Latest Offenders Winchester

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A depraved man who left people “traumatised” by handing out graphic images of children on trains has avoided prison.

Perverted Steve Blackthorne, 38, of Winchester, has been sentenced to two years in prison, suspended for two years, after pleading guilty to making and distributing indecent photographs/ pseudo-photographs of a child. Blackthorne will be put behind bars if he offends again in the two year timeframe.

He has been placed on the Sex Offenders Register for 10 years, and issued a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for 10 years. Investigating officer, Detective Constable Phil James, said: “Such was the level of Blackthorne’s depravity that the images he had collated left those who inadvertently happened upon them deeply traumatised.”

Winchester Crown Court heard a train guard was handed six pages of A4 sheets by a passenger left by a men who got off the train at Basingstoke on January 23, 2022. The pages contained horrific indecent graphic images of children - 16 Category A pictures (the most severe), five Category B and 16 Category C.

Court heard the train guard was left in tears, who reported it to British Transport Police officers at Southampton Central railway station. On January 31 of that year, a cleaner found another batch of images when he pulled down a folding table. They were left horrified and upset, reporting it to his manager.

Those pages contained 16 Category A, five Category B and 16 Category C indecent images of children. CCTV footage found Blackthorne left the printouts on the train. Officers arrested him on March 14 at Basingstoke railway station.

His mobile phone contained 60 Category A, 27 Category B and 81 Category C images, with further pictures being discovered on the laptop he was carrying. Another portable computer was found at his address, containing even more sickening images.

Blackthorne admitted during a police interview that he printed out the images out at work from a work device. DC James added: “No one in their right mind would ever willingly choose to see these sickening images. Blackthorne showed no shame in his perversion even transferring the images to a work computer so he could print them out at work to look at at his leisure.”

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A 66-year-old man from Winchester has been jailed for 15 years for child sex offences.

Following a ten-day trial, Terence Peter Price, of Romsey Road was convicted of 13 counts at Southampton Crown Court on Friday 26 January.

He was sentenced yesterday (Thursday 15 February) and will serve at least ten years behind bars.

Price will also be subject to a restraining order and must serve an extended year on licence upon his eventual release from prison

The 13 offences, for which he has been imprisoned, took place in Hedge End between April 2016 and April 2021.

At the time of the first incident, the victim was just ten years of age.

Price’s crimes came to light when they were first reported to police in June 2021.

Detective Constable Mark Gallagher, of the Criminal Investigation Department said: “It took a lot of courage and bravery for the victim to come forward and make these disclosures to us.

“I have nothing but the greatest admiration for her. She fully supported our investigation and with the strength of the evidence against him Price’s account was rejected by the jury.

“I am so pleased for her that justice has now been served in this case.

“Price abused her for his own sexual gratification, without a moment’s thought for the child and the long-lasting effects his crimes would have on her.

“While I know this result won’t rid her of the memories of what he did to her, I truly hope it allows her to move forward with her life, safe in the knowledge that because of her coming forward he can no longer harm any other children.

“I also hope this sentence will reassure other victims that they will be listened to when reporting similar incidents to us.

“We encourage other victims to come forward and speak to us. We take allegations of this nature extremely seriously and work hard to bring offenders to justice.

“This should also be a very clear message to other offenders out there that we will always work tirelessly to ensure you are brought to justice.

“I would also like to thank everyone who assisted in getting this conviction, including the jury who ensured a dangerous offender is no longer free to harm anyone else.”

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A man who poured boiling water over a fellow inmate before beating and raping him has been sentenced.

Robert Reynolds, 29, had denied grievous bodily harm with intent, two counts of rape and a sexual assault.

A jury at Salisbury Crown Court found him guilty of all offences following a five-day trial.

The court heard that Reynolds attacked the victim, a man who was in his 20s at the time, in July 2021, when they were prisoners at HMP Winchester, in Romsey Road.

Reynolds threw boiling water from a kettle at the victim, causing burns to his back and face.

He then punched and kicked the victim before raping and sexually assaulting him, the jury was told.

The victim was initially treated at the prison before being taken for treatment at a specialist burns unit in hospital. He later disclosed the sexual offences.

On Wednesday 13 December, Reynolds, currently of HMP Bullingdon, was jailed for 12 years following a hearing at Winchester Crown Court.

Speaking after the hearing, Detective Sergeant Harry Wilson said: This was a horrific attack on a vulnerable man in a prison.

While the victim has since left prison, he continues to deal with the physical and mental impact of what happened to him.

This was a difficult and long investigation and I hope this shows that we will work closely with the prison to investigate any criminal offences that occur there.

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Clive McCleester, 77, was sentenced to 16 years in prison.

A former cathedral verger has been jailed for sexually assaulting two teenage boys.

Clive McCleester, 77, was sentenced to 16 years on Thursday after pleading guilty to 10 counts of sexual abuse.

The first victim was assaulted between 1969 and 1970, when McCleester was a child welfare supervisor at a Hampshire boarding school.

The second victim was sexually abused when he was the head verger at Southwark Cathedral in the 1980s.

He abused the victim, who was a chorister, at his flat, the Crown Prosecution Service said.

The victims came forward in 2019 and 2020 respectively.

'Lifelong trauma'

McCleester pleaded guilty to carrying out sexual abuse between 1968 and 1987 on 26 June at Inner London Crown Court.

Momata Matin, senior crown prosecutor from the Rape and Serious Sexual Offences Unit in London South, said: "McCleester flagrantly abused his position of authority and trust within the communities he served to commit vile offences against young boys, leaving lifelong trauma.

"The abuse has clearly had a profound impact on the victims.

"I would like to highlight the bravery of the victims and thank them, the witnesses, and the prosecution team, for helping bring McCleester to justice.

"The first victim sadly passed away after giving police his evidence, so was unable to hear the guilty verdict.

"I hope his family can have a sense of peace knowing that justice has been finally served."

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A Portsmouth man has been sentenced to ten years in prison for a string of online sexual abuse offences.

Travis Koffi Alden, 24, of St Faiths Road, appeared at Portsmouth Crown Court yesterday (Thursday 25 August) having pleaded guilty to 39 counts of online sexual abuse offences involving ten victims across the country and internationally, all aged between 9 and 13 at the time the offences took place.

The court heard how police were first made aware of the case when a report was made in August 2019 to officers in Wales that an 11-year-old girl had been receiving sexually explicit messages. An investigation was launched and the mobile phone sending the messages was found to belong to Alden, who lived in Portsmouth. Officers from the Internet Child Abuse Team (ICAT)  arrested him and seized his mobile phone and laptop for examination, which revealed a number of further victims.

Between these devices, officers discovered hundreds of indecent images, which included the most serious, category A images.

Alden was charged with inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, causing a child to watch a sexual act, taking/making indecent images of children (category A, B and C), distributing indecent images of children (category A) and possessing extreme pornography.

He has now been sentenced to ten years in prison with a five year extended licence, a lifetime Sexual Harm Prevention Order and has had to forfeit his devices.

Detective Constable Stephen Hill of Hampshire Constabulary’s ICAT team, who led the investigation, said: “Behind every indecent image or message of or to a child is a vulnerable victim and these crimes are among the most appalling that we investigate.

“This was a long and complex investigation requiring a great deal of effort to identify numerous victims across the United Kingdom and beyond and seek justice for them.

“Alden preyed on young girls on various chat sites, encouraging them to engage in sexualised conversations or acts. The impact that such abuse has on these young victims is immeasurable and we are pleased that we have been able to support them and bring Alden to justice.

“Tacking online abuse of this nature and supporting children online is a priority for us and we will do everything in our power to bring offenders to justice.”

Anyone who has any concerns about child abuse should contact Hampshire Constabulary on 101 or via our online reporting tool.

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A Winchester man who was caught with more than 70 indecent images of teenage boys on his phone has been spared jail because his low IQ meant he wasnt able to understand what was happening.

Scott Fletcher-Wells, 25, was instead handed a three-year community order by the judge, who cited his potential vulnerability in prison as a reason for sparing him a stint behind bars.

Hampshire Police were first alerted to Fletcher-Wells after an indecent picture of a teenage boy was uploaded to an Instagram account dubbed Little.Gays in June 2020.

After matching the phone number and IP address linked to the account with Fletcher-Wells, police visited his shared flat in Staple Gardens and found him locked in his bedroom, where officers seized an iPhone 6, Samsung phone and a USB adaptor.

A search of the Samsung phone revealed three indecent images of children under Category A, eleven under Category B and 60 under Category C. The court heard the images were mostly of teenage boys but did feature the odd image of a girl.

He refused to comment while being interviewed by police but did hand over the pin to the phone, where among the pornographic images they also found selfies of Fletcher-Wells and his family.

The court heard from the prosecution that he was previously known to police and was cautioned for two sexual offences, which included possessing indecent images of children, between the ages of 12 and 14.

He subsequently spent a lot of his teenage years in foster care, with his defence barrister, Chloe Jay, remarking that his case worker believed he was himself abused as a child - something Fletcher-Wells said he didnt have any memory of.

Speaking on behalf of Fletcher-Wells, she said: He was very keen to admit what he has done and entered a guilty plea at the earliest opportunity. He wants to work with probation and is very alive to the fact that his behaviour must change, and that there is a lot of work to be done.

Sentencing Fletcher-Wells on Wednesday, April 13, judge Susan Evans QC said she was conscious of his low IQ and the fact he attended a special educational needs school when he was younger.

A psychiatric report submitted to the court also indicated it is likely he be autistic, which she said could make him potentially extremely vulnerable in custody.

She added: Although you had images in your possession which fall under Category A, the number of images you had was very few, and the ages of the children involved were older than the court usually sees.

I am more concerned about the fact you were cautioned when you were 14 for a similar offence, which should have been the signal that this sort of behaviour is not acceptable.

What you need to understand is the children in these photographs are real, they are victims who are being harmed, exploited and emotionally damaged by the people making them. By downloading these pictures, you are the market which drives this sort of abuse.

Fletcher-Wells was handed a three-year community order and told he must attend a sexual harm prevention course of the courts choosing.

Hell also have to engage in 45 days of rehabilitation activity and pay a fine of 100 within 28 days.

A deprivation order was made for the destruction of the phone, with Fletcher-Wells, who was allowed to remain seated during the sentencing, told he was barred from using devices including a mobile phone or computer for a period of five years, with the exclusion of work-related activity. His name has been added to the sex offenders register.

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A CONVICTED paedophile who admitted to repeatedly visiting a house while children were present - breaching a court order - has avoided a jail sentence.

Robert Nutbeam was jailed in July 2018 after he was caught by 'paedophile hunters' attempting to meet a boy under the age of 16 for sexual purposes. He admitted the offence and was jailed at Southampton Crown Court.

A sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) was put in place, but earlier this year police were told that Nutbeam, of Andover Road, Winchester, had broken a requirement. The order prevents him from entering and remaining in a household where a male under the age of 16 is present.

The 36-year-old appeared at Winchester Crown Court on Thursday after he pleaded guilty to breaching the SHPO on three occasions - July 8, July 27 and August 3, this year.

The court was told that Nutbeam had been helping a woman with DIY, but her son and his friend – both aged under 16 – were present.

Prosecutor William Saunders said: “The communication was normal and didn’t cause any concern”.

Mr Saunders said the offending came to light after concerns were raised by another child. He added: "It was one of the parents of other children that contacted the police.”

The woman told police that she was “aware that Robert was a registered sex offender” and that she never left him alone with the children.

She added: “If I would have known about the court order or restrictions placed on Robert I would never have let him in my home.”

Mr Saunders argued that it was “a deliberate breach”, adding that there were “questions as to where this was leading”.

In mitigation, Russell Pyne said that Nutbeam self-referred to the Winchester Wellbeing Centre for support, but his case was closed last year due to Covid.

He continued: “Certainly it shows he was keen to have support for the various difficulties that he has.”

Mr Pyne said that Nutbeam was briefly remanded into custody which gave him an “opportunity to reflect on what he has done”.

In sentencing, Mr Recorder Malcolm Gibney said that he believed that the breaches were “deliberate” but said there was “a level of naivety” from Nutbeam.

He added: “You know what you are doing, you are intelligent and perfectly capable of understanding the contents of the order.”

Nutbeam was handed an 18-month community order, 100 hours unpaid work and 10 rehabilitation days.

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A MARRIED British Army instructor who raped a teenage recruit at a Hampshire base has been jailed for eight and a half years.

Corporal Thomas Biggs 'pressurised' the 18-year-old trainee into performing oral sex on him after getting her out of bed at 3am when he was drunk, a court martial heard.

The instructor's victim said she felt she had 'no other option' after the 30-year-old kept saying to her 'you'll lose your job' unless she complied.

And the attack was only interrupted when Cpl Biggs took a call from his wife which distracted him, the hearing was told.

His 'degrading' behaviour may put off potential recruits joining the Army, he was told.

Sentencing Cpl Biggs, Judge Advocate Jane England said: “You owe all of the recruits a duty of care but instead you abused your position and helped yourself to what you wanted.

“(Your actions) may also deter those with the qualities armies are seeking from joining the armed forced thinking they may be subject to similar degrading behaviour by one of the instructors.”

Bulford Military Court, Wilts, heard that the rape took place at the Army Training Regiment in Winchester.

Wing Commander Michael Saunders, prosecuting, said: "[Cpl Biggs] had got [the recruit] who was 18 years of age out of bed in the early hours when he was drunk and ended up leading her to an isolated location and pressurised her in to performing oral sex.

"He told her she would lose her job. He was a Corporal instructor, she was a young recruit, he was drunk, she submitted to him but she did not consent."

The court heard that Cpl Biggs went to the recruit's room in the early hours and woke her up by calling her name.

A video of the victim's interview with military police was shown in court.

She told officers she could smell alcohol on the breath of Cpl Biggs after he woke her up and she followed him into the corridor.

She said: "I don't know what was going on, I thought I was receiving some bad news.

"He was really close to me... he just kept looking around and asking 'do you know why you are here?'.

"He was saying 'I saw you in your grey tight pyjamas, you're trying to impress all the Corporals, trying to impress me'.

She explained that a girl from her room came out and went to the toilet, prompting Cpl Biggs to open a fire door and take the recruit through the door.

She said: "I said 'this is stupid', I kept repeating you will lose your job, you will lose your job but he kept saying 'no you'll lose yours'."

The victim told police she complied because he told her she could lose her job.

She said: "That's the reason why I did it because at that point I was scared he would use that against me.

"If he didn't threaten me with the fact I could lose my job... that really got to me I just thought I'm not risking anything where I am now.

"He's a Corporal, he has power against me, I'm just a recruit, I have nothing.

"It would never have got to this point if he wasn't saying the things he was saying, bringing work in to it.

"It was like, this is what's going to happen to you if you don't just get on with it."

Wg Cdr Saunders told the court martial that Cpl Biggs received a call from his wife which distracted him and the recruit managed to get away and returned to her room crying.

In a statement read to the court on the impact the rape had, the victim said: “I constantly think about what I could have done differently to have stopped Corporal Biggs from raping me but I know that I was so confused at the time.

“I know that I did the right thing by reporting this because Corporal Biggs’ actions and behaviour cannot be tolerated.”

Cpl Biggs, of the 3 Armoured Close Support Battalion of the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, was found guilty of one charge of rape.

He was dismissed from the army and sentenced to 8 and a half years in prison

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A WINCHESTER man who was snared by a paedophile hunter after he asked for nude photographs of a child, he believed was 12-years-old, has been spared prison.

Just three months after he was convicted of a raft of sexual offences, Dean Mould used the internet to ask a “12-year-old girl” to send pictures of herself naked.

But Mould, of Christchurch Road, was actually talking to “self-styled paedophile hunter”, who sent the images but later informed police. The 35-year-old was arrested.

He was charged with intentionally causing or inciting a girl under the age of 13 to engage in sexual activity and breaching a sexual harm prevention order. He previously pleaded guilty.

On Wednesday, Winchester Crown Court was told that Mould breached the order as he had not informed police of a phone, he was using to access the internet.

In July last year Mould was found guilty of four offences of sexual communication with a child, eight counts of being in possession of indecent and extreme images and one of distribution. He offended again on October 27, but his criminality was not discovered until December 27.

During that sentencing a sexual harm prevention order and a supervision order was imposed. Mould, who is said to be “marred by learning difficulties”, was also given a care plan with a psychiatric team on his release from custody.

The court heard that Mould “did not want to engage” and the plan was not carried out.

In mitigation, Richard Martin said that there were several reasons set out in an updated psychiatric report why Mould should not be sent to prison.

He continued: “For somebody in his position it is very understandable that they maintain a position that they do not want help. Mr Mould knows that he has to obey people and that he has to go on courses."

Mr Martin said that here has been a “realisation from Mr Mould that he doesn’t want to go back to prison and that if he reverts to this sort of behaviour again it will get him locked up”.

“All, I submit, we can do is try again. Nothing is going to help if he is sent to prison.”

In sentencing, Judge Miller said: “I hoped when I sentenced you in July of last year that I would not be seeing you again. In fact, survived only about three months before you are committing offences again.”

Mould was given a three-year community order, with 40 rehabilitation days and must attend a sexual offending treatment programme.

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James Sharrock, 55, was given a community order in 2011 for possession of indecent images of children.

Winchester Crown Court heard that Surrey Police, the Met Police and Hampshire Constabulary had been investigating Sharrock when officers attend his address in Spicers Court on July 24, last year.

Kerry Maylin, prosecuting, said that 4,333 images were found on several of his devices, 2,069 of them were described as category A, said to be the worst type of indecent images.

The officer in the case PC Kristin McMahon said these “were some of the worst images of child abuse I’ve seen”, adding that they were “sadistic” showing “children tied up, degraded and suffering physical as well as sexual abuse”.

Some of the images also showed children that were drugged, with the age of those in the videos and pictures ranging from two months to 12-years-old.

Sharrock previously pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children, three counts of distributing indecent images of children, possessing nine prohibited images of children and 638 extreme pornographic images.

Sharrock was jailed for two years and must be on the sex offender’s register for 10 years.

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A PROLIFIC sex offender from Somerford has died four months after being put behind bars.

Peter Bennett, who was 80, had been in Winchester Prison when he fell ill and later died at the citys Royal Hampshire County Hospital on 15th March, the opening of an inquest heard.

Hampshire Coroners Court was told the post-mortem examination found the cause of death to be sepsis, cellulitis and prostate cancer.

The hearing was adjourned and a full inquest is to be held on 3rd August.

As reported in the A&T, the pensioner, of Edward Road, was sent down for five years and 10 months in early December last year at Bournemouth Crown Court by Judge Alastair Malcolm who branded him an adept groomer.

The judge decided to jail him, despite being told Bennett had cancer, because he noted the defendant had committed sex offences stretching back more than five decades and already been ordered to sign the sex offenders register for life.

His latest offence involved him chatting to what he thought was a 12-year-old girl online and encouraging her to have sexual contact with her pet dog and a horse.

But unknown to Bennett, he was actually talking to a paedophile hunter from the vigilante group Stop which subsequently called in another vigilante group to challenge him on his doorstep.

When that happened the group posted a video of the encounter on Facebook which was seen more than 100,000 times.

Bennett was arrested and police also uncovered extreme porn on devices he owned.

He was charged with attempting to incite or cause a girl under the age of 13 to engage in sexualised activity, attempting to communicate with a child in sexualised terms and possessing extreme pornography.

Bennett pleaded guilty to all three matters when he appeared before Judge Malcolm.

At his sentencing, prosecutor Sadie Rizzo said Bennetts offending began in 1963 when he indecently assaulted a female under 14, which resulted in Bennett being locked up.

He reoffended against a female under 16 eight years later and was found in possession of obscene articles, but escaped with a suspended sentence.

The defendants most serious offence, Ms Rizzo outlined, was an incident in 1972 when he grabbed an 18-year-old girl, drove her to a secluded spot and got her to perform sexual acts another offence which landed him in prison.

Bennett also had convictions for indecent exposure in 1969 and in the 1980s, and in 2006 appeared at Bournemouth Crown Court after he was found to have made and distributed more than 340 indecent images of children 68 of which were at the most serious level.

Judge Malcolm said they were serious offences that were exacerbated by the fact he had a long history of offending against children who are underage.

Judge Malcom also told Bennett: You have been a danger to children under 16 for very many years; your first offence was in the 1960s and you have targeted children decade by decade since that time.

As far as you were concerned there was a 12-year-old and you were getting sexual gratification by grooming her and trying to get her to commit offences of bestiality.

You are quite clearly an adept groomer, the judge added.

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A WINCHESTER man been given a 13-year prison sentence for sexually assaulting a vulnerable woman.

Liam Foard, 31, had initially denied rape and assault by penetration but changed his plea last month.

A judge at Winchester Crown Court said Foard, already a convicted rapist, was a danger to the public and an extended sentence was needed.

Foard, of Wales Street, Winnall, was sent to prison for nine years but an extended licence of four years was added.

He cannot apply to the parole board for release until at least six years into his sentence and there will be none of the usual release at the half way point.

The court heard that Foard has pressed a "self-destruct button" by telling probation staff that he was still a danger to the public.

Foard did not appear in court in person but via a video link from Winchester Prison. He wore grey tracksuit bottoms, a grey Adidas sweatshirt with a shaven head and beard. At first he had declined even to appear by video link.

The court heard that on July 23 last year he had enticed a woman with learning difficulties out of her home at night and assaulted her.

He was arrested the next day and lied to the police but DNA analysis proved his guilt.

Mitigating, Adam Norris told the court about the pre-sentence report: "On any view it is a difficult report to deal with. It is a report where Foard has pressed th self-destruct button. He has descended into a realm of despair, where he appears to be operating beyound the normal boundaries and limits expected to be enforced in society. One doesn't know if it is for survival about what lies ahead or whether he seeks notoriety.

"Foard had decided not to appear in court and yet he does. There is something of the bold statement followed by a somewhat meeker acceptance that appears in his behaviour. There may be a change of heart in due course."

Sentencing, Mr Recorder Christopher Quinlan QC said Foard had a terrible record appearing for sentencing 28 times for 55 offences. He had been convicted in 2013 of raping a woman and only released in 2018.

He said a victim impact statement showed the attack had had a strong effect on the victim. The judge said: "The effects on her life have been profound. She remains scared of you and what you did to her."

The judge said Foard, who has shown no remorse, may have said things to the probation service "to bolster your own self-image through bravado," but said he felt Foard is a danger to others. "It is some time since I have read a pre-sentence report devoid of hope but laced with menace."

He ordered three more minor offences that Foard denied to lie on the file. He will be on the sex offenders register for life.

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Stuart Keay jailed for string of sex offences against girls as young as six

Stuart Richard Keay, aged 48, of Baring Close, Itchen Abbas, was found guilty of 15 charges, which included counts of rape, indecent assault, inciting a child to commit an act of gross indecency and sexual activity with a child.

It follows a three week trial at Winchester Crown court.

Keay faced 16 charges against him relating to girls aged between six and 17-years-old who he abused in Winchester, Eastleigh and Denmead between 1992 and 2018.

Keay was brought to trial after three victims who had suffered years of abuse at his hands came forward to police last year. Judge Jane Miller QC sentence Keay to 24 years in prison.

Detective Constable Naomi Stocker, who led Operation Amberstone, she said: This was a huge investigation that took us back to 1992 when Keays offending began, right the way to 2018, when his offending finally ceased due the bravery of his victims to speak out.

This was a truly appalling case of abuse, which took place over many years. I am overwhelmed by the bravery of the victims in coming forward and reporting what had happened to them. I want to commend them and thank them for their help in convicting Keay, a very dangerous and manipulative man. No amount of jail time will make up for what has he has done, but I hope this serves to at least offer the victims some closure, and a chance to move on with their lives.

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A HAMPSHIRE teenager has avoided prison after performing a sex act on himself in a video call with a 12-year-old girl.

Winchester Crown Court heard how Lewis Howcroft, 19, had been speaking with the victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, over video calling service Skype and had also been searching for illegal material online before being found out by police.

Howcroft, of Northington Down, near Alresford, claimed the victim had asked to see him performing the sex act over Skype, and had initially declined, however this had not been proven.

Howcroft was caught out when the victim’s parents found messages on their daughter’s phone, and then contacted police.

He pleaded guilty to causing a child to watch an image of a person engaging in sexual activity

Prosecuting, Colin Meeke said there was evidence of “highly sexualised” chat logs with the girl.

“What is abundantly clear is he knew how young she was, there is evidence of some grooming.

“He did not seek to deny the matters.”

Mr Meeke added: “It is clear the defendant, over a period of time, made a number of disturbing internet searches.”

Mitigating, Chloe Jay told the court that Howcroft “lacked the emotional maturity of an adult”.

The court also heard a psychological report has been produced on Howcroft’s “mental conditions”.

It said he had already suffered “grave” effects including losing his job, college place and being excluded from social groups, as well as him and his family being “harassed” by paedophile hunters.

Howcroft, who was 18 at the time of the incident in November 2016, was sentenced to a three-year community order, with a 60-day rehabilitation requirement and 100 hours of unpaid work.

Judge Pawson said: “You caused a child to watch a highly sexualised act.

“Whether she did or didn’t ask is neither here nor there, she was 12.

“I have seen and heard about the various searches you made on the internet, some of that is likely to have been down to the curiosity of a teenage person, but some of that goes beyond curiosity.”

Hawcroft was also ordered to pay a victim surcharge.

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A DISGRACED Hampshire teacher has been jailed for three years after he sexually asaulted children and filmed up young girls' skirts in a school cupboard.

Benjamin Sarfas was sent to prison having pleaded guilty to 19 counts of sexual offences against children.

The 31 year old, of Springvale Road, Kings Worthy, was a newly qualified teacher at Kempshott Junior School in Basingstoke when he began abusing children in 2011, continuing until his arrest in March last year, Winchester Crown Court heard.

Dozens of family members of the nine victims, all girls aged between eight and 11, were in the public gallery as Sarfas was sent down.

Prosecutor Kerry Maylin told the court that the offences came to light when one victim was overheard telling a friend that Sarfas had indecently assaulted her and asked her to go in a cupboard and close her eyes.

Miss Maylin explained that Sarfas was warned by other teachers about being alone with girls.

She added: "His response to any such advice when they were trying to protect him was to say 'it's just because I'm a man.'"

A charge of voyeurism related to a file found on Sarfas' computer with videos showing one of his victims repeatedly taking her clothes off and putting them on again, while Sarfas asked her to practise changing.

The court heard that Sarfas was engaged and due to be married in April last year, but his fiancée called off the wedding when Sarfas was arrested in March.

Miss Maylin said his ex-fiancee, who was also a teacher, told police that Sarfas had admitted that he thought about young girls.

Impact statements were read out from the parents of the victims.

One mother said: "She's still frightened of seeing him. She doesn't like talking about what happened and does have nightmares. She doesn't want to get comfortable with teachers in case it happens again."

Another said: "It led to her feeling disgusted with herself."

Mitigating, Dee Connolly said: "His chances of a normal life and marriage are shattered and the future is rather bleak for him."

Miss Connolly said her client had been seeing a therapist and was sorry for the pain he had caused.

Sarfas was jailed for two years for seven counts of sexual assault on a child under the age of 13, 12 months for 11 counts of taking indecent photographs of a child, to run consecutively, and four months in prison for one count of voyeurism, to run concurrently.

He was also ordered to sign the sex offenders register for life, and banned from working with children.

Judge Keith Cutler said: "All these actions can be described as disgusting and appalling, the effects on these children has been significant, blighting what should have been a carefree youth."