Latest Offenders

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A 55-year-old man from Beaconsfield has been sentenced to nearly a decade behind bars for sexually assaulting three people.

Richard Cunningham, of Maxwell Road, was found guilty of sexually assaulting three people by a jury on February 28, following a week-long trial at Aylesbury Crown Court.

He was also found guilty of assault by penetration and not guilty of one count of rape in relation to offences committed in Chalfont St Peter between 2015 and 2019.

Cunningham was sentenced to eight-and-a-half years in prison on Friday, April 19.

The 55-year-old also previously pleaded guilty to assaulting an emergency worker after her pushed a female police officer to the ground on Maxwell Road, causing a head injury that required hospital treatment.

Detective Inspector Christopher Birtles said: The three victims in this case were brave and resolute and this conviction shows their determination to see not only justice for what happened but also to prevent it from happening to anyone else.

Richard Cunningham preyed on these vulnerable victims and the sentence he received reflects the awful nature of the crimes he committed.

I hope this case shows that we will always support victims of sexual offences and do all we can to put offenders before the courts.

We also simply will not accept assaults on our dedicated and hardworking police officers while serving the public so Im glad Cunningham has also been brought to justice for this offence.

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A man who had sexual activity with an underage South Yorkshire girl in the back of a van has been jailed by a Sheffield court.

Mohammed Qasim, aged 38, of Sable Crest, Bradford, appeared before Sheffield Crown Court last week for sentencing after admitting to engaging in sexual activity with a 15-year-old girl in the back of a van. Police said he threatened to kill the girl, who is from Barnsley and cannot be named for legal reasons, if she told anyone.

Qasim, who told his victim he would buy her things if she kept quiet, was jailed for four years last Wednesday (April 17) following a lengthy investigation by South Yorkshire Police.

Det Cons Rosie O'Grady, who works in Barnsley's Protecting Vulnerable People (PVP) team, said:

"This sentence follows meticulous work from our officers who strived to bring a child sexual offender to justice.

"Exemplary forensic work helped to secure justice but ultimately, this conviction wouldn't have been secured had it not been for the brave testimony of Qasim's vulnerable victim.

"I want to commend the girl and her family for their courage in coming forward to tell us about what happened, and I hope the passing of this sentence.”

Description

A PREDATOR has been branded ‘evil’ by a person he ‘systematically’ sexually abused while they were a child and he was an adult.

Graham Simcock has been handed a custodial term of almost two decades for 145 separate incidents of historic sex offences against multiple children.

The 59-year-old laughed during one horrific incident of abuse before repeating the act straight after, with victims feeling ‘powerless’ to stop him.

He admitted 28 counts of sexual offences against children at a previous hearing, including indecent assault, gross indecency and attempted rape.

Simcock appeared back before Chester Crown Court to be sentenced, with the court hearing that some of the incidents, had they been committed today, would now be classed as rape.

The victims are entitled to lifelong anonymity by court order and must not be identified.

The facts of the case were outlined by Myles Wilson, prosecuting, who explained that the defendant ‘systematically’ sexually abused multiple children in Warrington decades ago.

He was an adult at the time, with all victims bravely attending the sentencing hearing in person, along with their families.

Detailing the offending, Mr Wilson spoke of how one victim woke to find Simcock performing a sexual act on them while they were asleep.

The defendant would reassure them that it was only a dream, ask them about the dream and ask them not to tell anyone else, ‘sugarcoating’ what happened with ‘bribes of sweets and money to keep silent.

The court heard how Simcock’s behaviour ‘grew bolder’, with him pursuing his ‘fetishes’ with the victims and telling them that if they told anyone about what he was doing, they would be in ‘as much trouble as him’.

It was said that some of the acts that he would do to the victims would constitute rape had they occurred today, with the court bound to look at the offences as they would in the time period they occurred.

After one perverted and horrific incident, which left a victim in tears and caused them to run from the room, Simcock laughed, apologised and performed the same act again.

“The defendant gave them gifts in return for sexual activity,” Mr Wilson said, adding that when one victim reported the abuse to another adult, they ‘became angry and demanded evidence’.

Another reported what had happened to an adult, but they were ‘not supported’ the matter was ‘swept under the carpet’.

The defendant would show the victims pornography while touching them inappropriately and asking for the same in return.

After performing a sex act on one of the victims, the predator said it was ‘just a bit of fun’ and told them to ‘relax’.

The court heard multiple victims attempted self-harm as a result of Simcock’s abuse, which also caused other physical and mental problems.

Simcock, who has no previous convictions, was arrested in May 2022 but answered ‘no comment’ to questions put to him during his police interview.

One victim, who suffers from sleepless nights and flashbacks, said it was ‘incredibly difficult’ to prepare an impact statement as they had ‘no point of reference other than the abuse’.

“When I started to understand what was happening, I felt completely powerless to stop it,” they wrote.

“Due to the stigma and shame, I tried to avoid as much as I could. I tried to raise it but I was told I was disgusting and that I better have proof.

“I felt worthless and that no one would do anything to stop it.”

Another, who also suffers from flashbacks, said in their impact statement that they are ‘destroyed mentally and physically’.

“From a young age, I always had pain and trauma. I was always told it was normal and that I had to keep the secret,” they said.

“I never questioned him in fear of being abused more. I felt dirty and disgusted. That man is evil, selfish and controlling.”

The victim added that the ‘sick’ defendant used them to ‘get his own kicks’, and that he now faces ‘justice for his historic, disgusting sexual desires’.

Mr Wilson stated that the defendant caused ‘severe psychological harm through grooming’ and highlighted a ‘significant disparity in age’ between him and the victims.

Mitigating on behalf of his client, Jonathan Duffy, defending, said: “I make it clear the defendant accepts that what he did was seriously wrong.

“He wants his victims to know that he acknowledges the harm he caused them and understands that while he apologises, he knows this will sound hollow.

“He wants them to know he is sorry. He also does not want me to say anything perceived as an excuse for what he has done.”

Mr Duffy highlighted that his client has ‘intellectual and learning difficulties’, but that he understands that the court must past a lengthy custodial sentence.

Before sentencing, judge Simon Berkson said: “There are a number of offences and multiple victims – 145 separate incidents of sexual offending against children.

“This is a case of a lengthy campaign of child sexual offending. You abused them over a period of time in a systematic fashion.”

He termed the abuse ‘persistent, horrific and cruel’, commenting that it had a ‘depraved and perverted theme’.

“You used and abused them for your own depraved sexual gratification. The matter was sadly swept under the carpet,” Judge Berkson continued.

“It is fair to say it has had a marked effect on the victims.

“It can only be hoped that by coming forward now and you entering guilty pleas that they may start to move forwards from the past and their lives will improve.”

Simcock, of Ryfields Retirement Village in Orford, was sentenced to 19 years and four months in prison, with a year on extended licence on his release.

In addition, he must sign the sex offender register for life and abide by indefinite restraining orders prohibiting him from contacting the victims, and he is also barred from working with children.

Description

A paedophile tried to groom a teenage girl online, asking her for photos of her genitals, sending pictures of his own and made vile sexual suggestions.

But the profile Robert Burke had singled out had been set up by a paedophile hunter group looking to catch online perverts.

The 60-year-old was jailed at Leeds Crown Court this week. Prosecutor Robert Galley said Burke had contacted the Facebook profile in 2022, telling the supposed 14-year-old that she was “gorgeous”.

But “within half an hour” of making contact, he began making lewd suggestions about having sex with the girl. He requested pictures of her vagina and sent her a picture of his erect penis. He later sent images of him masturbating. He suggested she could stay with him at his home address.

He then arranged to meet the girl but was confronted by the hunter group at Pudsey Bus Station. Having been arrested, he made full admissions to police.

Burke, of Nowell Terrace, Harehills, admitted attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child, attempting to arrange a child sex offence and attempting to cause a child to watch a sexual act.

Description

A former school support worker from south London has been jailed for sex offences after a fast-paced investigation by the Met’s Child Abuse Investigation Team.

Michael Commettant was working as a learning behaviour mentor at a school in south London but was arrested after he was circulated as wanted by detectives.

Police were looking for him after the school reported concerns about his behaviour, and on Wednesday 17 May, a day after being reported to police, Commettant was arrested and interviewed.

Two days after his arrest, he was charged with sexual activity with a child by a person in a position of trust and causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity by a person in a position of trust.

Officers discovered he had struck up a sexual relationship with a teenage girl, who they took immediate action to safeguard.

After being charged, a search was carried out at his home, and his digital devices were seized and examined. The team was able to determine that he had communicated with the victim via a secret email account, and had tried to hide messages sent by him, to her.

However, detectives were able to very quickly build a picture of his offending and discovered how he had groomed the teenager by examining phone records. These proved he had called the victim multiple times from a withheld number, meaning he had broken the safeguarding practices he had agreed to follow in his role at the school.

During interview, he stayed silent and instead gave a prepared statement, which denied he had ever forced the girl to commit any sexual acts.

In September 2023, he pleaded guilty to all charges and on Wednesday 17 April, at Woolwich Crown Court, he was jailed for 18 months.

Detective Constable Isa Hemphrey, who led the investigation and supported the victim and her family during the court process, said:

“I am very pleased with the decision of the court to jail this man, who committed an utterly disgraceful abuse of trust.

“This individual was entrusted to support children and instead of honouring this vital role, he chose to ignore all professional boundaries and enter into a wholly inappropriate sexual relationship with a teenager.

“His conduct was appalling and he quite rightly will never be able to work with children again.

“I am grateful to my team and to all my colleagues who worked tirelessly and professionally to give this case the time and energy it deserved. I hope that this result helps the victim and her family in their journey to recover and move on from this experience.

“Most of all, I hope that this case will encourage anyone who finds themselves in a similar situation to the victim to have the confidence to speak to police and know that they have a voice.”

Upon release, Commettant, 27 (13. 06.1996) of St Lawrence Way, Lambeth, will be on the sex offenders register for 10 years. He will also be managed by officers in the Met’s Jigsaw team, who manage sexual offenders in the community and take action against them to prevent reoffending.

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An Exmouth sex offender who tried to chat up a 13-year-old girl online has been jailed after being caught by a police sting operation.

Mark Watson aged 28, of Langstone Drive, was already on the sex offenders’ register and subject to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and a suspended sentence when he used the Chat Avenue website to contact the person he thought was a schoolgirl.

In fact he was speaking to an undercover officer when he offered to meet the girl and buy her treats, and he was caught after sending a selfie which police were able to check against their files.

Watson broke the Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) in three different ways. He used a false name, used Snapchat, and he communicated with someone he believed to be a child.

The order was imposed after he was caught downloading indecent images at his home in Exmouth two years ago, leading to him receiving an eight-month suspended sentence and being sent on a sex offenders’ treatment course.

Watson admitted attempted sexual communication with a child and three counts of breaching a SHPO and was jailed for two years and ten months by Judge Martin Picton at Exeter Crown Court.

He told him: “You were given a suspended sentence for very similar offending and have gone on to offend again. You thought you were speaking to a 13-year-old child and your behaviour demonstrated a sexual interest in children which is obviously of deep concern.

“You did not learn the lesson from the last experience or from the course you went on. The breach of the SHPO was very serious because you breached it in a variety of ways with determination.

“You could have done very serious harm if you had got in touch with a real child as you hoped. The dangers are obvious.”

Mr Ian Graham, prosecuting, said the SHPO was imposed in January 2023 and included restrictions on Watson’s online activity intended to prevent him using chat rooms to try to meet underage girls.

 Watson contacted the undercover officer who was posing as a 13-year-old girl on February 20 this year on Chat Avenue and moved the conversation to Snapchat, which has an auto-delete function.

Miss Kelly Scrivener, defending, said Watson had tried to work with an organisation called Catch 22 to change his behaviour and has sought help from his doctor for mental health issues including depression.

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A 31-year-old man has been sentenced to eight years and six months after pleading guilty to sexual activity with children.

Christian Graham Ross, of Netherfield, Milton Keynes, contacted one of the teenage girls via social media, pretending to be younger than he was.

He groomed her into what she believed was a legitimate relationship and on multiple occasions, met her at his then home address in Northampton where he would ply her with alcohol and drugs before sexually exploiting her.

The case came to light when someone told a teacher at the girl’s school, and they immediately informed Northamptonshire Police. Officers from the RISE team (Reducing Incidents of Sexual Exploitation) began an investigation which led to the subsequent arrest of Ross.

During the investigation, it transpired that Ross had also groomed a second teenage girl from the Thames Valley Police area on the internet, before meeting her and engaging in sexual activity.

Ross was subsequently charged with three counts of penetrative sexual activity with a girl aged 13-15 and one count of meeting a girl under 16 following grooming. He pleaded guilty to all four offences at two separate hearings in May and June last year.

A mobile phone seized as part of the Thames Valley Police investigation and Ross was further charged with three offences of making indecent images of children. However, despite denying these offences, he was found guilty by a jury at a three-day trial.

At Amersham Crown Court last Friday (April 19), Ross was sentenced to a total of eight years and six months’ imprisonment and ordered to serve a further four years on extended licence. He was also placed on the sex offenders’ register for life.

Description

A pervert florist committed a sex attack on a teenager at a hotel after she attended a Calvin Harris concert.

Kaeleb Thomas, 21, pounced on the then 19-year-old at Glasgow city centre's Jury's Inn on July 3 2022.

The victim had been at the Hampden Park gig with her friend before she met up with Thomas and his friend, who she knew, at the hotel room.

Court papers state Thomas sexually assaulted the teenager by repeatedly placing his hand underneath her shorts.

Thomas, of Livingston, West Lothian, went on to touch her inappropriately over her underwear.

He then touched her legs, sat astride her and kissed her on the neck.

On two occasions Thomas performed a sex act on her.

Thomas was found guilty on Tuesday by a jury of the single charge at Glasgow Sheriff Court.

Alan Jackson, defending, told the court that his client is a first offender who has worked as a florist for two years.

Sheriff Tony Kelly said: "You were convicted of a serious charge which puts you at risk of custody in light of its seriousness."

Sentence was deferred pending background reports until next month.

Thomas is now subject to sex offenders requirements and was granted bail meantime.

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Stomach-churning indecent images showing babies being sexually abused were among a vile collection found in the possession of a perverted loner.

Police officers from the Paedophile Online Investigation Team went to Forhad Faruque's home and executed a search warrant on December 29 2021, seizing electronic devices and he provided them with login details for a cloud account.

Faruque, 41, of Henry Nelson Street, South Shields, was found to have 866 of the most serious, category A images, including 648 videos, 423 category B images, including 145 videos and 470 category C images, including 24 videos.

Four videos showed babies aged between one month and three months "in a state of distress" being sexually abused. Nick Lane, prosecuting, told Newcastle Crown Court: "The children were a matter of weeks old in some cases and some of the children are clearly in discernible pain and distress."

The court heard one of the images showed a naked boy while another showed a young girl, and there was also extreme pornography involving a dog.

Faruque pleaded guilty to three counts of possessing indecent images, possessing a prohibited image and possessing extreme pornography. He was sentenced to two years suspended for two years with £400 costs. He will also be subject to sex offender registration and a sexual harm prevention order for ten years.

Judge Gavin Doig told him they were "gross" offences and added: "I've read in your letter you are thoroughly ashamed of yourself and frankly so you should be.

"The details of the images you chose to view are stomach-churning and anyone listening would think anyone who views such material deserves only one thing and that is custody." The judge said he initially intended to lock him up before reading more about him but said: "You could have no complaints if I imposed an immediate custodial sentence."

Ian Hudson, defending, said: "He is a loner and single. He is willing to engage and is ashamed by his behaviour.

"He has got on his bike to do something about it to stop this behaviour." Mr Hudson explained that Faruque has completed a programme aimed at stopping any repeat of the offending in the future and has also paid for counselling sessions.

He said he had suffered trauma as a child and added that if he was locked up: "The vultures at Durham would be waiting for him and he would be vulnerable."

Description

A student travelled 225 miles from his Essex home to meet a 12-year-old girl in Leeds for sex, after a CGI image of her was planted on Facebook.

Ahmed Sablu caught the train and had booked a room at Leeds Ibis hotel after targeting what he thought was a child. But the profile was a decoy run by the hunter group, Predator Exposure, who had created the image of the girl using CGI. They confronted Sablu when he arrived at Leeds Railway Station on February 12.

The 24-year-old first made contact with the girl on December 30, sending a friend request. They traded hundreds of messages over the following weeks on different platforms, including Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp, prosecutor Jennifer Gatland told Leeds Crown Court.

She said most of the conversation was “fairly everyday” about what they had been doing, and did not have any explicit content, although the profile repeatedly made it clear she was just 12 and was attending school.

But Sablu then said he was planning to come to Leeds, would book a hotel with a double bed and wanted to have a shower with the girl. They agreed to meet on February 12 when Sablu was intercepted, having caught the train from his home on Spring Road, Clacton-on-Sea.

Predator Exposure livestreamed the confrontation before he was arrested and led away to be put in to the back of a police van. He told officers: “I’m sorry, I messed up.” However, he then gave a no-comment interview at the police station.

They later found that he had booked the room at the Ibis in Leeds for that day. He later admitted attempting to meet a child following grooming. He appeared in court via video link from HMP Leeds, where he has been held on remand.

A pre-sentence report prepared by probation had suggested Sablu had minimised his offending, but his barrister Matthew Harding, said many such child-sex offenders often have a “degree of reluctance” to accept their attraction to children.

Mr Harding said: “He accepts what he did was wrong. The majority of messages he sent were mundane. There was little of the gratuitous or explicit language often found in offences of this nature.”

Sablu, who is from Bangladesh, was in the UK on a student Visa, which has now expired.

Judge Richard Mansell KC told him: “It was perfectly clear that she was just 12. It became clear you were sexually interested in her.”

Judge Mansell made reference to Sablu’s comments to officers about “messing up”, and told him: “The only way you messed up is that you got caught, travelling many miles to meet someone you thought was a 12-year-old girl.

“You were fully intent of having sex with her in that hotel room. You have absolutely no insight into the gravity of your actions.”

He gave him 12 months’ jail, with a 10-year sexual harm prevention order (SHPO), and put him on the sex offender register for the same period of time.

He was also told he was “liable” to be deported once released from prison.

Description

This is the face of a paedophile who preyed on a schoolgirl in a vile attempt to sexually abuse her as she walked to school. Predator Daniel Ralph grabbed the youngster as she made her way to school through an alleyway.

She was on her own when the 'dangerous' sex offender, 31, pounced on her from behind. He then put her in a 'chokehold' as she battled to get free.

The young girl bit Ralph's hand, forcing him to loosen his grip and run away. A court heard how the pervert even 'went equipped', wearing a jacket with unused condoms in his pocket.

Ralph has since been locked up for his terrifying ambush. Wolverhampton Crown Court heard how the girl was walking through the alleyway just before 7.30am on February 16 last year.

CCTV footage recorded Ralph leaving his home at 7.29am and reaching the nearby alleyway a minute later. He was donning a face covering and gloves as he walked past the girl in the opposite direction

But he then turned and grabbed her from behind. Prosecutor Dylan Wagg said the defendant 'gripped tightly' as he put one hand around the victim's neck and another around her mouth.

The girl screamed and bit his hand, with Ralph rushing home. He changed his clothes and was seen leaving his home again at 7.52am.

Ralph walked in a different direction to the alleyway, the court heard. A concerned passer-by noticed the 'distressed' schoolgirl - who had a cut lip - and called police.

The girl later told officers she had spotted Ralph 'loitering' in the alleyway as she walked to school just days before his cruel attack on her. The convict was arrested at home a few hours later.

Officers seized a number of pairs of gloves and balaclavas, a Rambo knife, a zombie knife and a black quilted jacket with unused condoms in the pocket. The court heard how Ralph previously sexually assaulted a schoolgirl in 'strikingly similar' circumstances.

He also sneaked into a woman's bedroom naked, leaving her fearing she would be raped. Stephen Hamblett, defending, said 'remorseful' Ralph had a 'number of difficulties' when he was younger - including being the victim of a sexual assault.

Sentencing, Judge John Butterfield KC described Ralph as a dangerous offender posing a 'significant risk of causing serious harm' to the public. Ralph admitted assault by beating, committing an offence with intent to commit a sexual offence and breach of sexual harm prevention order.

He was handed an extended sentence of nine years and 10 months. It means he must serve two-thirds of his jail term of five years and 10 months before being released and will be subject to an extended licence period of four years.

Description

A registered sex offender who breached the terms of his prevention order three times has been sentenced to almost four years in prison.

We received reports about David Hunter’s contact with two girls while on public transport, in Lincoln, between December 2022 and October 2023.

One of the girls bravely managed to take a photograph of 74-year-old Hunter. He was subsequently formally identified, and arrested.

On Tuesday, 23 April, Hunter, of Kettlethorpe Road, Fenton, was sentenced at Lincoln Crown Court to 45 months in prison for three breaches of his Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

Hunter’s risk management officer, Detective Constable Vanessa Gooseman, said: “I would like to acknowledge the bravery shown by the victims in this case and also recognise the hard work of everyone involved in bringing this repeat registered sex offender to justice.

“Hunter has continued to show a flagrant disregard for his court order, and the sentence he has received is a reflection of that.”

Risk management officers sit in our Management of Sexual and Violent Offenders team.

Detective Inspector Julia Baker, who manages the team, said: “This is a great example of the work that we do to manage the sex offenders in our community.

“Being on the sex offenders’ register doesn’t just mean being on a list.

“Every registered sex offender is managed by a dedicated risk management officer and, while we cannot always prevent any further offending, we know a lot about the registered sex offenders living in our area and get an understanding of their lifestyle and habits.

“We are often able to very swiftly identify registered sex offenders if they do go on to commit further offences, or breaches of their court order.

“Officers across different departments have worked together to bring this case to court, and the victims have seen justice served.”

Description

A registered sex offender, described by Bedfordshire Police as “a vile individual”, has been jailed for more than eight years after grooming a vulnerable teenage girl into having a sexual relationship with him.

Ben Wooding, 27, met the girl in August 2021 when he was living in the Bedford area and doing some work at her house. He initially struck up conversations and became friendly with her, before he engaged in sexual activity, and regularly gave her alcohol.

He used SnapChat to message the victim, where he coerced her into sending indecent images of herself to him.

Becoming suspicious, the victim’s mother checked her daughter’s PlayStation and discovered the messages and images they had been sending each other and reported it to the police.

Wooding was initially arrested in May 2022 for other offences relating to the possession of indecent images of children. He served a short custodial sentence and was released on licence the following year. He was also the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO).

During this time, the victim had come forward and told police that she had been groomed by Wooding and that he had engaged in sexual activity with her.

Wooding was arrested and interviewed in relation to this, and bailed whilst the investigation was ongoing, but shortly after he breached his conditions by failing to notify police of a change of address and was re-arrested.

On Friday (19 April) Wooding, of Exeter Road, Scunthorpe, received a custodial sentence of eight years and three months, after pleading guilty to three counts of sexual activity with a child, and a further count of breaching both his Sex Offender Notification Requirements and Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO).

He will also serve an additional five years on licence, will be the subject of a lifetime SHPO, on the Sex Offenders Register and was also handed a life-long restraining order.

Description

A man who raped a teenage girl has been locked up for more than a decade for his crimes.

Mark Fairman, 24, targeted his victim during a gathering in the early hours of December 27, 2018.

Things took a sinister turn when Fairman, who had remained at the address afterwards, attempted to ply the girl with alcohol over a number of hours.

The pair had been sat on the sofa together before Fairman pinned her down and raped her.

The victim was so traumatised by what had happened that she didn’t tell anyone straight away.

However, three months later, the terrified teenager confided in friends and family and an investigation was launched by Northumbria Police.

Fairman, of Rowanberry Road, Longbenton, North Tyneside, was subsequently arrested and charged with one count of rape.

He denied the charges but was found guilty during a trial at Newcastle Crown Court earlier this year.

And on Friday (April 19), at that same court, he was sentenced to 12 years behind bars.

He was also made to sign to the Sex Offenders’ Register for life, given a restraining order preventing contact with this victim and handed a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO).

Description

The mum of a little girl who was followed into a playpark by a flasher has said her daughter is now terrified to walk anywhere on her own.

Jack Allan appeared in the dock at Aberdeen Sheriff Court where he admitted exposing himself to the child – then aged just nine – in a public park in the Kincorth area of the city.

Following the incident, Allan, a serial sex offender, was later seen on his balcony carrying out a sex act in full view of the public.

Jailing the 47-year-old for nearly two years, Sheriff Graham Buchanan condemned Allan for the “serious psychological harm” his actions have caused the child.

Outside court, the child’s mum described Allan as an “animal” and confirmed that her daughter was still living with the impact of what happened that summer day.

“She has lost a lot of her confidence and she refuses to walk anywhere on her own anymore,” her mum said.

“She won’t even walk to school unless she has a friend or an adult with her.”

The woman added she was glad Allan had been shown “no leniency” by Sheriff Buchanan and hoped her family could now move on from the incident.

Allan followed child into a park

Fiscal depute Rebecca Thompson told the court that at around 12.05pm on July 25 last year, the girl was on Matthews Road when she became aware of Allan walking towards her.

As he approached, she saw that he was exposing his private parts out of the top of his trousers.

They crossed paths, but Allan did not speak and the girl turned onto a lane that led to a playpark.

“She was still on her own at the time but played in the park for a few minutes,” Ms Thompson said.

“She then saw the accused again who was nearby at the park – he began walking towards her.”

Due to feeling scared, the little girl ran from the area but passed by Allan on her way out of the playpark and saw that he was still exposing himself.

Woman catches Allan half-naked

Almost half an hour later, a woman was walking on the nearby Webster Road when she saw Allan sitting on a chair on a balcony wearing nothing from the waist down.

She also saw he was carrying out a sex act.

Allan saw the woman could see him and got up and went back into his home.

The child told her mum about what had happened later that night and she contacted the police.

The woman who saw Allan on his balcony contacted police the following day to report what she had seen.

CCTV footage was checked and it showed Allan approaching the little girl and then, in a later frame, her running away from where Allan had just been.

In the dock, Allan pleaded guilty to one charge of exposing himself to a child and a second charge of intentionally engaging in sexual activity in full view of the public.

His defence solicitor, Christopher Maitland, told the court Allan was aware that his actions were “shameful” that day and had shown “genuine shame and regret for what he did”.

The solicitor added: “Mr Allan said that he thought he could address his offending himself – he accepts his own arrogance about that.

“He knows there are no excuses for his behaviour and wishes to apologise to the people involved here and everybody affected by his actions.

“His regrets, remorse and shame appear to be genuine.”

‘She won’t go near the park anymore’

However, Sheriff Graham Buchanan told Mr Maitland that it was “abundantly clear” that the child involved had been “significantly impacted” by his client’s actions.

“The little girl now won’t go anywhere on her own and needs constant reassurance,” he said.

“She won’t go near the park anymore – she has suffered serious psychological harm because of what this man did.”

Sentencing Allan, Sherif Buchanan pointed out to him that he had previous convictions for sexual offending and described the charge involving the girl as “particularly unpleasant”.

“This has resulted in your victim, a nine-year-old girl, suffering very significant trauma – she has been seriously affected by what you did that day.”

Sheriff Buchanan sentenced Allan, of Webster Road, Aberdeen, to 22 months in prison with a three-year supervised release order.

He also placed Allan on the sex offenders register for 10 years and made him subject to a non-harassment order, meaning he cannot approach his victim for life.