Latest Offenders

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A WEST Cumbrian man arranged to meet a 14-year-old girl for sex, unaware that the meeting was a sting organised by paedophile hunters.

The "teenager" that 42-year-old Cleator Moor man Leroy Sheehan was communicating with was in fact and adult decoy working with the Online Child Safety Team, Carlisle Crown Court heard.

The defendant, of Henry Street, Cleator Moor, admitted attempting to communicate sexually with a child and attempting to facilitate a child sex offence by meeting the “child” in Whitehaven.

Tariq Khawam, prosecuting, described what happened.

He said volunteers working with the paedophile hunter group use fake child online profiles to flush out adults who have a sexual interest in children.

This involved the creation of fake profiles.

In July of last year, the group created a Facebook profile for what appeared to be a 14-year-old girl, complete with a photo. On June 13, Sheehan sent the person a friend request.

He told her his age and said he was feeling “low,” after recently losing his partner. Mr Khawam said: “The witness said she was sorry to hear that; and she said she was 14.”

In subsequent messages, Sheehan asked if they could communicate on WhatsApp. Telling her she looked older than 14, he asked for a topless photo. He went on to discuss having sex with her.

The contact then agreed to meet Sheehan at Whitehaven railway station. When he arrived there, he was confronted by the Online Child Safety Team volunteer and two of her colleagues.

After making a “citizen’s arrest”, they called the police. The defendant had no relevant previous convictions, the court heard.

Tim Evans, defending, said that while Sheehan did not comment during his police interview, he had been honest with probation staff. A background report spoke of a “rapid deterioration” in his mental health and two suicide attempts.

At the time of his offences, he was drinking four litres of vodka a day, and he consumed eight litres of whisky over a period of days, as he tried to “drink himself to death.”

“None of that is an excuse but that is the background for what is described as the disinhibitory impact on his offending,” said Mr Evans.

The report explained that Sheehan, grieving after the death of his partner, was in a “very dark place” when he committed the offences.

The barrister added that Sheehan, who had a mild intellectual disability, was far from being a classic predatory online sexual offender of the sort often seen in the courts.

Judge Michael Fanning recognised the defendant’s psychological difficulties and the loss of his partner a week before the offending.

“It’s clear you were drinking vastly to excess,” the judge told Sheehan, accepting that this would have disinhibited the defendant. The judge continued: “But you are 42, three times the age of this supposed 14-year-old girl.

“You thought you were engaging with a genuine 14-year-old girl." Sheehan intended to have sex with her and there was no indication of him being influenced by alcohol when he went to Whitehaven to meet her. 

“You knew what you were doing,” added the judge.

He jailed Sheehan for two years and eight months and ruled that he must be on the Sex Offender Register for a decade and subjected to a sexual harm prevention order for the same period.

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A Fife football coach sent videos of himself performing a sex act, along with sexualised messages, to someone he thought was a child.

James Devine, at the time a senior figure at the John Thomson Football Academy in Cardenden, was unaware he was chatting online to an adult member of a paedophile hunter group.

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Calls have been made for changes to restrictions on sex offenders after a Dundee pensioner who tried to groom a girl online was spotted attending a children’s dance event.

James Yule was photographed attending a majorette event in Inverness in November.

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A man has been jailed for chatting sexually online with a 13-year-old girl, during which he offered her “a grand” to send him images of herself in her underwear.

The three-day exchange of messages with the girl in September put 28-year-old Luke Ovington in breach of not only a Sexual Harm Prevention Order but also a suspended prison sentence imposed in July last year for exactly the same type of behaviour.

Ovington had already been before the court for minor breaches of the order for which he received community orders, in November last year, but his luck ran out after his arrest for his latest offending.

Durham Crown Court was told Ovington received a ten-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, in July last year, for the online sexualised exchanges with a 12-year-old girl.

He was also made subject of a ten-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO), forbidding him from contacting underage girls and restricting his use of the Internet, as well as registration as a sex offender.

Philip Morley, prosecuting, said despite those prohibitions and with the suspended sentence hanging over him, Ovington engaged a female child in conversation on Snapchat which went on for three days in September.

Mr Morley said unlike some online “stings”, this was a real child who, despite making it clear that she was aged 13, kept receiving messages of a sexualised nature from the defendant.

Using the alias of ‘Ryan’, in breach of the terms of the SHPO, he suggested that the girl keep their conversation a “secret” from her parents.

He asked her for pictures and told her what he would like to do to her, suggesting giving her “a grand” if she sent him her picture in her underwear and told her he loved her.

Mr Morley said the police were alerted and he was arrested in possession of his phone, which was seized for examination, but Ovington had deleted a lot of the incriminating messages.

In interview, he made no comment to police.

Mr Morley said the defendant breached the terms of the SHPO by not only communicating with an underage girl, but also by deleting his messages.

Ovington, 28, of Linden Place, Newton Aycliffe, admitted charges of sexual communication with a child, breaching a SHPO and possession of a small amount of cannabis found in his possession upon arrest.

Tony Davis, in mitigation, said psychiatric and probation reports prepared for last year’s hearing were still pertinent.

“Clearly, this was a persistent, deliberate breach and I can’t argue with the Crown’s assessment.”

Mr Davis said the defendant’s background includes contact with mental health services during his adult life.

“Perhaps, here, he has slipped into his dark ways again.

“His fascination with smoking cannabis and going online is only going to lead to the revolving door of going into and out of custodial institutions.

“But he has been using his time in custody usefully.”

Judge Nathan Adams told Ovington: “You find yourself back here again, relating to your behaviour in September this year, in breach of a suspended prison sentence and a Sexual Harm Prevention Order only imposed on July 14, last year.

“Despite all the clear warnings, you find yourself back here again for breaching all those orders you were under.

“You were told the girl was only 13, nevertheless you spoke to her about masturbation and tried to solicit images of her in her underwear.

"You offered her £1,000 for those images, and then you said you would leave her alone.

“This was undoubtedly the sort of behaviour those orders were trying to prevent.

“It’s quite clear it would only lead to s significant prison sentence.”

Judge Adams imposed a total 28-month prison sentence, including six months activated from last year’s suspended sentence.

Ovington will be subject to new ten-year SHPO and registration requirement periods, starting afresh from Friday (December 13).

The judge also ordered forfeiture of the seized cannabis and Ovington's mobile phone.

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A PROLIFIC paedophile found in possession of more than a thousand indecent images of children has been jailed.

Richard Simon Morris, aged 59 and of Bournemouth, appeared at Bournemouth Crown Court on Friday, November 29, 2024, to be sentenced after admitting three counts of possessing indecent images of children.

Morris was sentenced to two years and eight months in prison, with an extended licence period of a further 18 months.

On Wednesday, June 28, 2023, an offender manager and his colleague visited Morris, who was a registered sex offender and the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order, at his home address.

The officers asked to inspect his phone, and the defendant produced a different one to the device he had been seen using moments earlier. They challenged Morris, and when he showed them the other device, officers saw what they believed to be indecent images.

Morris was arrested, and a number of electronic devices were seized.

The defendant was released on bail, and when officers paid a further visit to his address on Wednesday, August 23, 2023, an inspection of a mobile phone again revealed suspected indecent images.

In total, officers uncovered more than 1,500 indecent images of children. These were categorised with 282 at the most serious Category A, 446 Category B images and 811 Category C images which were both accessible and inaccessible.

Detective constable Phillip Riggs of the Paedophile Online Investigation Team said: "Richard Morris is a persistent offender who continued to illegally access indecent images despite being a registered sex offender and the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order, showing a clear lack of remorse for his previous offending or the sanctions imposed on him by the courts.

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A convicted sex offender targeted children after he was released from prison for similar offences.

Joseph Parkin has now been jailed for eight years after admitting sexual activity with a teenager after being released from custody for similar sexual offences.

He also admitted to communicating with two other teenagers, putting him in breach of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

Parkin, 26, who was formerly living in the Belle Vue area of Wakefield, previously pleaded guilty to four charges of engaging in penetrative sexual activity with a boy under 16 years-old and two charges of breaching a Sexual Harm Protection Order. He appeared at Leeds Crown Court last week for sentencing.

He received an eight-year custodial sentence and was made subject of an extended licence period of six years on his release from prison. One of the victims reported the offences against him to the police in October 2023.

West Yorkshire Police said Parkin was quickly identified, arrested, charged and remanded in custody. He has been held on remand since that time.

A police spokesman added: "Further enquiries established telephone contact that Parkin had had with a number of children. This contact was all thoroughly investigated by specially trained officers which resulted in the police identifying the further offending."

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Francis O'Connor brutally assaulted his victim by grabbing her throat and putting his legs around her neck, before later trying to rape her as she slept.

The victim bravely managed to fight him off and get to safety, but not before 30-year-old O'Connor grabbed her throat again in another terrifying assault.

O'Connor, of HMP Doncaster, then fled the scene in the victim's car and stole £300 of cash from her before officers located him and arrested him.

After answering no comment to all questions during a police interview, he was charged with multiple offences after an investigation by the PVP team.

While on remand in custody, O'Connor was heard on a phone call encouraging a relative to contact the victim in order to get her to drop the charges against him.

He told the relative to "sort it out" and "go round to speak to her and then put me on speaker phone".

A second investigation was subsequently launched and O'Connor was charged with the additional offence of attempting to intimidate a witness.

The calibre of evidence secured in both investigations led to O'Connor pleading guilty to intimidating a witness, attempted rape, intentional strangulation, affray, theft and driving a motor vehicle without the owner's consent.

Last Thursday (12 December), he was jailed for 11-and-a-half years at Sheffield Crown Court, with a four-year extended licence period.

Detective Constable Chloe Wharmby, who was the officer in charge of this case, said: "O'Connor subjected his victim to a brutal, horrifying and unforgivable attack which has impacted her life significantly.

"What she endured was utterly traumatic and I want to commend the victim for her bravery and courage in coming forward and reporting O'Connor's crimes to us.

"Even in the face of intimidation, she remained resolute, and I hope O'Connor's prosecution and conviction will bring her some sense of justice and allow her to move on from this awful ordeal.

"We remain absolutely committed to targeting perpetrators of sexual assaults and tackling violence against women and girls.

"The PVP team worked diligently on this case to safeguard the victim and build up a strong case against O'Connor which has now resulted in a lengthy prison sentence.

"If you have been a victim of a sexual assault, please come forward and report it to us. You will be listened to and we will support you through the process in order to secure justice for victims."

O'Connor must sign the Sex Offenders' Register indefinitely and has been given a restraining order which prevents him from making any contact with his victim.

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A 58-year-old man has appeared at Swansea Crown Court today (Wednesday December 11) charged with child sex offences including attempting to arrange or facilitate the commission of a child sex offence, an adult attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child and breaching a sexual harm prevention order

David Parton from Penarth was arrested in October after arranging to meet a child under 13 following conversations held on-line.  He has been sent to prison for six years.

He will then have to serve a further four years on license as he has been classed as a dangerous offender bringing the total sentence to 10 years. He also has a lifetime Sexual Harm Prevention Order and will be classed as a sex offender for life. 

The investigation, which was carried out by Tarian, the Regional Organised Crime Unit for southern Wales, identified Parton as targeting children in southern Wales and enticing a child to commit sexual acts. 

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A man has been jailed for six years and three months, after being convicted of sex offences.

Dillon Robb, aged 29, of HMP Hewell was convicted of four counts of engaging in penetrative sexual activity with a girl aged between 13 and 15 and two counts of engaging in sexual communications with a child.

He was sentenced at Shrewsbury Crown Court today (Friday 13 December). Robb was also given an indefinite sexual harm prevention order and has been placed on the sex offenders register for life.

The offences took place in Telford between August and September 2023.

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A foster carer found guilty of indecently assaulting two girls more than 20 years ago has avoided a prison sentence.

Alastair Legge, 52, was convicted following a trial at Aberdeen Sheriff Court of two counts of sexually assaulting the girls at an address in Macduff and within a car during journeys across the region.

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A judge has jailed a ‘dangerous’ woman for violent physical and sexual abuse.

Angel Hill, 20, was handed an extended sentence for her crimes. Minshull Street Crown Court heard that Hill, who is transitioning from male to female, had demonstrated ‘violent, manipulative and controlling behaviour’.

She pleaded guilty to assault by penetration, sexual assault, strangulation and threatening with a bladed article in relation to the victim. “I conclude you have no insight regarding your behaviour at all,” Judge Jason MacAdam told the defendant.

“I see no evidence whatsoever that would lead me to conclude you are motivated to change your behaviour. Your approach being ‘it’s all about me’. The consequences of your actions don’t seem to register in your thought process, or if they do you ignore them. I find you to be dangerous, in the legal sense.”

Hill, of High Peak, Derbyshire, was sentenced to an extended sentence of 11 years, including seven years in prison and four years on extended licence.

Prosecuting, Stuart Neale said that the victim had struggled to breathe when Hill committed the strangulation offence. He said that Hill had said ‘I’m going to kill you’ earlier on the same occasion.

In a statement read to the court, the victim told how the incidents had affected their mental health. Defending, Julian Goode said that the defendant is still a young person and has not yet reached full maturity.

He said that she has experienced serious mental health issues, and argued that she was genuinely remorseful. Judge MacAdam said that he would reduce the sentence to take account of the defendant’s youth and mental health. He also reduced the sentence by 20 per cent because she pleaded guilty.

“The victim in this case was spared the ordeal of having to give evidence,” the judge said. He ordered Hill to sign the sex offender’s register. Hill was told she would have to serve at least two-thirds of the seven year custodial sentence before being considered for release.

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A MAN who met an underage girl for sex after grooming her online has been locked up for six-and-a-half years.

Bradford Crown Court heard how Damien Hughes set up a fake Instagram account under the name “Simon” and sent a friend request to the teenager.

Over the next three months they exchanged messages, which became sexualised, and he sent a video of himself masturbating.

He also asked the teenager to send nude photographs of herself and encouraged her to agree to meet in a hotel for sex despite knowing she was under the age of consent.

During the school holidays they met up three times and on two occasions Hughes, now 41, had sex with the girl in his car.

The court heard that the girl tried to call a halt to the situation, but Hughes would tell her that he would miss her and was “really upset”.

The relationship was discovered when a relative of the girl spotted a message from Hughes on her phone and responded pretending to be her.

He then investigated her Instagram account and found sexually explicit photographs and videos as well as messages arranging to meet up.

The police were informed, and, on being arrested, Hughes gave “no comment” answers in an interview.

When his phone was examined it showed where he had travelled to meet the girl and CCTV footage was located that placed the pair at the scene.

A forensic examination of his car found evidence of sexual activity.

Hughes was picked out by the teenager in an identity parade but denied the offences and went to trial where he was found guilty by a jury.

In a victim impact statement read to the court by prosecutor Laura McBride the teenager said her experiences with Hughes had left her feeling “very worried, anxious, and intimidated” as he had taken advantage of her vulnerabilities.

She revealed she had undergone therapy and suffered from trust issues that had impacted other relationships.

She said: “Each day I must live with the memories and flashbacks of what he did to me.”

Sentencing Hughes, of Westbourne Grove, Halifax, at Bradford Crown Court Mr Recorder Andrew Haslam KC said he had denied his crimes “despite overwhelming evidence”.

He jailed Hughes for a total of six-and-a-half years, imposed a ten-year sexual harm prevention order, and said he must sign the sex offender’s register for life.

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A teenager has told a court she attempted to take her own life after being repeatedly sexually assaulted by an older colleague at a McDonald’s in Perth.

The young woman was one of three female employees tormented by Joshua McKeown in 2022.

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A paedophile who walked into a Sawtry home and sexually assaulted a young girl has been jailed.

Christopher Woods, 39, was captured on CCTV trying door handles in the early hours of 23 April last year.

Woods, who was carrying a pint glass, managed to get into the back garden of the victim’s home before entering the property.

The victim had awoken and decided to go downstairs where Wood spoke to her and then assaulted her.

Video doorbell footage captured him entering the garden and leaving roughly 40 minutes later.

The following day the girl told her mother and she contacted police.

When officers attended, they found the pint glass in the garden. Forensic tests revealed Woods’ fingerprints, and he was arrested.

Woods, of Garner Court, Huntingdon, denied assaulting a girl under 13 by touching and breaching an existing Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

He was found guilty of both counts following a trial at Peterborough Crown Court last month.

Yesterday (11 December) at the same court he was jailed for four years and six months.

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A ‘predatory’ priest who repeatedly molested a sleeping train passenger has been jailed for 16 months at Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court.

Father Daniel Doherty, 61, from Falkirk, was the parish priest at St Francis Xavier Catholic Church in Falkirk.