Latest Offenders Pembroke

Description

A PREDATOR was caught messaging who he thought was a 12-year-old girl telling her to record herself doing a sex act and send it to him.

Paul Chesher, of Herbrandston, began messaging schoolgirl ‘Ellie’ on the social network site Kik on August 31, 2021. It was actually an undercover police officer.

When the decoy said they were at school, Chesher asked them to “sneak to the bathroom” and send him a picture, prosecutor Regan Walters said.

The defendant sent pictures which showed his face and told the decoy he was 56.

Mr Walters said Chesher would repeatedly refer to ‘Ellie’ as being “too young”, that he would “get in to trouble”, and that he “could go to jail”, as well as referencing that ‘Ellie’ “could be the police” and stating “this is so wrong”.

Despite this, he continued to ask the decoy for pictures, about her underwear and about her sexual experiences. He also told ‘Ellie’ to delete their conversations.

Chesher also directed the ‘girl’ to masturbate, and asked her to film herself doing it and send it to him.

Police were able to identify Chesher’s email and then his IP address. He was arrested at his home on October 22, 2021.

Stuart John, in mitigation, said there had been a “substantial delay” in the case coming to court.

“He has never been in any sort of trouble before,” he said.

“He feels a deep sense of shame being arrested for offences of this nature.”

Mr John said Chesher had suffered from medical issues which led to loneliness at the time of his offending.

Mr Walters said the delay was caused by a more than year-long hold-up in the devices being analysed, with a review of the material not completed until last August, and a delay in getting permission from Homeland Security in America to access information from Kik.

“You persisted in these activities for over a month. You knew full well what the consequences of this were to be,” said Judge Geraint Walters.

“This wasn’t a momentary lapse in judgement, it was a persistent one.

“You still haven’t come to fully accept that the motivation had nothing to do with your mental or physical health, but your interest in children.”

Chesher was sentenced to 27 months in prison. He must register as a sex offender for 10 years, and was made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order for the same period.

Detective Constable Paul Kelly, of Dyfed Powys Police, said: “This sentence and the investigation itself demonstrated excellent collaborative working between police agencies.

“It sends a clear message to perpetrators that crime against children is abhorrent, and that we as police will find the perpetrators and seek justice for the children involved.”

Tarian Regional Organised Crime Unit (ROCU) case officer, Detective Constable Isaac Gott, said: “Our ROCU is dedicated to identifying individuals who have a sexual interest in children, and we will relentlessly pursue them.

“In addition to his sentence, Chesher now has a 10-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order and will be required to register as a sex offender for 10 years.”

Description

 A JUDGE described this man as a “significant risk” to young boys in the community as she jailed him for sexually assaulting a 17-year-old on a bus.

Matthew Gilbert, 39, of Water Street in Pembroke Dock, was jailed for 16 months after pleading guilty to sexual assault.

“You knew that this was clearly wrong,” said Judge Catherine Richards, sentencing Gilbert.

“You are a significant risk in the community to young boys.” 

 Prosecutor Craig Jones told Swansea Crown Court that Gilbert boarded a bus at Pembroke Dock on the morning of September 28 last year.

He headed to the back of the bus, where a 17-year-old was sat. The teenager put his feet up –indicating he wanted to be left alone – but Gilbert sat opposite him, before immediately starting to talk to him.

Gilbert asked the teenager how much money it would take for him to do a sexual act with a man, before then moving closer to him.

“The defendant covers the aisle position and hems him in,” Mr Jones said.

He asked the teenager his age, to which he said he was 15. Gilbert replied that was fine and offered him £40 to do a sexual act with him. He then upped this to £100, Mr Jones said.

Gilbert moved next to the teenager and put his hand on his thigh, before kissing him on the cheek. He then asked him to get off the bus at Johnston with him and “find a public toilet”, Mr Jones said. 

 When the bus stopped, Gilbert got off, but the teenager remained on the bus and the police were called.

The defendant was arrested that day whilst visiting his mum in hospital. He told officers: “Since mum has been in here I’ve been doing stupid things again.” 

 The court heard that he had a previous conviction from October 2023 for exposure, where he was seen masturbating behind a glazed front door in Pembroke Dock, whilst he was also convicted for malicious communications in June after making unwanted sexual comments in phone calls to the fire station.

Ryan Bowen, in mitigation, said: “He acknowledges his convictions are recent and for offences of a sexual nature.

“He has led the majority of his life without appearing before the court.

“Plainly this is someone with underlying issues.

“He’s deemed to possess a lower cognitive function.

“His sexual preoccupation appears to be exacerbated by boredom and a lack of routine.”

The defendant was ordered to register as a sex offender for 10 years, and was made subject to a sexual harm prevention order for the same period. 

Description

POLICE have released the mugshot of a sex offender who breached the terms of a court order by deleting Facebook and WhatsApp from his phone and having a secret second phone.

At Swansea Crown Court last week, Judge Paul Thomas KC jailed Luke Rogers for 16 months, running concurrently for each of the two breaches.

The court heard that Rogers had been convicted in 2020 for two offences of sexual activity with a girl under the age of 16. He was jailed for 15 months, and was made the subject of a 10-year sexual harm prevention order, and had to register as a sex offender for the same period of time.

As part of the terms of these orders, Rogers had to notify the police within three days of buying any device capable of accessing the internet, and was not allowed to delete files, applications, data, or internet history from his devices.

At a hearing on September 20, Swansea Crown Court was told that Rogers attended Haverfordwest Police Station on August 29. During that meeting, he admitted that he had deleted the Facebook app from his phone as he had been “getting hassle” from another man. He had also deleted WhatsApp.

The court heard that he had done a factory reset on the phone.

“It was found that he had last used WhatsApp on August 23, and that he had deliberately deleted the application ahead of the meeting,” prosecutor Hannah George told the court on September 20.

The police were granted a search warrant, and a second phone was found at Rogers’ address. It was confirmed by both his partner – who provided officers with both of the defendant’s phone numbers – and his grandmother that it belonged to Rogers.

He was interviewed at Haverfordwest Police Station, and admitted two breaches of the order.

Rogers said he had bought the second phone three weeks earlier, and that he had reset his other phone because “WhatsApp was not working”.

The court heard that Rogers, 37, of Wolfscastle, had 16 previous convictions for 33 offences – of which seven were sexual in nature.

He also “has a history of failing to comply with the notification requirements,” Ms George told the court.

Stephan Alfred, who represented Rogers at the hearing in September, said that Rogers had not received any support in the form of a sexual offenders treatment programme.

He admitted there was “a cycle here in terms of breaches” by Rogers.

The case was adjourned for the preparation of a pre-sentence report, and Rogers was sentenced on Wednesday, November 8.

Judge Thomas also ordered the defendant must also pay a £156 surcharge, and a forfeiture and destruction order was made regarding one of the phones seized.

Description

POLICE have released the mugshot of an army veteran who asked who he thought was a 14-year-old boy to carry out sex acts in the back of his van in a supermarket car park.

Sean Golder, formerly of the Royal Engineers, was arrested in the car park of Morrisons in Carmarthen on March 10 after arranging to meet the ‘boy’ – who was actually an undercover police officer.

Golder was jailed for a total of 19 months in prison for attempting to meet a child after grooming and attempted sexual communication with a child.

Swansea Crown Court heard that Golder began messaging the ‘boy’ on social media on March 8, saying he was on his way to Carmarthen and was “looking for fun”.  

The profile said the ‘boy’ was 19, but in their first message he said was 14 – asking if that was too young, prosecutor Ieuan Rees said.

Golder replied: “Lol where are you? Are you looking for fun?”, adding “We could have fun in my van”.

The pair exchanged numbers and moved the conversation on to WhatsApp.

Golder asked the ‘boy’ for a photograph, and when the officer sent one, replied: “Wow is that really you?  I need you to run here now”.

“It is plainly very obviously a picture of a young boy, I would say no older than 14,” said Recorder Simon Mills. “The very idea that he thought the person was an adult is simply ludicrous.”

The defendant also spoke about them touching each other in the back of his van, and suggested “getting undressed” and video calling, Mr Rees said.

Golder suggested meeting the ‘boy’ at his home, but the officer replied it would be “too risky”. Instead, it was agreed they would meet in the Morrisons car park in Carmarthen on March 10.

Ahead of the meeting, Golder asked: “Do you want me to touch you, w*** you, and suck you?”.

When Golder arrived at the store, he was arrested by police.

Golder had also taken ‘poppers’ – or alkyl nitrites – to the attempted meeting, and told the ‘boy’ the drugs would “turn him in to a s***”.

Golder, 55, formerly of The Pound in Pembroke Dock and now of Cosheston, has no previous convictions.

Helen Randall, defending, said that Golder had left school at 16 and joined the army. He was in the army for 23 years and served in Germany, Northern Ireland, Bosnia, Iraq and Afghanistan.

Ms Randall said Golder had made use of his time in custody by completing English and maths qualifications and by taking up jobs.

She said the defendant “has been punished to a high level already by the time he’s served waiting for today’s sentence”.

Dyfed-Powys Police worked alongside officers from Tarian Regional Organised Crime Unit (ROCU) in taking down Golder.

As well as his prison sentence, Golder must now register as a sex offender for 10 years, and was made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order for the same period of time.

Description

POLICE have released the mugshot of a paedophile who was jailed for 17 and a half years for abusing two young girls.

Dominic Dewick was found guilty of 20 historical offences against the girls between 1993 and 2017.

Following a four-day trial, the jury returned unanimous guilty verdicts on each of the charges on August 4.

The court heard during the trial that one victim had been just seven years old when her abuse started, with it continuing until she was 15. The second victim was abused between the ages of nine and 12.

Sentencing Dewick, Judge Paul Thomas said: “The impact on the lives of those two girls, now women, has been utterly profound.

“There is, I’m afraid, little to no mitigation that can be identified on your behalf.”

Dewick was jailed for four years for the abuse of the first victim, and a further 13 and a half years for abusing the second victim. He will also serve an additional two years extended licence period.

Following the sentencing, PC Paul Kelly, the investigating officer for Dyfed-Powys Police, said: “I would like to thank the jury on the guilty verdict on Friday, August 4, and the sentence handed down by the Judge. 

“More importantly I would like to thank the two extremely brave and courageous victims in this case.

“They have both showed immense strength and character to firstly report the abuse, and also they have remained strong throughout the trial.

“This is an important message to everyone that justice can still be served years after any abuse.

“I hope that both the female victims in this case, and their families, who have been effected greatly by the actions of Dominic Dewick, can now try and move on with their lives and this gives them some kind of closure.”

Dewick, 45, of Harrier Road in Haverfordwest, had denied all charges, maintaining that both girls had fabricated their evidence.

“I would never do anything like that,” he told the jury in his evidence.

“That was sick.”

Nicola Powell, prosecuting, told the court at trial: “This is a man in complete denial, who convinced himself that he'd got away with it, all those years ago.

“But now his past has come back to haunt him.”

A statement from one of the victims was read out in court as Dewick was sentenced.

“I feel absolutely broken. A broken person inside and out,” she said.

“I was a child and very vulnerable when I was abused.”

James Hartson, defending, acknowledged there was little mitigation he could put forward, except that Dewick had no previous convictions.

“That’s rather offset by the fact that you have been offending for most of your adult life,” Judge Thomas directed at Dewick.

Dewick was made the subject of an indefinite sexual harm prevention order, and must register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.

Description

A MANIPULATIVE sexual offender has been sent back to prison.

Adrian Thomas, 29, of Magdalene Street, Haverfordwest, appeared before Swansea Crown Court on December 21 where he was sent to prison for further breaches of a sexual harm prevention order.

Thomas had been made the subject of a 10-year sexual harm prevention order in 2017 after he was convicted of meeting a 16-year-old girl after sexually grooming her online. He received a 16-month prison sentence for the offence.

He appeared before the court today after admitting four counts of breaching the order. Mr Jones, prosecuting, told the court how police went to Thomas house on October 24 and he answered the door but wouldnt let him in, stating he had tested positive for covid.

Mr Jones said: They asked to see the test and could see it was clearly negative. Thomas is said to have told officers he was confused and let them in.

They had a look at his mobile phone which he had been in possession of since April and police were aware of this and saw he had WhatsApp with messages only from the October.

When he was asked why there was no messages on WhatsApp between him and his mother prior to October, he told officers that they had fallen out which was contradicted by the call log on his phone and his mothers statement to police.

Officers also found that he had three social media accounts which were not under his name or a police approved name and that he had not made officers aware of his use of the social media accounts which was part of his conditions under the order.

He had accounts on TikTok and Discord with the username ADECFC92 and on Twitch under ADEYYTG.

He had also been found to have been in contact with a 16-year-old girl on the device and had told her he was 21 and asked if she had a boyfriend or girlfriend.

When interviewed, he said he was confused about the username part of the order and didnt think he had done anything wrong and then answered no comment.

Mr Griffiths, defending, told the court how his client had entered guilty pleas at the first opportunity at Haverfordwest Magistrates Court. He said how Thomas had asked for a pre-sentence report to be completed and that it was a damning read.

His Honour Judge P H Thomas KC who handed him a sentence previously for breaching the order - called Thomas a manipulative and undeterrable man and said that there was no chance of rehabilitation. He told him how he had lied to police and that he wasnt a very good liar.

Judge Thomas said: If you come before the court again, the next sentence will be higher. It is up to you if you want to spend the majority of the next two decades in prison or if you want to do something to sort this out.

Thomas who appeared via video link from Swansea Magistrates Court - was jailed for two years and the sexual harm prevention order remains in force until 2027.

Description

Former hotel worker Luke James had not told the girl's mother - who he met online - that he was a convicted sex offender

A convicted sex offender showed a young girl a video on his phone of an animated singing penis.

Luke James had met the girl's mum on a dating website and went to a park with the family but had not disclosed his previous conviction for sexually assaulting a teenager. As part of the suspended sentence for that assault he is banned from having any contact with females under 16 unless their parent or guardian knows about his past.

David Singh, prosecuting, told Swansea Crown Court that in April this year James met a woman who had young daughters on an online dating site. The woman and her children subsequently met the defendant at a park. But the court heard one of the daughters later told her mum James had shown her a video of "bums of willies" on his phone.

Concerned at what had happened the woman searched for the defendant's name online and found out about his previous conviction. In November last year James was given a suspended prison sentence and made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) for sexually assaulting a teenage girl in Tenby. This offence had seen him pulling a teenager's top away from her chest and making comments about her not wearing a bra before kissing her neck and putting his arms around her. The court heard that after the mum found out about James' past she alerted the police and told them about the her daughter and the video.

The prosecutor said the 30-year-old defendant was arrested and police found a video of an "animated penis signing a song" on his phone. James told officers he thought it was only unsupervised contact with girls that he was prohibited from having.

Luke William James, formerly of Knowling Mead, Tenby, Pembrokeshire but now of Winch Lane, Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, had previously pleaded guilty to breaching a SHPO when he appeared in the dock for sentencing. He has one previous conviction for one offence, namely sexual assault by touching. For that offence the former hotel worker was sentenced to 16 months in prison suspended for 24 months, and was ordered to undergo the Horizon sex offenders programme and to complete a rehabilitation course and 250 hours of unpaid work. The defendant was also put on the sex offenders register for 10 years, and was made the subject of a SHPO which is designed to control his access to girls.

Dyfed Thomas, for James, told the court that the main part of the sentence imposed last November had been the Horizon programme but that the defendant had yet to start the course as he had been assessed as needing one-to-one sessions rather than the usual group sessions. The barrister said following his previous conviction James had "moved to a new area and tried to make new friends", and said while the author of the pre-sentence report raised concerns about how candid his client was being, there was remorse on James' part. Mr Thomas also acknowledged that concerns had been raised about the defendant's "extensive messaging of woman of all ages" but he said no criminal offences had been committed.

Judge Huw Rees said the background to the offending was of concern - he noted the Probation Service had begun breach proceedings against the defendant prior to his arrest as he was not turning up for appointments, he was "evasive" about his internet use, and was "messaging multiple woman in a sexual manner". He noted a report into James had identified a "high level of sexual pre-occupation", and he added that in his view the defendant had been lucky to get a suspended prison sentence last November.

With a discount for his guilty plea, James was sentenced to six months in prison for breaching the SHPO, and the judge activated 12 months of the previously imposed suspended sentence to run consecutively making an overall sentence of 18 months in prison. The defendant will serve up to half that period in custody before being released on licence to serve the remainder in the community.

Description

A convicted sex offender was caught with internet-wiping software on his phone and an email account in a false name just months after walking out of court.

Anthony Coombes was on a suspended sentence at the time after being convicted of engaging in sexually explicit conversations with what he believed were 12 and 14 year old girls, and was also subject to a sexual harm prevention order designed to control his online activities.

Sending the 22-year-old to prison, a judge said he did not believe the defendant had any intention of abiding by court orders.

Dean Pulling, prosecuting, told Swansea Crown Court that on the morning of February 4 this year police went to Coombes' home and asked to see his electronic devices. The defendant handed over a Huawei mobile, and the officer noticed it only had that day's internet history in the browser history. A detailed examination of the handset found the phone contained an app which had a data-erasing function, and that Coombes had an email account in the name of "Bennypern". The defendant is banned from erasing his internet history or using aliases when setting up an email account by a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO).

In his subsequent interview the defendant said he didnt know he was not allowed to delete his online history, and said the cleaning app had came with the phone which he had bought secondhand. He accepted he had created the alias email address but said this was only for use on his X-Box games console.

Anthony Stephen Joshua Coombes, of Colley Court, Monkton, Pembroke, had previously pleaded guilty to breaching the conditions of a (SHPO) when he appeared in the dock for sentencing.

The court heard that in October 2021 Coombes was sentenced at Swansea Crown Court to 12 months in prison suspended for two years for attempted sexual communication with a child, possessing indecent images of a child, and failing to comply with sex offender notification requirements. These offences had seen Coombes contacting what he believed were two girls aged 12 and 14 on a site called Chat Hour, and engaging in sexual conversations with them before asking for intimate photographs.

In reality the profiles of the girls were decoy accounts being run by adult members of so-called paedophile hunter groups, and the woman running one of the decoys contacted the police after she found Coombes' Facebook page and discovered he had been befriending real young girls. When the defendant was arrested officers found two indecent images of girls ages between eight and 12 on his phone which had been downloaded from the Kik messenger app. The court heard that after pleading guilty to these offences in August last year the case was adjourned for a pre-sentence report - Coombes was released on bail but then failed to register with police as he was required to do as a sex offender.

The prosecutor said the defendant also has a conditional caution from 2017 - when he was a juvenile - for offences of attempting to incite a child to engage in a penetrative sexual activity, and sending indecent images after he admitted sending pictures and videos of his penis to girls aged 14 and 15.

Judge Paul Thomas QC said Coombes had been given a "merciful" sentence in October last year but it was clear to him that the defendant had no intention of complying with requirements of the sexual harm prevention order. The judge sentenced him to eight months in prison for breaching the order and activated 10 months of the previously imposed suspended sentence to run consecutively making an overall sentence of 18 months in prison. Coombes will serve up to half that period in custody before being released on licence to serve the remainder in the community.

The sexual harm prevention order remains in place.

Description

A former security guard took an indecent photo of a young girl and sent it to fellow paedophiles, a court has heard.

Graham Thomas also downloaded more than 1,200 films and pictures of children and babies being sexually abused, and engaged in online chats about his sexual fantasies with kids.

Sending him to prison, a judge described the images - some of which showed children as young as 18 months - as "vile" and "simply stomach-churning".

Craig Jones, prosecuting, told Swansea Crown Court that Thomas was arrested in November 2020 when police executed a search warrant at the Pembrokeshire house he shared with his mother. The 58-year-old's laptops, phones, and tablet devices were seized, and a preliminary examination revealed the presence of indecent material.

A full search of the machines uncovered a total of 1,244 indecent images and videos, including 298 Category A images which show the most serious kinds of abuse including rape, as well as 10 extreme pornographic images. Some of the children in the pictures and videos were estimated to be aged as young as 18 months. Four of the Category C images found on Thomas' devices were photographs he had taken.

Officers also found online chats where the defendant had discussed his child sex fantasies with like-minded individuals, and discovered he had shared a small number of indecent images with other paedophiles.

Mr Jones said one of the images distributed by the defendant was a "tribute style" photograph which involved an indecent picture of a young girl where you could see up her skirt - this picture was displayed on a laptop screen, and the defendant had then placed his erect penis next to the screen and taken a photograph of it.

Graham Thomas, formerly of Hakin, Milford Haven, but now of Colley Court, Monkton, Pembroke, had previously pleaded guilty to possession of indecent images of Categories A, B and C, distributing indecent images, taking indecent images, and possession of extreme pornographic images when he appeared in the dock for sentencing. He has previous convictions "of some antiquity" for offences including drink-driving and battery.

John Allchurch, for Thomas, said the defendant understood the offences he had committed were not "victimless", and said he was genuinely remorseful for what he had done. He said his client had worked as a security guard at an oil refinery and had spent a lot of time alone - this led him to develop an interest in online pornography which then led to more extreme material.

He said following his arrest Thomas effectively had "lost his family, lost his friends, lost his house, and lost his standing in the community".

Judge Paul Thomas QC told the defendant that for a period of five or six years he had been involved in viewing "vile" and "simply stomach-churning" material on the internet. He said the children in the images found on Thomas devices were real children somewhere in the world being horribly abused so that people like the defendant could get sexual gratification by masturbating to the pictures and videos.

Following the sentencing guidelines and with the required one-third discount for his guilty pleas the judge sentenced the defendant to 28 months in prison. He will serve up to half that period in custody before being released on licence to serve the remainder in the community. Thomas will be a registered sex offender for the next 10 years, and was made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order for the same length of time.

Description

A MARLOES pensioner, until recently a volunteer instructor for junior sailing, has admitted making indecent photographs of children.

Derek Lister, 72, appeared at Swansea Crown Court on Thursday (Sept 30), and entered a guilty plea to creating 3 indecent category A images of a child, 14 indecent category B images of a child and 152 indecent category C images of a child.

Former teacher Lister had originally indicated that he would plead not guilty but changed his plea faced with the weight of the evidence against him.

He was given a 4-month jail sentence, suspended for two years and 150 hours community service.

The suspended sentence means that if he commits any offence within the next two years the suspended sentence will be activated, and he will be automatically sent to jail.

It is understood that he has now moved away from Pembrokeshire.

The sentencing had been delayed from a previous date as the video link system in court had been faulty.

Description

Jack Quinn was a member of online groups which used a secure, encrypted app to "trade" images of children being sexually abused.

A chef was running an online group for fellow paedophiles where they shared and commented on pictures of child abuse, a court has heard.

Some of the photos and videos Jack Quinn downloaded from the internet showed babies being sexually abused.

The defendant was a member of several groups where people exchanged vile photos and videos, and was an administrator in charge of one of them.

Swansea Crown Court heard that shortly before 9am on the morning of November 20 last year police executed a search warrant at the defendant's house in Pembrokeshire - present at the property was Quinn, his partner, and his young child.

James Hartson, prosecuting, said officers seized an Acer laptop computer and a Samsung mobile phone, and a quick check of the devices showed the presence of indecent images. The defendant was arrested and taken to Aberystwyth police station where he admitted accessing adult pornography but said any indecent images could have been downloaded accidentally.

The court heard that when Quinn's phone and laptop were forensically examined hundreds of pictures and videos showing the sexual abuse of babies and children were found of Categories A - the most extreme kind - B and C. Another 59,000 images were not categorised by officers.

Mr Hartson said the police also found large numbers of online conversations in an encrypted messenger app - an app which detectives asked not be named in open court due to an on-going investigation - which allowed users to exchange messages and photos "in total anonymity". Quinn had two accounts on the app, and in one of them had adopted the identity of a 17-year-old girl. The court heard the 29-year-old defendant was an administrator and an "active member" of one online groups, and had initiated many of the exchanges or "trades" of images of child sexual abuse with fellow members.

Jack William Quinn, now of Priory Street, Cardigan, Ceredigion, had previously pleaded guilty to three counts of possession of indecent images - Categories A, B and C - and three counts of distribution of indecent images - again of Categories A, B and C - when he appeared in the dock for sentencing. He has no previous convictions.

Ian Ibrahim, for Quinn, said following his arrest the defendant had referred himself to an alcohol charity, and had cut his consumption from 15 pints of beer a day to six or eight. He said his client was deeply ashamed of his behaviour and its impact on his family, had lost his career as a chef, and was now "a broken man".

With discounts for his guilty pleas recorder Christopher Clee QC sentenced Quinn to a total of 32 months in prison. He will serve up to half that period in custody before being released on licence to serve the remainder in the community. The defendant will be a registered sex offender for the rest of his life, and was made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order designed to control his use of the internet.

Description

Released

A Milford Haven man was jailed for 17 years yesterday (Monday) for a string of rapes and other sex offences.

Steven Ronald Williams, aged 45, was found guilty of 16 counts of rape, four counts of indecency with a child and four counts of indecent assault, at Cardiff crown court on December 15th.

Williams, of Marble Hall Road, Milford Haven was formerly the licensee or manager of several pubs in the Newport, Gwent area.

He denied all the offences, which took place over a number of years.

Judge Neil Bidder QC said Williams posed a high risk of serious harm to children and ordered that he be imprisoned for the publics protection.

He must serve a minimum of eight-and-a-half years before being considered for parole.

During the trial jurors saw footage of the victims interviews in which she said she was first raped when she was a child.

The girl said Williams told her nobody would believe her if she told anyone.

Prosecutor Jennet Treharne, said that at the age of 13 Williams was given a two year supervision order for inciting a child to commit an act of gross indecency.

He also had a caution in 2006 for battery.

Mary Parry-Evans, defending, said Williams was someone who struggled with the complexities of life and said he would face real difficulties if he did not get the help he needed.

She said he would continue to deny the offences, which was likely to delay his release on parole, and asked Judge Bidder QC not to impose an indeterminate sentence.

Judge Bidder QC described Williams as determined, dishonest and cunning and said the damage he had done to the victim was unfathomable.

You show absolutely no remorse, he said. I have no doubt that this terrible and protracted abuse had a significant effect on the victim her poor school attendance, drinking and self harm can be laid to your abuse of her.