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20/03/2009
Loan Shark Who Raped Client Jailed
A loan shark who raped one of his customers has been jailed for seven years.
Paul Nicholson, 39, was last month found guilty of an array of offences including blackmail, assault and rape.
Warrington Crown Court heard the former nightclub doorman had demanded money from debtors by threatening them with a baseball bat, machete and knuckle-dusters he owned.
He targeted people who could not get credit elsewhere on estates in Widnes in Cheshire, and charged exorbitant rates of interests on loans.
Judge Thomas Teague QC said he ran a racket which displayed "human greed in its purest form".
The jury also heard Nicholson, who lived in a £1 million house next to a golf course in Delamere, Cheshire, forced one woman who owed him money to perform a sex act on him.
He also punched another in the face, and told a debtor: "Your priority is to pay me, not feed your kids."
He was found guilty of 12 counts of blackmail, and one each of rape, actual bodily harm, operating without a license, lying to obtain a license and acquiring criminal property.
His girlfriend Tracey Rogers, 38, who helped run his empire, Falcon Securities, was also sentenced to four years behind bars after being convicted of blackmail, operating without a licence and acquiring criminal property.
The couple targeted more than 800 poor people, charging up to 150% interest on loans.
(JM/BMcC)
Paul Nicholson, 39, was last month found guilty of an array of offences including blackmail, assault and rape.
Warrington Crown Court heard the former nightclub doorman had demanded money from debtors by threatening them with a baseball bat, machete and knuckle-dusters he owned.
He targeted people who could not get credit elsewhere on estates in Widnes in Cheshire, and charged exorbitant rates of interests on loans.
Judge Thomas Teague QC said he ran a racket which displayed "human greed in its purest form".
The jury also heard Nicholson, who lived in a £1 million house next to a golf course in Delamere, Cheshire, forced one woman who owed him money to perform a sex act on him.
He also punched another in the face, and told a debtor: "Your priority is to pay me, not feed your kids."
He was found guilty of 12 counts of blackmail, and one each of rape, actual bodily harm, operating without a license, lying to obtain a license and acquiring criminal property.
His girlfriend Tracey Rogers, 38, who helped run his empire, Falcon Securities, was also sentenced to four years behind bars after being convicted of blackmail, operating without a licence and acquiring criminal property.
The couple targeted more than 800 poor people, charging up to 150% interest on loans.
(JM/BMcC)
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