Latest Offenders

Description

A paedophile jailed for historic sexual abuse dating back to the 1980s has been branded a “vile monster” by the family of one of his victims.

John Ritchie was snared when one young girl recorded the abuse on her mobile phone and alerted police.

That prompted an investigation that saw victims come forward and accuse the 65-year-old of sexually assaulting them when they were children.

Following a trial at Peterhead Sheriff Court, a jury unanimously convicted Ritchie of three charges of sexual assault on two teenagers, one of whom he started abusing in 1989.

He was also found guilty by majority verdict on two charges of sex assaults involving a woman and a teenage girl.

Sheriff Ian Wallace jailed Ritchie for over two years and placed him on the sex offenders register for a decade.

‘He groomed these girls’

Describing Ritchie as a “vile and sick person”, a family member of one of his victims said that she was “disgusted” over the breach of trust shown by him.

“He groomed these girls. He’s a vile sick person – a monster,” the girl’s relative said.

“I’m glad he didn’t plead guilty and took this to trial because now people have seen and heard for themselves what he did.”

One of his victims, in an impact statement to the court, described how Ritchie’s abuse still affects her home and school life.

She wrote: “This has affected my life in a huge way. I take panic attacks on a daily basis … my mood has changed. I am angry I didn’t speak up sooner.

“I am now getting counselling. I can’t eat or sleep and now having to take medication. I feel sad, worried and angry all the time now and I always used to feel happy.

“He has totally ruined the last year of my life and I am not the happy girl I used to be.”

Serial sex abuser

Ritchie, who worked as a joiner, was found guilty by unanimous verdict of sexual offences on one teenage girl between August 25 1989 and August 24 1991 at addresses across Aberdeenshire.

The charge states that he pinned her down on a bed where he climbed on top of her and touched her all over her body, including fondling her breasts.

On another occasion, Ritchie climbed on top of the girl while in a car and again sexually assaulted her by touching her with his hands.

At a different address, Ritchie was also unanimously convicted of indecent assault involving the same girl between 1994 and 1994 when she was an older teenager.

It was stated that he pinned her against a wall and grabbed at her breasts and tried to force his hands inside her underwear.

Ritchie was found guilty on a charge involving a second teenage girl whom he indecently assaulted at a pub, near Fraserburgh, by kissing her and grabbing at her breasts and buttocks.

He was also found guilty by majority verdict by the jury on a charge that he sexually assaulted a woman at a hotel in Rosehearty between 2012 and 2013.

The jury unanimously convicted Ritchie of a final charge of sex offences involving a third teenage girl that took place last year at addresses in Aberdeenshire and East Lothian.

He touched the girl’s body and touched her private parts before unfastening his belt and beckoning her to come into his bedroom.

He was additionally handed a not proven verdict on one charge of kissing a woman without her consent.

At Ritchie’s sentence hearing at Aberdeen Sheriff Court, Sheriff Wallace sentenced Ritchie, of Muirison Drive, Rosehearty, to 28 months in prison.

He also placed Ritchie on the sex offender’s register for 10 years.

Description

A paedophile collapsed in the dock moments before he was due to learn his fate from a judge after plotting "fun meets" with girls at an Aldi supermarket.

Shaun Moynihan engaged in lewd discussions with what he believed were 13-year-old children in online chatrooms. But, unbeknown to him, he was actually speaking to undercover police officers.

Liverpool Crown Court heard yesterday, Friday, that the dad began communicating with a PC posing as a 13-year-old girl on RandoChat on November 3 last year under the name "Anonymous Man 51" and using a photograph of himself as his profile picture. Fiona McNeill, prosecuting, described how he gave his first name and said he was "looking for fun meets".

Moynihan, of Clifford Road in Birkdale, "asked if she had big boobs" and stated he "wouldn't meet her until she was 16 or 18", but then "backtracked and said he would meet up as long as she looked older". The chat then continued on November 8, with the now 52-year-old suggesting that they meet on the coming Saturday.

The messages then became "extremely graphic and highly sexualised", with the defendant asking if she was a "naughty girl" and questioning her on her sexual preferences. Moynihan asked to meet up for sex, stating that he would drive to her location and they could then "go wherever she liked"

He proposed going to a hotel afterwards and said he would buy her underwear. The pervert asked whether she was in school at the time and instructed her to go to the toilet to record a voice note for him.

Moynihan then started a second chat with another decoy, who was also supposedly aged 13, on the same platform that day. But he was again talking to a police officer.

He stated that he was "Shaun from Southport" and again said he was "looking for fun meets". Moynihan suggested meeting at an Aldi store at 6.30pm the same day and asked whether she was "into naughty stuff".

The messaging continued on November 10, with him by now going by the username "Sean, Man, 51". He was reminded of her purported age, but said they could still "kiss and play with each other".

Moynihan detailed sex acts he wanted to perform on her and again suggested meeting at Aldi that night before "taking it from there". He asked her to turn up "without wearing any underwear" and said he would be there "at 6.30pm in his silver car".

Officers subsequently searched Facebook for users called Shaun in the Southport area and identified him from his profile picture. Moynihan was arrested at his workplace on January 16 this year and, after being cautioned, replied: "I have engaged in online chats but never knew they were children."

Under interview, he accepted that he had been chatting to children but "denied any intention of meeting a child" - instead saying that it was "fantasy only". He has no previous convictions.

Moynihan had previously been due to be sentenced on Friday last week, but the case had to be adjourned after he seemingly suffered a panic attack. After entering the dock, he was heard to say that he was "claustrophobic" and began hyperventilating.

The defendant initially appeared to have been calmed down by a security guard, but his state worsened once more when the judge entered the courtroom. The dock officer remarked that she believed he had stopped breathing and Moynihan appeared to fall unconscious, with his head having fallen back as he sat apparently unresponsive.

An ambulance was called, and he was subsequently taken to hospital. His sentencing was adjourned for seven days as a result.

Jeremy Rawson, defending, told the court today: "References speak highly of him. He has kept the support of his family since his arrest.

"He has always worked, either in the care system or in shop work. At the time of the offence, he was working as a salesman in mobility products.

"He is the sole wager supporting the family. His wife is sitting in the public gallery and is supportive of him."

Moynihan admitted two counts of attempting sexual communications with a child, two charges of arranging a child sex offence and attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity. He put his head in his hands and cried as he was jailed for two years and 11 months and told to sign the sex offenders' register for 10 years.

Sentencing, Judge Robert Trevor-Jones said: "You were making persistent efforts to try to meet up. You are someone of fully good character before this offence took place.

"Clearly, you are remorseful. One hopes, given the indication I have seen in this courtroom, that you are able to bear what you have done.

"It seems you were a long time user of chatrooms. Clearly, this is something that led on to what you did.

"You are 52 and the girls, so-called, were 13 years of age. There is no getting away from that fact."

Description

A paedophile preyed on children in Sefton Park and at a Butlin's holiday park.

Simon Gerrard raped and sexually abused one victim and assaulted another during a course of sickening attacks in the 1990s and 2000s. He was yesterday described by a judge as "dangerous offender" as he was handed a lengthy spell behind bars.

Liverpool Crown Court heard on Thursday afternoon that the now 53-year-old subjected a boy to a campaign of rape and sexual assault over the course of several years. Gerrard, of Cherry Tree Lane in Aughton, was in his late 20s at the time.

David Polglase, prosecuting, had previously described during a trial that he instructed the youngster to perform sexual acts on him and performed sex acts on the complainant himself. One such incident occurred in Sefton Park.

Reading a victim impact statement to the court, he described how he still regularly suffers from flashbacks and nightmares as a result of Gerrard's vile crimes. He added: "These crimes have shattered my sense of security and safety.

"To this day, I live in fear and anxiety. I have been forced to live with these memories and consequences for most of my life."

Gerrard was said to have told him "not to tell anyone about it, otherwise they would both get into trouble". He also sexually assaulted a second child at a Butlin's resort.

A statement which was read to the court on her behalf said: "I should have been able to be a kid and not have a grown man do what he did to me. I didn't deserve anything that has happened to me."

Gerrard was previously handed a community order in 2018 after being caught in a paedophile hunter sting, in which he messaged a decoy account posing as a 12-year-old girl online "if she wanted to have sex". The ECHO reported at the time that he had arranged a meeting at Ormskirk Bus Station, but was confronted by group members and arrested.

The defendant was said to have a congenital brain injury which has caused "lifelong" learning and communication difficulties and left him with "significantly limited intellectual function". Fiona McNeill, defending, also told the court that her client had "developed some health issues" since being remanded into custody.

Gerrard was found guilty of 21 child sexual offences including rape, attempted rape and indecent assault by a jury. Appearing via video link to HMP Liverpool, he was jailed for 14 years and handed an extended five-year licence period.

Sentencing, Judge Stuart Driver KC said: "This was repeated, serious abuse over a period of about four years, which has had a profound effect on your victim's life. You always knew that what you were doing was wrong, and you were careful to do it when no witnesses would be around.

"The combination of the gravity of the offences on the indictment and the evidence of your persisting sexual behaviour towards children causes me to conclude that you represent a significant risk of serious harm to children by the commission of further sexual offences. Your limited insight and understanding of your behaviour and your tendency to deny and minimise it increase that risk.

"You represent a high risk of serious harm to children. I am satisfied that you are a dangerous offender."

Gerrard was also handed restraining orders preventing him from contacting his victims indefinitely and a lifelong sexual harm prevention order. He will be required to sign the sex offenders' register for life.

Description

Robert Man, 43, is wanted in his home country to complete a jail sentence for abusing seven youngsters during a three-year period.

Some of his victims were reportedly groomed after he landed a job driving children to a campsite run by a humanitarian charity.

Man is also wanted for possessing indecent images of children. His youngest victim was just nine.

He is currently on bail while appealing an extradition order made by a judge at Westminster Magistrates Court in London in July.

Man wears an electronic tag and is under a 7am to midday curfew at his home in Newport, South Wales, which allows him to do night shifts at an Amazon distribution centre in Bristol.

The retail giant confirmed Man was an employee but refused to say if they were aware of his criminal history. A spokesman said: “We are investigating.”

Alarmingly, Man’s rented room in Newport is just 150 yards from Stow Park Community Centre, which hosts weekly martial arts classes for kids as young as four, as well as children’s parties and clubs for youngsters with autism.

Willie Clason, secretary and trustee of Stow Park, said he did not recognise Man and that he has no connection with the centre.

“We have refugees coming here for food parcels, but they are thoroughly checked,” he said.

One neighbour with children, who did not wish to be named, said they no idea of Man’s past.

“It is terrible that someone wanted for such dreadful things against children is living so close by,” she protested. “We should have been told.”

Man has three years and three months left to serve of a five years and eight months sentence imposed by the County Court in Cluj in his absence in January 2020.

He was originally sentenced to 17 years and four months’ imprisonment after he made admissions to prosecutors in Romania in 2017.

However, Man was released months later after an appeal court ruled there had been errors during the original prosecution and that he “had not been fully entitled to exercise his right to defence.”

A judge set aside his conviction and ordered a retrial, where he was found guilty of eight sexual abuse charges, including five assaults, two counts of soliciting a minor for “sexual acts” and one child pornography offence.

Description

Nicky Ward, who was also deemed a danger to the public in 2005 after committing a violent robbery, had been staying at the probation-run accommodation, Holbeck House on Springwell View in Holbeck, but was kicked out because of his behaviour in January last year.

The 42-year-old must sign the sex offender register for life and inform police of a change of address within three days. But he failed to do so and was at large after the police’s attempts to contact him proved fruitless.

Leeds Crown Court heard that Ward had contacted another resident at Holbeck House in April of last year to ask about borrowing money. The number was passed to police but he would not respond or answer his phone.

He was eventually arrested on August 30 this year, and said he was living in Sheffield. He admitted breaching the terms of the sex offender register.

Mitigating, Lily Wildman said that during his prison terms and thereafter he had done a “lot of good work” with probation and that his “engagement has been excellent”.

Judge Simon Phillips KC gave Ward a six-month jail sentence, suspended for 18 months, with 20 rehabilitation days.

Ward had been jailed for six years for rape in 2001, and in October 2005 – having been released after serving half of his sentence – he was jailed indeterminately after he tried to hold up an off-licence in Skegness at knifepoint. He was then jailed for 16 weeks in 2017 for absconding from an open prison in Lincolnshire.

Description

The owner of The Vintage Store clothes business has been convicted of sexually assaulting a young woman after intimately touching her and telling her: "This is what you want."

Philip Waltham made local and national headlines last year when he revealed that he was previously homeless and had sold copies of the Big Issue in London for three years in the 1990s to escape from his drug-taking past. He went on to set up a popular multi-million pound chain of clothes stores.

He kissed a woman on the lips "full on" and touched her in what seemed to be "sexually motivated" advances towards her, Hull Crown Court heard. Waltham, 46, of Ella Street, Hull, denied three offences of sexual assault against the woman last year, but he was convicted by a jury after a trial. He also denied intimidating another woman, who was a witness in the case this year, and he was cleared of that charge.

Recorder Simon Jackson KC said that the woman claimed that Waltham kissed her on the lips "full on". The prosecution claimed that the kiss was "sexually motivated", but Waltham denied that it happened.

The woman also claimed that Waltham grabbed her jacket and pulled her back towards him before putting his hand on her waist under her jacket. She claimed that he touched her on her hips and told her: "This is what you want." She claimed that he moved his hand towards her bottom.

The woman also claimed that he grabbed her hand and placed it on his private parts when he was seemingly aroused. She had "no romantic or sexual interest" in Waltham, said Recorder Jackson.

The prosecution had claimed that Waltham made "indirect threats" to another woman after an investigation was launched into the sexual assaults. He was said to have asked the second woman: "Do you think I did it?"

Waltham claimed that he was not trying to influence the second woman in any way. He agreed during a police interview that he had spoken to her, but he denied talking about the case.

Recorder Jackson said that Waltham told the jury during his defence evidence that he was in the "fashion business" and was the owner of The Vintage Store, originally based in Hull, but also with stores in places including Sheffield, Liverpool and Newcastle. There was a "huge warehouse" at the former Topshop premises in the St Stephen's shopping centre, Hull.

Waltham claimed that the allegations of sexual assaults by the woman were false and were "lies". He claimed that there had been no physical contact between them.

After the verdicts from the jury, sentence was adjourned for reports and Waltham was allowed bail until the next hearing. An updated victim impact statement will be requested. Waltham was not ordered to register as a sex offender, but he will have to do so at the next hearing.

In an interview published on Hull Live in January last year, Waltham revealed that he sold the Big Issue for three years after running away from his Hull home as a teenager to escape his drug addiction.

He said: "The Big Issue helped me put money in my back pocket and feed myself. They taught me how to respect myself. They taught me how to budget my money and how important a roof was.

"I had to have money to buy Big Issues so I could sell Big Issues and that taught me how to budget. The thing that has saved my life is selling second-hand clothes and I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for the Big Issue."

After three years as a Big Issue vendor in Clerkenwell and Hampstead, London, Waltham opened a market stall in Camden. He said of his sustainable clothes business: "We fight fast fashion. We save clothing from landfills, we go to big factories and take clothing.

"Last year, we saved around 600 tonnes of clothing and then repurposed them to sell on." His firm, Bulk Vintage Wholesale, was turning over more than £9m a year, it was reported at the time of the interview last year.

Description

A sex offender who abused a young boy in Sheffield in the 1980s/1990s has been jailed for over 16 years.

Michael Copeland, aged 74,  groomed the victim over a number of years when he was aged between eight and 12 years old.

The victim, who is now an adult, bravely reported what had happened to him in November 2022. Copeland, who lived in Sheffield at the time of his offending but later moved to Cornwall, was arrested at his home in Truro. Following a thorough investigation, he pleaded guilty to 15 charges of non-recent sexual abuse.  

At Sheffield Crown Court on Tuesday (26 September), Copeland was sentenced to 16 years and six months in prison. He was also placed on the sex offenders register for life and made subject to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

Investigating officer Wendy Howe, who led the investigation, said: “The victim in this case showed tremendous courage in coming forward to tell us what happened to him when he was a child. I am pleased Copeland has been handed a significant prison sentence for his vile actions and hope it may help the victim to begin to find closure and move on with the rest of his life.

“As this case demonstrates, it is never too late to report sexual abuse to us, even if it happened many years ago. If you have suffered sexual abuse in the past, please tell us. We will investigate and we will pursue justice on your behalf.”

Description

Warped David Shanks, 75, latched onto the profile, before sending pictures of his genitals and said he would “bring condoms” for the meeting with the supposed 14-year-old boy.

Leeds Crown Court heard that Shanks, of Dewsbury Road, Hunslet, made contact with the fake profile on July 18 via the social-media site for gay people, Hornet.

He sent several messages before the recipient replied, who made it clear they were only 14, but Shanks wanted him to come to Leeds for the weekend “for the gay scene”.

Having traded phone numbers, Shanks asked him if he wanted sex, told him he had contraception and had baby oil “in the fridge” and “could not wait” to meet him, prosecutor Beatrice Allsop told the court.

On August 3, police went to the railway station where they found Shanks near the entrance and arrested him. He told them he was waiting for the 14-year-old boy, but claimed he had no intention of meeting for sex, telling officers during his interview that he had planned to buy him food then put him back on the train. His claim was rejected by Judge Simon Batiste.

Appearing in court from HMP Leeds, where he has been held since his arrest, he admitted attempting to meet a child under 16 after grooming, and attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child. He has no previous convictions.

Mitigating, Michael Morley said: “He is not the first man to find himself in this position. Despite entering guilty pleas he has struggled to come to terms with the position he has landed himself in. He has never been in trouble before.

"He has worked from the ae of 16 to 74. He accepts that he does need help.”

Judge Batiste jailed him for 26 months, gave him a 10-year sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) to limit his internet use and put him on the sex offender register for the same period.

He told Shanks: “It was not simple fantasy because you went to the railway station to meet him. It’s clear your intention was for sexual activity.”

Description

A vile pervert caught distributing sickening child abuse images for a second time has been jailed.

In August 2021, Matthew Lumley was locked up for three years for distributing, making and possessing indecent images of children. He had more than 13,000 indecent images and had been sent some by a man showing his son being abused.

He was released from that sentence in February this year but despite being subject to a sexual harm prevention order, he was soon back offending in a similar way. He communicated with what turned out to be an undercover police officer who had set up profiles online, including on a Russian photograph sharing website on which users can upload sexual images of children.

year-old daughter and posted an email address, which Lumley contacted with a username including the phrase "loveboys1997".

The officer said he was interested in boys and girls aged from 0-10 and Lumley said he was the same and liked "crying and tying up". He went on to say he "loves torture and pain", adding "any age turns me on". Lumley also asked the officer if he could create a custom video for him including a child screaming.

Within a few days he was soliciting videos of the officers six-year-old daughter. Emma Dowling, prosecuting, said: "He described in detail what he would like to see."

Lumley, 26, of Kingston Park, Newcastle, went on to sent two category A videos to the officer, including of a two-year-old "tied up and gagged" and "in obvious pain and distress" being abused by a woman.

Miss Dowling said: "The conversation continued for a few more days, with the contents of the video discussed and the defendant suggesting he had videos of babies being raped. They continued to exchange grotesque sexual fantasies about the abuse and torture of children."

When he was arrested, police found 826 indecent images on his phone, including 307 of the most serious type, category A.

He pleaded guilty to distributing two indecent images of children to the undercover officer, two counts of breaching the sexual harm prevention order and three counts of making indecent images of children. He was jailed for three years with an extended licence period of a further five years. He continues to be subject to sex offender registration and a sexual harm prevention order.

Judge Tim Gittins said Lumley is a dangerous offender and told him: "They included images that can only be described as sexual torture and terror committed against those children of the most tender years, babies and toddlers."

The judge said while Lumley's autism might be a factor in his obsessive collecting of images and social isolation, it is not the sole or decisive behaviour in his offending. He added: "You remain an intelligent young man despite those difficulties.

"You attended mainstream school and college and gained significant qualifications, in one sense worryingly, in relation to ICT and cyber security. You remain deeply sexually preoccupied and preoccupied with underage children in a sexual way."

Matthew Purves, defending, said: "Most people would describe this as absolutely unimaginable offending when one looks through the descriptions given by the police officer who viewed the images.

"The defendant is trying to process his own behaviour but has to accept the only real mitigation is the fact he has pleaded guilty. All of the offences are online, there are no contact offences.

"He accepts he has a particular interest, something that has not been the case historically and there are routes of treatment and rehabilitation available."

Description

A convicted sex offender who brazenly refused to register his details – because it would mean being "labelled as a paedophile" – was later caught with a large stash of crack cocaine ready for selling on the streets.

Drug addict James Fox hurriedly tried to make a run for it when he was spotted and chased by the police – and he threw a bag of cocaine away. It landed on the ground and split open, spilling a large amount of white powder on the street, Hull Crown Court heard.

Fox, 28, of Hull, admitted possessing crack cocaine with intent to supply, offering to supply crack cocaine and three offences of failing to comply with his notification requirements as a sex offender. Nick Peacock, prosecuting, said that Fox had been convicted at Hull Magistrates' Court of sexual assault and he had been ordered on October 16, 2020 to register as a sex offender, including notifying any change of address within three days.

Checks were made on May 19 last year at the home of his mother, which Fox had registered as his address, but she said that he had not lived there since January last year. He was circulated as wanted and financial checks revealed that he had failed to register a bank account that he was using on the day that he had been sentenced.

He failed to attend at Clough Road police station, Hull, on October 16 last year for his mandatory annual registration as a sex offender. On June 26 this year, police identified Fox as he drove a Ford Focus in Hull. They attempted to pull the car over but Fox failed to stop and he was pursued.

He was eventually pulled in and, while he was standing outside the car, he tried to run off and threw a bag, which burst open when it hit the ground, spilling a large amount of white powder – cocaine – on the street.

"This was swept up and seized," said Mr Peacock. "It was a relatively large amount of cocaine, 14 or 15g." It would have had a street value of about £1,500.

Two mobile phones were seized. One of them had a drugs message on it reading: "Got some nice pure if anyone needs it. It's James."

Fox later told police that he would never register as a sex offender because this would mean him being "labelled as a paedophile". The police would have to arrest him again because he would not comply.

He had convictions for seven previous offences, including possessing drugs, but not for supplying them. Richard Butters, mitigating, said that Fox had pleaded guilty at an early stage. "This defendant was, at the time, and had been for about three years, a crack cocaine addict," said Mr Butters.

"He was addicted to crack cocaine. He was completely off the rails. While he was taking crack cocaine, he was completely out of control. He was massively in debt.

"He was homeless at the time. He had nothing. He was dealing crack cocaine to pay off debts, to pay for food, to pay for drink and to live. He was not doing this for any form of wealth or power. He was doing it to live.

"He says that it was a blessing that he got caught. It slowed him down. He is now clean of any form of drug. He has been a fool, he knows that. He knows what life can be without crack cocaine.

"He has lost everything. He had a girlfriend prior to taking crack cocaine. She has left. His family and friends have disowned him.

"Prior to crack cocaine, he had a business in partnership with a friend of his, gardening and landscape. That went to pot when he started to take crack cocaine because he couldn't concentrate on his business."

Recorder Abdul Iqbal KC told Fox: "Trafficking in controlled drugs fuels all sorts of other criminal behaviour. It ruins lives. You were operating a supply line for Class A controlled drugs from your own mobile phone. You expected significant financial advantage from that illicit controlled drug."

Fox was jailed for three years and four months. The phone seized will be forfeited.

Description

A McDonald’s supervisor ‘grabbed and squished’ the breasts of the young trainee, a court heard.

Shift boss Geary Fernandes sexually assaulted the teenage girl in a freezer at one of the fast food chain’s restaurants in Swindon in December last year.

The 34-year-old, of Warneford Close, Toothill, denied the offence and claimed it was an accident – but was convicted at trial on 10 August.

At Swindon Magistrates’ Court today (Thursday), prosecutor Tom Power said that the girl turned around after she felt hands on her waist.

Now facing Fernandes, “her breasts were grabbed and squished by the defendant”.

He asked the victim to stay and work additional hours, but she refused. When her mother arrived to collect her from work, she disclosed the assault.

Mr Power said that since the incident, the girl has suffered with anxiety at night, is insecure and struggles to stand near boys.

The court heard that the father-of-one – who is assessed as a medium risk of sexual reoffending – is expecting his second child in December, and is also a step-father to two other children.

Emma Hillier, defending, said that her client is unemployed as a result of his conviction – claiming benefits as his pregnant partner works a low-paid part-time job “to get by”.

She encouraged the magistrates to impose a community order or suspended sentence because the “impact [of immediate custody] would be massive”.

Ms Hillier said Fernandes is hoping to get back into work and he is exploring his options with the probation service. She said his operations are limited as a sex offender.

Whilst the defendant maintains his innocence, his lawyer said that he “accepts he was found guilty of this offence” and has “struggled to come to terms with it”.

Ms Hillier said that his partner and the father of his step-children are aware of his crime.

She said that Fernandes has no family or support in this country and his family live in Goa.

Magistrates imposed a 20-week prison sentence suspended for 18 months and must complete 40 rehabilitation activity days. He was told to pay £620 costs and a £154 surcharge.

Fernandes will remain as a registered sex offender for seven years. On 9 October, the same court will consider whether or not to impose a Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

In a statement released following his conviction at trial, Wiltshire Police investigator Tina Willison said: “I want to commend the victim for coming forward and speaking to us about this incident, and for then speaking about it in court.

“She has shown remarkable bravery and I’m pleased it has resulted in a guilty verdict for Fernandes today.

“Fernandes clearly took advantage of his position as supervisor of the branch, abusing his position of trust by preying on a new member of staff.

“He waited until they were alone in the freezer section and sexually assaulted her, before lying to defend himself, claiming the contact wasn’t deliberate.

“We will always take reports like these seriously and victims will always be listened to.

“If you have a been a victim of a rape or sexual assault, please get in touch with us on 101. In an emergency, call 999.”

Description

A former school child protection officer who sexually abused his pupils has been jailed.

Alexander Charles Ralls, 47, was found guilty of over 40 non-recent sexual offences at Bradford Crown Court.

The court heard he had carried out the offences while working at York public school Queen Ethelburga's.

Ralls, of Hazel Mead in Bedfordshire, was jailed for 16 years on Monday, and made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order.

During a six-week trial at Bradford Crown Court, it was heard how, over a four-year period, Ralls used his position of trust to exploit his victims in the UK and on school trips abroad.

He was suspended from teaching and subsequently dismissed in 2015 following a disclosure made by a former student, according to the school.

'Sickening actions'

North Yorkshire Police said Ralls posed as a person with medical knowledge who told his victims to remove their clothes to examine them and then molested them.

Ralls was found guilty of 31 charges of sexual assault, 10 charges of causing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent and two charges of assault by penetration.

Investigating officer Det Con Suzanne Hall said Ralls had used his position of trust to "coerce and influence".

Det Con Hall added: "The extent of his offending was staggering and the fact that he continued to use the same excuse of providing medical care to carry out his sickening actions, shows his utter arrogance towards and contempt of his victims."

A spokesperson for Queen Ethelburga's said "significant improvements in safeguarding practices" had been made since then.

The spokesperson said the school wanted to express their "heartfelt sorrow and regret" to the victims.

Description

A senior project manager at power firm SSE has been caught with a cache of obscene child abuse images.

Police raided David Dickie’s Perth city centre home after learning illicit files were being downloaded to devices connected to the property.

They seized the 35-year-old’s mobile phone and discovered dozens of photos featuring children as young as one.

Perth Sheriff Court heard some of the material included “sadistic sexual activity.”

Dickie admitted possession of the files over an eight month period from November 2021.

He was placed on the Sex Offenders Register and will be sentenced next month.

Home raid

Fiscal depute Stewart Duncan told the court: “At the time of these offence, the accused was 34 years old and was employed as an engineer manager by SSE.

“Confidential and reliable information was received by Police Scotland that indecent images of children were being held at the accused’s address in Princes Street.

“As a result, police craved and were granted a search warrant.

“This was executed at about 8.20am on Wednesday, October 12 2022, when the accused was at home.”

Mr Duncan said: “A systematic search of the property was commenced and a number of electronic devices were recovered.

“A forensic preview was carried out on all devices and a Samsung mobile phone was found to contain approximately 90 child sexual abuse material at Category A.

“The picture files featured boys and girls approximately one to 10 years.”

Further examination

The court heard that a further, more in-depth analysis was carried out.

“The device was attributed to the accused by various social media and email accounts in his name,” said the fiscal depute.

“The accused also provided PIN numbers for the phone.”

Cybercrime experts found 166 images on the phone, with 59 at the most obscene level.

“The images contained sexual activity, sexualised posing and sadistic sexual activity,” said Mr Duncan.

Sheriff William Wood told Dickie: “Because of the nature of this charge I can’t deal with you today. I need to obtain background reports.

“In the meantime, you have been convicted of a sexual offence and you will require to be subject to the Sex Offenders Register.”

The sheriff said the length of time he will remain subject to the requirements will be determined when he returns to court on October 26.

According to his now deleted LinkedIn account, Dickie was a “senior authorised person” and lead project manager in network construction at SSE.

The company has declined to comment.

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A 19-year-old man has been jailed in connection with serious sexual offences against two children in Dundee.

At the High Court in Aberdeen on Wednesday, 27 September, 2023, Brandon Wallace was sentenced to five years in prison with a further three years extended sentence.

He was found guilty at the High Court in Aberdeen on Tuesday, 9 May, 2023, of serious sexual assaults which took place between June 2017 and June 2020.

Detective Constable David Scott said: We acknowledge the sentencing of Wallace, who will now face the consequences of his deplorable behaviour. I hope this provides some form of comfort for his victims.

"Police Scotland is committed to thoroughly investigating those responsible for this type of crime and bringing them to justice.

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A man sexually abused three boys in Leicester between 1990 and 2014 and may have further victims. John Fowler, aged 69, abused each of his victims - who are now adults - at his home or when he had taken them to play sports.

The abuser's first victim came forward to police in 2017 to report what happened, followed by the second in 2019. A third victim was identified through a police investigation and shared his account with detectives in 2020.

Fowler, today of Gainsborough Road, Knighton, was found guilty of three counts of indecent assault on a male person – two relating to one victim and the other relating to a second, at Nottingham Crown Court on Tuesday, September 26. He was found guilty of two counts of sexual assault relating to a third victim.

Detective Constable Joe Parker, the investigating officer, said: "Fowler’s victims have shown great courage both in recounting what happened to police and then again in court, where he continued to claim he was innocent.

"I hope the fact he’s been convicted of his crimes – and is now serving time in prison – provides them with a degree of closure and allows them to move on with their lives.

"We remain open-minded to the fact there may be other victims who may have been sexually abused by Fowler but have never contacted police. If this is the case, then I hope today’s outcome may also encourage them to come forward. It’s never too late to do so."

Fowler was jailed for a total of eight years at Nottingham Crown Court on Wednesday, September 26. He was also placed on the sex offender register for life and disqualified from working with children.