'Sadistic and violent' Rugby criminal has sentence increased after campaign of abuse on man

This comes after the ‘sadistic’ criminal who threatened and robbed the vulnerable victim over a number of weeks in Rugby had his sentence increased at the Court of Appeal.

Frankie Maughan befriended the victim – a man in his 50s – offering to get him cheap cider.

Maughan started to take advantage of the man, and this quickly turned to threats of violence over a more than three-week period.

Maughan would threaten the man before stealing his bank card and withdrawing money.

In June 2022 a friend became concerned about a change in the victim’s behaviour. When she paid an unannounced visit, he told her about his ordeal, and she contacted police.

Officers recognised Maughan from the description provided. Enquiries also caught him on CCTV using the stolen bankcard.

In June 2024 Maughan, 22, previously of Oliver Street, Rugby was jailed for 20 months after pleading guilty to robbery and fraud by false representation.

However, the Attorney General challenged the leniency of the sentence, and this was upheld by the Court of Appeal who increased his sentence to four-and-a-half years.

Commenting on the Court of Appeal’s decision, Detective Constable Gemma Kirby, said: “This was a sadistic and prolonged campaign of abuse against a vulnerable man. I welcome the increase in Maughan’s sentence which better reflects the severity of his crime and the impact it had on the victim.

“I’d like to pay tribute to the victim’s friend who was looking out from him and alerted us to the abuse. Changes in behaviour are a common sign someone is being exploited and she did exactly the right this in contacting police. Her actions helped to prevent further, possibly more serious, offending.”