Latest Offenders Essex

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A SCHOOLTEACHER has admitted possessing a catalogue of indecent images of children, as well as having extreme pornography involving animals.

Austin Betts, who taught at Woodlands School in Basildon, will be sentenced at Basildon Crown Court next week after pleading guilty to a host of offences.

The 32-year-old, of Mendip Crescent, Westcliff, admitted three charges of making indecent images of children, two charges of distributing indecent images of children, and possession of extreme pornography involving animals at a magistrates court appearance in May.

School bosses wrote to parents yesterday confirming that he had admitted the offences, as well as insisting that checks were carried out prior to his employment and they had co-operated with the police investigation.

The headteacher added that Brett has not been on the school site since July 2021.

It is believed he was suspended when the school was made aware of the allegations against him, although school leaders refused to provide any additional detail.

In a letter to parents headteacher David Wright said: We can confirm that Austin Betts, a former teacher, has pleaded guilty to making and the distribution of indecent images.

We want to assure the school community that we carried out all the required safeguarding checks before his employment and have cooperated fully with the police investigation. He has not been on the school site since July 2021.

While the schools leadership team are very shocked by this news, there is absolutely no suggestion that any of the crimes relate to students or staff at the school. If any members of the school community are affected by these events we would, of course, facilitate any support needed.

Brett will be sentenced on Monday at Basildon Crown Court after admitting the charges at Basildon Magistrates Court on May 24.

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A CALLOUS rapist has been jailed for ten years for raping a teenage girl after plying her with alcohol and drugs.

Jamie Forbes, 52, attacked the girl in June 2020.

The widower, of Manor Road, Benfleet, forced himself upon the girl having plied her with alcohol and cannabis, also allegedly offering her cocaine which she refused, the court heard.

Yesterday, he was jailed for ten years at Basildon Crown Court.

Peter Clark, prosecuting, said: He begun with him making remarks of a sexual nature, asking if she had slept with older men.

She made it absolutely clear she was not consenting, but he persevered nonetheless, telling her she did want it.

In police interviews Forbes denied the offence, claiming the victim had instead come onto him.

Forbes, who was married for 30 years before his wife died in late 2018, continues to deny the offence, despite being found guilty by jury earlier this year.

Forbes also vehemently denies there was any cocaine present, and a police search of his home following the incident found no evidence of the Class A drug.

In his sentencing remarks, recorder Leslie Cuthbert described Forbes as a callous rapist, adding: You do pose a high risk of committing further offences, that is ones of a sexual nature, not only to the victim, but to other young women.

You saw her as an easy target for your own sexual desires, recorder Cuthbert said. You boasted about the number of women you had allegedly had sex with before asking the victim about the number of boys they had been with and their ages.

You decided to take what you wanted, to fulfil your own sexual urges, irrespective of her wishes and despite her continued protestations.

He added: Even now, in the pre-sentence report, you refuse to accept what you have done and instead are now suggesting that youre being convicted is some kind of set-up.

You have shown no remorse for your actions, but only for the impact it has had on yourself.

Forbes was sentenced to ten years imprisonment and an extended license period of two years for rape of a woman 16 years of age or over at Basildon Crown Court on yesterday.

Forbes will be required to serve two-thirds of the custodial period in prison before being eligible for parole.

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A FATHER with a compulsion to have sex with young girls has been jailed after being snared by a group of so-called paedophile hunters.

Tony Jones, 55, of Southchurch Road, Southend was caught having sexualised conversations with an adult who was posing as a child.

He was jailed at Basildon Crown Court yesterday.

Prosecuting, Jose Olivares-Chandler, said: It started on January 10 this year, when a decoy was messaged by the defendant and it quickly descended into sexual communications.

The girl identified herself as being 14 and he had also been speaking with a girl who identified herself as 12 in a sexualised manner online.

On January 21 the police had a call from a decoy to say they had detained him at his home and police arrived and he was arrested after evidence was handed over to the officers.

He had two previous convictions for abduction of a child aged 15 dating back to 2006. He gave her a mobile phone and arranged to remove her from foster care twice.

Mitigating, David Baird, told the court Jones didnt know where his offending came from and suffers health issues.

He said: He regrets what he did and is highly remorseful. Most of his chats online were with adults and not sexualised at all.

There were no threats and no attempt to disguise his identity. There was no meeting and he did not travel to go and meet these people.

The previous convictions are some time ago and hes lived with isolation, loneliness and even boredom in the pandemic lockdowns. He also lost his mother in November which would have impacted his behaviour.

Sentencing Jones, Judge Samantha Cohen, said: This was aggressive, manipulative, deviant sexual behaviour and fortunately both of them were adults.

You seek to minimise your actions in the presentence report by saying you are not sexually attracted to children, and this is self delusional and impossible to believe.

Its clear to me you have a compulsion to have sex with young girls and you acted in a predatory manner.

Jones admitted two counts of arranging or facilitating commission of a child sex offence and attempting to incite a child under the age of 13 to engage in sexual.

He was sentenced to seven years in prison and five years on an extended licence.

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A man convicted of more than 40 child sex offences has been jailed for eight years.

Jon Gordon, 43, was arrested after officers from the Police Online Investigation Team (POLIT) carried out a warrant at his address in Gershwin Boulevard, Witham, in December 2018.

It followed information that he had been engaging in sexual communications with someone he believed was a 13 year-old child.

He was arrested and 33 items were seized. On five of those, officers found more than 1,200 indecent images and videos of child abuse.

They also found a total of 6,500 conversations on Skype with 900 contacts of young people. Among these, officers found evidence he had communicated with boys and girls under the age of 18.

He was charged with 45 child sexual offence offences including sexual communications with a child, inciting a child to perform sexual acts, and indecent images of children offences.

He admitted the offences at Chelmsford Crown Court on February 24 and at the same court on April 13 he was sentenced to a total of eight years in prison.

Detective Sergeant Samantha Lewin, from POLIT, said: Jon Gordon is a dangerous sexual predator who sought out and preyed upon underage boys and girls for his own sexual gratification.

He had a huge library of child abuse images and videos and the sheer number of charges he admitted to highlights the scale of his offending.

I have no doubt Essex is a safer place now he is behind bars.

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The mother of a girl targeted by a sexual predator has thanked our specialist officers after her abuser was jailed.

Twenty one year-old Harris Proctor was jailed for ten years, six custodial with a further four on licence at Chelmsford Crown Court on 12 April after admitting a string of offences.

Proctor, registered sex offender, had been in contact with an 11 year-old girl and engaged her in sexual conversation including about performing sexual acts.

When he was arrested in November 2019 his laptop was searched and officers found indecent images on there.

The offences had come to light following a previous conviction for child sexual offences where he had engaged in sexual conversations with two underage girls online and had also been found in possession of indecent images of children.

Further investigations after his second arrest established he had been back in contact with young girls following his earlier conviction, breaching a Sexual Harm Prevention Order he had been made subject to.

Proctor, of Townfield Street, Chelmsford, was later charged with inciting child sexual activity, two counts of making indecent image of a child, 10 counts of breaching a Sexual Harm Prevention Order, and failing to comply with the notification requirements of the Sexual Offenders Register.

He pleaded guilty and was convicted at Chelmsford Crown Court on Tuesday 12 April and sentenced on the same day.

Following the sentencing hearing, the 11 year-olds mother said:

This crime really has affected my daughter and our family.

The impact it has had on her personally and socially has been very difficult to see, I can only hope she starts to recover now she knows he is in prison and she is safe.

The police have been brilliant throughout the investigation and the support we as a family have received has been very good, allowing us to have the confidence to continue to court.

I really want to reach out to other parents and children, if they find themselves in this situation please do make police aware.

If we do not make the police aware of these individuals out there targeting our young children then they will not be apprehended and will continue to harm more children.

The police worked hard and made sure we were supported at every step of the way.

I am now going to concentrate on my daughter with her road to recovery and hope that she can start to get back to the beautiful little girl we knew before all this happened.

I know that due to my daughters bravery, it has meant that this criminal will now be in prison away from hurting any more children in society.

Investigating officer Detective Sergeant Harriet Ware, said:

Harris Proctor is a dangerous individual who preyed on young girls for his own sexual gratification. DC Carole Currey and I worked hard to ensure all offences were manged together for the same court hearing.

This crime has affected the victim greatly. At the age of 11 she has lost all confidence about being in public, has had to receive counselling and no longer attends school through fear of being in groups and being around other boys, she feels unsafe.

This crime has also had a big impact on me, the images I have had to look at due to this defendant and what was found on his device was harrowing and something I unfortunately cannot unsee.

To see how the crime has impacted the poor little 11 year old girl and the family has been saddening. His crimes have effected many young girls and their families who have been very brave to work with the police relaying evidence for the court proceedings

Proctor is a danger to children in the community and I am satisfied with the sentence layed upon him, I know that the public will be safe for the time he is in prison.

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A SEXUAL predator who abused a young girl over a two-year period has been locked up.

Shane Clarke, 35, had assaulted his victim in Aveley on more than 15 occasions before the abuse was reported to police in April 2021.

Clarke, formerly of Hall Crescent, South Ockendon, was later arrested and charged with child sex offences.

He admitted two counts of sexual activity with a child during a court hearing and was jailed for eight and a half years during another hearing at Southend Crown Court last week.

Investigating officer, PC Karen Smale from the Adult Sexual Abuse Investigation Team (ASAIT) at Essex Police, said: Shane Clarke is a sexual predator who preyed upon the victim for his own sexual gratification.

He subjected to her to a horrendous ordeal and now faces a significant spell in prison.

I want to praise the courage of the victim throughout this investigation.

It is difficult to imagine what she has been through but in spite of what has happened she has shown great bravery and dignity.

I hope this sentencing will help her move forward.

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A SEX attack victim felt she would be better of dead to escape the pain caused by a paedophile who assaulted her as a child.

Michael McKenzie, of The Grove, Southend was jailed for more than two years for indecently assaulting a girl under 16, at Basildon Crown Court yesterday.

The 63-year-old was found guilty on October 29, following a trial at Basildon Crown Court.

A victim impact statement was read out in court prior to McKenzie being jailed for two years and eight months.

The statement said: I felt trapped in a box in my head and at times felt I would be better dead to get peace.

I was made to believe I was to blame for this and Ive had little confidence. I question every decision and even suffered three miscarriages and feel these are due to the trauma I kept inside.

For a long time I hated being alone. I believed I didnt deserve anything and deserved what happened to me.

McKenzie was found not guilty of rape during the trial.

Mitigating, Marc Brown, told the hearing his clients health has deteriorated since he was sent to prison for his own safety after a suicide attempt.

He said: He was a man of good character but this was inappropriate and unlawful activity.

There is a very low risk of him re-offending and nothing to suggest he would contact the victim.

He was on bail during the trial but later in custody for his own protection due to suicidal attempts.

Sentencing McKenzie, Judge Shane Collery, said: While she consented, she was immature and didnt realise it was wrong until later.

It was reported in 2019 and later in life the emotional affect hit her. It caused her considerable affects for years including worry, feeling worthless and better dead.

There was an element of manipulative behaviour.

Theres been no other offending like this and his health is poor.

He slammed McKenzie for making the victim and her family relive the pain through the trial.

He was jailed for two years and eight months.

Victim is praised for courage

A SEX abuse victim has been praised by police for showing the courage to report her attacker to police.

Michael McKenzie was jailed yesterday for assaulting a child.

Following the sentencing, DS Shirley Close, from the Quest team, said: The victim in this case has shown a huge amount of courage in reporting Michael McKenzie had done.

What she has experienced has had a significant impact on her as she has grown older and become an adult.

She has deserved justice.

The Quest team is a specialist unit set up in 2019 which investigates allegations of child abuse.

DS Cole said: Now were able to give the victims the service they deserve and the investigations the time they require. People think its word against word and well never be able to find proof, but we know what the CPS want in terms of getting these cases charged.

Theres lots we can do.

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A FORMER teacher has been jailed for more than two years after being convicted of a series of child sex offences, including sexual activity with a child.

Bobby Rudd, of Pentland Avenue, Thorpe Bay, was convicted of a string of charges at Basildon Crown Court.

The 36-year-old was jailed for two years and four months after being charged with engaging in sexual communications with a child and causing a child to watch a sexual act.

Rudd was also charged with five counts of sexual activity with a child by a person in a position of trust.

He had worked at Shoebury High School and King Edmund School in Rochford, with both schools reassuring parents they do all they can to keep children safe.

Rudd was a music teacher at Shoebury High School and worked as the head of music at the King Edmund School.

Clare Costello, headteacher at Shoebury High School, said: Although this person is no longer a member of staff, I understand there will be concern among former and current students, parents and the wider school community.

As soon as Essex Police contacted us, all correct processes and procedures were immediately followed for the safety of all concerned.

The safety and wellbeing of pupils and staff remains our highest priority and we continue to support staff and anyone in our school community who has been affected by this news.

A spokesperson for the King Edmund School, Rochford, urged any parents with concerns following the court case to contact the headteacher directly.

They said: The school is aware of an ongoing court case involving Bobby Rudd, a former member of staff.

Nothing is more important than the safety and wellbeing of our students and we strictly follow all safeguarding policies and procedures as set out in statutory guidance, and by the local authority.

The headteacher, Mr Jonathan Osborn, can be contacted directly with regard to this matter.

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A massage therapist has avoided jail with a suspended sentence after acting out 'pornographic fantasy' when molesting a young professional woman two decades his junior.

Masseur Graham Stannard, 47, of Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, repeatedly touched the 25-year-old between her legs, claiming he was encouraged by her moans of pleasure.

But the woman insists she did not consent and her involuntary groans were a response to him massaging her painful condition - caused by an irritated nerve.

The jury rejected Stannard's claim he honestly believed the woman was consenting and unanimously found him guilty of two counts of sexual assault.

Uniquely, Kingston-upon-Thames Crown Court Judge John Lodge ordered Stannard to pay 600 towards the victim's twenty-three private psychotherapy sessions she needed after he molested her.

He received twenty-one months imprisonment, suspended for two years and must complete 35 days of the Horizon sex offenders programme and up to 30 days of a rehabilitation activity requirement.

'It is hard to imagine a grosser abuse of trust than a woman on a massage table, in a position vulnerability, expecting to receive therapy and instead becoming a victim of abuse,' the judge told first-time offender Stannard.

'The generosity of spirit of your victim, who should have nothing but contempt for you, is reflected in her victim impact statement where she says: 'I hope the man is provided with the professional tools needed to address his behaviour and prevent any further assaults.'

'It is impossible in a case of sexual violation to seek to place a monetary value on it. It diminishes the gross violation of these offences, but the victim has sought to have therapy and that has cost her.'

'That was the bizarre thing about the trial,' added Judge Lodge. 'That he had a reasonable belief there was consent, which the jury understandably rejected.'

The trial heard Stannard, the boss of Healing Zen Massage and a practitioner of Zen-Su deep release massage had a therapy room in a beauty salon in Bedford Hill, Balham, south London.

After reading his positive online reviews the woman, who has a high-pressure desk job, booked an appointment to receive a massage on August 2, 2020.

The jury viewed her recorded police statement in which she said: 'When I removed my mask he said: "Wow. You've got such a lovely smile," and I thought that was the first thing out of place.'

She stripped-down to her knickers and lied face-down on the massage table as Stannard began. 'He said: "It's really nice you are making those noises. I'd like to hear more of them".

'They were just the normal noises of a massage,' she told the trial, explaining Stannard put his hand between her legs after massaging her hip area.

'He just went for it and touched me four times or something, quite hard under my knickers so it was not a mistake.

'I went completely quiet. I always thought in a situation like that I'd be shouty and tell him to: '"F*** off," but I just completely froze.

'I started moving my bum and hips away, but it didn't deter him and I thought: "What the f***?"

'I thought: "F***, he's going to do it again," and this time he really went for it.

'He asked me to turn over. I was topless and he looked stoked, so happy with eyes wide open, buzzing.

'He said: "You've got such an amazing body," he was ecstatic and said he was going to do my front and I thought he would do something worse.'

She said Stannard hastily concluded the massage then tried to discuss it with her. 'He was close to my face and from then it was just creepy.

'He returned after ten minutes and he was like: "God, that was amazing. Maybe I can take you out to dinner and do a massage after that."

'He gave me a hug and was going to try and kiss me and I left and called my boyfriend and burst into tears and told him what happened.

'I was sitting on the kerb, breathing heavily, it was horrible. I walked around for twenty minutes dry heaving and had a bath when I got home because I had oil all over me and wanted to get it off.'

She then received a text from Stannard, which read: 'Lovely to see you. Let me know about home massage.'

Today, prosecutor Warwick Tatford told the court: 'This defendant was working as a provider of massage services within a hairdresser's and a booking was made online by the woman.

'The defendant appeared to have a sexual attraction towards her and commented on her smile, which she thought was strange and while on her front her touched her above her knickers and then twice skin on skin.'

During the trial the prosecutor told the jury: 'No doubt his regular clients think good of him, but he gave into sexual temptation that day when he gave a massage to this twenty-five year-old lady, an attractive lady as you will see in the video.

'He just fancied her and couldn't resist sexually assaulting her. It was quite a forceful massage and she made noises when he hit a painful spot.

'She talks about moaning, but not with a sexual meaning. He started imitating what she was saying, like it was turning into some sort of pornographic fantasy.

'The defendant seems to have been caught up in the excitement of it all and acting out a sexual pleasure.

'He told the officers he was sexually aroused and had crossed the line. That's quite close to admitting sexual assault and he says he got carried away in the moment and that it felt consensual.'

When cross-examined the woman was asked about the noises she made and said it was 'wrong' to conclude she was 'aroused' during the massage.

She was asked why she did not ask Stannard to stop, replying: 'It happened so quickly, I was in shock. I didn't know what to say.'

Additionally, the woman was questioned as to whether moving her bum and hips could be 'misconstrued' as joining in with the sexual behaviour.

Stannard's lawyer John Livingston told the court: 'This is a man who is generally a kind and sensitive individual. This was out of character behaviour, crossing the line of professionalism in his line of work, which he has been doing for a number of years.

'This is the only incident of any complaint and the woman researched before booking the massage and the results indicated he was good at his job and helped a lot of people.

'It seems to have been an isolated incident of losing his proper professional judgement and now he is very remorseful about it.'

However, in his Probation Service interview Stannard repeated his claim he believed the woman was genuinely sexually aroused.

'That may be the result of extreme embarrassment of what he did and his remorse,' added Mr Livingston. 'The chances of his reoffending are low and going through the trial process has been traumatic.

'He has learned a very big lesson in the harshest possible way and has no intention of risking repeating any sort of offending.

'He had to stop his massage work. That has not been feasible since the start of this case and he is now a delivery driver for Uber Eats.'

Judge Lodge concluded: 'The work of Horizon and the rehabilitation activity requirement will provide a realistic prospect of rehabilitation and reduce the risk of further offending so the sentence can be suspended.'

Stannard was also made subject to a ten-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order, prohibiting him providing any physical, mental or spiritual therapy and he must sign the sex offenders register for the same period of time.

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A PAEDOPHILE who sent naked images of himself to a child online and had a video of a young girl being assaulted on his computer has been jailed.

David Dennerley, of Crest Avenue, Basildon, was arrested after a school teacher found sexual messages he sent to a girl and raised the alarm with her parents.

The 42-year-old was jailed for a year and four months at Basildon Crown Court yesterday.

The court was told police raided his house in September and found 110 indecent images and videos of children.

He also had roughly 48 sexual conversations with children on his electronic devices.

Prosecuting, Matthew Bagnall, said: He sent naked images of himself to the girls online and they sent images back too.

On March 9 one girl got a message from him saying stunning and they began to chat online.

She clearly told him she was underage and he instigated sexual conversation. These were found by a teacher who told her parents and then the police were informed.

Police raided his home on September 7 and found the devices with the images and videos.

There were many similar conversations with a considerable number of people who identified themselves as being underage.

Mitigating, Sasha Bailey, told the court he was a carer for his sick parents.

She said: His father has significant arthritis with deteriorating breaking bones and since 11, Dennerley has cared for both of his parents. His mother has back and thyroid issues.

He says he was stresses and tired at the time of these offences and it caused to behave in this appalling way.

Sentencing, Judge Samantha Cohen, said: You had more than 100 indecent images and one video of a young girl being sexually assaulted. You also had 48 sexual conversations with girls. I cannot suspend this sentence as its so serious.

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Graham Manicom has received a four-year sentence.

John Bancroft's brother, Graham Manicom, was also found to have met the victims for sex in a hotel room on two occasions.

The 62-year-old, also from Essex, pleaded guilty to two counts of paying for the sexual services of a child and was handed a four-year sentence.

The two men came to the attention of police after one of the victim's sisters grew suspicious of someone she was speaking to online and reported it.

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Bancroft used apps such as MyLol to make fake accounts and offer "sugar daddy" arrangements. His brother, Graham Manicom, was also found to have met the victims for sex on two occasions.

A man has been jailed for 25 years after being found guilty of using dating apps and posing as a "sugar daddy" to sexually exploit seven teenagers.

John Bancroft, from Essex, was found guilty of four counts of rape, meeting a child following sexual grooming, paying for the sexual services of a child, attempting, causing or inciting the sexual exploitation of a child, and attempting sexual communication with a child.

During a seven-week trial at Snaresbrook Crown Court, he was found to have used apps such as MyLol to target vulnerable girls in order to manipulate them.

The 68-year-old used the sites to offer "sugar daddy" arrangements with teens aged between 13 and 18 from 2016 to 2017.

Sadomasochistic acts, 100 messages a day and indecent images

During the trial, the court heard how Bancroft would tell the victims he was much younger than his actual age and offer them money to participate in sexual acts with him.

He offered to be their mentor, teacher, and father but, in fact, he was "satisfying his own twisted demands," Metropolitan Police said.

The court was told Bancroft would send victims up to 100 WhatsApp messages a day when they did not reply and would drive them to remote areas for sex.

As a result of the persistent messages, some of the victims met Bancroft and in return for food, money, or gifts, were expected to pander to his demands, including group sex and sadomasochistic acts.

He also took indecent images of the girls and shared them on WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger.

Prior to the trial, Bancroft pleaded guilty to causing actual bodily harm against a child during sexual activity and 14 counts of taking, possessing, and distributing indecent images of children.

In the second week of the trial, he pleaded guilty to a further 15 offences including paying for the sexual services of a child, causing or inciting the sexual exploitation of a child and attempted sexual communication with a child.

'A serious risk to vulnerable women and girls'

The brothers were described by police as "sick and twisted" and as posing a "serious risk to vulnerable women and children."

Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy, who is the Met's lead responsible officer for exploitation, said: "I am glad they will be behind bars for a significant period of time."

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A PAEDOPHILE has been locked up for more than two years of possessing and sharing indecent images of children.

James Krengel was jailed for 28 months when he appeared at Chelmsford Crown Court last week.

The 41-year-old pleaded guilty to sex offences including possessing and distributing indecent images of children and a breach of his notification requirement order.

Essex Polices Online Investigation Team (POLIT) arrested Krengel at his home in Nipsells Chase, Chelmsford, on December 30, 2021.

It came detectives received receiving information he had uploaded an indecent image of a child.

During the investigation, officers discovered Krengel had breached a sexual offences notification requiring him to register at a police station yearly.

Krengel was charged in December 2021 and admitted the offences during a separate hearing at Chelmsford Crown Court.

Following sentencing, investigating officer Courtney Evans said: James Krengel is rightly behind bars now where he cannot pose a threat to the children in our society.

There is nothing more important than protecting children and young people from those who are intent on exploiting or abusing them.

This is the work we carry out every day to keep the people of Essex safe, and this sentence will keep the public just that bit safer.

The Police Online Investigation Team are a team of specialist officers dedicated to the investigation of offences involving indecent images of children and paedophilia material held on a computer.

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An Essex pensioner has been jailed after he secretly filmed himself giving sports massages to young girls and possessing indecent images of children.

Hugh Hunter's vile videos were found on USB sticks after police raided his home in Irvon Hill Road, Wickford, last year.

The 74-year-old's home came to police's attention after officers discovered an IP address had been used to access indecent images of children.

After raiding the home while Hunter and his partner were present, police seized numerous devices, on which dozens of images were found, plus the voyeuristic videos on the USB sticks.

The videos were made when Hunter was working as a sports massage therapist to at least two young girls over a five year period.

Hunter attempted to claim he did not have a sexual interest in children, and that he recorded the videos due to fears the girls would accuse him of inappropriately touching them.

But this was rejected by Judge Shane Collery at Hunter's sentencing at Southend Crown Court on Wednesday (December 8), saying Hunter did it for his own gratification.

The court heard that Hunter had 62 category A images of child abuse - the most serious kind - along with 36 category B and 365 category C.

Prosecuting, James Lofthouse said: "Various recordings were made by Mr Hunter himself and on USB sticks, made certainly without the girls or parents knowing they were being recorded. These occurred over a number of years.

"They were able to be identified in their house."

Mr Lofthouse said that one of the girls had been made to feel "uncomfortable" when Hunter asked her to remove items of clothing.

In a victim impact statement, one of Hunter's victims, now an adult, said she had been left "angry and upset" by his actions.

She said: "Finding out as a result of a police investigation has had an impact on me.

"I had to go to counselling as a result and the stress and anxiety had me off work.

"I kept playing the events over and over in my head. I feel guilty that I never spoke out about it."

Mitigating, Daniel Setter said that Hunter recognises that his actions were "unacceptable", but had admitted his guilt as early as possible, and that the offences cast "a long shadow" over him.

Mr Setter also cited Hunter's various health problems and old age.

Judge Shane Collery said: "He said it was done to protect himself from later accusations of wrongdoing.

"It was done because he had a sexual interest in children.

"The videos are recorded and he planned what was going to happen.

"No one knows what the motive was."

Judge Collery jailed Hunter for 33 months for two counts of voyeurism and three counts of possession of indecent images of children.

Description

A man who violently assaulted his partner over a period of months has been jailed.

Vicentiu Luca Calin, 29 (04.01.92) of Northbrook Road, Ilford, appeared at Snaresbrook Crown Court on Friday, 5 November 2021 where he was sentenced to eight-and-a-half years’ imprisonment.

Calin pleaded guilty to GBH with intent, actual bodily harm and assault by beating at an earlier hearing on Tuesday, 24 August. An additional charge of false imprisonment will lie on file.

The court heard that on Friday, 1 January, officers were attending a call at a hospital in Ilford when they were approached by the woman’s friend, who informed officers that she had been kidnapped and seriously assaulted by Calin.

The survivor, who was aged 26 at the time of the offences, reported to the police that the pair were staying in a hotel together in October 2020 and that Calin became violent with her over a three-month period.

Calin repeatedly assaulted the survivor over the course of October 2020 to December 2020 whilst they were in a relationship. Between the Christmas Day and 27 December 2020, Calin assaulted the woman so severely she sustained a bleed on her brain and permanent scarring to her face.

He would become increasingly aggressive and controlling towards her, not letting her speak to her family, preventing her from accessing any help and threatening to kill her.

During the course of the relationship he tortured the survivor by burning her face and body with lit cigarettes and beating her with items of furniture within the hotel room. Calin admitted that he had caused the facial injuries using lit cigarettes because the woman spent too long looking in the mirror, and that she believed that she was pretty.

Furthermore, the woman has been left with permanent scarring to her face and body and numbness to her lips which impacts her ability to speak, eat and drink.

On Sunday 27, December, the survivor convinced Calin to let her go out to speak to her friends, to prevent them becoming concerned about her and raising the alarm.

In this time, she got a taxi to another hotel, seeking refuge. The woman and her friend visited the hospital shortly after for her to get treatment.

Calin was arrested for multiple offences on Sunday, 3 January. Officers who located Calin found the vehicle he was using was covered in blood.

Detective Sergeant Janet Glover of the North East BCU Public Protection Unit said:

“This was a complex investigation that was carried out diligently by my colleague Detective Constable Campion. She worked tirelessly with the victim in this case ensuring that she had the necessary support to see this case through to court.”

Detective Constable Amy Campion said: “I would like to pay tribute to the survivor for having the courage to come forward and give evidence in this case.

“She has shown tremendous courage throughout this investigation, from the initial allegation to her attendance at court and her ability to speak out about the horrendous domestic abuse that she has suffered at the hands of Calin.

“With her bravery and assistance in this case, we have ensured that this dangerous offender was brought to justice and ultimately received a lengthy custodial sentence at court.