Latest Offenders Merseyside

Description

A paedophile asked police officers "is this about the videos?" when they came knocking at his door.

Lewis Wilkinson used Snapchat, Telegram and Mega to collect and trade vile pictures and videos of children aged as young as four being sexually abused. He told detectives that he "just couldn't stop" after "going down a wormhole" online following his grandad's death.

Liverpool Crown Court heard this afternoon, Tuesday, that Merseyside Police received information that the 22-year-old's IP address had been used in order to download indecent images of children, while his Snapchat account was also utilised in order to access illicit files on January 15 last year. As a result, officers executed a search warrant at his home at around 9.30am on May 30 2023.

Wilkinson - of Stringhey Road in Wallasey, Wirral - answered the door and asked "if this was about videos". Stuart Mills, prosecuting, described how an iPhone and an iPad were then seized from the property.

A total of 15 category A indecent images, those showing the most serious forms of abuse, were subsequently discovered on the mobile phone. Wilkinson was also found to have collected 51 images in category B, 123 category C images, 54 prohibited computer generated images and two extreme pornographic images.

Mr Mills meanwhile said there was "evidence of distribution of indecent images of children" on the device. This concerned him sending five category A images, eight category B images and one category C image to other perverts.

Wilkinson, who has no previous convictions, was interviewed on November 30 the same year and told detectives he had been viewing such materials for around a year. He added that "it started following the loss of his grandfather" and "started out of curiosity but escalated and he just couldn't stop", having used the applications Telegram and Mega to download the sickening pictures and videos.

Anthony O'Donohoe, defending, told the court: "He is someone who, rather refreshingly, has been completely open about this matter. Here is a young man who fully cooperated with the police and has voluntarily started steps to rehabilitate himself.

"He became rather isolated. The death of his grandfather struck him very hard.

"It was easy for him to be in his own room, in his own world. He went down a wormhole and started getting a morbid interest in this type of material."

Mr O'Donohoe said his client "swapped with like minded people to receive other images" but had distributed a "relatively small number" of images, adding: "In addition, he has been diagnosed with autism and ADHD. His parents describe him as immature for his age, but as a likeable young man.

"He has started other hobbies - an interest in air shows and the like. He wants to do courses to assist himself in the job market."

Wilkinson admitted three counts of distributing indecent images of children, possession of indecent images, three charges of making indecent images, possession of prohibited images of children and possession of extreme pornographic images. He was handed a 16-month imprisonment suspended for 18 months.

Sentencing, Judge Robert Trevor-Jones said: "Of all of these offences, the most serious is that of distribution of category A images. I am quite satisfied that this activity can be confined to a relatively short period of time within 12 months.

"One of the positive elements of your case is that, after your arrest, you immediately were candid with the police. That is an attitude which has continued to this day.

"You, by your activity, were making your contribution to a horrendous, sordid global industry of the manipulation and exploitation of young children. They are inevitably damaged and traumatised.

"I see how this all began, a period of isolation in covid days following a sorely missed bereavement of your grandfather. You have started to engage with the Lucy Faithfull Foundation, and of course what has transpired is your diagnosis of ADHD and autism."

Wilkinson was also given 160 hours of unpaid work and a rehabilitation activity requirement of up to 30 days. He was subjected to a seven-year sexual harm prevention order and told to sign the sex offenders' register.

Description

Jack Gilmartin, 23, of no fixed abode, was found guilty of rape; harassment; assault occasioning ABH; intentional strangulation; and possession of controlled drugs. The offences took place in the St Helens area in 2022.

Gilmartin was found guilty of the rape offence following a retrial this week, having pled guilty to the other offences last year. He remained in custody between the trials.

Gilmartin was also handed a 10-year restraining order against his victim.

Description

A nan now goes to bed every night with a pair of scissors under her pillow after she was raped at knifepoint by a man she met at a bus stop.

Alex Belay appeared to be a "nice lad", and the nan agreed to go back to his flat in the belief that she had missed the last bus home. But he instead snatched her phone from her as she spoke to her son, held a knife to her stomach and throat and subjected her to a horrific sexual assault.

She was left "genuinely believing" she was going to die during the attack. A remorseless Belay then "smirked" after finally bringing the ordeal to an end.

Liverpool Crown Court heard this week the victim had been visiting a friend before leaving to get the bus home at around midnight. She encountered the defendant at the bus stop but, believing they had missed the last service of the evening, they then began walking away together while chatting, the Liverpool Echo reports.

Olivia Beesley, prosecuting, described how Belay then invited the woman into his flat on Sefton Moss Villas in Litherland. She agreed as she "thought she would be safe and wasn't in danger because he was much younger than her".

But, having returned from the toilet, she "felt that something was wrong" and told him that she was going to leave. Belay, an asylum seeker who was born in Eritrea and came to the UK in 2020 after fleeing civil war in Sudan, responded by turning the lights out and pushing her.

When she answered an incoming call from her son, the 26-year-old took her phone from her and locked the front door. He then grabbed a knife and held it to her stomach and pointed it at her throat "every time she began to speak".

Ms Beesley said: "She thought she wasn't going to get out of there alive."

Belay then pushed the woman onto his bed, pulled her trousers down and raped her. When the assault finished, she asked "can I go?" before escaping and phoning a family member.

A trial previously heard that she was able to describe her attacker's clothing and flat "in great detail", while she was found to have left her cigarette lighter in his bathroom. Belay's DNA was also discovered in her underwear, but he denied having even met her.

In a statement which was read out to the court on her behalf during his sentencing on Thursday, she detailed how she had "tried to kill herself numerous times" since and added: "Before this happened, my life wasn't perfect but I was a jolly person. I was happy and always had a smile on my face.

"I felt like I had everything to live for. I would do anything for anyone. Since the day this happened to me, I have been so angry and depressed. I just feel numb.

"I feel so dirty and I have no self respect. I am so angry for being so stupid. I never thought for one second that my life would be ruined by this. This has consumed me.

"It's all I think about. The day this happened to me, my world ended. When I go to bed, I keep a pair of scissors under my pillow. I don't feel safe any more, not even in my own home.

"I didn't do anything wrong. I'm paying for what he did to me. I just don't understand how he could do this. I go over what happened to me every day.

"What has happened to me has scarred me for life. I sometimes think, why didn't he kill me? I just thank god for letting me live so I can see my kids again. I will never be the same again.

"I am scared of my own shadow all the time. I just can't carry on this way. I just want to forget everything and get on with life, but I just can't. It's always there, every minute of the day."

Stella Hayden, defending, told the court: "This is plainly a particularly grave example of an offence even this serious in nature. It is very difficult to realistically advance that this is not a case where there has been severe psychological harm.

"It seems to have been a chance encounter when at the bus stop late at night. It is his first conviction. He is still a relatively young man. I understand that, given his status, he is likely to be deported in any event."

Belay was found guilty of rape by a jury. He was jailed for 12 years, a term of which he must serve at least two thirds before becoming eligible for release.

Sentencing, Judge Katherine Pierpoint said: "She saw no danger in you. She described you as being what she thought was a nice lad.

"She was a chatty person and you invited her back to your flat. Once she got into the flat, she got the feeling that something wasn't right. She said she wanted to leave, but you wouldn't let her. You turned the light off and locked the door, and you took her phone off her.

"At the time, she was speaking to her son. It is clear from the evidence that he was left distraught, having heard something of his mother's panic and the phone then being turned off.

"She pleaded with you to let her go. You picked up a large knife and put it to her stomach and then, when she tried to speak, put it to her throat. You dragged her to the bedroom, taking the knife with you. You pulled her lower clothes off and forced her onto the floor, where you then raped her."

"She was petrified. She genuinely believed you were going to kill her. It was her account that, as you got off her having raped her, you smirked. She left that flat traumatised.

"The evidence against you in this case was, in my judgement, overwhelming. You denied that you had ever met her, ever had any contact with her or that she had ever been in your flat. You have shown no remorse and continue to deny that you ever even met her. Your attack on her has had a devastating effect.

"She is still suffering greatly. Her mental health has been seriously damaged. She has made numerous attempts to take her own life. She is left feeling angry with herself for trusting you.

"You have, in her words, wrecked her life. She feels that she will never get over what you did to her. I accept that your time growing up in a war torn country would have been extremely traumatic for you. I take into account your age and that you have no previous convictions."

Judge Pierpoint also said of the victim: "I want to say that she is a strong woman who should be commended for her bravery in standing up against you."

Belay began remonstrating in his native tongue with his interpreter in the dock before he was led down to the cells by dock officers, who told him "go, go on". He will be required to sign the sex offenders register for life.

Description

A vile predator took boys to McDonald's and Cheshire Oaks before subjecting them to sickening abuse.

Paedophile James Blundell embarked upon a depraved campaign of rape and sexual assaults against young boys, the Liverpool Echo reports. He groomed some of his victims with cash and sweets and took them in trips in his car before the horrendous assaults.

Liverpool Crown Court heard how he was said to have had a 'longstanding sexual interest in children', which a judge said had led to a catalogue of 'predatory sexual behaviour'. The 36-year-old has now been locked up for more than 14 years.

On Thursday (March 28), the court heard how Blundell befriended one of the children and paid him 10 in order to wash his car. The boy then carried out further chores at his home in return for 'pocket money'.

Michael Scholes, prosecuting, described how the defendant subsequently took him out in his car to buy sweets and on trips to McDonald's, Southport and Cheshire Oaks. He would often return the child home after giving him a 10 note.

But, around two months later, concerns were raised to his parents by a neighbour. This prompted his mother to ask him 'has James ever been silly with you?', at which he became 'immediately very distressed' and even 'so distressed that he was physically sick'.

He would go on to describe the vile sexual abuse he had been subjected to by Blundell - who had attempted to rape him, performed sex acts on him and performed a sex act in his presence, as well as sending him a picture of his penis. The boy recalled one incident where he was forced to perform a sex act on the pervert after he had pulled over following a drive along the East Lancs Road.

Afterwards, he warned his victim not to tell his mum as he 'would be in big trouble'. On another occasion, Blundell stopped in a car park during a trip to Cheshire Oaks Designer Outlet.

Then, having bought him food from McDonald's, he attempted to touch the boy's private parts over his clothing. However, the complainant 'kept blocking him so that he could not touch it'.

It then emerged that Blundell had abused a second victim after these offences were reported to the police in November last year. This boy described how the defendant had taken him to McDonald's in Earlestown.

They then parked up at a nearby sports club, where the sex offender 'started to talk about sexual things and told him how he had had sexually transmitted diseases'. He showed the youngster pornography on his phone and asked to see his penis, although he refused.

Blundell told the boy that his own penis was 'proper small', then pulled it from his trousers and began waving it around while laughing before returning him home. He later sent the youngster a series of 'inappropriate' messages on Instagram, including pornographic images.

Following his arrest, three category C indecent images of children were found on Blundell's phone - which was recovered from underneath his pillow. An image of a person performing oral sex on a dog was also found on the device.

Blundell was previously handed a 12-month imprisonment suspended for two years by the same court in 2016 after pleading guilty to attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity, attempting to engage in sexual activity in the presence of a child, distributing indecent images of children, possession of indecent indecent images of children and three counts of making indecent images of children. He was also handed a 10-year sexual harm prevention order.

His defence counsel told the court: "He accepts that there is nothing at all I can say on his behalf to mitigate the truly horrific crimes that he has committed. He, through me, offers his most sincere apologies to the young children and their families, and everybody who has been affected by his terrible actions."

"He accepts how awful these crimes he has committed were and has shown that he is somebody who has an unhealthy interest in young children. He is also somebody who wants the help to ensure, when he is released from the sentence that awaits, that he can rehabilitate himself and ensure that he is no longer a danger to society."

Blundell admitted three counts of rape, two charges of attempted rape, three offences of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, three counts of engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child, engaging in sexual communications with a child, possession of indecent images of children, making indecent images of children, possession of an extreme pornographic image and two charges of breaching a sexual harm prevention order.

He was jailed for 14 years and five months. He was also handed an additional five years on licence.

Sentencing, Judge Anil Murray said: "It is clear that you have a long standing sexual interest in children. Lives are ruined by behaviour like this."

"Your motivation was clear. This was predatory sexual behaviour."

Blundell, of Wesley Avenue in Haydock, was also handed a restraining order lasting 15 years and an indefinite sexual harm prevention order. He must sign the sex offenders' register for life.

Description

A man from St Helens has been jailed for 13 and a half years for sexually assaulting a child and sharing images of the abuse online.

Andrew Haddock, 29, of North Road, who pleaded guilty to making and taking indecent images of a child and distributing those images to others online, was sentenced today, Thursday 28 March, at Liverpool Crown Court and told he must serve a minimum of nine years of his overall sentence.

He was also given a lifetime Sexual Harm Prevention Order, made to sign the Sexual Offender Register for life and given an indefinite restraining order.

Following an investigation, Haddock was arrested in July 2023 after he boasted about his abuse online to an undercover police officer and shared images of the offences.

He was also found to be in possession of a quantity of prohibited images of children and extreme pornographic images.

Description

An "abusive and possessive" sexual predator is a "significant danger" to women everywhere, a court ruled.

Martin Marko, 35, subjected the terrified woman to three hours of horrific abuse after imprisoning her in his Seaforth Road flat in the early hours of August 15 last year. He threatened to kill her, forced her to strip, sexually assaulted her, brandished a kitchen knife in her face and beat her with a shoe. He also choked her, punched her, and threw a bowl full of urine at her.

The prolonged attack was caught on CCTV, in which the woman could be seen cowering and falling to her knees with her hands in a praying position. On two occasions she attempted to escape by climbing out of the first-storey window before returning to the locked flat, where Marko continued to abuse her.

Afterwards, he sent a slew of texts to the woman both apologising and threatening her as he tried to convince her to take back her report. He urged police officers to check the CCTV footage - in which his horrific crimes could clearly be seen.

He appeared at Liverpool Crown Court on Monday, March 18, where he pleaded guilty to sexual assault, assault causing actual bodily harm, and making threats to kill.

Judge David Aubrey said: "Your victim was petrified and in fear to the extent she even contemplated escaping from your violence, from your threats, through a window of the flat, which I'm told was a first floor flat.

"In my judgement, you are an abusive and possessive person. You are demanding. You were treating your victim as a chattel, as an object. You were abusive to her. You degraded her.

"This case has been fully opened and if this sentence were ever to be reviewed elsewhere, then in my judgement it's absolutely essential that the footage is examined.

"You have a number of issues, but important in respect of these issues is how you treat women, and how you treated this particular victim. On this particular evening, over a protracted period of time, you were demeaning her, you were controlling her, you used violence. You had a knife in your hand on a number of occasions. You were brandishing that knife towards her face. You were threatening her with it. You were being abusive. You were gesturing towards her in a stabbing motion. On one occasion, you threatened to kill her.

"There she was in fear of you over a considerable period of time. She backed away. She was seen cowering in a corner. You threw a potty of urine over her. You hit her. You slapped her with a shoe. I have also had the opportunity of examining the injuries she received. And there came occasions when I have no doubt you were instructing her either to remove her top or her lower garments.

"In the aftermath you sent to her numerous texts, no less than 43, some of which were of a menacing nature, some of which may have been conciliatory. But your intention was to ensure that she didn't speak to the police. Fortunately, while you may be a coward, your victim is a courageous woman. She did make a statement to police. She didn't retract that statement, notwithstanding the pressure she was under from you.

"And then there was much victim blaming and much seeking to minimise that which you did. I return to that footage, which ironically came to this court because you had insisted on it being produced.

"The court accepts that you now show some remorse, but that remorse must be assessed against that which you said to the probation officer in seeking to blame your victim and minimise your culpability in what occurred under the influence of drink and/or drugs.

"There was much degradation. There was much humiliation. In my judgement, these offences occurred over a sustained period to time. There was violence. There were threats of violence. And your victim was particularly vulnerable.

"Your issues are deep rooted. Almost within your DNA is the domination and controlling of women. And so it's notwithstanding you're not highly convicted, and notwithstanding you have never come before the court for offences as serious as this. Everything I have seen from that footage, this court does find that you represent a significant risk of harm to the public, and in particular women."

He sentenced Marko, of Seaforth Road, Seaforth, to a 12-year extended sentence, ordering him to serve nine years in custody and an extended three years on licence. He also made a restraining order banning him from contacting the woman.

Description

A former Ellesmere Port care worker has been convicted of rape and child sex offences.

Following a seven-day trial which began on March 11 at Chester Crown Court, 45-year-old Kevin Cooper-Shaw, of Kingsmead Road North, Oxton, was found guilty by a jury on 21 of the 23 charges. These were:

• Seven counts of sexual activity with a child
• One count of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity
• One count of rape
• One count of attempted sexual activity with a child
• Seven counts of sexual activity with a child by a person in a position of trust
• One count of sexual activity in the presence of a child by a person in a position of trust
• Two counts of making an indecent photograph / pseudo- photograph of a child
• One count of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity by a person in a position of trust

The court heard that Cooper-Shaw worked at a care home in Ellesmere Port between April 2018 and October 2021, where he was tasked with safeguarding and caring for vulnerable children and young people.

But during this time, Cooper-Shaw groomed a teenage girl at the care home, committing multiple offences against her.

The matter came to police attention in November 2021 and an investigation was launched by the Western Protecting Vulnerable People Unit.

Cooper-Shaw was arrested soon after the report to police. When detectives reviewed his devices, they found him to be in possession of a number of indecent images of children.

Cooper-Shaw will be sentenced on May 31.

Following Cooper-Shaw’s conviction, investigating officer DC Katie Ashcroft said: “The level of offending in this case and the acts he subjected his victim to were truly horrific.

"Cooper-Shaw was meant to be in a position of trust, safeguarding and caring for young people. Despite knowing this, and how vulnerable the victim was, Cooper-Shaw violated and betrayed that trust, abusing and deeply traumatising the young victim at a time when she should have been made to feel safe.

“I’d like to thank the victim for their immense courage and strength they’ve shown throughout this investigation – first to come forward to report the crimes, and then also to give evidence and help convict this man for his predatory and warped behaviour.

“I hope this encourages others who have been subjected to such abuse to come forward. They will get the support and advice they need to help them come to terms with their ordeal, and if they so wish, put their abuser before the courts.”

Description

A WIRRAL sex offender has been jailed for breaching his Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO).

Steven Bell, 27, from Woodchurch, was sentenced yesterday (Tuesday, March 19) at Liverpool Crown Court.
 
Bell is a Registered Sex Offender and required to adhere to conditions under the Sex Offender Register and his SHPO.
 
Bell was found to have breached these condition by failing to register his home address with police, failing to register that children under the age of 18 were staying at the address and having unsupervised contact with a female under the age of 16.

Speaking after the sentencing, Detective Inspector Steven O’Neill, Manager of our Sex Offender Unit, said: "Sex offenders are quite rightly expected to provide up-to-date information about where they live, and strictly adhere to all conditions of their release.

"Any breaches are investigated thoroughly and it is pleasing to see that Bell has been dealt with robustly and sent back to prison.

Description

A man from Halewood has been sentenced to 22 years in prison with a further year on extended licence for 20 counts of sexual offences against a child.

Michael Smith, 64, from Halewood, was jailed today, Friday 1 March, after he was found guilty of the offences following a trial held in January at Liverpool Crown Court.

The investigation was carried out after we received a report in 2020 of multiple sexual offences against a child, which had spanned a several-year period.

Smith was also handed a Restraining Order and placed on the Sex Offender Register for life.

Description

A man from Liscard has been sentenced to 18 years in prison with three years on extended licence after being found guilty of 30 counts of historical sexual abuse against two children in Wallasey.

Brian Cawood, 61, of Silverlea Avenue, Liscard, was sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court today, Wednesday 14 February, after a jury found him guilty of the various offences, which date back to the 1980s and 1990s.

Cawood has also been handed a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and will be required to sign the Sex Offender Register for life.

Detective Constable Becky Robinson said: “I hope this sentencing shows that time is no barrier in reporting offences to Merseyside Police and we will take every report extremely seriously, regardless of when it occurred.

“This result was only possible thanks to the sheer determination and bravery of his victims, despite Cawood denying the offences.

“Thankfully a jury saw through his lies and he will now spend a considerable amount of time in prison.”

Description

A former cheerleading coach has been jailed after being found guilty of sexual offences against children as well as possessing and distributing child abuse images.

Today (Monday 5 February 2024) Tom Walsh (DOB: 06/08/1986) of Shaw Lane, Prescot was sentenced at Bolton Crown Court after he was convicted of multiple counts of sexual abuse against three girls, as well as possession and distribution of child abuse images. He was sentenced to 15 years in jail with a further 5 years on license. He also received a lifetime sexual harm prevention order and was registered as a sex offender for life.

The 37-year-old was found guilty of 28 charges relating to sexual offences against children which took place between 2011 and 2020, following a criminal trial at Bolton Crown Court that concluded on Friday 2 February 2024.

Walsh was a cheerleader and assisted in the coaching of children for a number of years where he met two of the victims, whilst the third he groomed online.

The sexual offences against the three victims were committed in Manchester and Liverpool, although Walsh also communicated with a number of girls across the UK to obtain child abuse images from them.

An investigation into his offending was launched following an investigation by Regional Organised Crime Units (ROCU) where covert officers communicated with Walsh online. As enquiries progressed, Walsh’s sexual interest in children – young girls - became apparent.

The investigation led to Walsh being arrested on 20 August 2020 on suspicion of possession and distribution of child abuse images.

The investigation subsequently uncovered numerous indecent images of children saved on Walsh’s device and messages between himself and a number of victims. He primarily used the app Snapchat to communicate with his victims and evidence of screen recording software was recovered which showed how the defendant had saved child abuse images and his conversations with victims.

Following an extensive investigation, a number of victims were identified, including the three girls who were victims of child sexual abuse. Walsh contacted one victim online when she was just 13-years-old and over the next 6 years groomed and sexually abused the girl, even sending her child abuse images. Two further victims, who were teenagers at the time and came contact with Walsh through cheerleading, were identified during the investigation.

Description

A man has been jailed after raping and sexually assaulting a woman in Ellesmere Port.

Max Dufley, 34, of Eaton Road, West Kirby, appeared at Chester Crown Court on Tuesday 16 January where he was sentenced to six years.

He was previously found guilty of one count of rape and one count of sexual assault by penetration.

The investigation began on 18 June 2021, after a woman contacted police to report she had been raped by Dufley in May 2021. During the incident, she had awoken to find Dufley sexually assaulting her, before raping her.

After a thorough investigation, Dufley was subsequently charged with the offences in August 2022.

He originally denied the charges but was found guilty on Thursday 5 October following a four-day trial.

On top of his prison sentence, Dufley is subject to a restraining order, sexual harm prevention order, and must sign the sex offender register.

Description

A paedophile caught with a massive collection of child abuse images had carried out secret online searches for "ISIS rape" and baby porn.

James Somerville, 38, of Hazelfield Court, St Helens, had 217,824 indecent images on five different electronic devices stashed in his home. 217,076 of these were category C images, 375 were category B, and 373 were of the highest category A, "involving children in penetrative sexual activity or sexual activity with an animal, or sadism".

He was caught on January 22 2019 when police executed a search warrant and seized a number of items, including a hard-drive, a USB stick, three storage devices and a disk drive. He denied three counts of making indecent images of children (categories A, B and C), but was found guilty following a trial. He appeared at Liverpool Crown Court today, January 12, for sentence.

Prosecutor Lee Bonner told the court Somerville had used an anonymous browser to carry out online searches for indecent images of children as young as three-years-old and "babies in diapers", as well as for "jihad rape" and "ISIS rape". On his devices, files were found from Eastern European and Russian companies which provided "images of young 'models' under 16 of a sexual nature, with themes such as Christmas or Birthday parties".

Jonathan Rogers, defending, said Somerville continued to maintain his innocence. He said several letters from his family, including his partner and son, showed a "positive side to his character, for example the sacrifices he has made to care for his partner, the charity work he has done for others, the volunteering at soup kitchen in the city centre, and the evidence he had helped strangers who were suffering in his community."

Sentencing Somerville, Judge Simon Killeen said: "It should be shouted in courts throughout England and Wales that this trade, the trade in abusive films and images of children, is utterly horrific. People like you, who download these images, encourage the makers of these to abuse children. There are real people on the other end of these films. "You denied your guilt and still do, and there's clearly a total absence of remorse on your part, or any insight into what the jury, on compelling evidence, found what you had done."

Somerville's girlfriend, supporting him in court, sobbed as he was sentenced to a total of 16 months in prison, and given a Sexual Harm Prevention Order. Somerville had to be ordered by the judge to leave the docks and go to the cells after remaining to talk with his girlfriend.

Description

A teenage girl was raped in a newsagents after being lured into a back room by a shop worker who had promised her cigarettes.

Saidi Hussain gained his victim's trust by plying her with free vapes before attacking her once they were alone together inside the store. But the 24-year-old "remains in complete denial" over his horrific assault, having accused the youngster of "making the whole thing up".

Liverpool Crown Court heard yesterday, Thursday, that he had befriended the teen as a customer of the store on Linacre Lane in Bootle where he "helped out from time to time". Hussain, of Louis Pasteur Avenue in Netherton, was said to have given her complementary e-cigarettes during past visits before she attended the premises at around 8pm on Sunday, March 5, last year in order to buy cigarettes.

He "told her they were kept in the back of the shop" before "showing her the way through to a back room in the premises", then sexually assaulted her. The defendant then persisted in his vile behaviour by "telling her she could have cigarettes if she performed sexual activity upon him", before exposing himself to the girl and proceeding to rape her on a pile of boxes.

She subsequently fled to a friend's house and disclosed her ordeal. Hussain was arrested the following day, but under interview claimed there had been "absolutely no sexual contact at all" with the complainant.

He later changed his account, stating that she had "initiated all of the sexual contact". However, he then reverted back to his original story at trial.

Arthur Gibson, prosecuting, said: "This was a back room of a shop premises, into which she was tricked to enter. It must have been apparent to him that she had been drinking, and to that extent there was an element of vulnerability about her - in other words, she was in a situation where somebody could take advantage of her, and he did."Iranian national Hussain, an asylum seeker with "no right to remain in the United Kingdom at the present time", has no previous convictions. Gerald Baxter, defending, told the court: "He has no previous record, but of course for this type of offence that is of little significance."

Hussain was found guilty of two counts of rape and one of sexual assault by a jury. Appearing in court via video link and assisted by a Kurdish interpreter, he was jailed for nine years - a term of which he must serve at least two thirds before being released on licence.

Sentencing, Judge David Potter said: "She was known to you as a customer in the shop where you helped out from time to time. She knew you, and you had been friendly towards her and had given her free vapes in the past.

"On this Sunday, she had been drinking and was tipsy but not falling down drunk. She went into the mini market in order to obtain a vape.

"Having got that, she left. She then telephoned a friend, who asked her to go back to the shop to obtain some cigarettes, so she returned to the shop.

"When she returned to the shop, you were the only other person there. She asked you for cigarettes, but you told her they were kept in the back of the shop, and so you showed her the way through to a back room in the premises.

"Once there, you having directed her to be in the back of the shop with you, you raped and sexually assaulted her. By this time, she was in a state of complete panic.

"She did not know what to do. She had been entirely traumatised by your assault of her.

"You were interviewed by the police and lied, saying that there had been absolutely no sexual contact with her at all and that she was, in effect, making the whole thing up. You later changed that account to say that, in fact, she had initiated all of the sexual contact - you being reluctant and she being the person in charge.

"You later changed that account, and before the jury said that no sex took place between you in the back of that shop. She has found it very difficult to come to terms with what happened.

"She had been drinking, and you were friendly from previous occasions. You took advantage of that and isolated her in an unfamiliar environment so as to commit these very serious offences.

"The main mitigation is your previous good character. You came to the United Kingdom in order to flee persecution as a Kurd in the Islamic Republic of Iran.

"While you have clearly abused the protection offered by the United Kingdom by committing these offences, you have otherwise led a law-abiding life. You remain in complete denial of what you have done.

"That is your right, but it means that until you accept what you have done there is very little that can be done towards your rehabilitation. You do not accept any responsibility for your actions that day."

Hussain was also told to sign the sex offenders' register for life. He was given a restraining order preventing him from contacting his victim indefinitely.

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AN offender previously jailed for activity which was deemed to constitute ‘child abduction’ in Warrington has been locked up again.

Ronald Howard was told to ‘stay well away’ from a teenage girl he plied with alcohol, having been incarcerated for six months in April last year.

However, the 26-year-old has now reoffended after he pretended to be a woman during sexualised chats with someone he believed to be a 13-year-old girl.

He appeared before Liverpool Crown Court charged with attempted sexual communications with a child.

Frank Dillon, prosecuting, told the court that on November 30 last year, six months after he was jailed for the Warrington offence, Howard contacted the fake profile of ‘Milly’, a 13-year-old girl on the Rando Chat app.

This account had been set up by an undercover police officer tasked with rooting out online child sex offenders.

The defendant pretended to be a 19-year-old woman and the conversation became sexualised, with the defendant sending the ‘girl’ an image of a woman exposing her breasts.

The conversation moved to Snapchat, and Howard sent a picture to her which he claimed was of ‘her boyfriend’s penis’. He also encouraged her to send him photographs of herself.

Police were able to identify Howard through his phone number, which was known by the probation service, said Mr Dillon.

He was arrested on December 22 and made no comment to most of the questions when interviewed.

The court heard of his previous conviction for child abduction in April last year, with the court hearing on that occasion that in January last year, police attended his then-flat on Silverdale Road in Newton-le-Willows and issued him with a child abduction warning notice.

At the time of serving the notice, police found the girl inside Howard’s flat and returned her to her place of residence, namely a care home in the Warrington area.

On March 2 last year, , at around 8.30pm, the girl’s carer and a colleague had to leave the home to look for her after she went missing.

They found the girl on a dirt track with the defendant, who was holding her up as they walked as she was unsteady on her feet.

The carer could smell alcohol on the girl’s breath, who was finding it difficult to keep her eyes open and whose head was ‘floppy’.

She asked the man who he was, to which he gave a false name and address, as well as saying he was from St Helens but was currently homeless. He did not reply when asked how he knew her.

As she began to sober up the next day, she confirmed the identity of the defendant and that he had been served with a child abduction warning notice.

She told the carer they had been to a Co-op together for alcohol and that they had kissed, but she could not remember anything else.

Howard was sentenced to six months in prison and handed a restraining order not to contact the girl or enter the Warrington street on which she resides for seven years.

After approving the restraining order, Judge Potter added: “Stay well away from this child.”

For this latest attempted sexual communications with a child offence, recorder Eric Lamb sentenced Howard, of Grange Park Road in Thatto Heath, St Helens, to 15 months in prison.

He was also ordered to sign on the sex offender register for 10 years and hit with a sexual harm prevention order for the same length of time.