Neil Wilby Media

Earlier this year, Neil Wilby Media reported on the discontinuance of three private prosecutions brought by the most notorious, persistent, vexatious complainer in the North West of England (read more here). 

The defendants in those proceedings, laid by 54 year old Paul Ponting of Ormskirk, West Lancashire, included a police officer serving with his local force (read more here). 

A hopelessly misconceived action that brought rebuke from the district judge hearing the case before it was eventually thrown out, following an appeal by Ponting against the original court decision not to prosecute the officer, who is not named for legal reasons.

Tomorrow morning (21st August, 2024), in Courtroom 1 at Preston Magistrates’ Court, the Crown Prosecution Service will formally discontinue proceedings against retired journalist, George Vella, 66, who lives in the Dunstable area. He stood accused of making malicious communications against Paul Ponting but the CPS, after reviewing the case, decided that ‘there is not enough evidence to proceed’.

Vella told Neil Wilby Media after hearing of the CPS decision by letter earlier today: 

“Now that District Judge Thompson has seen how the court system has been repeatedly abused by Paul Ponting he has assured me that measures have been put in place to prevent it from happening again. I have lost count of the private prosecutions, or other proceedings, that have been brought against me, Neil Wilkes, and many others, by him and other members of Ponting’s family.”

It is understood that Ponting, widely known as ‘The Ormskirk Vigilante’ (read more here) has used a number of other criminal courts to try to lay an information (the formal term for a private prosecution) against those persons he chooses to target, often on the flimsiest of pretexts. They include Sefton, Blackpool, Blackburn and Workington.

A former computer and hair curler repairer (read more here), Ponting has, over the past seven years or so, gained infamy as a prolific internet troll and near permanent spectre within police stations, court administration offices and courtrooms where district and circuit judges, warranted police officers, control room and court staff deal with his multitude of civil and criminal skirmishes, as well as regularly tangling, almost entirely unsuccessfully, with statutory regulators such as the Information Commissioner’s Office (read more here) and Independent office for Police Conduct.

It is estimated that he has wasted thousands upon thousands of officer hours and, as a result, is responsible for wasting millions of pounds of public funds. 

Remarkably, ‘The Vigilante’ has, so far, avoided prosecution for wasting police time: A situation, one might very reasonably argue, long overdue for remedy.

The latest Paul Ponting hobby horse, according to his own website and Twitter (‘X’) feed, is to take out FIVE separate Judicial Review proceedings against Greater Manchester Police over investigation outcomes with which he disagrees.

The merits, or otherwise, of which will be the subject of detailed analysis in a separate Neil Wilby Media article.

UPDATE: Paul Ponting has indicated on social media that he is exercising his Victim’s Right to Review of the CPS decision to discontinue. 

The number of judicial review applications has now risen to SIX, he says. Again, by way of a social media post.

GMP has instructed one of the most expensive law firms in the Region, Weightmans, to defend the JR applications. Potentially, wasting tens of thousands of pounds more in public funds. 

Follow Neil Wilby on Twitter (here) and Neil Wilby Media on Facebook (here) for signposts to any updates.

Page last updated: Tuesday 10th September, 2024 at 1245 hours

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