SHIPLEY MAN LUKE PRICE SENTENCED TO 18 YEARS FOR SEXUAL ABUSE AND STREET STABBING IN BAILDON

In April 2017, Luke Price, a 37-year-old resident of Shipley, was handed a lengthy prison sentence after being convicted of a series of heinous crimes that shocked the communities of Shipley and Baildon. The court heard that Price had committed multiple acts of sexual abuse against a vulnerable teenage girl, beginning when she was just 14 years old, and had also carried out a random and unprovoked stabbing attack in the street.

The incident involving the stabbing occurred on the night of October 8 last year, shortly before midnight, along Central Avenue in Baildon. According to court proceedings, Price, who was walking home at the time, was in a highly agitated state and made a provocative remark, saying, “I’m getting locked up, have that,” before suddenly attacking a man in the street. The victim was stabbed in the chest, suffering a collapsed lung and a laceration to his liver. The court was told that the man experienced a sharp pain in his right side, lost consciousness at his home, and was subsequently hospitalized at Leeds General Infirmary for four days. Fortunately, he has since made a full recovery.

Prior to this violent incident, Price’s criminal activities against the teenage girl had already been uncovered. The court heard that Price had begun abusing her when she was 14, with the abuse occurring repeatedly at various locations, including Baildon Moor. The girl revealed that Price had used money and gifts to bribe her into sexual acts. Evidence presented during the trial included semen found on the inside of her bra, which was seized by police for forensic examination. The girl’s account was corroborated by her police statements, which detailed the numerous occasions of abuse.

Throughout the week-long trial, the jury found Price guilty of nine counts of sexual activity with a minor, starting when she was 14, and of unlawfully and maliciously wounding the man in Baildon. He was acquitted of three similar sexual offences. Price denied all allegations, claiming that the girl was manipulative and seeking attention, and accused her of lying to escape trouble.

The presiding judge, Judge Roger Thomas QC, described the offences as extremely serious. Addressing Price directly, he stated, “You have been convicted of a catalogue of very serious offences indeed.” The judge emphasized that Price had sexually abused the girl on “hundreds, if not thousands, of separate occasions,” and then, in a separate incident, randomly attacked a stranger in the street.

As a result of his convictions, Price was sentenced to 13 years in prison for the child sexual offences, with an additional five years to be served consecutively for the wounding with intent. He was also ordered to register as a sex offender indefinitely and was subject to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order without a time limit. The court praised Detective Constable Alison Hanson for her exemplary interview techniques with the reluctant teenager, describing her approach as “a first class example of its kind,” and encouraged police to incorporate it into future training.

Following the sentencing, Sergeant Clare Turner of the Bradford District Safeguarding Unit expressed her gratitude to the victim for her bravery in coming forward. She stated, “We would like to thank the victim for her bravery in disclosing Price’s crimes to our officers and hope that today’s outcome will give her some closure and allow her to move forward with her life.” She also emphasized that the significant sentence should serve as a warning to other potential victims, encouraging them to speak out. Turner concluded by affirming that Price is a dangerous individual who resorted to violence, and that the communities of Shipley and Baildon can now feel safer with him behind bars.