store in Cheap Street, Bath, on Thursday (October 24).

Pierre White, of Weston-super-Mare, also committed a theft from a store in Winterstoke Road, Weston-super-Mare on Tuesday (October 22).

The force statement said: "In the Weston-super-Mare burglary, he was seen leaving the premises with goods in his hands, including electronic items and a jewellery box, and was spotted by officers in a nearby street. He dropped the items and ran off but was stopped and arrested a short time later."