Latest Offenders

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A crack cocaine addict is beginning a 20-year jail sentence for the double rape of a woman which only came to light after a police officer noticed bruising on her forehead.

Lee Murphy, 49, was found guilty of attacking his victim and raping her by a jury after a trial at Teesside Crown Court. He was arrested after an officer was speaking to the victim, who can't be identified for legal reasons, about an unrelated incident.

On Monday, prosecutor Robert Mochrie said that "the officer noticed bruising to the woman's forehead and asked her questions." The victim told police that she had been attacked and forced her to have sex twice. She had been too scared to report what had happened to the police.

Mr Mochrie said that when officers went to arrest Murphy, he initially tried to jump out of a window before hiding in a storage cupboard. Murphy has 39 previous convictions for 85 offences, which include violent offending but he has never committed a sex offence before. The court heard that he has a crack cocaine addiction.

Sentencing Murphy, Judge Jonathan Carroll told him: "You are a man who has an entrenched dysfunctional attitude towards women. This sexual violence was as much driven by your need to have power and control over your victim, as the need to have sexual power."

The judge handed Murphy, from Middlesbrough, a 20-year extended prison term. The sentence is made up of 16-years in prison and an extended licence period of four-years, which Murphy will serve out in the community.

He was made subject to sex offender notification requirements for the rest of his life and and an indefinite restraining order prohibiting him from contacting his victim, ever again.

After the sentencing, Detective Chief Inspector Simone Bennett, of the Domestic Abuse Unit, said: “No one should have to succumb to such violent and despicable crimes that Murphy committed against his victim. His actions towards the victim in this case were nothing less than inhumane and cruel, which I have no doubt will have a lasting impact on the victim’s life.

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank the victim in this case for her bravery. She has not only took that unimaginable critical step to come forward to report these incidents to police, she has also lived through this distressing time all over again throughout the trial. Without the victim demonstrating such courage Murphy would not have been convicted of these heinous crimes.”

“I would also like to thank the team for their hard work and tenacity and the jury in this case, which has resulted in Murphy receiving a lengthy sentence in prison where he belongs.”

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A "twisted" paedophile who posed as a model scout to lure child victims has admitted 88 sex offences.

David Harmes, 27, pleaded guilty to crimes involving 39 victims in the UK and six in the USA over a six-month period between July 2019 and February 2020.

He was remanded in custody at Chester Crown Court on Monday ahead of his sentencing on September 5.

Cheshire Constabulary said Harmes kept his real identity hidden, adding: "All this deceit and manipulation was to fuel his twisted obsession".

He targeted youngsters aged between six and 15, all of whom except one were female, drawing them in after spotting them on YouTube or Instagram.

Harmes, from, Winsford, Cheshire, used a number of disguises, including posing as a model scout, "Jess", and claiming to be working for major clothing outlets.

He had finished serving a sentence for similar offences around five months before he began committing more crimes.

Detective Sergeant Mark Naylor said: "Having received intelligence that Harmes was offending, his laptops, phones and other digital devices were seized in a warrant at his address, and Harmes was returned to prison for breaching his Sex Offender Notification Order on 8 February 2020 preventing him from committing further crimes."

He was linked to the crimes by his distinctive bedding, seen in images found on his devices, and footage of him accidentally opening his laptop and filming his face for just a few seconds.

The charges included possessing, making and distributing indecent images, inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, sexual communication with a child and engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child.

Detective Superintendent Simon Draco said: "This has been a complex and meticulous investigation with international based victims that has resulted in the conviction of Harmes and will bring justice for the victims of his offending."

"Cheshire Constabulary has an investigation team dedicated to targeting those who sexually abuse and offend against children online and teams across the force work with partners to educate children, parents and carers about online predators, to safeguard children from potential harm.

"We're really keen to drum home the message that parents and carers need to know what their children are doing online in order to protect them from predators like Harmes.

"We all know that we need to teach children not to speak to strangers in the street, but we need to drive home that very same message for the online world too, to prevent people like Harmes taking advantage."

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The full scale of a couples depravity only came to light when they were caught by a paedophile hunting group after they groomed a teenager for sex.

A search of Amy Scott and Gavin Marsdens home revealed they had a vile collection of child abuse videos and photographs many of which were recorded by the pair.

Teesside Crown Court heard how the sick Darlington couple had sexually abused a number of children over several years before they were finally brought to justice.

Christine Egerton, prosecuting, said that their reign of abuse came to an end when Scott started sending a 14-year-old girl sexually explicit messages and videos without realising she was talking to a decoy posing as a child.

She said Scott sent the girl a video of herself performing a sex act before encouraging her to do it to herself.

Scott then arranged for the pair to meet the teenager at Durham Railway Station in April last year but they were confronted by members of the paedophile hunting group who had already called the police.

Following their arrest, police searched their home and recovered several digital devices and a forensic examination revealed the full extent of their depraved behaviour.

Miss Egerton said a significant number of child abuse images were recovered as well as a series of messages between the pair encouraging each other to sexually assault children.

Marsden, 31, and 32-year-old Scott, both of Cobden Street, Darlington, pleaded guilty to a catalogue of sex abuse charges, including distribution of indecent images of children, possession of indecent images of children and attempting to engage in sexual behaviour with a child.

Caroline McGurk, representing Marsden, said her client lived in a "fantasy land" and accepted that he had previous convictions for child sex offences.

He has acknowledged that he continues to have sexual thoughts towards children, she said.

In his pre-sentence report, he denied it in one breath and then expressed remorse with the next. We have to accept that he is a dangerous offender.

And Robert Mochrie, representing Scott, said his client was of low intelligence and had been influenced by her partner to commit the offences.

Judge Chris Smith branded Marsden as the driving force behind the couples sickening child sex abuse campaign.

He said: An examination of digital devices seized after your arrest uncovered a shocking catalogue of child abuse committed by the pair of you over a long period of time."

He said that a WhatsApp conversation between the pair revealed Marsden requesting that Scott should photograph herself performing a sickening sex act with a very young child.

He added: Other indecent moving and still images recovered after your arrest reveal how you were involved at first hand in the sexual abuse of children and in the making and possessing of child pornography.

Marsden was given a 22-year sentence 16 years in custody followed by an additional six years on extended licence.

Scott was given a 15-year sentence 11 years in custody and a further four years on extended licence.

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A WEST Cumbrian pensioner has admitted possessing illegal extreme pornography and prohibited 'cartoon' images of children being sexually abused.

Cockermouth man Ian Willis, 74, admitted the two offences during a hearing at Carlisle Crown Court, though he denied a third charge of downloading an indecent child image. The prosecution accepted that denial.

Outlining the two admitted offences, prosecutor Sarah Griffin said they were committed between July 1, 2020 and December 20 of that year. Police found the illegal images after seizing and analysing the defendant’s Samsung phone.

“There were 407 extreme pornographic images and seven prohibited images of children, which are described as being cartoon type images,” said Ms Griffin.

The barrister went on to outline the kind of images that police found. The extreme images depicted adults involved in sexual activity with animals and two of those were moving images, the court heard.

The prohibited child images were cartoons depicting sexual activity between adults and children, including children as young as eight. Marion Weir, defending, handed two character references to the court.

Ms Griffin said the defendant accepted the phone containing the illegal images was his but he denied searching for indecent child images. “He claimed that they must have been there by accident,” said the barrister.

The defendant did, however, accept searching for extreme pornographic images but claimed he did not know this was illegal.

“He said he was driven by curiosity and that he did not have an exciting life,” added the barrister.

Judge Richard Archer told Willis: “You are 74 and you have no previous convictions, and these offences are now of some age. They represent behaviour and offending committed up to and during the pandemic period of 2020, when life changed markedly for many people.

“That does not give you an excuse for behaving as you did because many people were able to bide their time as responsible adults without resorting to criminality.”

But the defendant’s blameworthiness was 'relatively low', said the judge, concluding that a custodial sentence was not necessary. Nor did the judge think it necessary to put the pensioner on the Sex Offender Register or impose a sexual harm prevention order.

Willis, of St Leonard’s Close, Cockermouth, was given an 18-month community order which includes 20 rehabilitation activity days.

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A shameless sexual predator took advantage of a woman who had joked to him about her lack of romantic luck – and brazenly told her: “I can help you out with that.”

Opportunist sex offender Brian Walters quickly saw his chance and raped the woman before cynically telling her afterwards that they could “try again” the next day, Hull Crown Court heard.

Walters, 67, who has lived in Valentine Close and Anlaby Park Road South, Hull, denied rape and two offences of indecent assault but he was convicted by a jury after a trial.

David Hall, prosecuting, said that the woman and Walters had both been drinking at the time of the rape incident on September 8, 2018.

She later said: “I had a lot to drink. I was out of it. I was drinking cans of Fosters lager. We went through nearly 30 cans between us. I could hardly stand up.”

She was sitting down when Walters told her: “I have not sh****d a woman in ages.” The woman joked: “I haven’t either” and Walters replied: “I can help you out with that.”

The next thing that she remembered was Walters having sex with her. “I can’t remember how I came to be naked but I was fully naked,” she said. She could not remember much about what happened. “I was that drunk,” she said.

Walters told her: “Come tomorrow and we will try again.” She later said: “I did not want sex with [him].” The woman later reported what had happened to a support officer. She was “visibly upset” at the time. The police were alerted in September 2021.

The court heard that Walters had been jailed in 1979 for burglary. During his defence evidence, Hull-born Walters denied any sexual activity with the woman.

“That’s wrong,” he claimed. “I never did. I’m quite sure.” When asked if he had raped the woman, he said: “There is no truth in it. No, I never.”

He was asked: “Are you lying?” but he replied: “No.” He was asked why the woman would say such things and he replied: “I haven’t a clue.”

He admitted that he had been drinking at the time, but added: “I had some beer. Fosters. I don’t count them. I just drink them.” He claimed that it was not 30 cans between them, however.

Walters was asked: “Was there a decision between you and her about sex?” He replied: “No. She wanted me to do it. I said: ‘No’. I just left her to her own devices.”

Walters, who was on bail during the trial, had been remanded in custody after being convicted of the offences.

Charlotte Baines, mitigating, said that Walters had found custody difficult. "He is struggling to cope," said Miss Baines. "There is no suggestion that there has been wider offending here."

Judge Mark Bury told Walters: "She woke to find you on top of her, having sex with her. She told you 'No'. That didn't stop you. She couldn't push you off.

"You had your full weight on her. She was drunk. You had plied her with drink to the point where she was incapable of looking after herself. She felt disgusted and ashamed. Your denials to the jury were strident."

Walters was jailed for 10 years and must register as a sex offender for life.

Description

A photographer who raped a woman at his central London studio may have attacked others, police have said.

Sritharan Sayanthan, 42, was sentenced to 11 years in prison on Friday after being found guilty of two counts of rape and one of attempted rape at Hendon Crown Court.

The victim, a woman in her 30s, went to Sayanthan's studio on Brompton Road in May 2022 and paid for pictures to be taken.

She met him again on 8 July 2022 for a drink, believing it to be part of a networking process after he contacted her online, Scotland Yard said.

They met at a pub in Warren Street where Sayanthan "encouraged her to drink alcohol which made her intoxicated very quickly", police said.

The Met added: "He then led the victim to his studio. Here she blacked out on the studio floor. When partially awake she was aware of Sayanthan sexually assaulting her. She was unable to respond verbally or physically."

The victim, a Chinese national, went to police on 31 July 2022.

She did not go earlier because she was unfamiliar with how rape is investigated in the UK, officers said.

CCTV was discovered showing her "noticeably unsteady on her feet".

Scotland Yard said: "Statements were gathered from studio staff and further research uncovered several other photography businesses owned by the suspect."

Detective Constable Sophie Baker said officers "believe there could be other victims of Sayanthan" and are encouraging "anyone who wants to speak to us to come forward".

She added: "No piece of information is too small and you will be listened to and supported."

DC Baker praised the victim, too, describing her as "fantastic from start to finish".

She sent on: "She was extremely nervous at the prospect of giving evidence but, with the support of an interpreter, she told the court in fine detail what happened.

"For victims, describing the incident in court can be daunting but she did amazingly and I am personally very proud of her bravery and thankful to her for coming forward."

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A part-time judge who described a convicted sex offender as "Jack the lad" during sentencing has been criticised by a Court of Appeal judge.

Recorder John Hardy used the phrase when sentencing Aaron Hewson, 33, for three sexual assaults at Norwich Crown Court in April.

Lady Justice Macur, who oversaw an appeal hearing on Thursday, said she "deplored" Recorder Hardy's indication.

Hewson's sentence was increased after being considered unduly lenient.

The Rape Crisis charity said "language really matters" when talking about sexual assault.

Hewson, from Cromer, Norfolk, had been jailed of three years and 11 months in April after a trial.

Three appeal judges - Lady Justice Macur, Mrs Justice Cockerill and Mr Justice Murray - increased that term to seven years at the Court of Appeal after concluding that the original sentence was unduly lenient.

They upheld an appeal by Solicitor General Michael Tomlinson.

'Significant flaws'

Charles Burton, who represented Hewson, had argued that the sentence was not unduly lenient and should not be increased.

Appeal judges heard that Hewson had convictions for violence and, when a juvenile, had been convicted of sex offences.

He had also admitted possessing an "extreme" pornographic image.

Lady Justice Macur said appeal judges had concluded that there had been "significant flaws" in Recorder Hardy's approach to sentencing.

She said he had indicated when passing sentence that evidence suggested Hewson was a "Jack the lad character".

"We deplore the judge's description as indicating that the defendant was 'Jack the lad'," she said.

"This offending was predatory."

Jayne Butler, chief executive at Rape Crisis, said: "Words or phrases that normalise abusive behaviour or downplay its severity are not only damaging for victims and survivors but for society as a whole.

"They play into what we call 'rape culture', where sexual assault is minimised, accepted or laughed off.

"It's crucial that sexual assault, and all forms of sexual violence and abuse, are spoken about in a way that acknowledges its immense impact on victims and survivors."

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A woman took her own life after she found a video of her partner raping her on his phone.

Tina Lewis, 24, was raped by Edward Weeks while she slept at his home in Cwmbran, Torfaen, in December.

Cardiff Crown Court heard Ms Lewis found footage of the attack on Weeks' phone the following day after he recorded the attack on motion-sensitive cameras set up in his bedroom.

Weeks, 33, was jailed for eight years after admitting rape.

Prosecutor Matthew Cobbe described Ms Lewis as "child-like" and dependent on Weeks during the course of their five-year on-off relationship.

Ms Lewis, who was autistic and described as "very vulnerable", stayed at Weeks' home just after Christmas, where he raped her after she fell asleep.

Weeks let Ms Lewis use his phone to play a game the next day when she found the video.

Mr Cobbe said it "was the processes that followed the complaint" that appeared to have had the most "extreme impact" on Ms Lewis.

"In the weeks that followed she agonised about the process itself but also about the effect it was going to have on the defendant," he added.

Ms Lewis' sister, Saffron, described the pain of losing her sister in "such upsetting circumstances".

'A very wicked act'

She said Weeks had become Ms Lewis' full-time carer and that she relied on him for many tasks.

"The effect on our family has been devastating. I have lost my best friend," she said.

"Tina was the greatest inspiration of my life."

Julia Cox, for Weeks, said: "This is a tragic case and nothing that I say in mitigation detracts from that."

She said Weeks was also autistic and described his relationship with Ms Lewis as "complex".

Weeks admitted rape and assault by penetration and judge Jeremy Jenkins told him he had committed "a very wicked act".

As well as his prison sentence, Weeks was placed on the sex offender register for life.

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A man who pretended he had post-traumatic stress disorder punched a woman to the face and sexually assaulted her in a Swansea hotel. James Davies attended the Grand Hotel with a woman on August 19, 2022, and they had consensual sex together, however the victim fell asleep, and woke to see Davies, who had taken cocaine that evening, pacing the floor in an aggressive state.

Swansea Crown Court heard how his face changed and and he began to talk in an Irish accent, something she believed was a result of his account that he suffered from post traumatic stress disorder. The court heard he told the victim how he had served in the RAF and had witnessed a friend being blown up in front of him, resulting in him suffering from PTSD, but whilst police carried out inquiries into the matter, they found that account was false.

The 36-year-old then punched the victim to the face and made threats, whilst making her perform an oral sex act on him, despite her protests for him to stop. The court was told he also urinated on her. The matter was reported to police who attended the hotel and spoke to the victim. She was taken to Morriston Hospital for treatment for her injuries - which included a swollen face, eye and jaw.

A victim impact statement was read to the court which heard as a result of her ordeal. She said: "I hope you can live with what you did to me, and always remember I am now happy and healthy with amazing support around me. I will have to live with the flashbacks but I will always be reminded of the strong courageous woman I am becoming."

Davies, of no fixed abode, appeared at Swansea Crown Court for sentencing having pleaded guilty to possession of cocaine, two counts of ABH, two counts of rape, and assault by penetration.

Robin Rouch, for Davies, said: "There has been a fairly healthy period of reflection over the last year. It is going to be a healthy sentence regardless. This is his first custodial sentence and he is on a list for counselling and has asked to see a psychiatrist."

Judge Geraint Walters, sentencing Davies, described his acts as "nothing less than psychotic" and said the matter was a "terrifying incident". Davies must register as a sex offender for the rest of his life, and a restraining order has been placed on him preventing contact with his victim for life. He was jailed for 11 years.

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An elderly Somerset man used the internet to try to arrange a meeting whereby he could sexually abuse a young girl. Martin Parker, 76 and from Evercreech, has been jailed for nine years - consisting of a four-year prison term with a further five years to be served on licence.

Evidence was gathered to show he had sent numerous messages in February and March this year. Parker was arrested at his home address in May and pleaded guilty to one count of arranging the commission of a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity.

The 76-year-old was not aware that his online activity was the subject of a police investigation. This prevented any child being put at risk.

Parker was remanded in custody before being sentenced at Taunton Crown Court yesterday (July 19). As well as his prison sentence, he received a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and will be a registered sex offender for life. His Honour Judge Edward Burgess said Parker’s actions were ‘utterly despicable and contemptuous’.

Temporary Detective Sergeant Harvey Ahern, officer in the case, said: “At Avon and Somerset Police we are committed to the protection of children and the prosecution of offenders seeking to harm them, whether be that online or in person.

“There are no safe spaces for offenders to hide that we will not find.”

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A convicted rapist created a secret online dating username while on licence from prison.

Jay Humphries, 36, was jailed in 2018 under his previous name Jonathan Drakeford. He is the son of First Minister Mark Drakeford.

Caernarfon Magistrates' Court heard he used an unapproved profile name on the Fab Guys website and deleted internet browsing history from his phone.

Humphries admitted both offences and will be sentenced on 11 August.

Humphries was arrested in Bangor, Gwynedd in March after being released from prison on licence.

The hearing on Friday was told use of the Fab Guys account had been approved by police, but the name he used - naughty 5007387 - was not.

An agreed name was required to allow police to monitor his online activity.

The court was told he claimed deleting the internet history from his phone was an accident, but prosecutor Catherine Elvin said his guilty plea indicated it was a deliberate measure "to conceal" his actions.

While no individuals had been harmed by the breaches, Ms Elvin added: "Sexual harm prevention orders are put in place for a reason."

Defending Humphries, Gemma Morgan said he had been struggling to come to terms with his personal situation after being released from prison, and being forced to live in approved accommodation in north Wales away from his family.

The court was also told he was also dealing with the death of his mother Clare Drakeford in January.

"He was suffering emotionally," said Ms Morgan.

"He was speaking to other men on Fab Guys expressing his feelings."

The court was told those feelings and his actions were compounded by learning difficulties and being autistic.

Magistrates were told Humphries had since been recalled to prison in May after other breaches of his release licence, including leaving an abusive phone message for a probation officer.

In 2018, Humphries was handed an eight year and eight month sentence at Cardiff Crown Court after being found guilty of rape and inflicting actual bodily harm. He also admitted to a child sexual offence after messaging a girl on Facebook who he thought was 15 years old.

After Humphries's 2018 conviction, Mark Drakeford said it had been a "distressing period" for the family, adding "our thoughts are with all those caught up in it, especially the victim".

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A CHILD abuser who persuaded primary age schoolgirls to dance naked for him has been jailed for the second time.

David Milton plied the victims with alcohol and told one that his sexual touching was ‘a special game’ when she was visiting his home at Newton Abbot.

The former lorry driver is already serving a 16 year sentence for abusing two other young girls in and 1970s and 1980s and has now been jailed again for abusing two more at around the same time.

One was so innocent that she only realised that what he had done to her was wrong when she went to sex education lessons at secondary school. She told police that she would have reported Milton earlier but had mistakenly been told that he had died in the 1990s.

She wrote a victim personal statement which said she had experienced a lifetime of suffering as a result of Milton’s actions.

She said: 'There are scar that never heal. They keep being scratched again and cause more anguish and pain.

'He thought he had a right to use us as playthings to satisfy his warped desires.'

Milton, aged 83, formerly of Howards Way, Newton Abbot, admitted indecently assaulting against one girl four times and another girl once. All the offences took place in the late 1970s.

He was jailed for six years with a two year extended licence by Judge David Evans at Exeter Crown Court. He is already on the sex offenders’ register for life.

The judge told him: 'You grossly abused your position and grossly exploited the victims’ youth and innocence by assaulting them in the ways they have described. It took a great deal of courage for them to speak out.

'I have heard their personal statements and they give a vivid insight into the long term and very significant harm you have caused. They have had to live with it all their lives while you simply got on with life unaffected.

'That disparity is a real injustice and no sentence I pass can undo that injustice.'

The judge told him the sentence would have been even longer but for his old age, ill health and the long sentence he is already serving.

Miss Heather Hope, prosecuting, said the two new victims came forward in 2021. One told police she was abused while visiting Milton’s house in the 1970s.

He gave her and other girls who were there alcohol and encouraged them to be ‘giggly and hyper’ and to dance naked. He also touched her sexually in different ways when they were alone and took her into his bed when his wife was out working nights at a holiday camp.

He told her the abuse was ‘their little game’ to encourage her not to tell anyone. The other girl told police she only went to Milton’s home once but he took her into his bed where he put his hand inside her underwear and asked ‘do you like that?’.

Mr Herc Ashworth, defending, said Milton disputed the suggestion that he gave the girls alcohol. He said Milton had led a blameless life other than for a short period in the 1970s. He is now in poor health, which will make his prison sentence more difficult to endure.

In the previous case in 2017, Milton denied any sexual contact with two other girls but was found guilty by a jury. One of those victims gave evidence that she was so young and innocent when he abused her that she only realised the seriousness of his actions when she went to sex education lessons at school.

All the offences were committed when Milton was living in an estate near Newton Abbot in the 1970s and 1980s. The prosecution described him as having ‘an insatiable appetite for young children and no inhibitions at all’.

They said he brainwashed the victims and assaulted one of the girls while babysitting. He bullied the girls into keeping his abuse secret by telling them they would be taken into care if they told anyone what he was doing.

He received a 16 year sentence of which 15 years was a prison sentence with an additional year’s extended licence.

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A COURT has heard how a woman felt violated after waking up to find she was being sexually assaulted while asleep.

Louis Griffiths was found preying on the victim after they met just hours earlier on a night out in the town centre.

The 21-year-old was repeatedly told that there was no romantic inclination between them as she turned down his advances.

But he failed to take note and was later charged with sexual assault, to which he pleaded guilty on the day of his trial.

The case was outlined at Liverpool Crown Court yesterday, Wednesday, July 19, by prosecutor Kenneth Grant who informed the court how the complainant was in the town centre with friends on a night out.

They left a bar at around 3am ‘having had a good time and a few drinks’, it was said, before heading to a pizza takeaway nearby.

Here, they met the defendant, where after a chat it was decided they would head back to a pub in which Griffiths lived on Wilderspool Causeway.

The group agreed and they had more drinks and played pool when they got there.

During the hours that followed, the court heard that the defendant tried to flirt with the women, tried to kiss them and invited the victim upstairs alone with him.

He was turned down however, and it was said that that none of the women were interested in him romantically, which they made clear to him.

At around 6am, they all went upstairs to sleep in a spare room, with the victim falling asleep fully clothed and partially covered by a blanket.

She woke however feeling a wet sensation to her genital area, and when she looked down she saw the defendant with his head between her legs and her underwear removed.

She shouted ‘what are you doing’ to him, which woke up the others. Griffiths then became aggressive and smashed a mirror in the room, causing a cut to his own hand.

Before everyone left, the defendant began to cry and apologise to the victim, who reported what had happened to the police.

Griffiths was arrested on June 14 and interviewed, where he tried to cover his actions with a made-up account, which has since been abandoned after he accepted the true facts of the case.

In an impact statement, the victim said she did not want to leave home or talk to anyone after what had happened and felt ‘uncomfortable in her own skin’ and ashamed.

Thinking about it made her feel ‘upset, isolated and violated’, and she said: “I refused to go out and put myself in a situation where I got tipsy where a predator could attack me.”

“I am shocked that this man thought he had the right to assault me. I cannot imagine what could have happened had I not woken up.”

Mitigating on behalf of his client, Stephen McNally spoke of how Griffiths had a ‘lack of maturity for his age’ at the time and how his actions were ‘out of character’ for someone with no previous convictions.

It was added that he is ‘genuinely remorseful’, wishes to apologise the victim, does not drink as much as he used to, is now in a long-term relationship and has not reoffended since.

Mr McNally called for a suspended sentence, but this was rejected by recorder Richard Pratt who said: “She was asleep and extremely vulnerable when you assaulted her.

“I accept that you were 19 at the time and immature, but in my view you are, and were, old enough to understand the seriousness of your actions.”

He concluded: “It would send out completely the wrong message to the victim and the public if I imposed anything other than an immediate custodial sentence.”

Griffiths was sentenced to 12 months in prison and must abide by sex offender registration and notification requirements for the next 10 years.

Description

A convicted sex offender tried to hug and kiss a woman in front of her young daughter as they sat in the back of a church.

Stephen Denison, who has two previous convictions for sexual assault, including one where he left a teenage schoolgirl hyperventilating in shock by groping her at a city centre bus station, spotted the female and child at the church in Fenham, one day in May this year. The 50-year-old pervert then sat next to the woman and hugged her before "forcibly pulling her" towards him and trying to kiss her, a court heard.

The terrified victim pushed the pervert away as concerned members of public, who had seen what was happening, intervened, prosecutors said. Denison, of Baxter Avenue, in Fenham, was arrested and charged with one count of sexual assault.

He failed to show for a subsequent hearing at Newcastle Magistrates' Court and a warrant was issued for his arrest, however, he was finally detained last month, pleaded guilty to the offence and the case was adjourned to this week for sentence. Gurjot Kaur, prosecuting, said the victim, who was unknown to Denison, and her young daughter were sat in the church one day in May this year when Denison approached them.

Miss Kaur continued: "The defendant initially hugged her. He kept trying to talk to her and offered her daughter a coin. The defendant then put his arm around her back and made an attempt to forcibly pull her towards him to try and kiss her. She pushed him away."

In a statement, the victim said she'd been left suffering from heart palpitations and having to take anti-nausea pills. She also said she had been unable to return to the church since the incident.

The court heard that Denison had 46 offences on his record, including two for sexual assault from 2021 and 2016. For the 2021 offence, which involved groping the teenage schoolgirl at Eldon Square bus station, he was jailed for 16 months and made to sign the Sex Offenders' Register for 10 years.

Andy O'Hanlon, defending, said Denison wasn't "bad to the bone" but, instead, "undiagnosed" with a limited understanding. Mr O'Hanlon added: "He hasn't addressed his offending behaviour in custody.

"Probation want to keep working with him on an intensive basis. Doing something to stop him drinking so heavily would be a good start. You can lock him up for a short time but it won't address anything. Probation want to put a great deal of work into him. Until that's done, he will just wander around being a pain."

Magistrates jailed Denison for 20 weeks and told him he must also sign the Sex Offenders' Register for seven years.

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A sick pervert was found with a horrific stash of more than 10,000 of the most serious indecent images of children - where some of the victims were just babies.

First-time sex offender George Jeffries has been locked up for 15 months after he was found with more than 35,000 indecent images of children and five videos - which showed a sex act being performed with a dog.

Teesside Crown Court heard how some of the videos were an hour long and include vulnerable children and even babies.

Jeffries, 50, was found by police at his Stockton home after his IP address was flagged as having downloaded indecent images of children. When officers arrived, Jeffries had been asleep on the sofa, with his laptop open and downloading files with titles which suggested child abuse.

Uzma Khan, prosecuting, said: "The officer stopped the download and shut down the laptop. There was no one else in the address. The defendant appeared to live alone."

The images and videos downloaded dated back to 2019 when officers attended his home in November 2021. "There were a number of videos that were over an hour in length," Ms Khan added.

Recorder Jamie Hill said the images were described as "the worse possible type in category A". Jeffries has 13 previous convictions for 36 offences dating back to 1987 but he's been out of trouble with the court for 23 years.

Dr Chris Wood, mitigating, said: "Clearly the report suggests he is a man who thinks well in terms of currency and finances. He doesn't have a lifestyle with issues with drugs and alcohol that can cause an inability to comply."

"It's unusual for a man who is 50 not to have anything [on his record] of this nature before... to go from nothing to this is a considerable leap."

The court heard how Jeffries had been in prison since May when he failed to attended the crown court. "He has had a taste of what prison life is like," added Dr Wood.

Jeffries admitted three counts of making indecent images of children after he was found with:

• 20,220 category C images,
• 5,303 category B images,
• 10,308 category A images - the most serious.

He also admitted possessing an extreme pornographic image - namely five videos which portrayed a sex act on a dog "which was grossly offensive, disgusting or otherwise of an obscene".

"People who indulge in the sort of behaviour you did over the period of two years are providing a market there for those who commit child abuse physically and seek to profit from it," said Recorder Hill.

He outlined that some of the children in the images were very young, including babies.

Jeffries, of Skinner Street, Stockton, was jailed for 15 months. He has also been made subject to a 10-year sexual harm prevention order and will be on the Sex Offender's Register for a decade.