A GRIEVING father who lost his son after a bungled police raid led to a double tragedy has branded the force in question “guilty as sin.”
Ian Jackson, 62, tragically lost his son Craig earlier this year after Craig’s fiancée took her own life leaving him grief stricken.
Craig’s fiancée took her own life after a bungled police raid on the couple’s home caused her mental health to spiral
The pair were together since they were just 13 years old
Cherry Turner, 31, was overcome with brutal anxiety after a bungled police raid on her home on December 12, 2021, saw Craig handcuffed and arrested.
If you are affected by any of the issues raised in this article, please call the Samaritans for free on 116123.
Armed officers stormed the couple’s home in Newcastle, looking for a different man named Craig Jackson, and arrested Craig in his underwear.
Northumbria Police quickly realised that they had arrested the wrong man but took two months to inform the couple that Craig was no longer being investigated.
Cherry fell into a deep state of anxiety and fear, believing police had bugged her home and could come back to execute another terrifying raid at any moment.
The raid, involving riot vans, armed cops and police dogs, left Cherry unable to sleep, her mental health spiralled.
She would later take her own life in 2022 with her body discovered on Redheugh Bridge over the River Tyne.
South Tyneside Coroners Court recorded a verdict that the police raid “sparked an anxiety disorder that led to her suicide”.
Craig had received a kidney transplant from his dad in 2017 and, after Cherry’s death, began refusing treatment.
He would go on to tell his mother that he “couldn’t bear to live without his childhood sweetheart.”
Craig’s mother previously spoke out saying: “If Cherry was still alive today, Craig would still be alive.”
The childhood sweethearts had been together since they were just 13 years old.
“As a family, our lives have been changed forever.”
Paula Gray, Cherry’s relative
Craig’s dad has now spoken on the heartbreaking double tragedy for the first time.
Ian Jackson slammed Northumbria Police for the bungled raid on Craig and Cherry’s home, saying he no longer had any faith in the force.
He would go on to tell the Daily Mail: “The consequences have been fatal. We’ve lost two members of our family.”
“They were guilty as sin. It dragged on for three years.
“It just dragged on and on and it was really getting to Craig, that’s what obviously led to the end story of Cherry losing her life.”
In a tearful interview Ian explained how hard the loss of Cherry impacted his son, saying the loss caused Craig to begin outright refusing treatment until his untimely death.
After Craig lost his fiancée his dad brought him to live with him so he could keep an eye on his heartbroken son.
Craig lived with his dad for 14 months and was “very unhappy” but eventually decided to move back into the house he had once shared with Cherry.
Ian, who is suffering from cancer, believes living in the house alone began to eat away at his son and said that shortly after moving back in to the now empty home was when Craig started to refuse treatment.
Craig’s sister-in-law had previously revealed how he had been fighting Kidney failure for a decade before he died.
His father raged at Northumbria Police for their blunder after they arrested his son and swabbed him for traces of ammunition, finding none.
Heartbroken Ian described how Cherry and Craig were looking forward to their future together, having just bought a starter home.
The grieving dad said he was looking forward to becoming a grandfather and believed Cherry and his son would have a family of their own one day.
How to get help
EVERY 90 minutes in the UK a life is lost to suicide
It doesn’t discriminate, touching the lives of people in every corner of society – from the homeless and unemployed to builders and doctors, reality stars and footballers.
It’s the biggest killer of people under the age of 35, more deadly than cancer and car crashes.
And men are three times more likely to take their own life than women.
Yet it’s rarely spoken of, a taboo that threatens to continue its deadly rampage unless we all stop and take notice, now.
If you, or anyone you know, needs help dealing with mental health problems, the following organisations provide support:
CALM, www.thecalmzone.net, 0800 585 858
Heads Together,www.headstogether.org.uk
HUMEN www.wearehumen.org
Mind, www.mind.org.uk, 0300 123 3393
Papyrus, www.papyrus-uk.org, 0800 068 41 41
Samaritans,www.samaritans.org, 116 123
Craig was already an uncle with his father explaining how much he loved his nieces and nephews.
The tragic couple had “the most beautiful life together” according to Ian who has been left in despair after losing his son.
Craig’s brother, Jake Mottram, previously said: “The police knew they’d got the wrong man the next day and should have put it right there and then.
“If they had, Cherry’s mental health would not have deteriorated.”
Paul Dunn, the solicitor representing Cherry’s family at an inquest into her death said: “This was not a routine knock on the door, it was the most intrusive of searches, involving multiple police vehicles, an armed response team, all with weapons which were trained on the bodies of Cherry Turner and Craig Jackson.
“It was a full on search which we now know to have had dire consequences.”
One of Cherry’s family members, Paula Gray, said on behalf of her heartbroken relatives: “Following the devastating loss of our beautiful Cherry Turner, our family has endured over three long years of waiting for answers.
“This week, we finally stood together at the inquest, side by side with my sister Michelle, my brother-in-law Dave, Cherry’s sister Dani and her fiancé Jake, and Jacko’s family, his mam Sue, dad Ian, sister Sam and their families. And Cherry and Jacko’s close friends.
“Cherry’s younger brother, though unable to be there, carries this grief as deeply as we all do.
“Nothing can truly put into words the pain Michelle and Dave have lived through, nor the heartbreak felt by Dani, Jake, and Cherry’s younger brother.”
The double tragedy left both families grieving for the childhood sweethearts with relatives saying the pair’s memory would “remain eternal.”
The families would go on to say that they hoped the couple’s story would be heard and never forgotten.
A spokesperson for Northumbria Police said: “Our thoughts continue to be with the loved ones of Cherry Turner and Craig Jackson following their tragic deaths.
“Following the activity carried out at their address, we conducted an investigation and apologised to Cherry’s family and Craig for failings identified.
“We will now take time to carefully consider the findings of the inquest into Cherry’s death.”
Craig’s dad has now spoken out after his son began refusing dialysis and tragically passed away
The double tragedy stemmed from a bungled police raid that saw Craig arrested for a crime he didn’t commit Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
