Latest Offenders Lancashire

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A man who claimed he had “spiritual healing abilities” abused his power to sexually abuse a teenage girl on multiple occasions.

Hasham Lodhi, 41, abused the girl at an address in Nelson and performed rituals where he would read passages from the Quran while she was naked to “cleanse” her.

Preston Crown Court heard the victim’s mother had initially approached Lodhi in March 2021 as she was led to believe he had healing abilities and could help people who believed they were victims of black magic.

Lodhi found out the victim was struggling at school and asked his wife, who had no part in the offending, to tutor her.

He persuaded the victim to send him naked photographs of herself.

Tobias Collins, prosecuting, said Lodhi would tell the victim she had “sinned” and that she “needed cleansing.”

On one occasion, he told the victim her “stomach was blocked” and that she “had evil inside her which needed cleaning out.”

Lodhi said that if she did not allow him to continue, or “break the circle” as he put it, she would end up in a car accident or her mother would be killed.

He told his wife, who was at home while the offending took place, that she would be affected by evil spirits if she did not stay in the bedroom while he carried out the acts.

In a statement summarised to the court by Mr Collins, the victim said she had suffered from flashbacks and insomnia since the incidents and had felt “powerless.”

She said: “I feel ashamed as he told me I was unclean and impure.”

Lodhi, now of Brennand Street, Burnley, was found guilty of four counts of assault by penetration and two counts of sexual assault at a trial in February.

His defence barrister, Emma Kehoe, said he did not accept the offences he was convicted of but did admit “unacceptable behaviour” towards the victim.

Judge Daniel Prowse, sentencing, said: “You were aware of how vulnerable she was, how much she feared the evil spirits you told her were affecting her, how much faith she could be persuaded to have in you.

“You were ruthless and exploited her vulnerability to allow you to sexually abuse her.

“She trusted you and believed you could help.

“You were able to use her spiritual and religious beliefs as a tool to abuse her. You perverted her genuinely held religious beliefs.

“You offending represents a gross abuse of the trust that young woman put in you. It was carefully planned and manipulative.

“I do not find your remorse is genuine.”

Lodhi was sentenced to 12 years in prison and was made subject to sex offender notification requirements for life.

An indefinite restraining order was also imposed between he and the victim.

Description

A man sexually assaulted a woman in her own home despite her repeatedly rejecting his advances.

Zak Honeyman, now 26, had known his victim for a while and was said to have fancied her, though his persistent pushes to enter into a relationship with the woman were politely declined.

Burnley Crown Court heard how the two bumped into each other at a party in November 2022.

Honeyman expressed an interest in her again at that moment, but she again declined.

Later that evening, the victim was walking home and noticed Honeyman was walking behind her.

After persistently asking if he could walk her home, she reluctantly agreed.

When at her house, she complained of a problem with the door which Honeyman said he could fix.

The victim went to make herself a cup of tea while he did so, and when she came back he asked where his drink was.

She explained that she didn’t make him one as she thought he would be leaving when the door was fixed, but did go back to make one and they sat in the living room together.

Alison Mather, prosecuting, said while there he continued to try and persuade her but she kept saying no and felt he was not getting the hint.

The victim then went upstairs to go to bed, and Honeyman followed behind her, getting into the bed fully clothed after saying he “might as well stay now”.

At one point he got up to take his trousers off and got back in, but put them back on when he was asked to leave.

Instead of leaving, he sat on the end of the bed and began to mess around with the bedside drawers.

She repeatedly told him not to and there was a tussle as she tried to stop him entering the draw which resulted in her receiving a bruise on her arm.

He eventually got into the drawer and pulled out a sex toy, which he prodded into the victim’s cheek multiple times and put into her mouth.

After this, he stood over the victim and pulled down her clothing before going on to sexually assault her twice.

In a statement read to the court by Ms Mather, the victim said she still takes medication for the anxiety and depression caused to her by what Honeyman did.

She said: “My anxiety has gone through the roof which made me not want to leave the house.”

Anna Chestnut, mitigating, said on Honeyman’s part there was a “lack of maturity at play” owing to his age at the time, 24.

She also said a term of immediate imprisonment would have a significant harmful impact on others.

Honeyman, of Weets View, Barnoldswick, had one previous conviction for a dissimilar matter which the judge did not take into consideration.

Recorder Daniel Lister, sentencing, said: “While I don’t consider that you forced your way in I do consider you certainly weren’t welcome to stay for as long as you did.

“You were given repeated hints but nevertheless you remained.

“She told you no, but you ignored her.”

Honeyman was jailed for 18 months and ordered to comply with notification requirements for 10 years.

A five-year restraining order was also imposed prohibiting contact with the victim.

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A man branded a 'dangerous sexual predator' by police raped a vulnerable woman on the top deck of an X43 bus service to Manchester city centre.

Rahmat Qalander - now behind bars - also sexually assaulted a 16 year-old girl on another bus just five days later, police have revealed. The 23 year-old, who police said was classed by a judge as a dangerous offender, has now been jailed for 10 years.

Qalander targeted the woman on the X43 bus from Burnley to Manchester on February 1 this year. He's said to have sat next to his victim upstairs before forcing her to go to the back of the bus with him, where he raped her.

In a statement after he was locked up, Lancashire Police said: "He then got off the bus in Manchester and the victim, aged in her 20s and with a number of vulnerabilities, reported what had happened to the driver and police were called."

Following enquiries, Qalander, from Nelson, Lancashire, was identified and arrested. He was charged with rape and sexual assault.

Police said he denied the charges, but was found guilty after a trial in August. The attack on the teenage girl took place on a bus in Nelson on February 6.

The force added: "Qalander was classed as a dangerous offender by the judge at Preston Crown Court. He was told he must serve two thirds of the 10-year sentence before he is released. He will then be on licence for a further three years."

Temp Detective Chief Inspector Sarah Denson, of East CID, praised the victims for coming forward. She said: "Qalander is clearly a dangerous sexual predator who targeted lone and vulnerable young women to carry out his offending.

"I would like to commend the victims in this case for their bravery in disclosing what happened to them and for having the courage to go through the court process.

"I am pleased that justice has been served for them and for the wider community who will be protected from this dangerous offender for many years."

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A man who raped a child when she was still in infant classes has been jailed for four years and nince months.

Reece McNair, now 28, sexually abused the little girl on numerous occasions when he was 16 years old. The child, who can not be named for leal reasons, kept the abuse secret for around a decade but later disclosed what had happened to her to an NHS worker she was seeing to support her with her mental health.

McNair, of Bulkhead Drive, Fleetwood, was arrested and confessed he had abused the girl. He later pleaded guilty to two counts of rape, attempted rape and four counts of sexual assault.

The girl and her mother set out how the abuse had affected them for many years before the youngster disclosed what had happened to her.

She said: "I don't remember a time when my body felt clean. I have had my childhood stolen from me. I can't remember good things from my childhood, only bad.

"He has truly torn my life apart and I will never be able to live a normal life again. I just want my brain to shut off and stop feeling things."

Her mother said she will never forget the day she was called into CAMHS (child and adolescent mental health services) and told what had happened to her daughter. She said her daughter had displayed signs of distress and missed out educationally due to her trauma.

"No-one wants to believe they missed something as significant as their child being sexually abused", she said. "That cuts deep. Her struggles did not go unnoticed but unfortunately she felt unable to share what happened to her."

Her daughter has a fear of men as a result of what happened to her and was frightened of Father Christmas, and speaking to male police officers and teachers.

McNair wrote a letter to the court, "to say how sorry I am for the pain and heartbreak I have caused her and her family".

He said: "I deserve to be punished and it will never happen again."

The court heard he was 16 at the time he committed the offences and has since been diagnosed with Autistic Spectrum Disorder. A psychiatric report stated he would be vulnerable in prison and find his sentence traumatic.

Judge Gioserano said: "She was but a child. It was not her fault, it was your fault. You took her childhood and no sentence, however long, can give her that back.

"It goes without saying that I am sentencing you as an adult for offences you committed when you were not yet an adult. I must take into account all that this means by way of reduced culpability."

He also considered the guidelines for sentencing people with mental or developmental disorders but said: "Although you were young yourself and suffering from a disorder which reduces your culpability further, you still knew full well that what you were doing was very wrong."

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A convicted sex offender “learnt nothing” from his previous suspended prison sentences, a judge said.

Nickson Storie, 39, appeared at Burnley Crown Court on Friday, September 27, having breached a sexual offences prevention order (SOPO) and twice breached his sexual offender notification requirements.

Amy Weir, prosecuting, said the defendant was subject to a SOPO following a conviction of causing a child under 16 to watch a sexual act at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court in 2013.

As a result of this, he was prohibited from using any device capable of accessing the internet unless the search history could be accessed.

Storie was regularly visited by police to conduct checks and on one visit in February, they found there had been no internet activity for around six months.

Storie admitted he had been using the device to watch pornography, but had been using Incognito mode on the browser to hide the activity as he didn’t want other people to see it.

In a separate incident, Storie twice failed to provide officers with the login details to a Snapchat account, breaching his notification requirements.

Ms Weir said Storie’s “deleting” of the search history was deliberate and that his offences were aggravated by his “history of disobedience for court orders.”

The court heard Storie had 14 previous convictions from 32 offences, including nine sex offences, which included public indecency in 2003, failure to comply with notification requirements in 2007, sending grossly offensive or obscene messages in 2011, and exposure in 2013.

Storie also twice breached a SOPO and failed to comply with notification requirements three times in 2018. He also breached a sexual harm prevention order in 2019.

Richard English, mitigating for Storie, argued his client could be released from custody, having spent four months on remand, subject to strict conditions.

He said he had been told by Storie the effects of his time in custody had been “sobering.”

Judge Daniel Prowse, sentencing, said: “One of the terms of the sexual offences prevention order prohibited you from accessing the internet, save for when use of the internet was recorded.

“That was to ensure police and the courts could monitor what you were doing on the internet.

“The risk you pose to others cannot be monitored properly.

“You have demonstrated by committing this offence again that you have learnt nothing from the previous suspended sentence orders.”

Judge Prowse jailed Storie, of Whitehall Street, Nelson, for 15 months.

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A serving police officer who was jailed for possessing more than 500 indecent sexual images of children “should be appalled” by his crimes, his force has said.

Mark Rosebury, 38, was jailed for 18 months at Preston Crown Court on Wednesday (September 4) having admitted possession of images in all three categories, as well possessing extreme pornographic images and prohibited images of children.

Rosebury, of Earnshaw Road, Bacup, was a serving officer with Greater Manchester Police at the time of his arrest.

Detective chief superintendent Mike Allen, head of the force’s professional standards directorate, said a misconduct hearing will now be accelerated.

He said in a statement: “The public rightly expects the highest professional standards from those who serve in the police, and it is clear the actions of Mark Rosebury fall disgracefully below that.

“He should be appalled by his crimes and the impact his actions understandably have on the public’s confidence in the overwhelming majority of officers who are professional, decent, hard-working people who serve their communities day-in day-out.

“We have assisted our colleagues in Lancashire throughout this case to ensure that Rosebury is brought to justice for his crimes.

“Rosebury remains suspended from the force and following his imprisonment, legally we have now been able to stop his pay with immediate effect.

"A misconduct hearing will now be accelerated since there is no longer a risk to prejudicing criminal proceedings.”

James Heyworth, mitigating for Rosebury at the sentencing hearing, said Rosebury joined the police force in 2017 and had previously worked as a transport driver in the ambulance service.

In 2021 he was trained as a collision reconstruction expert, and he said in the pre-sentence report it was the numbness he experienced from this job that caused him to act in the way he did.

Niamh McGinty, prosecuting, said police attended Rosebury’s house on May 27, 2023, having received information concerning peer-to-peer file sharing.

Rosebury was suspected of using three IP addresses to access and download images – one linked to his home address and two connected to the East Lancashire Railway, where he was a volunteer.

His devices were seized and upon examination found to contain 257 category A images, 110 category B images, and 150 category C images, as well as three prohibited images of children and nine extreme pornographic images.

Judge Robert Altham said in sentencing Rosebury: “Each of those children is a living, breathing human being who had been exploited in a horrible way so you could watch.

“Your work cannot provide any excuse or reason for you to resort to watching the suffering of children.

“When police officers commit offences there is a loss of public confidence in the police service as a whole.”

A spokesperson for the East Lancashire Railway said Rosebury’s role with them required no interaction with the general public visiting the railway, and his role has now been terminated.

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He has today (1st August 2024) been given a sentence at Preston Crown Court for 22 years.

He lured the women into his vehicle as they made their way home from nights out by leading them to believe he was a taxi driver. He then drove them to remote locations before subjecting them to serious sexual assaults.

The first incident happened on the 3rd of October 2021. The victim got into Asmal’s car in Preston city centre. He drove for about ten minutes, raped his victim in the car and then dropped her off back in the city centre. She flagged a member of the public down for help.

The second incident happened on 4th of March 2023. The victim had been on a night out in Darwen and ended up in Asmal’s car. He drove her to a secluded area on the outskirts of Darwen where he then raped her. Asmal managed to get the victims phone number and called her at the start of April. She did not answer the call on that occasion because it came up with ‘no caller ID’.

Asmal called her again on 8th of April 2023 and this time she did answer. The victim recognised the voice as the man who had raped her but did not know his identity. She ended the call after Asmal asked the terrified victim ‘If she wanted to do something?’

Asmal raped his third victim on the same evening he made that call. The victim got into Asmal’s car in Darwen town centre. Driving her towards Bolton, in the opposite direction of her home, Asmal said: “You don’t want to pay for this taxi, do you?”

He stopped in a secluded area and raped her. He then dropped her off at her home address.

We identified Asmal after his black Toyota Yaris was picked up on CCTV cameras.

Asmal, 35, now of no fixed address but formerly Balaclava Street, Blackburn, appeared at Preston Crown Court on in November and pleaded guilty to four counts of rape.

Judge Heather Lloyd deemed Asmal to be a dangerous offender and sentenced him to 17 years in custody with a further five years on extended licence. He was also ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register for life.

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A 28-year-old man has been jailed after exposing himself on a train in Preston.

Kane Hargreaves, of Elizabeth Street, Burnley was found guilty of two counts of exposure at Preston Crown Court on Friday 28 June.

He was sentenced to nine months in prison, and must pay a £187 victim surcharge.

The court heard how, on Wednesday 10 April this year, Hargreaves was staring and exposing himself  to a 21-year-old woman sat a few seats away on the 2.44pm Preston to Bradford interchange train. The woman moved away and told rail staff before reporting it to British Transport Police.

A second incident occurred on Monday 22 April onboard the 1.44pm Preston to Accrington train when Hargreaves again exposed himself, this time to a 17-year-old woman.

Investigating officer DC Ella Harvey said:  "We will stop at nothing to deter, pursue, arrest and bring sex offenders on the railway network to justice.

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A serial sex offender, obsessed with young boys, sobbed as he was led to the cells after a judge jailed him for his latest sordid offence.

Stuart Mallen was caught in a “sting” by a paedophile vigilante group when he attempted to meet up in a Blackpool car park with a youngster he believed was 15.

The 45-year-old was sitting in his vehicle waiting for his victim with a tube of lubricant on his lap, Preston Crown Court was told.

Jailing him for 20 months, Judge Ian Unsworth told him: “You are a predatory paedophile with a sexual attraction to young boys.

“It is to your good fortune that it didn’t involve a real child.”

Mallen, of Salisbury Avenue, Knott End, pleaded guilty to attempting to engage in sexual communications with a child.

He also admitted three counts of making indecent images of children after police found he had a stash of 36 obscene photographs and videos of youngsters on his devices.

The court heard that in February Mallen made contact online with what he thought was a 15-year-old boy. In fact it was a fake profile set up by paedophile hunters intent on snaring sex offenders.

Messages between Mallen and the “boy” showed that the conversation “was short-lived but had quickly escalated to one of a sexual nature.”

Mallen then sent a photograph of his private parts and they arranged to meet up in Blackpool.

Judge Unsworth told him: “You drove to a car park where you were detained by a paedophile hunter group. It was a sting.”

He said that while a container of lubricant had been found on his lap in the car “the prosecution have chosen not to charge you with what may have happened in that meeting.

“So I don’t sentence you for that, but it is a feature the court can have regard to when it considers the case.”

The court heard Mallen had previously been found guilty of sexual offences involving children – once when he was working in primary schools.

In 2007 he received a police caution after he was found in possession of indecent material involving a child and also using an internet site to view images of youngsters.

He had been working in a school at the time and police launched an investigation into his behaviour after concerns were raised.

Then in 2008 Mallen appeared in Wolverhampton Crown Court for a list of offences involving children including eight of meeting or communicating with a child under the age of 16 following sexual grooming. He faced four charges of sexual activity with a child and two of engaging in a sex act in the presence of a child.

He had met a 14-year-old boy online and developed a sexual relationship with him. He travelled to Plymouth where he took the victim back to his hotel room and spent the night with him, during which there was sexual activity.

He was given a community order for three years and also made the subject of a 10-year Sexual Offences Prevention Order which banned him from being alone with children.

Judge Unsworth said that in a pre-sentence report to the court in this case a probation officer said Mallen had admitted he was “attracted, and sexually so, to teenage boys.”

He told him: “Your offending to date shows you act on that when the opportunity arises.”

The judge said his past record had to be taken into account when sentencing him and whether or not the court could step back from an immediate custodial sentence in this case.

“In my judgement it is a serious case of its kind. I accept that you are remorseful.”

Judge Unsworth sentenced Mallen to 12 months in prison for attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child under 16.

He gave him 20 months for possessing 19 Category A indecent photos and videos, 12 months for nine Category B images and video and eight months for having eight Category C pictures.

The judge ordered all the sentences to be served concurrently, meaning a total of 20 months.

“I am required to consider whether I can draw back from a sentence of immediate imprisonment. I have carefully considered the various matters and in my judgement only a sentence of immediate custody can possibly be appropriate in this case.”

Mallen broke down in tears and was sobbing uncontrollably as he was led from the dock.

The judge ordered the devices he had used to access child pornography to be destroyed.

Description

A convicted sex offender who had been evicted from his home turned up at his ex's parents house while she put her kids to bed.

Bairon Cross, 34, called the woman several times, but as she settled her children she noticed him in the garden of the house in Preston. He knocked on the door, and when the woman answered she told him to leave, Preston Crown Court heard.

However Cross called the woman a 'tramp' and snatched a laptop, belonging to her parents. He refused to give it back, Alison Mather, prosecuting, said.

Cross was arrested in Kent Street, Preston, on September 17. When approached by officers, he was resistant and aggressive but was overpowered and taken to the police station.

The court heard he has been diagnosed with schizophrenia but in February 2024 he was assessed as being fit to enter guilty pleas to theft and failure to comply with notification requirements. He has previous convictions for including theft and sexual activity with a child in 2010.

Sentencing, Judge Ian Unsworth, said due to Cross's medical condition he would make a hospital order for him to be detained at Guild Lodge until he was considered well enough to return to the community.

The judge said: "The author of your presentence report makes the conclusion that at Guild Lodge you have been making very good progress. You have been receptive to your treatment and co-operating with staff. Everything you are doing is of positive note. I would urge you to continue to make the progress you are."

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A mum says she and her son were left prisoners in their own home after a 'monster' stole her son's childhood and threatened them in their own home. Dale Barker, 33, has been jailed for six years and nine months after he admitted sexually assaulting a child and possession of a knife.

But as Barker, of Cotton Tree Lane, Colne, begins his prison sentence, the mum and son are left trying to rebuild their lives which they say have been completely destroyed by their abuser. Barker befriended the mum when they met in a shop where he was working, but after a few weeks the woman noticed 'strange behaviour'.

"He kept buying gifts and things for my son and being overly pally", she said.

"It was grooming, but when I said I didn't want this anymore it went really, really wrong. I asked him to leave but he wouldn't go.

"He assaulted me in front of my son, but that charge was later dropped. It went into a whole spiral of awful things - knife threats, arson threats, everything."

As a result of the threats, the family home was safeguarded by Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service and the family was given a priority to move home. As Barker remained on bail, the mother said she became hypervigilant, locking doors and gates and using a tracker on her son's phone.

Both mum and son suffered serious mental health problems and the son became suicidal and stopped attending school.

"I am constantly ill through stress and hypervigilance and my symptoms have manifested physically over the last 16 months", the mother said. She no longer feels comfortable around strangers and has lost her business due to the difficulties she has faced.

"Barker has destroyed our family. He has taken away my son's childhood which he will never get back and has to carry this for the rest of his life.

"He has attempted to take his own life and continues not to cope on a daily basis. My mental health is at crisis point.

"This has been the most difficult time of my life not only for the crimes he committed against me but for the hatred I hold against him for sexually assaulting my son. Barker has been able to freely live his life and I am incensed by this, that we have been treated like the criminal and have not had adequate protection from the courts. My son and I have been on the brink of mental collapse."

Judge Sara Dodd, sentencing, said Barker was a dangerous offender who posed a significant risk of serious harm to the public. In addition to the jail term, she imposed an extended licence period of three years and three months to protect the public.

The mother said: "The day he was sentenced was the hardest day of my life. I went through so many different emotions - relief, shock, fear. I honestly think he is a psychopath.

"I'd known him a few weeks and he was trying to get his feet under the table. My son has had to be so brave and grown up but I think the bravery and resilience he has shown has saved so many potential victims.

"Now Barker is behind bars he is able to go out with his friends without looking over his shoulder all the time. There is still a long way to go, and he will have to carry this forever, but it is a start to try to move forwards."

In addition to the prison sentence, Barker has been handed a 12-year sexual harm prevention order and made the subject of notification requirements - also known as the sex offenders register - indefinitely. Judge Dodd also made an indefinite restraining order to protect the family.

Description

A former Shetland primary school teacher has been jailed for 30 months after molesting six of his pupils in their classroom more than a decade ago.

Stephen Tait was also added to the sex offenders register for life following a trial that convicted the 41-year-old of six charges of lewd, indecent and libidinous behaviour.

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A paedophile jailed for trying to contact children online says he did it as a form of escapism from his boring job. Alastair Walsh, 49, has been locked up for 18 months after being caught in a police sting.

He was convicted of attempted sexual communication with three online profiles set up by undercover cops. He quickly turned the chat sexual and discussed the possibility of meeting up.

He did not know the profiles were decoys and the children did not exist. Police arrested him at his home in Ilfracombe and seized devices. They found evidence he also liked to chat with other paedophiles about his fantasies online.

Walsh admitted three offences of attempted sexual communication with a child and one of distributing an indecent image.

Prosecutor Paul Grumbar said the three communication offences each followed a similar pattern with Walsh using Kik and thinking he was messaging girls. In one message to a decoy 13-year-old he said he said was a 19-year-old call Al.

He sent photos of a male torso and told the 'child' he wanted to put his hands down her skirt. He also sent a pornographic image via WhatsApp.

Police arrested him in June 2022 and seized his devices. Analysis showed a number of messages, including one where he shared a category B image of a real girl aged 10-12, and others involving long discussions with other paedophiles.

He told police the activity was an escape because he was going through a difficult time and denied any intention to meet the children.

Walsh is now ashamed of his actions and would welcome rehabilitative work. He was drinking a bottle of wine and cider every day at the time and "wasn't enjoying his job," working as a manager for an unnamed firm, said Zoe Kuyken, defending. He now has a new job as a coach driver and is much happier.

Judge David Evans said: "It seems you have a clear interest in underage girls. You engaged with three profiles for young girls aged 12-13 online. You turned things sexual quite rapidly each time.

"You send them partial photos of naked bodies and solicited images from them. You discussed underage girls with other like-minded adults. You clearly pose some risk of reoffending and clearly have an interest in underage girls."

Description

A sex offender described as a "serious risk to women" was found to have been going to Bury to "engage in a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old girl".

Callum Cox, 23, has a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) with a number of conditions and prohibitions.

He told police on a home compliance visit that he did not have a mobile phone, access to the internet or social media.  

But just 10 days later, Lancashire Police, working with Greater Manchester Police, discovered Cox had been travelling to Bury and engaging in a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old girl.

Cox, of The Grove, Oswaldwistle, was arrested, and a mobile phone was seized.

Specialist officers carried out searches of Cox’s mobile phones, where they found that he had "intentionally deceived the police in an effort to pursue multiple relationships with women online", including with a 17-year-old girl.

It was found he had travelled out of Lancashire in attempt to avoid detection.

Cox was charged with seven breaches of his SHPO and sex offender notification requirements. He plead guilty to four of the charges.

On Monday, March 18, Cox was sentenced at Burnley Crown Court to two years and seven months for breaching his SHPO.

An application to amend the existing SHPO will be heard at Blackburn Magistrates' Court on Wednesday, April 10.

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A former Blackburn primary school teacher has been jailed for his role in a major probe into an international paedophile ring which spanned more than a decade.

Police swooped on the home of perverted William Chambers after they were notified by the National Crime Agency (NCA) about the arrest of a Belgian national, who was suspected of selling thousands of indecent images of children.

At Blackburn Magistrates Court in January, the court was told Chambers was tracked down after the arrested Belgian provided the NCA with the 60-year-olds phone number.

When police visited his home, in Weavers Court, Preston New Road, they found he had more than 1,500 indecent images of children on his devices.

Chambers, who was working as a teacher during the commission of the offences, pleaded guilty to possession of 166 of the most serious Category A images, 544 Category B images and 854 Category C images.

During his sentencing at Preston Crown Court on Thursday (March 7), it was heard Chambers had worked at Roe Lee Primary School in Blackburn between September 2020 and 2021, St James Primary School in Burnley between October 2021 and April 2022, and Lower Darwen Primary School between between 1999 and 2012.

The case involving the making of images and downloading of images onto a laptop which was then operated in such a way where images were moved to a hard drive and a TOR browser [software to enable anonymous communication] used.

On at least 15 occasions cleaning software was also deployed.

Prosecuting, Nicholas Flanagan told the court the NCA, in collaboration with Interpol, were investigating an international network of people suspected of abusing children worldwide.

The court heard the investigation started almost 20 years ago, with images taken of children being abused in a number of countries, including Vietnam, India, the Philippines, Morocco, Norway and Myanmar.

Suspects were identified in the UK, Netherlands, France, Canada and Norway, with six of the UK suspects now serving lengthy custodial sentences.

Some of the victims in the case are now adults, the court heard, with many of them coming forward to provide evidence to the NCA as part of the investigation.

Mr Flanagan said: Analysis of the Belgian national's devices found there were many people communicating regularly and sharing such images, which led to the identification of this defendant.

There is no evidence of this defendant sharing or distributing images though, he is only concerned with possession.

Mr Flanagan told the court Chambers had travelled extensively throughout his life, visiting India around 20 times, said to be part of his studies.

He had also visited the Balkan states on numerous occasions from the mid-1990s.

He was arrested on November 11, 2022, and his devices analysed where police found he had thousands of depraved and explicit images, both accessible and inaccessible to officers.

It was also discovered that he had purchased a virtual private network (VPN) in order to conceal his sordid activities, and had deployed software capable of wiping his history.

During his initial police interviews, Mr Flanagan said Chambers was evasive and selective with his answers even telling one officer, I must have had them [on my computer] otherwise you wouldnt have found them.

Some of the images he had in his possession included young south Asian boys as young as eight years old being abused by adult males.

Harriet Lavin, in mitigation for Chambers, said: He is 60-years-old now and recovering from colon cancer, is in remission and is incontinent.

He has missed several doctors appointments while hes been in custody, which is just over three weeks now.

He described his life as bleak. He has been isolated and suffered from depression and anxiety and being in custody is the first time hes been socialising with people except for online.

He is remorseful and is someone who wants to take advantage of the help that is on offer to him.

Chambers, who was of previous good character, was jailed for 20 months.

He had already been made subject to sex offender registration requirements at a previous hearing, with Judge Ian Unsworth KC imposing notification requirements on Chambers for a period of 10 years.

He was also handed a 10-year sexual harm prevention order and was barred from working with children and young people.

When he is released he will be on license and post sentence supervision.

Forfeiture and destruction of all devices was also ordered.

Judge Unsworth said: In summary you have admitted possession of 1,564 images. This occurred over a period of 11 years but its since been ascertained that you were in possession of the hard drive for five years.

You are a paedophile with a perverted sexual interest in young boys.

You worked at primary schools across Lancashire and must have undertaken these offences while being employed as such.

You were entrusted to care for young children and had safeguarding responsibilities towards them.

The schools and parents trusted you to be a proper person to teach but the evidence in this case shows you are someone who is sexually attracted to young boys, and you went to great lengths to satisfy those paedophilic desires by using dedicated software.

Downloading images perpetuates the problem and encourages the making of further indecent images.

These children might be further harmed by the knowledge of the perverted gratification that adults like you gained from looking at them, which they only came to realise as they got older.

This was an extremely thorough investigation by the NCA, but for their hard work your activities would have gone without detection.

Investigators established that the images on Chambers' devices were supplied over the dark web by a Belgian national who was part of the same group as Christopher Behn, from Essex, and John Thorogood, from London.

Both these men travelled to Asia and Africa respectively over several years to abuse vulnerable young boys.

Behn, from Essex, was jailed for 17 years in November, while Thorogood, from north London, was sentenced to more than seven years imprisonment in December.

Phil Eccles, operations manager at the NCA, said: Men like William Chambers help fuel the worldwide demand for child sexual abuse material, which in this case was supplied by a group who travelled across the globe to offend.

By obtaining this material he contributed to the re-victimisation of the children abused in these images.