Latest Offenders Durham

Description

A predator took advantage of a young girl’s “vulnerability”, growing in his bravado as he committed a series of increasingly serious sexual offences against her, a court was told.

Allen March was said to have been aware that the girl had been the victim of online grooming and was at a low in her life.

Durham Crown Court heard that the first inkling she received of his unwanted attention was when he sent her a message commenting on her body and breasts, which his victim now believes was the defendant seeing, “what he could get away with”.

March moved on to touching offences before he raped the girl for the first time prior to her 13th birthday.

Joe Cully, prosecuting, said the defendant's abuse of the girl continued for several years, before his victim finally gained the courage to speak up about his activities, having feared for a long time that she would not be believed.

The 58-year-old defendant, of Orchard Street, Crook, was charged with 18 sexual offences, including five of rape.

Despite his denials and claims that his victim was lying, he was convicted of all 18 offences following a week-long trial at the court in May.

The former taxi driver appeared back before the court via video link from nearby Durham Prison for today’s sentencing hearing.

Mr Cully said that important evidence emerged during the trial of March having sent a photograph of his private parts to another child and to a 17-year-old female passenger in his taxi.

The abuse victim’s impact statement was read to the court in which she said she was a “really vulnerable kid” when she first encountered March.

She said she suffered from low-esteem and had self-harmed as a result of his actions, which had badly affected her education.

In addition, she said she has suffered nightmares and flashbacks, and is nervous in the presence of men, refusing to answer the door to male delivery drivers or go alone in taxis or on public transport.

Chris Baker, for March, said he had no previous convictions, but added: “He has had his trial and knows there is no mitigation that can be put forward.”

Mr Baker said the defendant has his own health issues and “physical ailments” which he will have to endure during his, “very lengthy imprisonment.”

Judge James Adkin told March that he began grooming the girl from a young age and his complimentary message about her physique would appear to have been, “testing the water”.

The judge said some of the evidence heard about the sexual abuse of the victim, during the trial, was, “harrowing to listen to.”

Judge Adkin told March: “It’s said you’re previously of good character, but the more serious the offending, the less weight that holds.”

Sentencing him as, “an offender of particular concern”, he imposed the 23-year prison sentence with a one-year licence extension.

The result is that March will have to serve at least two-thirds of the 23 years, almost 16 years, before he will be eligible for release on licence.

He was made subject of a restraining order, relating to the victim, and registration as a sex offender, both for life, while he will also have to abide by the terms of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for 30 years.

Description

The full scale of a couples depravity only came to light when they were caught by a paedophile hunting group after they groomed a teenager for sex.

A search of Amy Scott and Gavin Marsdens home revealed they had a vile collection of child abuse videos and photographs many of which were recorded by the pair.

Teesside Crown Court heard how the sick Darlington couple had sexually abused a number of children over several years before they were finally brought to justice.

Christine Egerton, prosecuting, said that their reign of abuse came to an end when Scott started sending a 14-year-old girl sexually explicit messages and videos without realising she was talking to a decoy posing as a child.

She said Scott sent the girl a video of herself performing a sex act before encouraging her to do it to herself.

Scott then arranged for the pair to meet the teenager at Durham Railway Station in April last year but they were confronted by members of the paedophile hunting group who had already called the police.

Following their arrest, police searched their home and recovered several digital devices and a forensic examination revealed the full extent of their depraved behaviour.

Miss Egerton said a significant number of child abuse images were recovered as well as a series of messages between the pair encouraging each other to sexually assault children.

Marsden, 31, and 32-year-old Scott, both of Cobden Street, Darlington, pleaded guilty to a catalogue of sex abuse charges, including distribution of indecent images of children, possession of indecent images of children and attempting to engage in sexual behaviour with a child.

Caroline McGurk, representing Marsden, said her client lived in a "fantasy land" and accepted that he had previous convictions for child sex offences.

He has acknowledged that he continues to have sexual thoughts towards children, she said.

In his pre-sentence report, he denied it in one breath and then expressed remorse with the next. We have to accept that he is a dangerous offender.

And Robert Mochrie, representing Scott, said his client was of low intelligence and had been influenced by her partner to commit the offences.

Judge Chris Smith branded Marsden as the driving force behind the couples sickening child sex abuse campaign.

He said: An examination of digital devices seized after your arrest uncovered a shocking catalogue of child abuse committed by the pair of you over a long period of time."

He said that a WhatsApp conversation between the pair revealed Marsden requesting that Scott should photograph herself performing a sickening sex act with a very young child.

He added: Other indecent moving and still images recovered after your arrest reveal how you were involved at first hand in the sexual abuse of children and in the making and possessing of child pornography.

Marsden was given a 22-year sentence 16 years in custody followed by an additional six years on extended licence.

Scott was given a 15-year sentence 11 years in custody and a further four years on extended licence.

Description

A sick pervert was found with a horrific stash of more than 10,000 of the most serious indecent images of children - where some of the victims were just babies.

First-time sex offender George Jeffries has been locked up for 15 months after he was found with more than 35,000 indecent images of children and five videos - which showed a sex act being performed with a dog.

Teesside Crown Court heard how some of the videos were an hour long and include vulnerable children and even babies.

Jeffries, 50, was found by police at his Stockton home after his IP address was flagged as having downloaded indecent images of children. When officers arrived, Jeffries had been asleep on the sofa, with his laptop open and downloading files with titles which suggested child abuse.

Uzma Khan, prosecuting, said: "The officer stopped the download and shut down the laptop. There was no one else in the address. The defendant appeared to live alone."

The images and videos downloaded dated back to 2019 when officers attended his home in November 2021. "There were a number of videos that were over an hour in length," Ms Khan added.

Recorder Jamie Hill said the images were described as "the worse possible type in category A". Jeffries has 13 previous convictions for 36 offences dating back to 1987 but he's been out of trouble with the court for 23 years.

Dr Chris Wood, mitigating, said: "Clearly the report suggests he is a man who thinks well in terms of currency and finances. He doesn't have a lifestyle with issues with drugs and alcohol that can cause an inability to comply."

"It's unusual for a man who is 50 not to have anything [on his record] of this nature before... to go from nothing to this is a considerable leap."

The court heard how Jeffries had been in prison since May when he failed to attended the crown court. "He has had a taste of what prison life is like," added Dr Wood.

Jeffries admitted three counts of making indecent images of children after he was found with:

• 20,220 category C images,
• 5,303 category B images,
• 10,308 category A images - the most serious.

He also admitted possessing an extreme pornographic image - namely five videos which portrayed a sex act on a dog "which was grossly offensive, disgusting or otherwise of an obscene".

"People who indulge in the sort of behaviour you did over the period of two years are providing a market there for those who commit child abuse physically and seek to profit from it," said Recorder Hill.

He outlined that some of the children in the images were very young, including babies.

Jeffries, of Skinner Street, Stockton, was jailed for 15 months. He has also been made subject to a 10-year sexual harm prevention order and will be on the Sex Offender's Register for a decade.

Description

A County Durham paedophile who produced and distributed child sexual abuse images over Facebook has been caged.

Andrew Longthorne began chatting to strangers on social media - one of whom was a convicted sex offender - and sent them horrific child abuse images and videos between 2016 and 2018. The 34-year-old discussed sexual fantasies with those he chatted to online and sent over category A, B and C material - some of which he had created himself.

On Monday, Longthorne, of Spennymoor, appeared at Durham Crown Court via video link from HMP Durham to be sentenced for charges relating to the production of indecent images and distribution of indecent images. He had pleaded guilty to the offences.

Anne Richardson, prosecuting, said Durham Police received a number of referrals relating to the uploading of indecent images to Facebook in 2018. An IP address was recovered which linked Longthorne to the distribution and inquiries were made.

The court was told that Longthorne used social media profiles in other names to send photographs to strangers, including to one who was a convicted sex offender. On one occasion he masqueraded as a young girl to enter into chats.

As well as indecent images, Ms Richardson said Longthorne sent pictures of himself during the chats and was finally arrested in 2018. He initially denied the offences and claimed not to have a sexual interest in children but later pleaded guilty on his first appearance at the crown court.

Victoria Lamballe, defending, said Longthorne's best mitigation were his guilty pleas and that he had not re-offended since 2018. She said: "He has shown disgust and shame at his own actions and there is obvious remorse. He is willing to comply with any orders and is determined to reduce the risk he's thought to pose in the future."

Sentencing Longthorne, Judge Ata Dallas jailed him for 31 months and made him subject of an indefinite sexual harm prevention order. He will also be on the sex offender's register for life.

Description

A respected academic has been jailed for arranging to meet what he believed to be a 14-year-old boy for a sexual encounter weeks after taking up a post at Durham University.

Dushmanta Kara, who left behind a wife and child when he came to the UK to take up the position in Durham, made contact with a profile ‘TwinkFreeNow’ on the online gay dating site Grindr, on April 25, the day it was posted.

Durham Crown Court heard the profile, with a picture of a boy with short dark hair, was, in reality, a decoy generated by an undercover police officer.

The court was told that although purporting to be aged 18, the minimum age for Grindr users, the decoy soon revealed to Kara that he was 14, as there is no age verification required to use the site.

Paul Newcombe, prosecuting, told the court the defendant’s profile indicated he was just four kilometres away from the location of the police operative posing as the boy.

Kara sent a picture to the decoy of his naked upper body and they discussed sexual activity they would like to perform on each other.

The ‘boy’ told Kara that he was “new to it” but told him he was free that night and alone at home, so they arranged to meet.

Mr Newcombe said they exchanged photographs of each other and they were able to track each other's locations as they made their way to the rendezvous site, in Gilesgate, Durham.

But on arrival at the meeting point, Kara was arrested.

He told police he had been using Grindr since his arrival in the UK in February and accepted being involved in the exchange of messages in which he said they had discussed, “kissing, cuddling and oral sex”.

But Kara claimed he believed the boy to be aged 18, although he accepted the profile picture posted by the decoy looked younger than that.

By the time of his first crown court appearance, on May 26, however, the 31-year-old defendant, of Steavenson Street, Bowburn, admitted charges of arranging or facilitating the commission of a child sex offence and attempting to meet a child following sexual grooming.

He appeared at court for sentencing today (Thursday, July 13) assisted by a Hindi interpreter.

Mark Styles, in mitigation, told the court that having spoken to the defendant about his situation: “The reality is this has had the most enormous impact on him.”

Referring to character references presented to the court by fellow academics, Mr Styles said: “He’s clearly highly thought of by his peers.

“He has a dependent wife and young child and the impact on them is profound.

“He has lost his good name and lost his post at Durham University, having been dismissed in early June, which has left him on limited resources.

“He was very isolated, lonely and vulnerable in the UK, having arrived in February, knowing no one.

“He was naïve in the extreme to get involved in this criminal offending.

“The possibility of a 14-year-old with a household available for sexual activity seems barely credible, but he was drawn in by the decoy.

“He’s anxious to return to his home country and to start afresh.

“He’s been in regular contact with his wife.”

Judge James Adkin told the defendant that when told the ‘boy’ was 14, “that didn’t seem to be a problem" to him.

“Penetrative sex was contemplated by you when you arranged to meet the police decoy in Gilesgate, where you were arrested.”

Referring to the latest sentencing guidelines for the offences admitted by Kara, with a starting point of five years and a range from four to ten years, Judge Adkin said: “There has been a hardening of attitudes to this sort of offending.”

But he said there should only be a small deduction for the fact the boy did not actually exist, in circumstances such as this case.

He said mitigating features were the defendant’s previous good character, his prompt admissions at crown court and the respect he has in the academic community.

Description

A pensioner found guilty of child sexual offences has been put behind bars.

Henry Devine was initially arrested in February 2021 on suspicion of sexual touching of a child. While enquiries were carried out into the allegations, Cleveland Police seized a number of electronic devices belonging to the 72-year-old and discovered over 1,600 indecent images of children.

Hundreds of the images were identified in the 'most serious category' of child abuse. The Norton paedophile appeared at Teesside Crown Court on Friday where he was sentenced after being found guilty of sexual assault and possessing indecent images of children.

A three-day trial had taken place in mid-May at Teesside Magistrates' Court where Devine faced six charges, three of sexual assault and another three of possessing indecent images of children and was found guilty. He was sentenced to 30 months imprisonment when he appeared at Teesside Magistrates' Court.

Officer in the case CAVA (Child Abuse and Vulnerable Adult) Detective Constable Gemma Allan said: “The young victim was understandably left extremely distressed by Devine’s actions and we ensured safeguarding was put in place as soon as we received the report. The victim was very brave though and was able to give officers an account which meant we could get our enquiries underway quickly and effectively.

“I hope today’s result will bring reassurance that Devine will now be in prison and subject to strictly monitored restrictions on his release.” Safeguarding CAVA Detective Chief Inspector Matt Murphy-King added: “Devine’s actions were deplorable and our priority, as with all our investigations, was the wellbeing and safeguarding of the victim while we worked with the CPS to bring this defendant before the courts.

“CAVA’s experienced and specially trained officers will always carry out a thorough, professional and sensitive investigation against anyone who would harm and abuse vulnerable people. Abuse of any nature, recent or non-recent, can be reported at any time of day or night to Cleveland Police online on the website or via the 101 number.”

Description

A convicted sex offender is back behind bars after he started using social media accounts and dating sites despite being banned from accessing them.

Neil McLean was made subject of a ten-year sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) after he was convicted after trying to groom a 12-year-old girl before being snared by her quick-thinking grandmother.

The 41-year-old pervert was caught after the youngster’s grandmother turned amateur detective and took over the online conversation as it became increasingly sexualised and secured more than 100-pages of illicit chat.

As part of his three years and four-month sentence, McLean was also banned from using dating sites and social media platforms to protect vulnerable young children from his predatory behaviour in 2016.

Rachel Masters, prosecuting, said the defendant was arrested when a risk management inspection found he had accessed a number of specialist dating websites as well as Facebook over a two-week period.

Police carried out a forensic investigation of his mobile phone and discovered the defendant had used it in breach of his SHPO.

Dealing with his previous offence, she said: “A 12-year-old girl received a Facebook friend request, he made reference to what she was wearing and she replied by telling him to ‘f*** off’ before the conversation was taken over by her grandmother and there was 100 pages of sexualised messages between them.”

Following his arrest on that occasion police found pictures of child abuse on his phone, and children’s and adult female underwear in his flat.

Miss Masters said the defendant was also caught in a vigilante sting in 2018 when he made contact with a decoy 14-year-old girl and he arranged to meet up with her.

McLean, of Grange Road, Darlington, pleaded guilty to three breaches of his sexual harm prevention order between May 22 and June 6 this year.

James Fenny, mitigating, said his client had been feeling lonely and isolated at the time of the offences.

Judge Howard Crowson sentenced McLean to 16 months in custody for the persistent offending over the two-week period.

He said: “On this occasion there was no evidence you made contact with children but with Facebook being used there was a risk of harm to children.”

Description

A prolific sexual predator who committed a catalogue of depraved offences against children and young women has received a 30-year prison sentence.

Jay Stephen Perren, formerly known as Stephen Jardine, a self-confessed “evil monster” with a sexual interest in children, has left a series of victims traumatised by his devious and sustained offending.

Teesside Crown Court heard that Perren filmed many of his crimes and logged the offending footage and images into computer memory card folders compiled under the names of the victims and their home locations, as far away as South Wales.

In some cases, the victims were unaware of the offending until police called to reveal what had taken place to them, while it is thought they were sleeping or heavily intoxicated by the defendant.

The 34-year-old former pub DJ, previously of Stockton, but living most recently on bail in Nottingham, admitted 25 offences.

They included five counts of rape, including on a child under 12-months-old, sexual assault of a child under 13, two counts of causing or inciting child prostitution or pornography, three counts of causing or inciting a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity, sexual assault, sexual activity with a child, causing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent, three counts of making indecent images of a child, six counts of taking indecent images of a child and two counts of breaching a sexual harm prevention order.

These offences were committed over a number of years and documented in 33,000 images and videos which were stored in 140 folders on an SD card.

Paul Reid, prosecuting, said Perren has served three past prison sentences for sexual offences, one after inquiries into the latest convictions were already under way.

He read a succession of statements from Perren’s victims, with one choosing to address the court herself, and all spoke of the ongoing trauma and psychological damage caused by the defendant.

Several stated they could no longer trust men or were fearful in the presence of men.

Victoria Lamballe, in mitigation, said her client made relatively early admissions, sparing his victims from the prospect of having to appear at trial and give evidence at court.

She said much of the offending was committed when the defendant was in his early 20s and she added that he now has far more insight into the harm he has caused.

Judge Paul Watson KC, the Recorder of Middlesbrough, described Perren’s offending as, “depraved and deplorable” and said many of his victim’s lives have been “profoundly affected” by his activities.

In passing an extended determinate sentence of 30 years, it means Perren must serve at least two-thirds, 20 years, behind bars before being eligible for release on licence by the Parole Board, but he may have to spend all three decades behind bars.

Upon his release and at the end of the 30 years he will still besubject to five years’ extended licence period.

He will be subject to lifetime restrictions under a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and notification as a sex offender until he dies.

Indefinite restraining orders were also imposed, relating to all of his victims.

Speaking after the case, the officer in charge of the investigation, Detective Constable Dave Medd, of Cleveland Police's Paedophile Online Investigation Team (POLIT), said: “Perren is a serial offender and a real danger to women and children.

“He committed unforgivable crimes against his victims and subjected them to horrendous ordeals.

“Perren was devious and manipulative, not only in hiding his crimes, but grooming vulnerable victims, recording his abuse of them and then storing these images on a memory card for his own depraved pleasure.

“This has been an extremely complex investigation.

“Myself, DC Nikki Meakin, DC Steve Rookes and Senior Digital Forensic Investigator Connor Spence have worked on this investigation for two-and-a-half-years alongside our supervisor, Detective Sergeant Ian Boyes.

“When Perren was arrested in November 2020, he initially handed over a, ‘clean phone’, but we noticed he was charging another phone under his pillow. “This phone contained an SD card, which in turn contained the history of his offending.

“This led us to discover that Perren was digitally documenting the crimes he had committed against his victims in folders which were stored under the victim’s name or the location of where they lived (towns and cities across the UK).

“This assisted us in the identification of the victims, and we could start building a case against him.

“One particularly disturbing image hid Perren’s face but we proved it was him based on the cuff of a distinctive jacket he was wearing.

“We found an exact replica of the jacket on eBay, the only one being sold in the UK at that time, and following this, we managed to match it to a photograph of him wearing it on a trip he took seven days after the offence.

“This was one of the many ways we proved that Perren was guilty of his crimes.

“However, it is the victims that have been central to the success of this investigation.

“They have co-operated at great emotional cost and carried themselves with courage and dignity throughout the whole process.

“Due to their age at the time, many of the victims didn’t realise they had been subjected to a crime until we visited them, and this has been incredibly distressing for them to come to terms with.

“On behalf of the team, we would like to thank all of our victims and witnesses in this case.

“Without their strength and determination, we would have been unable to achieve such a positive outcome.”

Det Con Medd said credit should also be given to Claire Brinton, from the Crown Prosecution Service, who went, “above and beyond” to help the investigation team during the charging process.

“She was always available on the phone to offer advice and to listen to our concerns over specific charges.

“Her professionalism and willing approach to the case really helped at the charging stage.

“Hopefully now Perren has been sentenced, the victims will finally be given some form of closure, and they can now attempt to move on with their lives.”

Ms Brinton, a Specialist Prosecutor with Crown Prosecution Service’s (CPS’s) North East Rape and Serious Sexual Assault (RASSO) Unit, said: “The success of this case against Jay Stephen Perren is testament to the close working relationship between the CPS and Cleveland Police from the very beginning of this investigation.

“I would like to highlight the exemplary work of the police digital forensic team, who scoured through huge volumes of distressing material to identify Perren’s victims, and to directly link him to the hours of offending recorded within.

Description

A sexual opportunist took advantage of a teenage woman’s drunken condition to rape her in her own home, a court heard.

Robert James Barnett, a “virtual stranger” to everyone at a house party at his victim’s home, had been drinking vodka in the kitchen until the other guests had either left or fallen asleep, before he struck.

He then dragged the woman up the stairs, stripped her naked in her bedroom and was in the act of raping her when she came around.

Durham Crown Court heard that although she protested and urged him to stop, he took hold of her firmly around her throat, squeezed her neck, then grabbed her breasts and continued with the rape.

When he did stop, the victim quickly dressed into her pyjamas, ran from the house and sought sanctuary at a relative’s home nearby.

Paul Cleasby, prosecuting, said the defendant followed her and tried to get into the house, with the victim so scared he may gain entry that she hid in a child’s bedroom.

Police were called and were soon in attendance, arresting Barnett, who struggled as he was being detained.

Mr Cleasby said Barnett claimed he had only taken the woman up to her bed to assist due to her condition but he made no comment when asked further questions.

The, now, 58-year-old defendant denied charges of rape and sexual assault, maintaining his “Good Samaritan” defence during his trial earlier this month.

But he was found guilty on both counts and was remanded in custody, pending his sentencing hearing on Friday (May 19).

The court was read parts of the impact statement of the victim who said she moved home in the wake of the attack as she could no longer bear to live there.

She also left her job in that area and moved to a different location.

The victim stated that she found the court process difficult as she inadvertently came face-to-face with the defendant during the trial.

Mr Cleasby said that should not have happened, but it had clearly upset the victim.

He told the court there must have been some planning by the defendant, as he remained at the victim’s home for five hours until others had either left or gone to sleep, before taking her upstairs.

Chris Morrison, in mitigation, said despite there being two charges, both arose as part of the same incident.

He disputed that there was any great degree of planning, claiming it was, “more opportunist than planned”.

Mr Morrison said: “He’s a 58-year-old man, with no history of this type of offending.

“He finds himself in prison, is in poor health and with a lengthy history of poor mental health.”

Mr Morrison said the defendant has struggled in the prison environment, where he is on medication for anxiety and depression, while he is also a type-two diabetic, all of which, “has taken a toll on him.”

Judge James Adkin told Barnett he attended the woman’s house “uninvited”, a man in his mid-50s, at the time, among a gathering of mostly teenagers.

He said the defendant’s claim during his trial that he merely fell on the woman was clearly not believed by the jury.

“You were a trespasser in her home, never invited to the party, and you choked her while you raped her.

“Despite her obvious upset, you continued to rape her.

“In my view there was significant planning.

“My judgement is that when the party died down, you thought you would take your chance and dragged her upstairs and raped her.”

Judge Adkin imposed a 12-year prison sentence, of which the defendant must serve two-thirds before being released on licence.

He made the defendant, of Gore Hill Estate, Thornley, County Durham, subject of registration as a sex offender for life.

Judge Adkin also put in place a lifetime restraining order, prohibiting Barnett from contacting or approaching the rape victim.

Description

A convicted sex offender has been jailed after staying at the home of a young mother without telling her about his previous convictions.

David Spencer was made subject of sex offender registration for life when he was jailed at Newcastle Crown Court for seven years for sexual offences with girls, in February 2013.

Following his release from custody, the 36-year-old was required to notify police where he was living, what social media accounts he was using, and register his banking details.

Teesside Crown Court heard how concerns were raised after he failed to return to his accommodation for several nights and he was eventually located stating at the 18-year-old’s home.

Annelise Haugstad, prosecuting, said: “In August 2022 he was living in supported housing and on a number of occasions he was reported as missing.

“The police were made aware he was missing for several nights and it was discovered that he was staying at the home address of an 18-year-old and her young son.

“He failed to register that address or that he had stayed there seven nights in a row. The woman had not been made aware of his previous offences.”

The court heard how Spencer also used his step-father’s name on a snapchat account, again without notifying the authorities.

Miss Haugstad said the defendant was also in possession of two unregistered mobile phones and a bank card.

In a victim impact statement, the woman said she was shocked to learn about his previous convictions after she was introduced to him by a friend from a mother and toddlers’ group.

She added: “I didn’t know anything about his past but if I had, I wouldn’t have had anything to do with him.”

Spencer, formerly of Fencehouses, near Houghton-le-Spring, but whose most recent address was given as care/of a charity-run men’s hostel, in Plawsworth, near Chester-le-Street, admitted eight charges of failing to comply with the terms of his notification requirements between July 18 and October 12 last year.

Victoria Lamballe, mitigating, said her client had made good use of his time on remand to take part in a number of courses.

Judge Paul Watson KC, the Recorder of Middlesbrough, sentenced Spencer to 12 months in custody but told him he would be soon released as he had spent seven months on remand.

Description

A sex offender who poses a “significant” future risk, even at the age of 71, has been jailed for abusing both a child and a woman in her 30s on the same day.

The judge passing sentence on John Ridley told him he appears to have “no sexual boundaries” and seems to hold the belief he can do what he wants, “without facing any consequences”.

Ridley, of South View Terrace, Chilton Moor, near Houghton-le-Spring, admitted sexual assault of a female and of a girl, when he appeared before magistrates earlier this year.

He failed to appear for his scheduled sentencing hearing at Durham Crown Court, last month, but later surrendered himself, blaming a car break down.

The sentencing hearing was rearranged for yesterday (Thursday May 18), when the court was told the defendant served a 15-year sentence, imposed at Newcastle Crown Court, for rape and indecent assault on children, in 2008.

Ian West, prosecuting, said, on his release, despite being on the sex offenders’ register for life, he did not inform those he lived among of his past conviction.

The court heard the latest offences were committed when he indecently assaulted a girl lying in her bed, while telling her to remain quiet, and later carried out a similar offence on a woman in her own home, despite, in both cases, being urged to “stop”.

Police were called and he was arrested the following day, admitting the assault on the woman, but, initially, not the offence involving the child.

Mr West said there were, “disturbing aspects” to the offences, as he had told acquaintances that he “fancied” the woman involved in the offence and that he wanted to get her partner, “off the scene”.

The woman was to tell police she knew nothing of the defendant’s past offending history.

In her victim statement she said she has since been diagnosed as suffering with anxiety and depression, having experienced flashbacks and nightmares following the offence, after which she cut herself off from friends and family.

She said she also now finds it unnerving being around men, even those she has known for a long time.

Katie Spence, in mitigation, urged the court not to punish her client again for his past offending, for which he served, “a significant” sentence.

She told the court that following his release from that past long sentence he has, “led a fairly lonely life”, and moved to a new area with limited friendships which she described as, entirely, “innocent”.

“But on (that day) he said he didn’t know what happened, but knows it was entirely his fault, and he knows the only way to prevent him offending is if he just stops.

“He fully accepts the need to address his behaviour.”

Miss Spence said the defendant hoped, through her, to seek a suspended prison sentence, despite the aggravating factor of his previous offending.

But Judge James Adkin told Miss Spence taking such a course would be, “unduly lenient”.

Passing sentence, he told Ridley: “You are 71 and have been sent here for sexual misconduct with two people.

“A feature of your offending is your sense of sexual entitlement.

“You don’t appear to have sexual boundaries and you appear to do what you want to do and not face any consequences.

“The probation report states that you do pose a significant risk to the public of serious harm, and I agree with that.”

Judge Adkin made Ridley subject of a total 36-month extended determinate sentence, of which he must serve at least two-thirds before becoming eligible for release by the Parole Board.

But at the end of the 36-month custodial period Ridley will remain subject to the scrutiny of licence conditions for a further two years.

The judge also made Ridley subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order, registration as a sex offender, and restraining orders relating to his two latest victims, all for life.

Description

A former police officer has been branded a sexual deviant as he was given a 29-year sentence for his latest offences on children.

Philip Magson targeted two young children when he befriended their mother and abused them both at their home and on a trip to Kirkleatham Gardens.

The sick pervert also prowled the streets of Thornaby where he made a disgusting sexual remark to a child when she fell over while roller skating before returning to the same area eight months later and sexually assaulting another young girl.

Teesside Crown Court heard how Magson had been convicted in the early 80s for sexually assaulting young girls while he was an off-duty Cleveland Police officer.

The 61-year-old carried out his latest offending several years ago leaving some of his victims suffering high levels of anxiety, said Jonathan Walker, prosecuting.

In powerful victim impact statements, the parents of the victims outlined the pain and suffering that the defendant had inflicted on the children.

Magson, formerly from the Teesside area but now of no fixed abode, was found guilty of six sexual offences when he was on trial earlier this year.

Chris Baker, mitigating, said there was limited mitigation he could offer due to the guilty convictions from the jury.

He said: “He appreciates that he has had his trial and lost.”

Judge Howard Crowson sentenced Magson to 21 years in prison with an extended eight years on licence when he is released.

“You are a man with a deviant sexual interest in children,” he said. “You are a dangerous offender, persistent and cunning.”

Magson was also made subject to an indefinite sexual harm prevention order and ordered to sign on the sex offenders’ register for life.

Speaking after the sentencing hearing, Detective Constable Carl Middleton, from Cleveland Police’s Public Protection Unit, said: “The actions of Magson are unforgivable and the sentence handed to him today highlights the severity of the crimes he has committed.

“Magson targeted children and the damage he has caused to the victims and their families is inexcusable.

“I would like to take this opportunity to praise the victims and their families for their courage throughout the ordeal they have suffered and the court process. No child should have to provide evidence at court after becoming victim to such a cruel crime.

“Magson deserves to spend a significant time in prison as a result of what he has done.”

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A County Durham dad has been put behind bars for carrying out the late night rape of a woman in Gateshead.

Jamie Plews carried out the serious offence against a woman and left her with confidence issues and battling night-terrors. Following the rape, a court heard Plews went on to attempt suicide after taking an overdose of tablets and was arrested after concerned members of the public saw him in the area of a viaduct.

Plews, of Crook, County Durham, appeared at Newcastle Crown Court to be sentenced for rape. He had pleaded guilty to the offence.

The court heard that the victim was raped by Plews late at night. Prosecutor, Daniel Penman, said that the woman "pushed" Plews away and told him to stop, but he "ignored her request" and continued. Mr Penman said the terrified woman had a "panic attack" as Plews left the scene.

Days later, concerned members of the public contacted police after Plews was seen at a viaduct. When police arrived, he told them he was there to "chill" rather than commit suicide but admitted carrying out a rape. He was then arrested and placed in a van where he became ill and informed officers he'd taken an overdose of paracetamol.

In a victim statement, the woman said she had "lost all confidence" and frequently suffers from night-terrors and panic attacks following the rape.

Sue Hirst, defending, said Plews, 29, had no previous convictions and is "genuinely devastated by what he's done and the hurt he's caused". She said Plews is a "devoted father" who said his intention was to take his own life when he travelled to the viaduct after taking a "significant quantity of tablets".

Ms Hirst added Plews made a "terrible mistake that he deeply regrets" and was someone who was a "hard working individual" with a strong work ethic.

Sentencing Plews, Recorder David Gordon said he had "expressed genuine remorse" and jailed him for three years and nine months. He will be on the sex offender's register indefinitely and an indefinite restraining order was also imposed.

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A convicted paedophile, who shared hundreds of illegal images of children being sexually abused, has said he should be able to use online dating sites as he doesn't agree with the internet restrictions placed on him.

Jake Cresswell was branded as "devious and manipulative" by a judge who jailed him again in 2021. The 25-year-old was found to represent a "high risk of harm towards children" after he was found to have had online discussions with other paedophiles - where he discussed his warped fantasies of meeting, abusing and supposedly being “seduced by” children.

Some of the discussions involved several “role-playing scenarios”, including child rape.

But after Cresswell was released from prison last year, he was caught breaking the strict conditions on his phone and internet usage. Teesside Crown Court has heard that Cresswell's offender manager visited him in August 2022, and found that he has been using an alias on an app called Discord.

Cresswell called himself "LotusBear" and had also used an email account with an alias to open his Discord account. But the court heard that Cresswell feels he should be able to use online dating - his barrister said he relies on it to meet people.

"Given his offender status, he struggles to meet people in public," Lewis Kerr, mitigating, said. "He is more inclined to use online dating apps."

He added that his client used alias, when he is prohibited from doing so, "to stop him being identified as a sex offender in what is a public arena." The court heard that Cresswell "doesn't agree" with his online restrictions.

Police also contacted his employer - Peppino's Pizza on Skelton High Street - after receiving intelligence that Cresswell was using a "concealed device." His employer provided police with the phone number they had for Cresswell - who had told police that he didn't have a mobile phone.

His licence conditions state that he has to declare all devices to his offender manager. A forensic examination of the phone found that he had deleted 386 items from his internet history - which is a breach of his internet rules.

When police searched Cresswell's home, on The Hills in Skelton, they found his secret mobile phone on the roof, and some cannabis in his bedroom. Lewis Kerr told the court that Cresswell's job delivery pizza, "is not particularly likely to bring him into contact with young people."

"He hasn't committed any contact offences - this is not an escalation in his offending," Mr Kerr added. Cresswell admitted four breaches of his sexual harm prevention order; and the possession of cannabis.

He was recalled to prison after his latest breach, to complete his last sentence, which ends on October 16. Creswell was jailed for two-years in March 2018 for sending horrific child abuse images to fellow paedophiles online.

The pictures depicted girls, mainly aged four to seven but as young as three months old in one case, with a collection of almost five hours’ worth of videos. He said children characters in anime started his interest when he was 15 to 16.

Cresswell claimed he was “initially repulsed” by the material, “but the more he looked at it, the less guilty he felt”. In 2019 he breached his order after confessing to deleting the Grindr, Tinder and Bumble dating apps.

By March 2020, his offender manager found messages which "indicated" that he had been in an online relationship. Illegal porn and 258 items from his internet history had been deleted from his phone.

On Tuesday, Judge Howard Crowson told him that the internet conditions, "are there to manage the risks you pose to children." The judge told him that his current spell in prison is being extended, as he imposed a three-year jail term, which will run concurrently to the sentence he was recalled to serve.

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A predatory sex pest grabbed a woman's bottom and gyrated against her, before exposing himself to another at a post office.

Shaun O'Connor, known as "Chop-Off," targeted the women customers at the Darlington post office on the morning of September 7, last year.

He grabbed the first woman's buttocks, put both arms around her, gyrated against her and made a sexual remark to her. When he was asked to leave he approached another woman customer who he exposed himself to and then grabbed her top, the court heard.

After his arrest, the 40-year-old performed a sex act in front of a police officer from his cell in Darlington police station.

On Wednesday, O'Connor told a judge at Teesside Crown Court that he was representing himself and began dancing and shouting throughout proceedings.

Prosecutor Tabitha Buck told the court that a month earlier, on August 18, O'Connor went into a Darlington hotel, despite being barred. When a member of staff asked him to leave he grabbed her by the throat and tried to kiss her, before slapping the bottom of another woman as he walked out.

Weeks earlier, on July 27, O'Connor punched a man, outside the Greyhound Pub on Parkgate. The man fell into a stationary car on the road, and O'Connor then dragged him back onto the pavement.

The man who Ms Buck said had done nothing to provoke O'Connor, was unconscious and had a laceration to the back of his head. In court O'Connor shouted: "I saved him, I saved him, Your Honour."

O'Connor, of Pateley Moor Crescent in Darlington, pleaded guilty to a string of offences, including two sexual assaults, two counts of exposure, and assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

He told the court that he had been sexually attacked as a teenager before apologising for his behaviour.

Judge Howard Crowson jailed O'Connor for two-years. He was placed on the sex offenders' register for 10 years. "Thank you" O'Connor replied, "I appreciate that I have been safe in prison."