A FORMER Warrington hotel resident has been ordered to carry out unpaid work after handling a phone stolen by a gang.

In August, the Warrington Guardian reported how Greater Manchester Police had made an arrest after a phone reportedly stolen in Manchester earlier this month.

The owner of the phone said she tracked the phone through the Find My iPhone feature, which placed it in the Holiday Inn on Woolston Grange Avenue.

The Warrington Guardian reported in April that the hotel was to close to members of the public to accommodate migrants.

The owner said: “My phone was stolen in Manchester on the night of Friday, August 4, by a gang of people.

“I managed to track them down using Find My iPhone, however four of them ran away.

“We only managed to hold two of them until the police came, and incidentally they did not have my phone, but they were caught by someone else trying to steal their phone.

“They told police they were staying at the Holiday Inn hotel in Warrington. My phone location is also at this hotel in Warrington.”

A spokesman for Greater Manchester Police in August said: “Officers are continuing to investigate following reports of a stolen phone in Manchester on Friday, August 4.

“At least one arrest has been made in connection with the incident and the phone has been recovered.”

In December Ayham Alaskar was charged by police as part of the investigation with handling stolen goods, namely the phone.

The 27-year-old’s address was previously given on court documents as Garden Court Hotel, on Woolston Grange Avenue, but it is now listed as Calvers in Runcorn.

He was also charged with a further count of handling stolen goods, namely another mobile phone belonging to another woman, and a count of possessing cannabis and cannabis resin.

The particulars of the charges stated that the offences were all committed on Church Street in Liverpool city centre on August 12.

The handling stolen goods charges states that Alaskar ‘dishonestly undertook or assisted in the retention, removal, disposal or realisation of stolen goods, knowing or believing the same to be stolen goods’.

Appearing before Liverpool Magistrates’ Court, the defendant pleaded guilty to all three offences and was sentenced by district judge Wendy Lloyd to a 12-month community order.

This includes 15 rehabilitation activity requirement days and 240 hours of unpaid work.

No order for costs or a victim surcharge was made, with the court hearing that the defendant is ‘of a limited income’.

In addition, the court approved an order for the forfeiture and destruction of the drugs seized from him.