Four Doncaster man jailed for over 53 years after assault left a 16-year-old thinking he was going to die

For Detective Inspector Mark Nicholson-Gee and his team that is the mantra that keeps them going day after day as they deal with the various complexities thrown at them in Doncaster's Reactive Criminal Investigation Department (CID).

As the name suggests, it is their job to deal with the incidents that happen in real time and the "reactive" element of their work means they have to think fast and draw up strategies for a whole host of serious crimes that happen across the city.

"We are investigators and detectives who deal with some of the most serious offences committed in our communities," says DI Nicholson-Gee, who heads up the department.

"On a daily basis you don't know what you're going to face, and you've got to be prepared for every eventuality as our job is reactive and we are there to deal with what's coming in.

"It's a real mixed bag but we have to react fast and be ready to coordinate, manage and investigate the serious crimes reported to us.

"That could be anything from a complex fraud investigation to an elderly woman robbed in her home, or a rape in a park to an attempted murder that has left someone with life-changing injuries."

The reactive CID team in Doncaster is made up of four teams, each with a detective sergeant at the helm and around eight staff in each set up.

When a call comes in, the reactive process will involve pulling together an investigation strategy with house-to-house and CCTV enquiries as well as preserving and managing scenes of crime in order to ensure the best forensic evidence is obtained.

There is no one-size-fits-all approach, and every case has its own individual complexities that must be considered and managed by the reactive CID team.

Even the most straightforward of investigations have their challenges and crime dramas portrayed on TV can often paint an unrealistic picture of how police tackle serious crime.

DI Nicholson-Gee said: "The public can watch an hour-long crime drama and see it all wrapped up so quickly but what they don't realise is that these investigations often span days, weeks, months and even years in some cases.

"Evidential thresholds needs to be met for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to approve charges and when you get to court, you've got to prove beyond all reasonable doubt.

"It's a massive burden of proof and people might not realise how much work and evidence is needed to pass that threshold.

"Digital evidence is crucial and mobile phones hold so much data which needs to be forensically analysed. This requires specialist knowledge and isn't always a quick turnaround.

"We have to ensure we cover all aspects of a crime to build together a bundle of evidence.

"There's passive data from CCTV and Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) systems as well as vehicle checks, witness statements, forensic analysis and all the digital opportunities and it's all about pulling that together to satisfy the CPS."

Time constraints and limits on how long suspects are kept in custody are also a big obstacle that must be overcome and often results in teams working overtime to secure the evidence they need.

"Officers will be in day and night doing everything they can to secure the evidence they need," DI Nicholson-Gee said.

"They know it's all hands to the deck and because they have that mindset, they will carry on pushing. They put 100 per cent effort in, they don't give up and they are motivated to get to the end goal of securing justice for victims.”

He continued: "The victims of these horrendous crimes are at the forefront of everything we do and our involvement with them doesn't stop when a case goes to court.

"We are always there to listen to them, keep them updated with the case and ultimately push for justice for them."

Earlier this year, the work of the reactive CID team led to four men being jailed for over half a century after a brutal attack on two young boys in an abandoned warehouse.

John and Robert Mahoney, Kian Carte and Mark Siddall were jailed in early February for a combined total of 53 years and eight months after the assault which left one 16-year-old with injuries so bad he thought he was going to die.

Another sentencing in January 2024 saw Michael Kidd jailed for 14 years after sexual assaulting an elderly woman in her own home, with Doncaster's reactive CID team able to build up a mound of substantial evidence that secured his conviction and lengthy prison sentence.

For DI Nicholson-Gee, it's the "bread and butter" of daily business that ultimately leads to these hefty prison sentences and violent individuals being put behind bars.

But the biggest pride comes from delivering justice for victims and the results achieved is all thanks to the determination and perseverance of a committed team in reactive CID.

"Without their efforts, we wouldn't get the results we've achieved and it's all down to the staff involved in these investigations," DI Nicholson-Gee says.

"Their professionalism, tenacity and passion for the job cannot be understated and I know they feel as proud and inspired as I do when we get justice for victims and their families."

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