Latest Offenders Wakefield

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A known sex offender who was caught with images and videos of child abuse and bestiality on four separate occasions over the course of four years has been jailed. Andrew Sawyer escaped a prison sentence in 2013 after being caught but continued to search out the vile material, Leeds Crown Court heard. The 44-year-old admitted 23 separate offences dating between July 2016 and February 2021. Judge Mushtaq Khokhar told him this week: "These are very serious offences that you have been committing repeatedly. "In 2013 you were sentenced for possessing indecent images of children and received a non-custodial sentence and you did the sex offending programme. "You learned nothing. You knew you were in trouble but you carried on and you were not concerned about the consequences. "The time has come to learn that you can't go on committing these offences, it's about time you changed your lifestyle." Prosecutor David McGonigal said that police first arrested Sawyer in September 2017 and found hundreds of images that he had downloaded to his phone over a 10-month period. They included Category A - the most serious child abuse pictures - along with Category B and C, prohibited pictures of children and extreme images of people performing sexual acts with animals. During interview, he told police that he "must have felt horny that day" and there would be "no harm in looking". He was arrested again while on bail in April 2018 and his phone seized, leading police to find hundreds of abuse images and videos and more bestiality images. Officers found that he had also been chatting to other perverts online and shared material. He was arrested again at his home in Outwood in April 2020 when more images and videos were recovered. Hundreds more images were found on two phones when Sawyer, of Mountbatten Crescent, was visited again by police in February 2021. Satpal Roth-Sharma, mitigating for Sawyer, said he had been a hard-working man who worked in telesales but lost his job in 2009. He began to drink heavily and started trying drugs. She said: "He has an addictive personality, he spent a lot of time looking at adult porn and that progressed. "His explanation for doing this was to simply fill his days and occupy his time." A probation report said there was a high risk of Sawyer offending again. Jailing him for 40 months, Judge Khokhar said: "I would be failing in my public duty if I did not impose a custodial sentence." He also said he would be subject to an indefinite sexual harm prevention order, which will limit his internet use, make it illegal for him to delete his search history, and gives the police access to his electronic devices at any point. The court heard that he had been held on remand since February last year.

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A paedophile who abused a young girl in Wakefield has been convicted and jailed.

Ronald Clayton, of Barnsley Road in Flockton, abused a young girl between 2010 and 2012.

His victim bravely came forward and reported him to police in 2017 and an investigation by Kirklees District Safeguarding Unit was carried out.

Clayton denied the offences but was charged with assault by penetration three years later in August 2020.

Earlier this week, the 71-year-old was found guilty following a trial at Leeds Crown Court.

He has been jailed for seven years with a further year on licence and made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order.

Following his sentence, Det Cons Gilly Hodds, who led the investigation for West Yorkshire Police, said: "The victim has shown much strength and courage throughout the investigation and I would like to thank her for coming forward and reporting Clayton's offences to our officers.

"I hope the sentence he has received will give her some closure and allow her to move forwards with her life.

"I also hope it will encourage other victims to come forward and report offences to our safeguarding teams, who work closely with partners to provide support for victims and investigate all reports thoroughly."

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A man has been jailed for a sexual offence against a young girl around 18 years ago and for having and creating indecent images of children.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said that Michael Parkinson, 59, from Mountbatten Avenue in Wakefield, committed the offence against the young girl in her parents home in Cheshire.

Parkinson had befriended the family and took the opportunity to abuse the child in an upstairs bedroom.

Years later, the victim was at university and had a conversation with her boyfriend. She talked about the abuse and decided to report it to the police.

Parkinson was arrested at his home on 25 March 2019 and his phone and IT equipment were seized.

A search of his IT revealed that he had been making and storing indecent images of children in recent months.

He pleaded guilty to causing or inciting a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity and possessing indecent images of children at Liverpool Crown Court on 6 December 2021.

He was jailed for 18 months at the court today (18 2 2022). He has been placed on the Sexual Offenders Register for 10 years and the Crown Prosecution Service also asked for a sexual harm prevention order to be put in place. This was granted by the court and will also be in place for 10 years. Parkinsons computer and phone will also be destroyed.

In a Victim Personal Statement, the victim said she was the person that friends came to for advice and she had thought she was able to bottle up her own struggles to come to terms with the abuse she had suffered.

But she became convinced that to report what had happened to her to the police was the right thing to do, to prevent other children becoming Parkinsons victims.

She added: I am a shell of my former self, I am more emotional than I have ever been and find myself becoming upset when having conversations with people over entirely separate matters. For 18 years I had told myself that what happened was not that big of a deal and that it could have been worse, and the release of the facts has caused more damage than I could have ever imagined. I was playing down the incident to protect myself, and its only now that I realise the impact it had on me. I have never sought counselling; however this is something I have now accepted that I need to aid my recovery.

Senior Crown Prosecutor Christopher Fontaine, of CPS Mersey-Cheshire, said: We would like to thank the victim for her courage in reporting this abuse, providing us with the evidence needed to prosecute and persevering until her abuser was brought to justice.

Michael Parkinson claimed to be a friend of the victims parents. However, when staying at their house, he sexually abused their child. He gave no thought to the impact the abuse would have on the child and her family.

In her Victim Personal Statement, she explained the long-term impact of the abuse, the mixture of feelings that surround it guilt, anxiety, sadness, disgust - and how it affected her relationships.

The decision of the victim as an adult to report what happened to her when she was a child directly resulted in the police attending his address and discovering indecent images of children on his phone.

"Every indecent image of a child is an image of a real child being abused. Sharing, downloading and viewing such images is a continuation of the abuse shown in the images.

"Michael Parkinson had not done anything to address his sexual interest in children.

To anyone else who has suffered child abuse, it is normal to only feel able to begin to address what happened when reaching adulthood. It is never too late to come forward and to help us protect other children from abuse.

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Joseph Brian Parkin was given a suspended sentence last June for contacting 13 and 14-year-old girls and leaving them messages, which put him in breach of a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO). But when he was handed the sentence, he was already in further communication with two more youngsters after they saw his message on the bus and contacted him. The 23-year-old then met up with the girls on several occasions and made sexual comments towards them, Leeds Crown Court was told. The defendant then began following the two teenagers. One of the girls older sister then confronted Parkin in the street as he followed them, and he rode off on his bike. Police were contacted and Parkin refused to comment during an interview. Parkin, of William Prince Grove, Belle Vue, eventually pleaded guilty to engaging in sexual communication with a child and two counts of breach of his sexual harm prevention order (SHPO). He has nine previous convictions which include sexual assault of a girl under 13, causing a child to watch a sexual act, sexual communication with a child, sending indecent communications, and several breaches of his SHPO, which he was given in 2017. Mitigating, Satpal Roth-Sharma said that Parkin suffered from Asperger's Syndrome and accepted his latest bout of behaviour. She said he was placed into care he was 12, and had spent the last seven months being held on remand in which had reflected on his life. She said: "His interest in teen girls is a result of feeling isolated and having never held down a proper adult relationship. "He accepts he made poor decisions linked to his Asperger's and his maturity. "He has thought long and hard about his behaviour and is showing regret and remorse." Judge Andrew Stubbs QC told him: "I appreciate the difficulties you have had, I'm aware of your autism and your place on the spectrum. "You are dangerous because you can't stop yourself contacting young girls for sexual purposes. "I can't take the risk of allowing you your liberty." Parkin, who sat shaking his head as the judge spoke to him, was handed a three-year jail term, made up of 20 months for his latest offences, as well as the 16 months from the suspended sentence last year.

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An online paedophile predator has been jailed after he struck up a sexual conversation with whom he believed was a 14-year-old girl and arranged to meet her. Sheffield Crown Court heard how Mark Hargreaves, aged 34, contacted and communicated sexually with whom he thought was a 14-year-old. But he was actually communicating with a fake profile run by members of the public to snare paedophiles. Nicola Quinney, prosecuting, said Hargreaves told the profile she was the kind of girl he would like to have sex with when she was older and he would teach her. He also sent a picture of a penis purporting to be his. Ms Quinney said Hargreaves arranged for them to meet at Barnsley bus station but when he failed to turn up the group behind the fake profile visited his home and alerted the police. Judge Peter Kelson QC told Hargreaves: Against that background, you as a predator prowling the internet looking for underage girls - found her and you quickly turned conversational matters sexual. Hargreaves, of Emblem Terrace, Wakefield, who has no previous convictions, admitted attempting to communicate sexually with a child between September 2019 and February 2020. Richard Canning, defending, urged Judge Kelson to consider a rehabilitative sentence. He said: This was a wake-up call for him and he has turned his life around and made some very positive steps and I ask your honour to allow him to continue down the right path. But Judge Kelson said a suspended prison sentence is not appropriate when an adult is prowling the internet looking for innocent children and he sentenced Hargreaves to 12 months of custody.

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A soldier has been jailed for over five years after taking a woman back to his barracks and raping her while she slept. 

Lance Corporal Aidan Hackett, 27, met the woman in a nightclub in Oxford in June 2019 and they travelled in a taxi back to his room at St David's Barracks in Bicester, Oxfordshire.

The victim, also aged in her twenties, told Hackett she did not want to have sex but just listen to music together.

She fell asleep and awoke to find her clothes had been removed by Hackett. 

After fleeing the scene, she called police and Hackett was arrested the following day. Thames Valley Police charged him with rape on August 4 of this year. 

Hackett, originally from Leeds, West Yorkshire, pleaded guilty to rape at the first opportunity and appeared today at Oxford Crown Court where he was sentenced to five years and three months' imprisonment. 

Detective Constable Tania Wasilewski-Norman, of Oxford CID, said: 'This was a shocking example of a man taking advantage of the victim's trust and he raped her while she was asleep.

'The victim awoke to this attack and contacted the police immediately and Hackett was arrested.

'The victim underwent medical examinations as a part of this investigation, which helped us to prove that Hackett had raped his victim.

'Given the weight of evidence against him, Hackett has, at least, spared the victim the ordeal of this case going to trial by a guilty plea, and he has now been sentenced to prison as a result.

'Taking advantage of a woman who was sleeping, and therefore in a vulnerable position, is completely unacceptable.

'The victim was asleep, and it is absolutely clear that there was no consent whatsoever in this case.

'We will always take reports of rape seriously and support victims of such offences and endeavour to bring offenders to justice.' 

Detective Constable Nikki Lawton, based at Aylesbury police station, is specially-trained in victim support and she helped guide the victim throughout two year investigation.

She said: 'The victim in this case has been a true inspiration to me, and I hope she will be for other victims of this type of crime.

'She simply wanted to listen to music and talk with Hackett when she took a taxi back to his barracks, and Hackett completely abused this trust.

'Over the course of the last two years, the victim has missed out on a lot of opportunities while we brought Hackett to justice.

'I would like to offer my personal thanks and praise to the victim for her support of our investigation and understanding of the time it has taken to secure this conviction.

'I can assure any future victims of crimes such as this that they will always be listened to, believed and supported, and it is never acceptable to suffer this kind of offence. Please report it and we will conduct thorough investigations.'

Hackett will also sign the sex offenders register for life.  

An Army spokesman said: 'We can confirm that Lance Corporal Hackett was convicted of rape at Oxford Crown Court. He was sentenced to five years and three months’ imprisonment and ordered to sign the sex offenders’ register for life.'

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A 'determined' Wakefield paedophile who filmed himself abusing a child and posting it online has been jailed for 10 years.

Lewis Tupper, 25, uploaded the video onto a messaging app where other paedophiles made sickening comments, Leeds Crown Court was told.

Prosecutor, Soheil Khan, said that the National Crime Agency were alerted to Tupper in October last year using the online app, Kik, where he invited others to join before posting the vile videos, including one of him performing a sex act on the girl.

Mr Khan said the participants in the chat clearly had a "deep interest" in abusing children. Tupper then engaged in conversations with them. When he was finally arrested he said: "I hold my hands up, I did it, I know it's wrong."

Police also found clothes matching what he had worn on the video clips that he had uploaded.However, he claimed he had no sexual interest in children and initially claimed he had been blackmailed, although the judge dismissed the latter claim because he had no evidence to back it up.

In a second interview in November, he admitted the abuse and discussing it over the internet. Tupper, who was being held on remand at HMP Leeds, had only one previous conviction for going equipped for stealing.

He admitted one count of rape of a child, two counts of making indecent images and two of distributing indecent images.Mitigating for Tupper, Richard Reed said his client admitted making a "catastrophic mistake" and was full of remorse and regret.

He added: "He understands these are offences that the majority of the population find completely abhorrent."His family are absolutely disgusted by his behaviour. He does not shirk from that."

Judge Simon Batiste described Tupper's actions as being the "most sickening abuse imaginable".He told him he was a "determined and committed paedophile".
He added: "I make it clear I do not accept what you have put forward that you were in any way blackmailed. "It's quite clear that what you were doing, you were doing willingly and it would seem with great pleasure. "You were doing it because you enjoyed it. "You revelled in discussing what was taking place."

He jailed Tupper for 10 years, with an extended five-year period on licence.

Tupper also admitted a charge of dangerous driving, driving without a licence and without insurance after a police chase through Wakefield in March of last year.

After police tried to stop his VW Golf, he drove off along Denby Dale Road in Wakefield before eventually crashing head-on into a BMW at the roundabout at Ings Road.Despite running off, he was quickly apprehended.For the driving offences he was banned from driving for nine years and eight months.

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A female prison officer is facing jail after sending sex pictures of herself to teenage male inmates at a young offenders institution.

Jordan Trainor, 25, also engaged in 'sexual touching' of a teen at Wetherby Young Offender Institution and was involved in "improper relationships" with two prisoners.

She further admitted bringing in packages for the youngsters and failing to report they were in possession of mobile phones.

Trainor, who's from Wakefield, West Yorkshire, pleaded guilty to one offence of misconduct in a public office when she appeared before Leeds Crown Court on Friday.

The circumstances surrounding the offending are not yet fully clear, however, it is known the "improper relationships" were with two inmates under the age of 18.

Trainor passed messages between the pair, delivered four packages to one inmate and engaged in sexual touching with one on "approximately three occasions", the court heard.

The offending took place at Wetherby Young Offender Institution on or before 23 December last year.

Trainor's barrister, Jade Edwards, said a psychiatric report had been ordered and asked for the sentencing to be adjourned for four weeks.

The judge said: "You have pleaded guilty to what I am sure you understand is a very serious offence.

"It is a breach of trust and it is a very serious matter.

"I am going to order a pre-sentence report so the judge who sentences you has a full understanding of your background and any difficulties you may face.

"You must understand that a custodial sentence is almost inevitable in a case such as this.

"There is no point in giving to you false hope."

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A sadistic prison officer who raped four women and kidnapped a series of teenage girls while posing as a policeman was jailed for life yesterday.

John David Hall, 35, attacked some of his victims when they agreed to go out with him, and assaulted others after luring them into his car on the pretext of asking directions.

He indecently assaulted girls aged 12 and 13 and tried to attack three others aged 13, 14 and 15 over a period of eight years.

One of Hall's rape victims suffered a double fracture of the jaw when he punched her to keep her quiet.

Hall, who is twice married, carried out some of his attacks while running a wing at Wakefield Prison. He carried out some of the kidnappings while driving home in his uniform. He told victims he was a policeman and briefly showed them an identity card that seemed to confirm it.

He was convicted of five counts of rape at an earlier trial. However, they could not be reported at the time because he was awaiting a court appearance on the -kidnappings.

Passing sentence at Leeds Crown Court, Mr Justice Goldring told Hall that the appropriate determinative sentence for his crimes was 25 years, and that he must serve at least half that before being considered for parole. But he went on: "I want to make this absolutely clear. The sentence I pass is one of life imprisonment. It is not a sentence of twelve-and-a-half years.''

The judge said that although Hall now appeared to accept his guilt on the rape charges, he had put all four victims through the ordeal of giving evidence in the witness box.

At his trial in March the jury heard that the prison officer derived pleasure from forcing women to have sex with him.

He raped four women and tried to rape a fifth. One victim was a prostitute and another was a 17-year-old he picked up while driving.

The others included a 19-year-old he met after a football match and a young doctor who had stayed at his flat after a night out. Julian Goose, QC, prosecuting, told the jury that Hall had been a prison officer from the age of 20, serving at Wakefield, Full Sutton, near York, and at Wetherby.

"To many who knew him the defendant appeared to lead a normal life with secure employment in the prison service," he said. "The reality, however, is that over a period of years from 1997 to 2001 the defendant raped women and with some of them he also used violence, fracturing the jaw of one of them in the course of the rape."

Mr Goose said that Hall admitted having sex with all of the women but claimed it was always consensual. The court was told that in March 1997 he drove a 19-year-old back to her flat in Leeds, picking her up outside a sports stadium where he had been playing football. He got into her house by claiming that he needed to use the lavatory. Once inside he launched his attack.

In November 1997, Hall was driving along Harehills Lane in Leeds when he saw a 17-year-old girl he recognised from a nightclub. She got into his car after he invited her out for a drink. Instead he took her to his home in Rothwell where he raped her.

Hall's next victim, a 21-year-old prostitute, was attacked in March 1998. She had agreed to perform a sex act for cash but he later forced himself on her. He punched her so hard she was left semi-conscious on the floor. She needed an emergency operation to repair the double fracture to her jaw.

By late 2001 Hall had moved to a flat in St John's Square, Wakefield, where he tried to rape a newly qualified GP.

Hall was first arrested after the attack on the 17-year-old, but police let him go because there was insufficient evidence to detain him. He was arrested again last year in respect of all the offences.

He married his first wife in May 1996. She left him in 1997 when he was in police custody on suspicion of rape.

He met his current wife in Wakefield in 2001 and they married two years later. He was arrested hours after she gave birth to their first child.