Latest Offenders

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Two men have been jailed for a total of 13 years in connection with several sexual offences on a teenage boy.

Adam Hastings, 28, and Reece Upton,29, appeared in Reading Crown Court where they were sentenced on Friday, January 31.

Hastings and Upton pleaded guilty on 19 November, 2024, on the second day of their trial at the same court.

This is after evading police for 11 days during a complex investigation.

Adam Hastings was jailed for nine years for five counts of sexual activity with a child and two counts of breaching a Sexual Harm Prevention Order

In the same hearing, Reece Upton, aged 29, of no fixed abode, was jailed for four years for one count of sexual activity with a child.

Investigating officer Detective Constable Cerys Sumpter said: This was a complex investigation where Adam Hastings and Reece Upton actively evaded police and were not located for 11 days.

They were wanted in connection with a number of sexual offences reported by the victim, a boy aged in his teens, which occurred between April and June last year.

I am satisfied that Hastings and Upton have been given custodial sentences reflecting their crime; however, no punishment can ever compare to the pain and anguish the victim had to endure.

I hope the conviction will bring them some closure on their ordeal.

This case also demonstrates that Thames Valley Police take such matters with the utmost seriousness, tirelessly pursuing offenders and doing everything in their power to ensure justice is served.

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A serial sex offender has been found guilty of creeping into a woman’s home and staring at her from the foot of her bed.

Robert Basterfield was convicted of entering a neighbour’s property and watching her while she slept.

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A man from Amesbury has been jailed for raping a woman in her own home.

Ben Churcher, 22, of Muggleton Road, Amesbury, was given a 28 month sentence on January 31 at Salisbury Crown Court.

He will be on the sex offenders register for 10 years and a restraining order prohibits him from contacting the victim for five years.

Churcher raped his victim in 2020 and she lived in silence for a year before reporting the incident to the police in 2021.

During this year, the victim thought about suicide and felt as though she couldn't talk to anyone about what had happened.

In a statement read to the court, Churcher's victim said: "I felt dirty in my own skin and couldn't handle feeling so alone anymore.

"My family suffered too - they worry about me and my future. They worry about leaving me at home."

Churcher was found guilty following a trial which concluded on November 27, 2024. This trial left his victim unable to sleep, focus and work as it brought all the trauma he caused her back.

The victim said: "I have spent years in fear that Ben would come after me due to his threats.

"I repeatedly had his friends and family call me a liar and I felt like I couldn't step outside my house most days.

"Ben spent so long telling me that no-one would ever believe me but I finally feel I now have closure and people know the truth."

Detective Constable Deborah Laycock said: "I'd like to thank the victim in this case for showing an enormous amount of bravery and fortitude throughout the process of bringing Churcher to justice.

“Anyone who has been a victim of a sexual offence is urged to report it to us. We will help you and continue to put perpetrators before the courts."

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A high-risk sex offender who groomed and sexually assaulted a 12-year-old girl has been jailed as part of a 17 year extended sentence.

Paul Bryant, 43, bought sex toys to abuse the youngster and encouraged her to go on the contraceptive pill as part of calculating and manipulative behaviour.

Kings Lynn Crown Court was told his behaviour was part of a plan to coerce the girl into sexual activity over a number of weeks.

Marc Brown, prosecuting, said it was clear and obvious grooming and that it had included additional degradation of the girl who he had nicknamed tiny p****.

There was a significant degree of pre-planning formulated at least six weeks before the offences that constituted a clear plan for sex, he added.

Bryant, who lived in south Norfolk at the time of the offences, had denied the charges but was found guilty of assault by penetration of a child under 13 and two counts of making indecent images of children following a trial.

The search history of his phone, seized when he was arrested in March 2024, showed he had trawled for films of young girls using terms including petite sweetie and child model parties.

In a statement read in court the south Norfolk girl said she suffered flashbacks and a sense of feeling sick and disgusted.

She said she had tried to distract herself while he was abusing her by imaging hard maths sums.

Her mother added that his actions had a significant impact and she had lost her childhood innocence.

Sentencing Bryant, from Haddenham, near Ely, to an extended sentence made up of 11 years in prison and a further six years on licence, Judge Andrew Shaw told him: There is no doubt in my mind this was calculating and manipulative.

I do not recognise any mitigating features. There is simply no remorse here.

Imposing a lifetime sexual harm prevention order, he said he continued to pose a high risk to children.

Investigating officer, DC Donna Read said: I would like to commend the bravery of our victim who came forward and enabled police to secure justice against Bryant.

I hope that this lengthy sentence provides some comfort to them and allows them to begin rebuilding their lives, with him behind bars for the foreseeable future.

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A man who groomed and raped or sexually assaulted 11 children has been brought to justice after detectives in Salford uncovered his offending spanning over two decades from 2002 to 2023.

Carl Jones (aged 57) of Little Hulton has been sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 25 and a half years.

He sentenced at Minshull Street Crown Court for 47 offences, which include multiple counts of rape of a child under the age of 13, oral rape of a child under the age of 13, sexual assault of a child under and over the age of 13, engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child, causing a child to engage in sexual activity, and indecent assault.

Jones pleaded guilty to all charges on 9th September 2024 and was placed on the on the sex offender’s registry indefinitely.

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A "depraved predator" who exposed himself, chased and sexually assaulted students and schoolgirls in broad daylight in a city-centre underpass has been jailed.

Police said Robert Emmerson, a previously convicted sex offender, targeted women and girls as young as 13 in Manchester between 2023 and 2024.

The 40-year-old, from Wythenshawe, was convicted at Manchester Crown Court of five sexual assaults and on seven counts of indecent exposure.

Speaking after Emmerson was jailed for four years and six months, Detective Constable Tamsyn Muller said his victims "held a genuine belief that this man was going to go on to rape them or kill them".

'Long-term psychological impact'

The court heard Emmerson targeted students heading through an underpass on Cambridge Street, under the Mancunian Way.

He was also convicted of assaulting two girls, aged 13 and 16, in the Baguley and Wythenshawe areas of the city.

Det Con Muller said Emmerson "picked [his victims] up in a bear hug-style grip before taking them to the ground and groping them over their clothing".

She said he "targeted lone women and was so brazen that he attacked them in the daytime, not caring if people passing by could hear or see him committing his crimes".

The detective said Emmerson's crimes had left a long-term psychological impact on the women and girls.

She said they "still feel like they can't relax in public, and always have to look over their shoulder".

'No regard for women'

CCTV footage showed Emmerson arriving in Manchester city centre after catching a bus from Wythenshawe.

After attacking his victims, he was seen walking round before jumping on a bus back to Wythenshawe.

Following Emmerson's arrest, an identity parade was organised, where five of his victims recognised him as their attacker.

When officers then searched his home they discovered the coat he had worn during the attacks.

They also found his details on the police database, reading that he had been arrested in 2015.

Det Con Muller said Emmerson chose to wear a t-shirt reading "nope, not today" when she was interviewing him.

"He tried to stare me out while I was asking questions and answered no comment," she added.

She described Emmerson as "a dangerous sexual predator who had no regard for women".

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A CARLISLE man who stalked and sexually assaulted a woman he hardly knew greeted her with the words “Hello Sexy,” a court heard.

The defence lawyer representing 46-year-old John Mooney at the city’s Rickergate court suggested the defendant's worrying behaviour may have been linked to the breakup of his marriage.

Mooney admitted sexual assault and stalking, as well as failing to surrender to the court on three occasions.

The trouble began in June last year after Mooney moved to a new area of Carlisle, prosecutor George Shelley.

“He then undertook a persistent course of conduct – personal advances towards the victim,” said the prosecutor, who described how the stalking behaviour continued for a month or so.

Mooney first introduced himself to the woman, who is in her thirties. “As the weeks went by, he began talking about his personal situation, which made [the woman] feel uncomfortable,” said the prosecutor. 

Mooney began asking the woman to go drinking with him and, despite her repeatedly refusing, he kept asking her. He also began asking her questions about her personal life.

“She made it clear that she didn’t wish to discuss this with Mr Mooney,” continued Mr Shelley. “She told him it was none of his business and that she wanted him to stop asking such personal questions.”

It was during this encounter that the defendant put his arm around the woman and touched her inappropriately.

The woman immediately moved away and asked him what he thought he was doing. He later sent her a letter apologising, attempting to explain his behaviour. 

The following day, he appeared outside her home, but she remained inside, hiding. Even after these events, when Mooney saw the woman, he would greet her with: “Hello Sexy.”

Mooney, now of Margaret Creighton Gardens, Carlisle, had no previous convictions, the court heard.

Sean Harkin, defending, told magistrates: “It appears to have been an isolated incident at a time when the defendant had broken up with his wife; and he was going through a bit of tough period.

“That doesn’t excuse his behaviour but it provides some context.  He wants to apologise to the victim.” Mr Harkin added that Mooney posed a low risk of reoffending.   

Concluding there was a realistic prospect of rehabilitation, magistrates imposed a 16-week jail term but suspended it for a year.

The sentence includes a restraining order banning any contact with the victim and Mooney was told his name will be on the Sex Offender Register for seven years.

He must pay £85 costs and a £154 victim surcharge.

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A man who sexually assaulted two women on the London Underground has been jailed following a British Transport Police investigation.

Mansoor Ahmed, 30, was jailed for 26 months and handed a 10-year signature of the sex offenders register after he pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual assault.

The court heard how, on 6 September 2020, the victim walked up the stairs at Gloucester Road underground station when she was sexually assaulted by Ahmed. The victim screamed and Ahmed ran from the scene, and she reported it the following day.

Following an appeal to the public Ahmed was identified and circulated as wanted for questioning.

On 20 November 2020 a second woman was sexually assaulted by Ahmed while she travelled down the steps at Charing Cross Station. Ahmed then walked away, however the victim spotted to British Transport Police officers at the station and reported the incident to them.

Ahmed was subsequently detained and arrested at the station. Ahmed was released under investigation while enquiries continued.

The two incidents were linked and attempts were made to locate Ahmed, however his whereabouts were unknown.

On 27 May 2021, Ahmed was located on board a ferry arriving at Holyhead from Ireland and was arrested at the scene. He was subsequently charged with these offences.

Ahmed, of Stephenson Street, Riverside, Cardiff, admitted two counts of sexual assault and was sentenced on Tuesday 21 January at Cardiff Crown Court.

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A Devon man has been jailed for eight-and-a-half years for abusing a young girl and possessing hundreds of images of child sex abuse.

Wade Robinson, aged 31 and of no fixed abode but with links to both Tiverton and Exeter, pleaded guilty in November 2024 to five charges of possession of online child abuse and three counts relating to the sexual assault of a child.

Robinson was also told that upon release he would have to serve three-and-a-half years on licence and will be subject to an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

An investigation was launched into Robinson after investigators linked him to an online account after a child abuse image was uploaded to a website.

Officers executed a warrant at an address in Exeter in the 2022. Upon arrival, Robinson fled the property by jumping out of the garden window before chucking his phone over a neighbouring fence in an attempt to get rid of it.

Officers managed to detain him in the garden and were alerted by the neighbour that Robinson’s phone was on their garden lawn.

He was arrested and interviewed where he refused to give officers the PIN to his phone, despite this, the digital forensics team were able to open the device. Officers discovered more than a thousand images of child sexual abuse including Category A material, which is of the most serious in nature.

Following Robinson’s arrest, a victim came forward and disclosed that she had been abused by Robinson and provided her account. Several images found on Robinson’s phone were examined and found to be that of the victim who was a child. After professional analysis, detectives managed to provide evidential material to the Crown Prosecution Service and secured eight charges against Robinson.

Detectives from Devon & Cornwall Police managed to build such a strong case against Robinson that he had little option other than to plead guilty to the offences. This guilty plea also spared the victim from having to go through the court process.

Robinson, who refused to come out of his cell to face sentencing, will also be on the Sex Offenders Register for life.

On sentencing Judge Adkin commented: “He has refused to engage with the court and is not on the video link and is clearly an individual who doesn’t have the courage to face up to the fact he has committed these incidents of utter depravity.”

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THIS is the face of a monstrous child rapist who subjected a minor to years of sexual abuse.

Neal Hatton was handed a jail term of more than two decades after being convicted of two counts of rape and nine counts of sexual assault.

He put the victim through the ordeal of reliving their horrific experiences by denying the offences, but a jury saw through his lies.

During the trial, Liverpool Crown Court heard how the evil behaviour occurred in Warrington and began when the victim was of primary school age.

Hatton’s abuse escalated further, as he began to rape and sexually assault the child on a regular basis.

The victim described how they were terrified of the 38-year-old, and when they would try to tell him to stop, he threatened to take them to his home and torture them.

They would try to ignore him, hoping this would stop him from abusing them, but no matter what the victim did, Hatton’s offending continued.

The abuse eventually came to light when the victim sought the courage to tell their mother what Hatton was doing to her, and the matter was immediately reported to Cheshire Police.

Following the report, Hatton was subsequently arrested by detectives. During questioning, he denied all of the allegations against him.

Despite his denials, he was convicted of all the offences following a trial at Liverpool Crown Court, which concluded yesterday, Thursday.

The case proceeded to sentence, with judge Robert Trevor-Jones sentencing Hatton, of Vulcan Close in Padgate, to 21 years in prison, plus an additional six years on extended licence.

Following the sentencing, DS Ryan Crawford said: “Firstly, I want to praise the victim for the courage that they have shown throughout this investigation.

“Hatton is clearly a sexual predator, whose only interest is to fulfil his own sexual gratification.

“He showed no regard for the victim and, even when faced with the mountain of evidence against him, he refused to plead guilty to any of the charges.

“Instead, he forced his victim to relive their experiences in court, which could not have been easy for them.

“Thankfully, as a result of the bravery of the victim, and the evidence we gathered, the jury has seen through his lies, and he is now being held accountable for his actions.

“I hope that the sentence handed to Hatton will provide the victim with some closure and allow them to move forward with their life, knowing that he will never be able do the same to any other children.”

In addition to the custodial sentence, Hatton was ordered to sign the sexual offender register and comply with a sexual harm prevention order for life.

DS Crawford added: “Nobody should have to experience what the victim has been through, and if anything can come from this case, I hope that it encourages other victims of sexual offences to come forward and report them to us.

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A Nottingham paedophile caught with more than 1,000 vile child abuse images was told by a judge the young people he was getting sexual pleasure from viewing were sentenced to “a living death”.

Malcom Corbett also exchanged sex messages with a 13-year-old girl telling her “it’s a shame the law does not take into account people’s emotions”.

But Poppy, the teen the 55-year-old thought he was engaging in disgusting and illegal chats with, was really a decoy. And when the police went to arrest the defendant and his then West Bridgford flat, they found 600 of the most serious category A child sex pictures and videos.

Handing him an 18-month jail term, suspended for two years, at Nottingham Crown Court, Judge Stuart Rafferty said: "You should be ashamed of yourself. A man of your age propositioning girls, who you believed were real girls, aged 13, is simply outrageous.

“Yes, you are disabled, yes, you are lonely, yes, you have too much time on your hands and yes, you don’t get on with the people you were living with but you were living a fantasy. You amassed over 1,000 indecent pictures of children and if you bothered to look at the faces on those photos you would see fear, sadness and misery.

“Because every one of these children you were looking at was a real person and every one of them will never be a whole person again because of you and people like you. These children will never be whole again, they can’t be because their innocence has been taken away from them.

“Their privacy has been taken away from them and their soul has been taken away from them. They have been sentenced to a living death.

“But if I send you to prison all you will do is sit in your cell feeling sorry for yourself thinking you have not done anything wrong. Don't you dare come back before me again and don’t you dare spend another minute not being ashamed of what you did.”

Gareth Gimson, prosecuting, said Corbett used two social media applications to chat online to Poppy, who the defendant believed was a 13-year-old girl. The prosecutor said in messages he told her he “loved younger girls” asked her to send him pictures of herself and when the decoy did, he told he she “looked gorgeous”.

Mr Gimson said: “He said in one message ‘it’s a shame the law does not take into account people’s emotions’. He asked if she had a PayPal account, and the reason for that is that he told her he could ‘send her a little money’.

“He sent pictures and a video of himself lying on his bed.” The prosecutor said the police were alerted to what was happening and went to his then address in Greythorn Drive.

Mr Gimson said a phone was examined and found to contain 600 of the most serious category A child abuse images, 432 category B and 160 category C. He said there were internet search terms including “young girl nudism” and “teen underwear”.

Corbett, now of Mansfield Road, Blidworth, Mansfield, pleaded guilty to attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child and three counts of making indecent images of children. He has no previous convictions.

Raglan Ashton, mitigating, said his client “would very much take advantage of the help and the support the probation service can offer him”.

As part of the suspended sentence order, the judge ordered the defendant to attend 35 rehabilitation sessions with the probation service, placed him on the sex offender register for five years and handed him a five-year sexual harm prevention order.

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A Midlands physiotherapist who abused a patient has been locked up. Robert Merfyn Williams denied a single count of sexual assault and stood trial at Shrewsbury Crown Court.

But jurors convicted him of the charge following a two-day trial in December 2024. The trial heard how the 66-year-old assaulted his female patient when she went to his practise in Mardol, Shrewsbury.

The victim had gone to see Williams for treatment to her painful knee. Williams has now been jailed for 15 months for his crime.

The defendant, of Pensfold, Bicton Heath, Shrewsbury, was also told to sign the sex offenders register for 10 years. West Mercia Police's Detective Constable Nick Williams, from Shropshire's reactive CID, praised the victim for coming forward.

He said: "I commend the courage of the victim in this case to come forward and for her resilience and determination over the last couple of years as she waited for the trial to take place. I am pleased with the court result and sentencing and I hope the knowledge that police will take such allegations seriously and will do their best to bring offenders of sexual crimes to justice, will give other victims the confidence to come forward."

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A "disgusting and manipulative" rapist who abused a woman so she "feared for her life" has been jailed.

Amaniel Tewelde threatened and coerced his victim over several years and ignored her pleas to stop sexually assaulting her, Greater Manchester Police said.

The 37-year-old, from Collyhurst in Manchester, was found guilty in November of two counts of rape, controlling and coercive behaviour, and perverting the course of justice.

Tewelde has been sentenced at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court to 15 years in prison, given a restraining order, and placed on the sex offender register for the rest of his life.

'Feeling trapped'

The court heard Tewelde first met the woman in the Salford area in 2014 and then sexually assaulted her.

On another occasion, police said Tewelde ignored her pleas for him to stop touching her and went on to rape her.

He continued with controlling and coercive behaviour in the months that followed, threatening not to see her or care for her if she did not have sex with him.

Detectives said the woman feared for her life if she did not listen to him.

The court heard that, during a visit to Blackpool, Tewelde raped her again.

Det Sgt Graham Parry said: "Tewelde's disgusting and manipulative actions led to a woman feeling unsafe and with nowhere to turn to, leaving her isolated.

"By alternating between caring and controlling, Tewelde left the woman feeling trapped and I am glad he is now finally behind bars where he belongs."

He said after years of abuse the woman was "finally allowed a voice" in court after an "incredibly tough journey" and officers were "thankful for her perseverance".

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Dean Williams, 29, from Abercynon has been jailed for nearly five years after being found guilty of sexually assaulting a young girl.

Appearing at Cardiff Crown Court on Friday 24 January, Williams was sentenced to four years and eight months for sexual activity with a child and 22 months for making an indecent image of a child, with the sentences running concurrently.

The assault took place in a park in Caerphilly in August 2022 after Williams, then 26, had added the then 13-year-old victim on Snapchat.

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A Morecambe man has been jailed after raping a 16-year-old girl after he lured her back to his flat.

Registered sex offender Jonathon Downie was jailed for five years after pleading guilty to rape at Preston Crown Court.

Downie’s victim was at a party on August 7 2024.

Downie, after luring her back to his flat, gave her alcohol, and started sexually touching her. She told him to stop.

Despite her pleas for Downie to stop, he continued to rape her.

Eventually, the victim managed to push him away. Downie proceeded to ask her “did I rape you?”

When she replied “yes, why didn’t you stop when I told you to?”, he responded “are you going to get me done?”

An investigation commenced, and Downie was arrested on suspicion of, and later charged with, rape and sexual assault.

Downie, 25, of no fixed abode, pleaded guilty to rape at Preston Crown Court and was sentenced to five years in custody.