Latest Offenders Chester

Description

A PROLIFIC sex offender from Somerford has died four months after being put behind bars.

Peter Bennett, who was 80, had been in Winchester Prison when he fell ill and later died at the citys Royal Hampshire County Hospital on 15th March, the opening of an inquest heard.

Hampshire Coroners Court was told the post-mortem examination found the cause of death to be sepsis, cellulitis and prostate cancer.

The hearing was adjourned and a full inquest is to be held on 3rd August.

As reported in the A&T, the pensioner, of Edward Road, was sent down for five years and 10 months in early December last year at Bournemouth Crown Court by Judge Alastair Malcolm who branded him an adept groomer.

The judge decided to jail him, despite being told Bennett had cancer, because he noted the defendant had committed sex offences stretching back more than five decades and already been ordered to sign the sex offenders register for life.

His latest offence involved him chatting to what he thought was a 12-year-old girl online and encouraging her to have sexual contact with her pet dog and a horse.

But unknown to Bennett, he was actually talking to a paedophile hunter from the vigilante group Stop which subsequently called in another vigilante group to challenge him on his doorstep.

When that happened the group posted a video of the encounter on Facebook which was seen more than 100,000 times.

Bennett was arrested and police also uncovered extreme porn on devices he owned.

He was charged with attempting to incite or cause a girl under the age of 13 to engage in sexualised activity, attempting to communicate with a child in sexualised terms and possessing extreme pornography.

Bennett pleaded guilty to all three matters when he appeared before Judge Malcolm.

At his sentencing, prosecutor Sadie Rizzo said Bennetts offending began in 1963 when he indecently assaulted a female under 14, which resulted in Bennett being locked up.

He reoffended against a female under 16 eight years later and was found in possession of obscene articles, but escaped with a suspended sentence.

The defendants most serious offence, Ms Rizzo outlined, was an incident in 1972 when he grabbed an 18-year-old girl, drove her to a secluded spot and got her to perform sexual acts another offence which landed him in prison.

Bennett also had convictions for indecent exposure in 1969 and in the 1980s, and in 2006 appeared at Bournemouth Crown Court after he was found to have made and distributed more than 340 indecent images of children 68 of which were at the most serious level.

Judge Malcolm said they were serious offences that were exacerbated by the fact he had a long history of offending against children who are underage.

Judge Malcom also told Bennett: You have been a danger to children under 16 for very many years; your first offence was in the 1960s and you have targeted children decade by decade since that time.

As far as you were concerned there was a 12-year-old and you were getting sexual gratification by grooming her and trying to get her to commit offences of bestiality.

You are quite clearly an adept groomer, the judge added.

Description

A menacing would-be rapist from Selsey who cornered a schoolgirl in an alleyway has been jailed for seven years.

Ewing Gilmour, 21, of Sparshott Road, Selsey, approached the teenage girl in Selsey offering her 100 for sex.
When she rejected his offer he stalked her and laid in wait to intercept the youngster.

At Portsmouth Crown Court prosecutor Paul Fairley said Gilmour followed the girl, overtaking her in an alleyway between Manor Road and Manor Lane in Selsey on May 29 last year.

She said no, no, no as she realised Gilmour was about to pounce.
Gilmour, who exposed himself, then grabbed her hair when he failed to pull down her trousers.

He threatened to punch her in the face as she fought wildly to escape his clutches, falling over in the process, the court heard.
The girl, who cannot be named for legal reasons, finally escaped and ran to a nearby home.

Jailing Gilmour for seven years with an extended three-year term, judge William Ashworth said: It was a brazen and determined attempt to rape a vulnerable victim.
He added: You stalked her and cornered her and attacked her.

A sexual harm prevention order bans him from contacting children for life and he must sign the sex offenders register for life.

At trial, Gilmour claimed he had been looking over fences to steal items and that is why the girl was able to identify his underwear as his trousers fell down exposing his FCUK underwear.

Jurors convicted Gilmour of attempted rape on November 19.
The court heard he is a failed Army recruit who was medically discharged.

The Parole Board will have you consider when to release Gilmour, and only when he has served at least two thirds of the seven-year term.
The three-year extended term will be served on licence.

As he was led to the cells Gilmour turned to supporters in the public gallery and blew a kiss toward them.
Investigating officer Steve Holden said: This was an attempt at a serious sexual assault and it was due to the bravery of the victim at the time, that prevented a worse outcome.

The victim has remained strong throughout the legal process, and I would like to thank her for that.
In addition, Id like to thank all the members of the public who provided CCTV and other information at the time and during our investigation.

With their support, a dangerous offender who has shown no remorse for his actions has been identified and imprisoned.

Description

A WINCHESTER man been given a 13-year prison sentence for sexually assaulting a vulnerable woman.

Liam Foard, 31, had initially denied rape and assault by penetration but changed his plea last month.

A judge at Winchester Crown Court said Foard, already a convicted rapist, was a danger to the public and an extended sentence was needed.

Foard, of Wales Street, Winnall, was sent to prison for nine years but an extended licence of four years was added.

He cannot apply to the parole board for release until at least six years into his sentence and there will be none of the usual release at the half way point.

The court heard that Foard has pressed a "self-destruct button" by telling probation staff that he was still a danger to the public.

Foard did not appear in court in person but via a video link from Winchester Prison. He wore grey tracksuit bottoms, a grey Adidas sweatshirt with a shaven head and beard. At first he had declined even to appear by video link.

The court heard that on July 23 last year he had enticed a woman with learning difficulties out of her home at night and assaulted her.

He was arrested the next day and lied to the police but DNA analysis proved his guilt.

Mitigating, Adam Norris told the court about the pre-sentence report: "On any view it is a difficult report to deal with. It is a report where Foard has pressed th self-destruct button. He has descended into a realm of despair, where he appears to be operating beyound the normal boundaries and limits expected to be enforced in society. One doesn't know if it is for survival about what lies ahead or whether he seeks notoriety.

"Foard had decided not to appear in court and yet he does. There is something of the bold statement followed by a somewhat meeker acceptance that appears in his behaviour. There may be a change of heart in due course."

Sentencing, Mr Recorder Christopher Quinlan QC said Foard had a terrible record appearing for sentencing 28 times for 55 offences. He had been convicted in 2013 of raping a woman and only released in 2018.

He said a victim impact statement showed the attack had had a strong effect on the victim. The judge said: "The effects on her life have been profound. She remains scared of you and what you did to her."

The judge said Foard, who has shown no remorse, may have said things to the probation service "to bolster your own self-image through bravado," but said he felt Foard is a danger to others. "It is some time since I have read a pre-sentence report devoid of hope but laced with menace."

He ordered three more minor offences that Foard denied to lie on the file. He will be on the sex offenders register for life.

Description

A convicted rapist sexually assaulted a five-year-old girl on a train in front of her mother while travelling home from prison.

Darren Rothwell, 42, committed the attack just hours after being released from HMP Forest Bank, in Salford, where he had been serving a sentence for harassment and assault.

He boarded a train at Manchester Victoria on the morning of 18 April and intimidated two women travelling with their young children as he swore aggressively at them while drinking from a bottle of brandy and bragging about being released from prison, British Transport Police (BTP) said.

He added that he was on his way to see an ex-partner who had a restraining order against him, and that he would be back in prison within two days.

After making a series of uncomfortable comments to the two women, Rothwell asked the five-year-old girl, one of their daughters, to take her top off and give it to him.

One of the women challenged him on his behaviour, but he went on to try and kiss them both.

Rothwell was overheard telling the women to Google his alias Darren Noonan, which would have revealed online news coverage of his 2009 conviction for rape, sexual activity with a child and child abduction, British Transport Police (BTP) said.

As the train approached Wigan, Rothwell asked the five-year-old daughter of one of the women for a hug.

He then went to pick the child up before he sexually assaulted her in view of her horrified mother, said BTP.

The alarm was raised and Rothwell was quickly identified by officers.

Rothwell, of Scholes, Wigan, was jailed at Bolton Crown Court for 26 months on Friday after he pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to sexual assault.

DC Ian Grice, of BTP, said: Rothwell clearly had absolutely no desire to rehabilitate himself after prison but to sexually assault a five-year-old child before hed even made it home is beyond reprehensible.

He is clearly an exceptionally dangerous individual and I am relieved, as Im sure his victims family will be, to see him back behind bars.

I cant imagine how traumatic this must have been for them and I hope they are now able to begin to put this terrible incident behind them.

Description

A man who raped two women in their sleep has been jailed.

Jordan Nicholson, 23, preyed on his victims on separate occasions in the summer of 2016.

The first victim, 21, was asleep at her home when she woke up to find Nicholson raping her.

The woman pushed him away and screamed at him to stop what he was doing.

She reported Nicholson to Cheshire police a month later, providing officers with a number of social media messages in which she had discussed the incident with him.

The victim also provided messages relating to a similar attack on another woman in August 2016.

When arrested and questioned by police, Nicholson denied raping the women and claimed the sex had been consensual.

Even when Nicholson was presented with the social media messages, he carried on lying about about his crimes.

Yet he changed his plea to guilty at a court hearing on July 12, 2019.

Nicholson, of Boughey Lane, Leigh, was sentenced to six years in prison at Liverpool Crown Court on Tuesday, August 27.

He pleaded guilty to two counts of rape at an earlier hearing.

Detective Constable Jayne Boote said: Sexual assault is a horrific offence, which affects people in the most profound way.

Whilst the victims will never be able to forget what Nicholson subjected them to, I hope his guilty plea and the custodial sentence he has been handed by the courts provides them with some closure and enables them to begin to move forward with their lives.

I also hope that this case and the sentence that Nicholson has received encourages other victims of sexual offences to come forward and report the offences to us.

Cheshire Constabulary takes any allegation of sexual offences extremely seriously.

Any allegation will be thoroughly investigated, with the wishes and needs of the victim as our main priority.

Victims should never feel ashamed to talk about what has happened to them.

They will receive the help and support they need from our specialist officers, as well as from other support agencies we work alongside, and all victims of sexual offences have the right to anonymity.

Description

A doctor who groped a student nurse has been allowed to return to work even though he is still on the sex offenders register.

Dr Imran Qureshi, 46, a married father of two, had been barred from working after being convicted of sexual assault.

He had groped the 21-year-olds breast while seeking a romantic friendship with her.

But he was given the green light to practise again after complaining he was finding it hard on benefits.

At his 2016 trial, hospital locum Dr Qureshi blamed his actions on cultural norms in his native Pakistan and offered the nurse a deep-hearted apology.

He was given a years community order and told to complete 20 days of rehab.

His name will remain on the sex offenders register for another two years. In 2017, the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service barred Dr Qureshi for a year for the assault at Trafford General Hospital in Davyhulme, Gtr Manchester.

They said the locum Senior House Officer had ignored signs the nurse did not welcome his behaviour, adding: Given the length of time youd been in the UK, you should have recognised [her] reluctance in light of your shared cultural understanding.

Dr Qureshi has now re-registered with a locum agency.

After a hearing in November that has only just come to light, the MPTS said: The offence was a single incident some 3 years ago.

There is no evidence to suggest Dr Qureshi offended prior to his conviction, or since.

They said their position was consistent with remarks by the 2016 trial judge that there was no risk for the future.

In its reasons, the MPTS said: The Tribunal consider that the imposition of conditions will allow Dr Qureshi time to further develop his insight into his criminal offence and conviction.

It considered that conditions would permit Dr Qureshi to return to clinical practice and to further remediate while, at the same time, protect patients, and maintain public confidence in the profession.

In the circumstances as they stand today, the Tribunal did not consider that it would be appropriate or proportionate to impose a further period of suspension on Dr Qureshis registration.

MedEcho did not respond to a request for comment.

Description

A paedophile who groomed a 14-year-old girl told police 'I love being a sex offender', a court heard.

Damien Read, 21, from Didsbury, was already known to the courts after being convicted of trying to meet up with a girl after grooming her last year.

Police visited his home to check whether he was complying with a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) previously imposed.

Read, who has learning disabilities, denied having a phone when police asked during the visit in January.

But while they were in the house, officers heard a vibrating sound coming from a cupboard, prosecutor Andrea Lock told Manchester Crown Court.

They found a Nokia phone, which was later found not to be able to connect to the internet.

As part of the SHPO, Read was banned from having any device which could access the internet, unless it could retain its browsing history.

Officers also found a small red box which contained a telephone number.

They called it and a 14-year-old girl answered, who said she was Read's girlfriend.

Police found Read had been having sexualised chats with the girl, and that she had performed a sexual act on herself after he had asked her to.

The girl, who was said to be 'vulnerable', had received a friend request from Read on Facebook. She told Read her true age, while he lied and said he was also 14.

She sent him a picture of herself, which he described as 'really hot and sexy'.

The girl told Read that 'she wanted children with him', the court heard.

When he was arrested, Read said 'I love being above the law', 'I love being a sex offender' and 'I love speaking to schoolgirls'.

Officers found that Read had a card for Withington Library.

Read had visited the library almost daily before being arrested in January, and officers investigating CCTV footage found him performing a sex act upon himself while using a computer.

He could have been charged with an offence of indecent exposure, Ms Lock said, but there were no other members of the public in the area of the library at the time.

Read has previous convictions for sexual offences, including in 2015 for sexual activity with a boy, and he also previously breached a court order.

But he was spared jail for his latest offences, after a judge said there was 'exceptional circumstances' and that Read had 'strong personal mitigation'.

Defending, Andrew Evans said that due to his learning disabilities, Read has a habit of saying 'inappropriate' things, as well as having an 'inbuilt propensity to lie'.

'He lies about innocuous things for no good reason,' Mr Evans added.

But while in prison on remand, where he has spent the last seven months, Read made 'full disclosures' to other prisoners about why he was in custody, the court heard.

As a result he was 'repeatedly assaulted', the court heard.

Reports submitted to the court described Read as 'immature bordering on childlike', while another said he 'struggles to learn lessons and apply what he has been told.

Apparently referring to the terms of his SHPO, Read told a probation officer: 'I am sick of being told what I can and can't do.'

Sentencing, Judge David Stockdale QC told Read: 'You were well aware of the terms of the sexual harm prevention order.

Apparently referring to the terms of his sexual harm prevention order, Read told a probation officer: 'I am sick of being told what I can and can't do.'

'You were able to recite the terms of it, so familiar were you with those terms.

'You have demonstrated a defiance for court orders and court process.

'You were to tell the police on your arrest 'I love being a sex offender' and 'I love being above the law'.'

'In other words you think that you are above the law, and when the law steps in to prevent you from committing sexual offences, as soon as you physically can do so, you re-offend.

'You are well aware of the criminal nature of your offences. You know what you are doing is wrong.'

But judge said Read's offences were 'significantly mitigated' by his learning difficulties.

He said there was 'exceptional circumstances' in the case, which would allow him to pass a suspended sentence.

The judge said there was strong personal mitigation and the chance of rehabilitation, after being told that Read would receive one to one support in secure accommodation.

Read admitted offences of communicating with a child under 16 for the purpose of sexual gratification, breaching a sexual harm prevention order and intentionally causing or inciting a 14-year-old girl to engage in sexual activity.

He received a 20 month jail term, suspended for two years.

As part of a new sexual harm prevention order which will run indefinitely, Read cannot enter a public library unless he gives prior notice and the visit is approved by the authorities.

Description

A Salford man has been jailed after an investigation into non-recent child sexual abuse.

Andrew Austin (03/11/1967), of Sumner Road, Irlam o’th Heights , has yesterday (Monday 29 July 2019) been sentenced at Manchester Crown Court to 26 years in prison. He previously pleaded guilty to-

• Four counts of rape
• Six counts of indecent assault
• Two counts of indecency with a child
• One count of sexual assault

He will also have to sign the sex offenders register for life.

Between 1998 and 2004, at a number of properties in Salford, Austin sexually abused four victims who were aged between eight and 16 at the time.

In August 2018, relatives of one of the victims – along with a charity worker – came forward to police and a full investigation was launched with Austin arrested.

During police interview Austin denied all offences but admitted his crimes before the case went to trial.

Description

A man who cloned a bodybuilder's Facebook profile so he could target and sexually abuse a boy has been jailed.

Brandon Cooper, 24, cloned the account of a well-known local bodybuilder and sent messages of a sexual nature to the boy, who was under the age of 13.

The victim's father became aware of the messages and alerted police in August.

Cooper, of Brook House Avenue, Eccles, pleaded guilty to inciting a child to commit a sexual act and was jailed for 16 months at Manchester Crown Court.

Cooper used a fake name and Facebook profile "to gain the trust of the young victim", Greater Manchester Police said.

'Veil his identity'

The victim's father became concerned about messages of a sexual nature, which his son had received on social media.

The court heard how the man Cooper had impersonated was initially arrested but was quickly eliminated by detectives.

Det Con Tina Jackson said the "resilience" of the boy was "remarkable" but "Cooper's actions could easily have robbed a young person of his childhood".

"In impersonating an innocent man in an attempt to veil his identity and sadistically lure the young victim in, Cooper spared no thought for the consequences of his actions and the damage he could have done to another, innocent person's life.

Cooper was ordered to sign the sex offenders register for 10 years and is subject to a sexual harm prevention order indefinitely.

Description

A former police officer abused his position by collecting thousands of images of female officers and police cadets as young as 12, before posting manipulated sexualised pictures on sick paedophile websites, a court heard.

Christopher Dunn, 33, was told his actions had 'undermined public confidence in Greater Manchester Police', as he was jailed for four years and four months.

While working as a cadet leader Dunn led a 'double life', taking pictures of young and often 'vulnerable' cadets for his own sexual pleasure.

On some occasions he even manipulated pictures of young girls to make them sexualised, before posting them to online networks for the pleasure of other paedophiles.

He also did the same with adult female police officers, either taking pictures or collecting them from social media and sometimes manipulating them before uploading them to sick porn websites.

Manchester Crown Court heard that Dunn, from Salford, had been amassing thousands of images of women since he started full time at GMP in January 2014, storing them in 'organised' folders on his computer.He had done the same before he joined GMP, when he worked at the Trafford Centre.

In total Dunn collected images of 46 women aged between 12 and 44.

His offending was uncovered after an alert was triggered because he uploaded indecent images of children.

When his computers and mobile phones were examined, he was also found to have more than 100,000 indecent images of children in his possession.

After being arrested, Dunn said: "I'm not like one of those paedophiles who touch children. They make me sick.

He added: "My life is effectively over. It's over, there is no way back from all of this."

A judge said that Dunn's crimes had 'undermined the fabric of the police service' and damaged the credibility of GMP.

Sentencing, Mr Justice Bryan told him: "You were in a position of trust and responsibility in relation to young, and often vulnerable police cadets.

"You betrayed that trust in harvesting pictures of them for your own personal gratification, and posting them on paedophile websites for the sexual gratification of others who shared your unhealthy interest in young females.

"Those young cadets will have to live with what you have done for the rest of their lives."

The judge added: "Your behaviour has caused long lasting damage to your fellow officers and their families.

"It is almost beyond belief that someone could have distributed pseudo-images of their colleagues and their children on pornographic websites, but that is exactly what you have done."

The judge said statements he had read from victims were 'painful reading', saying they told how they feel 'humiliated and violated'.

The court heard that Dunn, who has no previous convictions, graduated with a computing degree in 2007.

Later that year he found work at the Trafford Centre, where he collected 998 pictures from social media of an adult woman who he knew through his job.

Prosecuting, Rob Hall said that was not a criminal offence but it 'foreshadowed' what was to come.

In February 2009, Dunn became a special constable at GMP. He is said to have performed well and was nominated for Special Constabulary Annual Gala Award.

Meanwhile he collected 1,800 images of three other adult women, who he knew from his old job at the Trafford Centre.

In May 2012 he tried and failed to join GMP as a full time officer, a process which put him in the company of female police officers.

From the following year, he started to collect images of women and girls who he knew through the Trafford Centre, GMP or through the cadets.

As he became a full time student police officer in January 2014 he was continuing to collect images of colleagues, as well as download indecent images of children.

He first started collecting pictures of police cadets in November 2015. Many of the cadets were said to have come from 'troubled homes' and were 'vulnerable'.

In May 2017 Dunn started a relationship with a fellow police officer. She was unaware of his double life, and he continued his offending during their relationship.

After becoming a cadet leader, Dunn was given a GMP award in recognition of the 'commitment and dedication' to his role, with the force unaware of his crimes.

He continued to abuse his position, collecting hundreds of images of his victims.

In October last year, Dunn uploaded an indecent image of a child which led to an online alert to the authorities.

But he still continued his sick behaviour.

In February police executed a warrant at Dunn's home, where he is said to have 'appeared nervous'. He was formally sacked from GMP in May.

In interviews he told officers that he had been addicted to legal pornography since the age of 16, and that he became interested in illegal pornography by 2013.

He said he had developed a split personality, one that was seen by the public and the other that was private to himself online.

Dunn also admitted having recorded videos of girls at his local supermarket.

Saying he was remorseful and that he needed help, Dunn added: "I regret what's happened and I am going to use this situation to turn things around."

In total Dunn collected more than 3,600 images of police cadets, and more than 7,500 images of colleagues.

He had also downloaded more than 20,000 indecent images of children, with a further 100,000 indecent images which prosecutors said had not been classified because it wasn't in the public interest to pursue them.

Defending, Colin Buckle said Dunn was 'socially awkward' as a young person and that he found it difficult to maintain 'age appropriate' relationships with women.

At university he lived at home and didn't engage with fellow students, Mr Buckle said, with Dunn instead turning to illegal pornography.

Mr Buckle said that Dunn's parents were not in court to see him being sentenced as they 'simply cannot face the enormity of his position'.

Police Inspector Natasha Evans told the court that the 'most heartbreaking' result of Dunn's offending was that a young cadet said if they ever got into trouble 'I will not call the police as I don't trust them'.

Dunn, of Moss Lane, Swinton, pleaded guilty to six counts of making indecent images of children, two counts of misconduct in a public office and two counts of possessing indecent images for distribution.

He will have to sign the sex offender's register for life, and is also banned from working with vulnerable children or adults for life.

After the hearing, Amanda Rowe, regional director of the Independent Office of Police Conduct which managed the investigation, said: "Swift action has been taken by the court in jailing Christopher Dunn for these most shocking and serious of crimes. 

"In overseeing this investigation by Greater Manchester Police, our joint work has ensured this former officer, who had no place in public office, is no longer a danger to the local community. 

"Christopher Dunn’s actions do not reflect the integrity of hard-working, honest police, and the public can be confident that there is no place for his behaviour in any police force."

Description

A 'hard-working' grandad of previous 'impeccable character' who said he downloaded sick images of children being sexually abused because he was 'curious' has avoided jail.

Alan Crabtree, 72, was found to have saved 85 indecent images of children onto his two mobile phones - 13 of these were classed as category A, the worst serverity.

The retired miner, who has lived in Salford all his life, said looking at the disturbing images became a 'compulsion'.

He said he initially used social media to find the pictures out of curiosity.

His family, who described him as a 'loving and supportive father', knew nothing of his shameful secret until cops came knocking at the door of the family home and seized his personal devices.

At Manchester Crown Court, Crabtree admitted three charges of making indecent photographs of children.

But he walked free with a 12-month community order after a judge said he was 'astonished' to see a man of his character commit this type of crime.

The offences - which took place between April 2015 and December 2017 - came to light when police received intelligence from the National Crime Agency.

Prosecutor Juliet Berry said: "After receiving the information, police attended at his address on 8 December 2017 and executed a warrant.

"They seized two laptops and two mobile phones - one Acer phone and one Samsung phone.

"He was interviewed and admitted that the images could be found on the phones."

Crabtree's lawyer, Suzanne Hargreaves, told the sentence hearing how her client was 'deeply ashamed' of what he had done.

She said he made full admissions to his family and has already taken steps towards rehabilitation.

"He was born and bred in Salford and is a hard-working man dedicated to his family", Ms Hargraves added.

"He worked in the mines. He then took up any work that was available and worked his whole life until retirement.

"He and his wife are now retired. He is a carer for her."

Crabtree avoided a custodial sentence with the judge saying his hitherto impeccable character meant he could be rehabilitated in the community.

Passing sentence, Recorder Geoffrey Lowe, said: "It's astonishing to see a man of your background in this situation.

"These are not victimless offences. The children whose photos are taken are abused.

"Some of these images reflect the most serious sexual abuse of these children.

"You regarded this as something that started out as a curiosity then became a compulsion.

"You have shown remorse and sought to seek assistance. This is a blemish on an otherwise exemplary record.

"If these matters are addressed there is no reason why you cannot go back to being the hard-working and respectful man you was."

Crabtree was handed a 12-month community order made up of 20 rehabilitation activity requirement days.

He must sign the Sex Offenders Register for five years.

He was also made subject to a sexual harm prevention order, which will limit his access to the internet.

Description

Stuart Keay jailed for string of sex offences against girls as young as six

Stuart Richard Keay, aged 48, of Baring Close, Itchen Abbas, was found guilty of 15 charges, which included counts of rape, indecent assault, inciting a child to commit an act of gross indecency and sexual activity with a child.

It follows a three week trial at Winchester Crown court.

Keay faced 16 charges against him relating to girls aged between six and 17-years-old who he abused in Winchester, Eastleigh and Denmead between 1992 and 2018.

Keay was brought to trial after three victims who had suffered years of abuse at his hands came forward to police last year. Judge Jane Miller QC sentence Keay to 24 years in prison.

Detective Constable Naomi Stocker, who led Operation Amberstone, she said: This was a huge investigation that took us back to 1992 when Keays offending began, right the way to 2018, when his offending finally ceased due the bravery of his victims to speak out.

This was a truly appalling case of abuse, which took place over many years. I am overwhelmed by the bravery of the victims in coming forward and reporting what had happened to them. I want to commend them and thank them for their help in convicting Keay, a very dangerous and manipulative man. No amount of jail time will make up for what has he has done, but I hope this serves to at least offer the victims some closure, and a chance to move on with their lives.

Description

A PERVERT jailed for preying on young boys while he was a teacher in the Kidderminster area has been sentenced for further offences.

Jonathan O'Brien, 61, spent more than a decade grooming young boys while he taught at Winterfold House School as well as schools in West Sussex and Oxfordshire during the 1980s and 1990s.

Twisted O'Brien was already serving time for sexual offences against young boys when he was convicted for the second time last month.

It took the victim more than 20 years to report the traumatic events which happened while he was a teenage student and O'Brien was a teacher at Seaford College, Petworth in West Sussex in 1992.

It was revealed just a handful of years earlier O'Brien indecently assaulted male students up to 170 miles away in Worcestershire and Oxfordshire.

In 2014, O'Brien was found guilty of sexually abusing pupils in his care during the 1980s - including five charges of gross indecency and 15 counts of indecent assault, all of which he had denied and he was cleared of two further indecent assaults.

Twelve of the offences were committed against seven boys at Winterfold House School - where he taught subjects including sports and photography - between 1980 and 1985 and the others were committed against three pupils at The Oratory School, near Reading, between 1985 and 1989.

Police Constable Yvonne Daddow said the former teacher pretended to have an interest in computers to groom the young boy, who kept the distressing experiences to himself.

She said: "This offending came to light when the victim contacted us for the first time in 2017.

"Having courageously come forward he supported our investigation and was ready to give evidence in court if necessary.

"It became clear that O'Brien had used an allegedly mutual interest in computers to in effect gradually 'groom' the boy into sexual activity, in O'Brien's study at the school and his home in Oxfordshire.

"The boy kept the distressing experiences to himself for more than 20 years until an chance family discussion to some media coverage on the general subject of sexual offending triggered him into coming forward.

"This case is another example of the way in which we will always take such reports seriously, no matter how long ago they relate to, and will seek to help achieve justice for victims wherever possible."

It was added that Seaford College has cooperated with the investigation by West Sussex Safeguarding Investigations Unit and the indecent assaults are unconnected with current or recent management of the school and it's pupils.

O'Brien pleaded guilty to two counts of indecent assault when he appeared at Guildford Crown Court on May 24.

The former teacher, from Bosham, West Sussex, denied two further counts of indecent assault on the same boy, which will lay on the court file.

He was handed two and-a-half years to run concurrently to a previous sentence relating to sexual assaults against boys in Kidderminster and Oxfordshire.

He was sentenced to 13 years at Chichester Crown Court in 2014 for the vile attacks which happened between 1980 and 1989.

He was also placed on the Sex Offenders Register for life and handed a Sexual Offence Prevention Order (SOPO) which severely restricts his contact with any children.

Description

Reportedly living in Blackpool

A pervert unwittingly sent footage of himself performing a sex act to an undercover police officer, wrongly thinking he was talking to a 13-year-old girl.

Jack Burton, 24, from Rochdale, chatted on Kik messenger and Skype asking the 'teenager' what she does at sleepovers and if she sleeps naked, a court heard.

He later sent a video of himself performing a sex act.

Burton believed he was in conversation with a young teenager, but it was in fact an undercover police officer.

Burton, of Hanover Street, Rochdale, pleaded guilty to charges of attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child and attempting to cause a child to look at images of sexual activity.

The prosecution argued that the case exhibited grooming behaviour. Burton's defence team said he has since been on a rehabilitation course and no longer uses Kik or Skype.

Manchester Magistrates' Court heard on Tuesday how the defendant contacted the 'girl' in January last year and asked if she had 'ever been drunk, what she does at sleepovers and if she sleeps naked'.

This then spiralled and he sent a video of himself performing a sex act on February 2.

Burton's defence lawyer, Andrew Davidson, in mitigation argued that the defendant has no previous convictions. 

He said: "He has been on a rehabilitation course to analyse the issues which led to this event. He has completed that successfully. He hasn't accessed these messaging services subsequently."

Mr Davidson added: "It is important to emphasise that those (guideline) sentences are for an actual victim. There was no actual victim."

The probation team were granted a week's adjournment to prepare a full pre-sentence report. 

Burton, who was released on unconditional bail, will appear again before magistrates on Tuesday, February 19.

Description

A boastful sex offender who masturbated in front of a 12-year-old girl and filmed her as she wore a body stocking has been jailed today.

Carl Hodgson, 28, spent the night with the victim, whom he thought was 19, after they met on a dating app, but the pair did not have sex.

A court heard he shared indecent photos of her on social media and bragged to friends he "nailed" her.

In other sick messages, Hodgson also described the girl as "filth".

The former office worker was today sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison after pleaded guilty to causing or inciting a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity, engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child, distributing an indecent photograph of a child and making indecent photographs of a child.

Sentencing the sex offender today, Judge David Stockdale QC, the Recorder of Manchester, told him: "(The victim) was by reason of her age highly vulnerable to exploitation and she was no doubt impressed by you.

"This is most serious offending as you now fully appreciate. The effects on a child of such a young age of offending of this sort are really well too known and well too documented. These effects, in many cases, last for the rest of the child's life.

"I take into account that while (the victim) was 12 years of age at the time of these offences you did not believe that to be the case. You thought, and on reasonable grounds, that she was over 16."

Manchester Crown Court heard the victim used a different name on her dating app profile and falsely stated she was 19.

Hodgson made one moving image of the girl and also captured three still images of her on his phone while at his flat in Castlefield, Manchester.

He also messaged a friend, saying "Mine was decent. Nailed that bird, unreal bod" and also described her as "filth".

But the prosecution offered no evidence of rape and Judge Stockdale ordered a formal not guilty verdict be returned.

No evidence was also offered against single counts of grooming and child abduction.

Alexander Leach, defending, said Hodgson's comments were "simply male bravado and bragging" and he had not had sexual intercourse with the girl.

"Effectively Carl Hodgson was not aware he was engaging in any sexual activity with a child. He did not intend to engage in sexual activity with a child and could not have appreciated the particular vulnerability of the child, nor the disparity in age to its criminal extent.

"He must have known she was significantly younger than him but he believed her to be older than 16 years old," he added.

"He is genuinely ashamed and remorseful for the circumstances he finds himself in but does not seek to minimise his behaviour.

"The defendant is regarded by those who know him as honest, trustworthy, industrious, loyal and charitable. Those who know him better say these proceedings have had a profound effect on him. He has lost his employment, his home and has suffered the inevitable stigma brought with offending of this sort."

The victim has been seen by a consultant psychologist and a social worker and was shown to be in a "withdrawn state" and unable or unwilling to communicate.

He added though there were no significant signs she had suffered post-traumatic stress disorder, serious anxiety or depression but it was "inevitable she will suffer in the long term as a consequence of the offending".

Hodgson was also banned from contacting the victim and ordered to sign the Sex Offender Register for life.