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A man with a paedophile manual who operated equipment beneath a womans clothes for his own pleasure has been dumped behind bars - where he belongs.

Tristan Clamp, 33, was sentenced at Southampton Crown Court for four and a half years for shocking sex offences against women and girls.

The disgraced pervert was convicted of offences spanning more than 10 years, including taking and possessing indecent photographs / pseudo photographs of a child, voyeurism, operating equipment beneath the clothing of another without their consent, and possession of a paedophile manual. The offences occurred between January 2010 and August 2021.

Sentencing Clamp, the judge said: You are a deceitful and deviant offender. The paedophile manual is an abominable document. The indecent images are horrendous images of abuse.

I have great doubts as to whether your remorse is genuine and I agree with the victim, who states your deceit was ongoing for many years.

Responding to a letter Clamp had written for the court, the judge said: In my judgement, your letter to the court smacks of self-pity and regret and is entirely self-serving.

The judge went on to thank and praise the victim for reading her victim personal statement in court, describing her as courageous and having suffered severe psychological harm as a result of Clamps actions.

As well as the time he will now spend behind bars, Clamp, of Northfield Road, Ringwood, must also serve a total extended licence period of seven and a half years. He will also be subject to restraining orders and an indefinite sexual harm prevention order. Forfeiture orders are in place for all of his devices containing illegal material.

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A sex offender prisoner told his cellmate he 'wanted him to feel like his victims felt' before raping him. Rahmijah Hindes was locked up at HMP Risley, in Warrington, after sexually assaulting a teenage girl who was walking home from a chip shop.

The 24-year-old was only months away from ending his time behind bars. But after becoming disgruntled about sharing a room with another man, Hindes told his cellmate to pull his trousers down before raping him, Liverpool Crown Court heard yesterday (September 2).

The court heard Hindes, of no fixed address, had 'taken an illicit substance' before he carried out the attack on his fellow prisoner. The complainant in his latest offence was serving time in relation to indecent images of children, the Liverpool Echo reports.

Simon Christie, prosecuting, described how both men had been transferred to HMP Risley and were sharing a cell overnight on a wing for vulnerable prisoners. Hindes told the inmate he 'wanted him to feel like his victims felt', pushed him onto the bottom bunk bed, told him to take his trousers down and raped him.

He then retired to his own bed and went to sleep. The victim reported the incident to members of prison staff the following morning. When arrested, Hindes denied that any sexual activity had taken place.

But his DNA was subsequently discovered on intimate swabs which had been taken from the other prisoner. This led to him being re-arrested, at which point he changed his account and said that they had engaged in consensual sex.

Hindes has a total of 15 previous convictions for 23 offences. HIs criminal record includes two years in a young offenders' institute for robbery and possession of a bladed article in a public place in 2016.

He was serving time after following a 17-year-old girl who was walking home from a Garston chippy. He pushed her to the ground and forced his hands down her shorts before he ran away when she screamed for help.

Phillip Tully, defending, told the court: "Both men had been ordered by the prison to share a cell overnight. This is not a case where Mr Hindes engineered a setting where he was alone with the complainant to be able to commit the offence.

"Mr Hindes was unhappy about having to share a cell, and then he says the offence was committed. He accepts, through me, that this would have been a very unpleasant and frightening incident for the complainant.

"To his credit, it is quite clear that he has shown remorse and insight into the impact that this would have had upon the complainant in this case. He is still a very young man who has experienced a very difficult childhood and upbringing.

"It appears that they had been moved prisons. He was expecting to be on his own and he found it a very stressful situation. He took a very foolish and stupid decision to commit this offence in relation to the person in the cell with him.

"Even though he had an extremely difficult childhood, he went to school and obtained qualifications and had a work record. He is also someone who has been diagnosed with ADHD, depression and anxiety - a young man who has had to cope with all of these things himself in his very short life."

Hindes admitted one count of rape. Appearing via video link to HMP Altcourse, he was jailed for six years and three months - of which he must serve at least two thirds behind bars before becoming eligible for release - and handed an additional five years on licence.

Sentencing, Judge Katherine Pierpoint said: "The emotional impact on him has been immense. He has been left feeling wary, anxious and frightened. He has suffered from nightmares. You focussed that evening more on your own satisfaction than caring at all for him. While you now show insight and remorse, you did not show any that night at all.

"Of particular significance in this case is the conviction you have in relation to the offences of assault and sexual assault. You took advantage of this man who was in a vulnerable position, locked in a cell with you. He felt intimidated by you.

"In my judgement, there is an escalation in this case in the seriousness of offending. You were focussed on satisfying your own needs and lacked self control. It is particularly concerning that, despite the fact that you have carried out sex offender treatment programmes, you still went on to offend in a sexual way that evening."

Hindes was also handed an indefinite restraining order. He will be required to sign the sex offenders' register for life.

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A vulnerable teenage girl was left suffering nightmares and flashbacks after a man sent her explicit pictures of himself that left her feeling shocked and "like a broken piece of glass".

The traumatised girl kept "replaying" what happened "over and over again" and she later said: "It's like a wrecking ball through my heart." She felt disgusted and ashamed at his "absolutely vile" behaviour and "cried for hours on end" because of her ordeal, Hull Crown Court heard.

David Hartley, 29, of Sandfield Close, Market Weighton, admitted engaging in sexual communication with a child between June 14 and August 22, 2022.

Michael Masson, prosecuting, said that Hartley sent messages to a young girl, including intimate pictures of himself via Snapchat. The girl was "shocked and distressed" after she saw the X-rated pictures and she told her mother.

"The matter was ultimately reported to the police," said Mr Masson. The girl was interviewed and she revealed to police that Hartley told her: "This could be mine and your secret. This could live in your head rent-free."

There had been a number of incidents in which Hartley would make joking comments about the girl's body and he seemed to be inappropriately close to her. "They were constantly messaging each other," said Mr Masson.

During police interview, Hartley initially denied that he ever sent intimate pictures of himself to the girl but he later admitted that messages were sent as well as the pictures. He had no previous convictions.

The girl later said in a statement addressed directly to Hartley: "My life has changed since I reported you. I have been mentally struggling. I felt like a broken piece of glass. I shouted for it not to be real.

"I never realised the impact that it has caused. I cried for hours on end. I was not able to emotionally understand or process what was going on."

The girl was scared about seeing Hartley as she was walking to school and she suffered flashbacks. "I didn't go out much as I felt safe at home," she said. She was "replaying" what happened "over and over again" and she felt ashamed of herself.

"I would have nightmares of you being angry because you wanted it to be kept a secret," she said. The girl felt "disgusted and uncomfortable" with what Hartley did and she struggled when she was around men.

"These past two years have changed a lot for me," she said. "I struggle to make new friends again because I can't trust anyone. You broke that trust. It's like a wrecking ball through my heart.

"I was just a child. I will never be the same girl I used to be. I will try to fix myself but I will always ask what I did to deserve this."

Ben Hammersley, mitigating, said that Hartley denied that he deliberately targeted the girl for the purposes of sending the messages. "She clearly is, or was at the time, a vulnerable young person," said Mr Hammersley.

"This was absolutely vile behaviour. He expresses deep regret and shame at what happened. It was clearly inappropriate and it's shameful on his part. He should have been the adult that was expected, rather than doing what he did.

"He did show a level of shame and disgust. Burying his head in the sand was illustrative of that shame and something that the court sees regularly in these type of cases. That rightful sense of shame and disgust is, in some cases, something of a protective factor."

Hartley had been in well-paid employment most of his adult life. He had been involved in the scouting movement, the court heard. His partner was expecting their first child in February next year. He was a low risk of reconviction.

Judge Tahir Khan KC said: "For a short period of time, he was in denial." The judge told Hartley: "She was a child and you knew that. You carried on being inappropriate to her.

"You would be inappropriate around her." Judge Khan said of the explicit pictures that Hartley sent to the girl: "That was wholly inappropriate. She was distraught and not expecting you to behave in that way.

"Her life has been turned upside down since she reported the matter to the police. She feared seeing you on the street. She had flashbacks. She isolated herself at home and had flashbacks.

"She was devastated by your behaviour towards her. Her mother did the decent thing, the right thing, and reported the matter to the police. It's clear that your behaviour towards this vulnerable young lady had a significant impact on her mental health."

Hartley was given a 14-month suspended prison sentence, 250 hours' unpaid work, 30 days' rehabilitation and a 10-year sexual harm prevention order. He must register as a sex offender for 10 years and he was given a 10-year restraining order.

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A voyeur electrician who hid cameras in people’s homes and secretly filmed women in their bedrooms and bathrooms over a 10-year period has been jailed for two years and eight months.

James Denholm, 34, admitted a string of offences which were carried out in Aberdeen.

He recorded some women having sex and others using the toilet, showering or changing.

The offences only came to light after one woman found a device hidden under her bed. Police were called in, and the full scale of his crimes then emerged.

One shocked victim - who was secretly filmed having sex - told BBC Scotland News that what Denholm had done to her and others was "disgusting".

At Aberdeen Sheriff Court, Denholm admitted 15 offences involving 17 people at various addresses, many of which were under the Sexual Offences Scotland Act, between 2013 and 2023.

Two of the charges were said to have been committed in the course of his work as an electrician, while others related to people for whom he had previously carried out work.

He also took photos and videos from outside his victims’ homes, and filmed himself having sex with women without their knowledge.

The offending against one of the victims spanned a period of five years. This included taking a sex doll and lingerie into her home, dressing it in items of her clothing, and taking photos of it.

He also took or permitted to be taken or made indecent images or pseudo photos of children between 2007 and 2012.

Denholm was jailed for two years and eight months, then placed under supervision for a further two years and six months. His name was also added to the sex offenders register.

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A PAEDOPHILE had a heart attack when cops knocked on his door to confront him over the ‘phone sex chats he’d had with two girls aged 12 and 13’.

Timothy Farrington, 55, from Cwmbran was blasted by a judge for his “vile, graphic and shocking” exchanges with two ‘schoolgirls’ who turned out to be decoys.

The defendant fell for a trap set by undercover police officers who were posing online as two underage children called Jess and Carys.

Father-of-three Farrington asked one of them if they wanted to meet up with him, prosecutor Jeffrey Jones said.

“The undercover officers were investigating the online exploitation of children,” he revealed.

“Using the false name of James, he asked them for naked pictures of themselves.

“He asked ‘Carys’ from Cardiff if she was a virgin and if she wanted to ‘lose it’.

“The defendant asked her if she was looking for ‘older guys’ and if she wanted to meet up next week at Cardiff railway station.

“He tells her to delete their messages.”

Farrington, of Bagley Court, Thornhill admitted two counts of attempting to engage in sexual activity with a child and two counts of attempted sexual communication with a child.  

His offences were committed between July 3, 2023 and August 15, 2023.

Harry Baker, mitigating, told Judge Lucy Crowther: “The defendant is not in very good shape, as you can see from a personal point of view.”

His client had suffered a heart attack when the police came to arrest Farrington last summer.

It was his third in recent years, Mr Baker added.

Farrington will now have to see the two children he has who are under the age of 18 via social services, Cardiff Crown Court was told.

Mr Baker also asked for the defendant to be given credit for his guilty pleas.

Judge Crowther told Farrington: “This sexual communication was graphic, vile and shocking.

“You asked one of the girls to strip for you.”

He was jailed for 26 months and will have to register as a sex offender for the next 10 years.

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A man from Swindon has been sentenced to 18 months in prison for offences of attempting to engage in sexual activity with a child.

Danny Gould, 27, of Whitehead Street, Swindon was sentenced at Swindon Crown Court on Friday for attempting to engage in sexual communications with a child and attempting to cause a child to engage in sexual activity.

They relate to social media conversations between April 2 and May 9, 2024, when Gould talked to an individual believed to be 14 years-old, which was sexual in nature.

Gould was already on the Sex Offender’s register and was charged with failing to comply with the registration requirements.

Gould was also made subject to an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order indefinitely.

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A CONVICTED child sex offender has been jailed again for viewing illegal images of youngsters being abused — and expressing depraved fantasies during online chat.

Kenneth Burgess, now 56, was dubbed a “danger to children” by a judge who heard disturbing details of perverted pictures which had been found in his possession.

The prosecution (Brendan Burke, prosecuting,) told Carlisle Crown Court: “The police, acting on intelligence, attended at his address first of all, on August 1, and seized a Samsung mobile phone.

“On that were found indecent images of children.”

Thirteen of these — showing the serious penetrative sexual abuse of youngsters — were classed in category A, the most serious. Three were category B photographs and 75 category C.

“There were also 894 extreme images involving bestiality between human adults, animals, and young children and animals,” said the prosecutor (Mr Burke).

“In addition to that, on Facebook Messenger, were obscene chats in which the defendant was describing fantasies involving children; of rape and torture.

“Within these messages was a further offence of having an indecent (category C) image of a child. That was distributed to another person, using the platform, with similar interests.”

Burgess, of Bannisdale Way, Carlisle, had admitted six offences during a previous magistrates’ court hearing: three of making indecent photographs of children; possessing extreme pornographic imagery; distributing an indecent photograph of a child; and publishing an obscene article.

The court heard his previous convictions included robbery, grievous bodily harm and, in 2011, he was jailed for sexually abusing a child. He was later brought back to court and punished again for failing to comply with strict court orders made by the judge who locked him up.

During a sentencing hearing for the latest crimes on Monday, defence lawyer Jeff Smith said Burgess accepted a prison sentence would be imposed.

A probation officer had concluded there was no stable pathway for Burgess in the community at present.

“It is quite clear from his appearance (remotely, over a video link from custody) that he is not a healthy man, with breathing and mobility issues,” said Mr Smith.

Jailing Burgess for 16 months, Judge Michael Fanning told him: “You are a contact sex offender. With that in mind, and reading the contents of the (background) report, you have an obsessive sexual fascination with young females.

“Given an opportunity to reoffend, I don’t doubt you would take that opportunity.”

Judge Fanning concluded: “You are a danger to children. I bear all that in mind when fixing sentence in this case.”

Burgess remains subject to sex offender notification requirements.

His case will be mentioned again later this month by a judge who is due to consider an application by the prosecution for further restrictions on his liberty to be imposed in the form of a sexual harm prevention order.

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A CARLISLE man convicted of a sexual assault and accused of stealing women’s underwear from a washing line has been banned from approaching “lone females.”

Damien Christopher Smith, 34, who blamed his sexual offence on the victim's choice of clothing and her makeup, was given a five-year sexual harm prevention order.

A district judge approved the order after hearing an application from Cumbria Constabulary, presented by lawyer Gemma Rogerson.

She outlined how Smith, of Shadygrove Road, Raffles, was convicted of sexually assaulting a woman in June of last year by inappropriately touching her over her clothing while making sexual comments.

During a police interview about the offence, said Miss Rogerson, he sought to blame the victim because of what she was wearing and her red lipstick.

“What does she expect?” he asked the officer.

Police were also aware of a further incident on June 8, when Smith allegedly went into a person’s garden and stole female underwear from the washing line, said Miss Rogerson.

There was concern about Smith’s understanding of the severity of his offending.

Miss Rogerson asked the court to impose a five-year order which will prohibit him from approaching any lone female in a public place, or initiating conversation with lone females in a public place, unless he is obtaining goods or services.

This would only be acceptable if such an incident was “inadvertent”. District Judge John Temperley said he was satisfied the legal test for him to make the sexual harm prevention order was satisfied.

Not only was there a relevant conviction - the sexual assault conviction - said the judge, there were relevant alleged incidents demonstrating "similar behaviour" from 2021 and from early 2023, though they did not lead to convictions.

“I am satisfied that the order is necessary,” said the District Judge.

He told the defendant: “You are prohibited from physically approaching, or initiating conversation with, or seeking to physically approach, or seeking to initiate, conversation with any lone female."

Breaching the conditions of the order would be a criminal offence, punishable by a potential prison term of up to five years.

Smith will also continue to be on the Sex Offender Register for the full five years while the order is in place, said the judge. For the sexual assault last year, the defendant was given a one-year community order.

The sentence included 100 hours of unpaid work and an order to pay compensation of £200 to the victim.

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A child abuser who abused a young girl left money for her after performing utterly degrading acts upon her. The victim said the abuse had led her to make an attempt on her own life.

Michael Ellis, 57, carried out a campaign of sexual abuse against his victim, who was just seven-years-old when he began to indecently assault her. The assaults included touching her intimately underneath her clothing and attempting to perform indecent acts on her with his fingers.

A sentencing hearing at Newport Crown Court on Friday heard Ellis also attempted to rape the victim. The abuse she suffered was characterised as "repeated and incessant" and she described him "depriving her of a happy childhood".

The defendant of Pengam, Caerphilly, told the victim if she reported the abuse, she would be put into care and no one would believe her. The indecent assaults were compounded by Ellis leaving money after abusing the victim, which left feeling guilty about receiving gifts from people into adulthood.

Ellis, of Fair View, denied the offences after the abuse was reported to the police in 2019 but was found guilty of one count of attempted rape and 14 counts of indecent assault. The court heard he had a previous caution for an offence of criminal damage.

Reading her victim personal statement to the court, the victim said: "The abuse I suffered has had a huge impact on my mental health.... He deprived me of a happy childhood by abusing me. In my early to mid teens I started suffering from depression and I have taken medication throughout my life. In 2012 my depression got so bad I tried to take my own life by taking an overdose....

"I struggle to trust people and push people away. I don't have many friends and I am a bit of a loner. I struggle to accept gifts from people and I believe it was due to Michael leaving cash for me after abusing me... I suffer flashbacks of what Michael did to me. I didn't want to have children as I was fearful they would suffer abuse. As a child I missed a lot of school, I didn't want to go into lessons as I couldn't focus...

"I have thought about the abuse I suffered and the police investigation every day, this in itself along with going through the court process has been a stressful experience and it has been a difficult five years as a result. Completing this statement has been a form of closure."

In mitigation, the court heard Ellis had difficulty in terms of learning and education as a child. It was also said there had been decades since the offences had taken place and he had not reoffended.

Judge Matthew Porter-Bryant sentenced Ellis to a total of 11 years imprisonment, with an extended licence period of one year. He was made subject to a sex offender notification requirement indefinitely, and a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and restraining order for 30 years.

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A man who exposed himself in front of two females and had indecent images of children has been jailed.

Pervert Tommy John Back, 22, of Rooksbury Croft, Havant, has been put behind bars after pleading guilty at Portsmouth Crown Court. Back followed a 15-year-old girl and approached her in Pleasant Road, Milton, Portsmouth, on February 29 at roughly 3.20pm.

He spoke to the teenager briefly before indecently exposing himself and leaving the scene. The victim was no physically hurt. On the same day, a 30-year-old woman was approached by Back while waiting for a bus in Goldsmith Avenue. Back exposed himself and left the scene, while not physically harming the woman.

A few days later, on March 5, another 15-year-old girl was stalked in the Prospect Way area of Havant. She was not physically hurt. Back was arrested and charged following a police investigation including public appeals.

He was charged with four offences of exposure; two offences of voyeurism; three offences of making an indecent image of a child; possession of an extreme pornographic image and using threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour to cause harassment, alarm, or distress. Back was sentenced to 21 months in prison at Portsmouth Crown Court on August 22 after pleading guilty to exposure and other incidents at a previous hearing.

Detective constable Dave Glover, an officer on the case, said: We take all reports of indecent exposure very seriously and Backs behaviour was very concerning. Im pleased that the court has recognised the danger he posed to members of the public and have imposed a sentence that sends a strong message that this kind of behaviour will not be tolerated. Id urge anyone who is the victim of similar offences to report it to us straight away. It may relate to somebody that is already known to us or help us to build a picture of what is happening so that we can take action to prevent future offending.

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A thief inadvertantly turned himself in at the police station after arriving to sign the sex offender's register. Jake Barker was jailed for four years in 2016 for a sexual assault in Hyson Green.

He was ordered to sign the sex offender register at regular intervals. Since his release, he failed to do on a regular basis and so was sent back to prison. He was released most recently from prison in February this year.

But on April 24, he stole a wallet from a coat in Slug and Lettuce on Forman Street. And on June 4, he stole a mobile phone in McDonald's in St. Peter's Street in Derby.

He was investigated for both, with his mugshot being sent round to police colleagues. Officers hadn't found him - but on Tuesday, August 27, he walked right under their nose - literally.

The 30-year-old had come to sign the register he so often didn't at Central Police Station, in Byron House, on the roundabout at the top of Maid Marian Way. When staff typed his name in, they realised he was wanted for the other crimes - and he was arrested.

He answered no comment to all interview questions, but officers already had sufficient evidence to charge him. He pleaded guilty to two counts of theft at Nottingham Magistrates Court on Wednesday, August 28.

Barker, of Great Hoggett Drive in Chilwell, was jailed for 38 weeks and ordered to pay a total of £100 compensation to the people he stole from. PC Roger Weir, of Nottinghamshire Police’s prisoner handling team, said:“Barker is a prolific offender who has shown a flagrant disregard for the law over many years.

“He showed some signs of improvement by attending an appointment this week to sign the sex offenders register, but was ignorant to the fact we knew about his recent acquisitive crimes.

“I am pleased he has been dealt with quickly by the courts and is back in prison. Hopefully this time he will finally get the message that crime has very real consequences. Put simply, if you carry on committing offences after you’ve been released from custody, you will continue to see a prison cell.”

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A sex offender has been jailed for raping a blind teenager 30 years his junior while she was asleep - then continuing the attack when she woke up.

Derek Boyd preyed on the woman, who had just turned 19, at a property in his home town of Irvine, Ayrshire. He was described in court papers as "significantly overweight".

Boyd, who was 48 at the time, claimed the encounter with the teenager was consensual, forcing her to give evidence against him during his trial.

He went on trial at the High Court in Kilmarnock earlier this year. The court heard that Boyd began raping the young woman, who is registered blind, while she was asleep.

The court was also told that she woke up during the ordeal and tried to push Boyd off her. But she was unable to do so and he continued to rape her while she was awake.

Boyd denied raping the woman, insisting that they had had consensual sex. But the jury rejected his claims and found him guilty of a single charge of rape.

Boyd targeted the young woman, who can't be identified for legal reasons, at the North Ayrshire property on June 10, 2022. He then moved to Ardrossan, Ayrshire.

The dad-of-one was given an eight-year-and-three-month extended sentence.

The sentence is made up of a six-year-and-three-month prison term, and a two-year extended sentence, which will see him supervised by social workers on his release from prison.

Boyd was also placed on the sex offenders' register indefinitely and made the subject of a Non-Harassment Order (NHO) for a period of 10 years.

The Non-Harassment Order sees the 51-year-old banned from approaching or contacting the woman in any way over the next decade.

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A sex offender has been jailed after an off-duty police officer caught him ‘upskirting’ a woman at the British Museum.

Detectives found a string of similar videos on the phone of Jake Verano Gomez after his device was seized and analysed by detectives.

Officers are asking other women who think they may also have been a victim to come forward so they can offer help and support.

Gomez, 33, a Colombian national, was sentenced to four months’ imprisonment and ordered to pay court fees at Highbury Corner Magistrates’ Court on 21 August.

He pleaded guilty to recording an image under clothing to observe another without consent.

Gomez will also have to register with the police in accordance with the Sexual Offences Act 2003 for up to seven years.The City of London officer noticed the man taking the video while the victim was unaware on August 19, the court had heard.

She detained the suspect with the help of staff and security from the Museum before Met officers arrived and took him into custody.

Detective Constable Holly Wright, from the Public Protection team covering Camden, said: “These kinds of offences have a devastating impact on women and girls who should be free to go about their lives without fear of being the victim of such a horrendous crime.

“Fortunately the presence of our colleague from City of London Police has meant Gomez has now been brought to justice.

“Following his arrest Gomez’s phone was interrogated by Met detectives, they found a number of videos of other victims – also believed to have been filmed that day – were discovered. Sadly, this may mean there are more women who are unaware that they have been the victim of crime.

“If you were at the British Museum on Monday, 19 August around 14:00hrs and think you may have been a victim, I am asking you to come forward and speak to us.”

Any potential victims are asked to call 101 or post @MetCC reference CAD 4342/19Aug

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A rapist from Dundee has been told to expect a lengthy jail term after subjecting a former partner to months of violent terror.

Gary Ironside was convicted by a jury of leaving the woman permanently disfigured and sexually attacking her at addresses in the city in 2022.

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A man arrested on suspicion of engaging in sexualised online chat with an underage girl committed numerous similar offences when released under investigation.

In each case, however, defendant John Paul Williamson was unaware the “girl” with whom he believed he was exchanging messages, was, in reality, a police decoy.

Durham Crown Court heard that he swapped messages with what he thought to be a 12-year-old girl, on a profile going under the name ‘Holly’, on a chat app in late March, 2022.

Paul Newcombe, prosecuting, said Williamson introduced himself as a 26-year-old man, his age at the time, and from the outset was told Holly was only 12.

Mr Newcombe said following a couple of introductory remarks in which he asked her to send him images of herself, the defendant soon moved the conversation on to sexual matters.

He sent sexualised pictures of himself and asked her if she liked older men.

Mr Newcombe said the defendant told her not to be shy and sent her explicit photos of himself asking if she liked them and would she like to see more.

Although Holly gave only innocent answers, Williamson persisted and sent her five further requests for pictures.

He was arrested and interviewed in April 2022, but gave no comment and was released, only to commit further similar offences.

Mr Newcombe said the defendant became involved in similar chat room exchanges involving three other “girls”, supposedly all aged 13, in which he suggested they should engage in sexual activity, repeatedly asking them to send him photos.

When he was re-arrested, in January 2023, he denied using the chat room app and blamed the offences on a named cousin, who, it emerged did not exist, so it was all an invention as a cover story for himself.

Mr Newcombe said police also discovered indecent images of children on devices in Williamson’s possession, including 71 in the most serious category, both stills and moving.

These featured children as young as five being abused by adults, while there were also two images classed as extreme pornography, showing scenes of bestiality.

Williamson, now 28, of Pine Avenue, Durham, admitted four counts of attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child, three of possessing indecent images of a child and two of possession of extreme pornography.

He also asked for 20 further charges of attempted sexual communication with a child to be taken into consideration.

Mr Newcombe said in each of those cases they were police officers posing as underage girls on chat apps.

He said the aggravating features of the case was the attempt to solicit images of the children he believed he was communicating with, his “persistence”, particularly post his first arrest.

“So, despite police having spoken to him about similar behaviour, he just carried on doing exactly the same.”

Robin Patton, for Williamson, said whatever sentence the defendant serves, his life, post-release, will no longer be the same due to the scrutiny he will be placed under, with his online behaviour monitored by the sex offenders’ management unit and the Probation Service.

“He’s now 28, of previous good character and with a job until he was remanded into custody, where he has spent the last six months.

“During all of this offending he never, actually, met a child.

“He’s a sad and inadequate figure according to the Probation Service.

“When released he will still be the same due to a deep-seated sense of inadequacy.

“But he will be monitored upon his release.”

Judge Geoffrey Marson told the defendant he committed, “a catalogue of persistent and serious offending", even though no real child was harmed by him.

“But, at the time, you believed these girls existed and were aged 12 or 13.

“It’s perfectly clear you have a sexual interest in children, which, at the moment, you are unable to control.

“You also have a propensity to possess extreme pornographic images and others of children.”

The judge said the attempts to sexually communicate with what he believed to be children were, “among the worst I have ever come across.”

He added: “To make matters worse, you were arrested in April 2022 and then offended again from November 2022, committing a further catalogue of similar offending.”

Imposing a total three-year prison sentence, Judge Marson told Williamson he will spend up to half in custody before being released on licence.

The judge also made the defendant subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and registration as a sex offender, both, “without limit of time.”

He also made a forfeiture and destruction order for the devices seized from the defendant during the investigation.