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Description

A man who raped a 13-year-old girl in a hotel after befriending her on a beach has been jailed.

Matthew Tallentire attacked the girl after she visited Blackpool in the summer of 2020, Lancashire Police said.

The 32-year-old was convicted of two offences of rape and one of attempted rape following a trial at Preston Crown Court.

Appearing for sentencing at the same court on Friday, Tallentire, formerly of Blackpool but now of no fixed address, was jailed for nine years.
Police said the girl had travelled to Blackpool with two adults, and Tallentire had befriended them on the resort's beach.

Description

A newly released sex offender has been sent back to jail after he tried to hire a sex worker while he was staying in a hostel in Cornwall.

Christopher Wheeler had only been free for four days and was under strict licence conditions when police examined a phone he had just bought.

They found he had changed its settings to delete its internet history, which he was banned from doing by a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) which had been imposed when he was sent to jail the previous year.

Police suspected he had already started using his new phone to search for child abuse images because a download of his last device had unearthed 524 photos or videos and he has previous convictions for accessing such material.

The two police officers and the hostel manager were in the middle of examining his new phone when a text appeared from a prostitute asking why Wheeler had failed to make a rendez-vous in Camborne an hour earlier.

He was arrested, not for trying to arrange sex with the woman, but for breaking the SHPO by deleting the phone’s internet history, which was forbidden explicitly by the order.

It is the second time Wheeler has been jailed for breaking the order, having been sentenced to 20 months last August for trying to destroy evidence of him contacting children in chat rooms.

Wheeler, aged 31, of East Hill, Tuckingmill, Camborne, admitted two breaches of the SHPO and three counts of making, by downloading, indecent images or movies of children.

He was jailed for a year and four months by Judge David Evans at Exeter Crown Court. He told him: “The police found the internet search history function turned off, disabling the retention of your online activity.

“You clearly had been engaging in activity online in the days since obtaining the phone but the full extent of that cannot be ascertained. That is why the order is there. I see from the pre-sentence report that you continue to deny a sexual interest in children.”

Mr Ed Bailey, prosecuting, said Wheeler was released from his previous sentence on May 10 this year and visited by his police offender manager at the Meneghy House hostel on May 14 after he told him he had bought a new phone.

A text message arrived before Wheeler handed over the phone and he managed to delete it before the officers could see it, falsely claiming it was from his father. A second text arrived as police were examining the phone which was from a prostitute and asking what was going on.

He had also used the phone to set up a new g-mail account without telling the police, something else which was banned by the SHPO.

The images offences arose from a full download of the Samsung phone seized from Wheeler when he was arrested in July 2023 for the SHPO breach which led to him being jailed the next month.

There were a total of 524 items of which 141 stills and 101 movies were in the most serious category, effectively showing children as young as two being raped.

Mr Nick Lewin, defending, said Wheeler is not tech savvy and does not know how the internet memory function was turned off. He said he should have been dealt with for the images offences when he was sentenced last year.

Description

A sex offender who spent four years in prison has pleaded guilty to 'misleading police' one year after being let out.

Stephen Thorpe, of no fixed address, introduced himself to Swindon Magistrates' Court on July 23 as his new alias Herbert Hudson, as he pleaded guilty to not complying with sex offender notification requirements.

By law, sexual offenders who do not have a fixed address are required to update police with their whereabouts every seven days.

But while Thorpe had been telling Swindon police every seven days that he was homeless, he failed to mention that he was in fact staying with a vulnerable woman.

“This is a serious charge," said prosecutor Adam Cooper.

"Mr Thorpe/Hudson is a previous sex offender with five convictions and eight offences across a period of more time.

“Thorpe has been living with a very vulnerable individual since Christmas 2023.

"She, in her witness statement, said she has a schizoaffective disorder which leaves her with paranoia and stress, and unable to judge people properly.

“In that time the defendant has repeatedly told police he is of no fixed abode. They then found him at this property.

“This man does pose a danger and a risk of further offending. He has knowingly misled police as to where he lives."

Thorpe's most recent sexual offence in 2019 was deemed so serious he spent four years in prison and served the whole term before being released in 2023.

But his defence lawyer Mark Glendenning pointed out that despite secretly staying with a vulnerable female in Swindon: "His previous convictions are sexual offences against males, not females."

“He accepts that he has been at that address for the time period that he has known this lady.

"He hasn't told this lady about his previous history and he considers himself as of no fixed abode."

Chair of the bench Peter Searle told Thorpe that due to his previous convictions, this offence was too serious to be dealt with in by magistrates and must be sent to Swindon Crown Court.

Thorpe has now been released on conditional bail with the condition that he does not make any contact, whether in person or online, with the vulnerable woman he had been living with.

He will reappear at crown court on August 30, and a pre-sentence report will also be ordered.

Description

A woman recognised her rapist and "took matters into her own hands" in order to bring him to justice. Kevin Knox spiked his victim's drink with sleeping tablets before sexually abusing her as she lay powerless to resist in her own bed.

Months later, the 33-year-old attempted to attack her again in an almost identical manner. But the quick-thinking complainant rumbled his depraved plot and swapped their drinks around, meaning that he "ended up essentially drugging himself".

A trial at Liverpool Crown Court heard that Knox raped the woman in August last year before returning to her flat for a second time three months later, leading to an incident which saw him break into the address and steal a kitchen knife. Gareth Roberts, prosecuting, described the "strange circumstances of the case", with the victim having been "supplementing her income" by working as an escort at the time.

Knox, of Maplewood in Kirkby, initially met her as a "potential client" via the website AdultWork. They were said to have "come to an arrangement that he would pay her a sum of money in return for sex", namely £1,750, but he "had no intention of paying".

He instead spiked the woman's vodka drink with zopiclone, a sleeping tablet which was subsequently found in her system, leaving her "feeling extremely groggy" and "rendering her pretty much incapable" before "forcefully" raping her in her own bed. Knox then allegedly stole her bank cards before leaving, although he was subsequently acquitted of charges in relation to this.

Then, in November, he contacted her again "asking if he could pay for her services" using a different phone number and a false name of "Danny". She however recognised him upon him subsequently attending her apartment once more and "decided to take matters into her own hands".

Knox again poured two drinks, but she switched their glasses without his knowledge. He then "started to demonstrate signs of having been drugged" and was subsequently dropped off at a petrol station by the woman.

However, he then returned to her now empty flat once more and smashed a window in order to gain entry before stealing a knife from the kitchen. Police officers then attended the scene and found Knox "wandering about in a communal area" and "stumbling around" with the weapon.

Zopiclone was then similarly found in his system following his arrest. Traces of his semen were also detected during swabs taken from the complainant following the first incident.

Mr Roberts told jurors: "The crown say that, in August, he went round to the flat of an escort intending to have sex, whether she liked it or not and whether he was able to pay or not. The crown say that he saw her as an easy touch and that, a couple of months later, he went round to the same address with the intention of doing exactly the same thing.

"This time, in a strange turn of events, he ended up essentially drugging himself. Then, he broke into her house and armed himself with a knife - thankfully, the police intervened before he could use it."

Robert Wyn Jones, appearing for the prosecution yesterday, told the court that Knox has a total of four previous convictions for eight offences including burglary, but none for sexual offences. He was however subjected to a sexual risk order in 2016 due to "sexually exploitative behaviour towards adolescents and young females" and his "inappropriate sexual interests".

Simon Christie, defending, told the court: "It is of note that his antecedents are for different matters. His only sentence of imprisonment was in September 2016, when he received four months for a wholly different matter.

"He is now in a completely different position, facing, with little experience of the system, a substantial prison sentence. These are serious matters. He is educated. He has been a worker in bars and warehouses.

"He has the benefit of substantial family support. His parents are in court today, and others have supplied references speaking of the other side to the defendant - a respectable family man, a hard worker and a person who people can rely on.

"The defendant is in relatively poor health. He has depression, ulcers for which he has had surgery, Bell's palsy and kidney stones."

Knox was found guilty of three counts of rape and one of burglary by a jury. He was jailed for 12 years, of which he must serve at least two thirds before becoming eligible for release, and handed an additional two years on licence.

Sentencing, Judge Ian Harris said: "In my judgement, you never intended to pay her anything. You spiked her drink in the way she alleged and used violence on her to have intercourse with her.

"She was incapable of fighting you off. She was trying to push you away, but you ripped her shorts off and were determined to have sexual intercourse.

"Testimonials say what a great person you are and how honest, trustworthy and helpful in your community you are. From my observations, I do not find you to be honest, helpful or trustworthy." Knox was also handed an indefinite restraining order. He will be required to sign the sex offenders' register for life.

Description

A predator who systematically abused a boy and a girl aged six and three has been handed an extended jail sentence.

Defiant Luke Hall continues to deny any wrongdoing but was convicted after a trial of 10 counts of abuse against the vulnerable children. The 27-year-old was deemed a danger to children and was handed the 15-year sentence at Leeds Crown Court.

This included two counts of assault by penetration, four of sexual assault of a child under 13 and four of causing or inciting a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity.

The court heard that the abuse took place over a three-and-half-year period in the Wakefield area. No mitigation was offered by his barrister because he continues to “vehemently” deny the offences.

The judge, Recorder Matthew Happold told Hall that he “engaged in grooming behaviour” before carrying out sickening and degrading sexual acts on the terrified youngsters. Hall, formerly of Blenheim View, Woodhouse, but now of no fixed address, was only a teenager himself at the time.

He said: “It was clear from the trial, it was evident the psychological toll your abuse has had on the children. The jury found it very difficult to watch [the video evidence given by the young victims].

“You continue to deny your offending. The best points that can be made is that you were young at the time of the offending and having had a difficult childhood yourself.”

He gave Hall a 14-year jail sentence, with a one-year extended licence period. He must serve two-thirds of the sentence before being considered for parole, rather than at the usual half-way point.

He was also put on the sex offender register for life and given a lifelong sexual harm prevention order (SHPO).

Description

A predatory paedophile spent decades sexually abusing and raping young children, a court has heard. HGV driver Christopher Murray subjected three girls and a boy to a catalogue of horrific abuse at a number of different locations including in the cab of his lorry.

Cardiff Crown Court heard that some of the abuse was first reported to police in the 1990s but Murray was not prosecuted and went on to continue his sexual offending. A judge said she had no doubt the 63-year-old defendant should be considered a dangerous offender, and made him subject to a 24-year extended sentence.

Ruth Smith, prosecuting, told the court Murray subjected his victims to repeated sexual assaults and rapes, often accompanied by threats and physical violence. In a number of the incidents the defendant punched the young girls in the face when they tried to stop him raping them. He also told his young victims that if they reported what was happening nobody would believe them because they were just children.

The abuse was in fact reported to the authorities in 1997 and the defendant was arrested but due to "evidential difficulties" he was not prosecuted. The court heard Murray went back to his campaign of sexual assaults and rapes at a number of locations around Gwent and also in the cab of his lorry - at the time Murray drove a lorry delivering frozen food.

The prosecutor told the court one of the victims would later recall the feeling of being "crushed" under the defendant's 16-stone body weight and the smell of his old Spice aftershave as he raped her. The abuse of the children was often accompanied by acts and words designed to humiliate his young victims.

The court heard the offending lasted more than a decade and only stopped when Murray was sent to prison in 2001 for sexually abusing other children. After being released from his sentence - and undergoing courses designed to tackle his paedophilia - he resumed offending against children.

In a series of powerful statements read to the court, the victims of Murray's abuse laid bare the impact of the offending. All the victims described how the defendant had stolen their childhoods and innocence, and how their adolescence and adult lives had been blighted by feelings of shame and guilt. One victim described how she had turned to drink and drugs to try to block out what had happened to her - this led her into risky behaviours and she said her family "spent years worried they would find me dead in a ditch".

Another talked of the "deeply embedded wounds" left by the abuse and how he "grew up overnight" while another said as a child she "lost hope" the abuse would ever end, and in later life developed obsessive compulsive disorder and an unhealthy relationship with food. Murray's fourth victim described how she turned to self-harming and had been left suffering with anxiety, depression, nightmares and flashbacks.

Christopher Andrew Murray, now of Heol Llansantffraid, Sarn, Bridgend, had previously pleaded guilty to 32 counts of indecent assault, indecency with a child, assault by penetration, and rape when he appeared in the dock for sentencing. He has 10 previous convictions for 25 offences including two indecent assaults of a child in 1985 and three indecent assaults of a child in 2001 for which he was sentenced to four years in prison.

Matthew Roberts, for Murray, said there was little of merit that could be said for the defendant but said he had pleaded guilty to the offences before the court and not, as some offenders do in such historical sex cases, decided to "chance his arm" with a trial and put the complainants through the "horrendous prospect" of having to give evidence. He said it was clear from the pre-sentence report that the defendant "at last" had some insight into his offending, and he said though the words may sound "hollow" the defendant wished him to apologise to his victims.

Judge Vanessa Francis said Murray was a "relentless" and "predatory" abuser of children who continued to offend even after coming to the attention of police in 1990s and then serving a prison sentence and doing work designed to tackle his offending. She said looking at the offending before the court as well as Murray's previous convictions, she was satisfied a standard determinate sentence would not sufficiently protect the public and the defendant could properly be termed a dangerous offender within the meaning of the legislation and subject to an extended sentence.

With a one-third discount for his guilty pleas, Murray was given a 24-year extended sentence comprising 18 years in prison followed by a six-year extended licence period. He must serve two-thirds of the custodial element of the sentence before applying to be released but it will be for the parole board to determine whether he is safe to be released or not. He was also made the subject of a life-long sexual harm protection order designed to control his access to children, and will be on the sex offenders register indefinitely.

Description

A warped paedophile has been locked up for 16 years for the horrific sexual abuse of a young girl.

Scruffy Stephen Cooper, 61, of The Drove, Blackfield, inflicted misery on a girl aged four to six during a two-year period of torment in Basingstoke from March 2021 to March 2023.

Sick Cooper was convicted of four counts of engaging in non-penetrative sexual activity with a girl under 13, sexual assault of a girl under 13 by penetration, engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child under 13, and causing or inciting a girl under 13 to engage in sexual activity.

Cooper denied the offences but the predator was found guilty following a trial at Winchester Crown Court before being jailed for 16 years at Salisbury Crown Court.

Description

A sexual predator who approached a jogger and assaulted her on a canal path has been sentenced to two and a half years in prison.

Charles Fraser Wood, 43, of Huddersfield Road, Bradford pleaded guilty to sexual assault and exposure following the attack which took place on the morning of Tuesday 9 April 2024.

Wood admitted to touching the victim inappropriately whilst exposing himself and performing a sex act as the victim was running on the canal towpath, alongside Station Road, towards Kildwick village.

Despite being extremely shaken by the incident, the victim bravely took a photo of Wood as he fled the scene before making her way to the main road. It was there that she looked back and saw Wood continue to expose himself as he hid in some bushes.

Following the incident, the terrified woman approached a passing dog walker who called 999 and waited with the victim until officers arrived.

A man matching the description and photograph provided by the victim was captured on dash-cam footage submitted by a member of the public in response to our media appeal.

https://youtu.be/20Zu7frax90

The footage was circulated to colleagues across both North Yorkshire Police and West Yorkshire Police. Wood was subsequently identified by a West Yorkshire Police officer responsible for monitoring and managing registered sex offenders.

Wood was arrested two days later, and several items were seized from his home including two green jackets, a pair of grey jogging bottoms, a police baton, and a flip knife with a 3.5-inch blade.

Our officers also seized a pair of camo-colour Nike trainers from Wood’s car that had been wrapped in a large sheet of bedding.

The seized jackets matched the photograph taken by the victim and corresponded with what Wood was wearing in the dashcam footage. Additionally, the trainers matched both the description provided by the victim and the photograph she took, further connecting Wood to his crimes.

Our enquires also showed Wood’s mobile phone in the vicinity at the time of the attack and he was also positively identified as being the man in the area at the time by a witness.

Despite providing no comment during both interviews and initially maintaining his innocence, Wood eventually pleaded guilty to both offences.

He was sentenced at York Crown Court on Wednesday 24 July 2024 to two and a half years and given a three-year extended licence. 

He was also ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £228.

Description

Former Northwich man sentenced for sexually assaulting a child in Cheshire.

Daniel Peters appeared at Chester Crown Court on Friday 21 June where he was sentenced to 24 months in prison suspended for two years. He was also ordered to complete 180 hours community service.

The 35-year-old, formally from Northwich, but now of Hermitage Street, Rishton, had previously pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual assault of a girl under 13 by touching.

During the hearing the court was told that Peter was a friend of the victim’s family and the group often use to socialise together.

Peters also had a young child himself and regularly offered to look after the victim, allowing her to sleep over at his house and taking them out on family day trips.

However, unbeknown to the victim’s family he also had a sexual interest in the child.

The first offence occurred in May 2020, when Peters was transporting the victim back to his home in Northwich for a sleepover.

As the pair were travelling in his van he pulled over into a layby and inappropriately touched her a number of times.

Later the same month, both Peters and the victim’s family went on a day trip to Gulliver’s World. While at the theme park the child described how they were on a ride when Peters grabbed her from behind and inappropriately touched her.

Peter’s offences came to light in March 2023 when the victim’s mum discovered a number of messages on her mobile phone.

Following the discovery, the victim spoke out about what had taken place. Peters was arrested and made a full admission to the offences.

Description

A convicted sex offender was found to have 21,000 indecent photos and videos of children. They were discovered on devices Connor Stephens hid from police teams during routine monitoring of his behaviour.

The 21-year-old was the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order but was found to have breached it in November 2023. Lincolnshire Police said two of Stephens’ devices had been hidden from MOSOVO managers (management of sex offenders and violent offenders) and were found to contain explicit material.

Stephens then alleged he had been sexually assaulted in an unconnected incident. Lincolnshire Police said further investigation and CCTV evidence found the claim to be untrue.

Stephens, who had previously lived at multiple addresses in the Boston area, pleaded guilty to three breaches of a sexual harm prevention order as well as possession of child sexual abuse material, prohibited material and extreme pornography. At Lincoln Crown Court on Thursday, July 11 he was also sentenced for perverting the course of justice and breaching a suspended sentence order.

He was sentenced to five years in prison, given five years extended licence and handed an indefinite sexual harm prevention order.

Lincolnshire Police said the case involved work across a number of police teams and hailed the "brilliant" team effort.

DS Nicola Stafford said: “MOSOVO worked to manage Stephens in line with his SHPO and a digital media investigator within POLIT (Paedophile Online Investigation Team) conducted both cloud extractions, essentially evidencing 1000s of indecent images. DFU (Digital Forensics Unit) went above and beyond to ensure that urgent device downloads and uploads were done within a tight timeframe for court.

“Prison intelligence officers assisted the officer in charge, so Stephens could be interviewed about the offences whilst he was on remand. It really was a brilliant example of an interdepartmental effort, spanning several months from November 2023 to now.”

Description

Man from St Leonards who preyed on young girls using an online messaging app has been jailed.

Anthony Everton, 35, contacted girls aged between 13 and 15 via Snapchat while posing to be a child himself.

Exchanging phone numbers with the girls, he would then request they send him sexually explicit images before threatening to send those images to their families.

Everton would call and text the victims to engage in sexual conversations. If they tried to stop speaking with him, he would make threats to kill them or burn their houses down.

After receiving reports from parents who had intervened in the activity, police arrested Everton in April 2023. He was released on bail with strict conditions while enquiries, including analysis of his digital devices, continued. 

Despite Everton’s attempts to destroy his mobile phone when he was arrested, police found evidence of indecent images and videos on it, including a large number of explicit images of a girl that Everton had sent to her relatives via social media.

In September 2023 while this investigation was ongoing, police began receiving multiple reports of a man masturbating in the front window of an address in St John’s Road, St Leonards. The man was in full view of the public and a nearby children’s playground.

Police identified the address as that of Anthony Everton and he was further arrested.

Everton was subsequently charged with 12 offences – one count of outraging public decency; seven counts of engaging in sexual communication with a child; and four counts relating to the possession and distribution of indecent images of children.

He was found guilty at Brighton Crown Court on 19 March, 2024. At Hove Crown Court on Friday (19 July), he was handed an 11-year sentence consisting of six years in prison and a further five years on extended licence.

He was also issued with an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order and will be on the Sex Offenders’ Register for life.

Description

A Worthing sex offender has been jailed after attempting to conceal indecent images of children, police have said.

Lewis Peters, 31, was arrested at his home address in Worthing on June 3, following an intelligence-led operation by Sussex Police’s Online Child Abuse Team (OCAT).

“A Worthing sex offender has been jailed for possession of indecent images of children,” a police statement read.

"Peters attempted to conceal a small memory card which featured 250 category A indecent images and videos of children.

“His phone was examined, which was found to contain 32 Category A, 74 Category B and 12 Category C images.”

Police said Peters was already subject to a ten-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO), which he was handed in April 2023. Being in possession of these images put him in breach of this order, police said.

A spokesperson added: “The 31-year-old pleaded guilty to three counts of making an indecent photo of a child, four counts of breaching a SHPO and possession of extreme pornographic images, when he appeared before Hove Crown Court on July 5.

“He was sentenced to four years’ imprisonment at Hove Crown Court on July 16.”

Investigator Maisie Upjohn, of Worthing OCAT, said possessing and downloading indecent images of children is an ‘extremely serious offence’ – reflected in the ‘significant custodial sentence given to him at court’.

She added: “Lewis Peters appears to be determined to continue offending despite the SHPO given to him after conviction for other offences in April 2023.

"Somewhere in the world there is a poor victim from each of the images and videos that Peters had.

"This case shows that we will relentlessly pursue offenders to stop them from causing further harm to children."

Description

A Doncaster man who bragged about how “easy” it was to groom children online has been jailed after a police swoop.

An investigation by South Yorkshire Police’s specialist Internet Sexual Offences Team (ISOT) has seen sick Mark Foster jailed for over seven years.

Foster, 44, of Osborne Road, was arrested after officers executed two warrants at his home address leading to the seizure of his devices.

These devices were then submitted for forensic analysis, leading to the discovery of hundreds of illegal images of children and messages showing him talking to underage children on the internet.

In one online exchange, Foster was caught talking about how he thought he had been able to keep his crimes a secret and spoke of how easy it was to groom children online.

Detective Constable Sam Brown, who was the officer in charge of this case, said: "Internet sex offenders like Foster largely operate in their shadows.

"They think they are untouchable but what they don't know is ISOT are working quietly in the background and under the radar to build cases against these criminals and bring them to justice.

"The officers who work within ISOT are highly skilled at their job and they are committed to protecting children from depraved online predators like Foster."

Foster pleaded guilty to multiple offences, including causing or inciting a girl 13 to 15 to engage in sexual activity, distributing an indecent photograph of a child and six counts of making an indecent photograph of a child.

He was jailed for four years and two months, with a three-year extended sentence due to the nature of the offence, at Sheffield Crown Court last Monday (15 July).

DC Brown said: "We are pleased an extended sentence has been served to Foster which reflects the severity of his offending and the efforts of ISOT to pull together the evidence needed which meant he had no choice but to plead guilty to his crimes.

"Foster's child victims have been offered support and safeguarding referrals and I want to thank them and their families for the support they have shown our investigation.

"We take all reports of sexual abuse towards children seriously and if you have been a victim or you know someone who has been a victim of, please come forward and report it to police.

"We are here to listen and we will always treat you with sensitivity and compassion."

Foster was also made subject to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and must sign the Sex Offenders' Register.

Description

A man from Leighton Buzzard, who was branded a dangerous offender, has been jailed for sexually abusing a child over a five-year period.

Peter Cutler, 62, will now spend the next 14 years in prison, plus an additional seven years on licence, after pleading guilty to 22 offences relating to child sexual abuse.

The abuse spanned over five years, until the child, who is now a teenager, opened up to a trusted adult. Together they reported it to police and were able to work with specialist officers.

Subsequently, Cutler was arrested, however whilst he was out on police bail, he admitted to family members that he had sexually abused a child. When he was asked to explain himself, he claimed he didn’t know what he was doing.

Cutler, of Heath Road, Leighton Buzzard, was sentenced on Thursday (18 July) after pleading guilty to the following:

• Seven counts of assaulting a child by penetration
• Six counts of penetrative sexual activity with a child
• Five counts of sexual assault of a child
• Two counts of engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child,
• Two counts of causing a child to watch a sexual act 

He will serve 14 years in prison, with an extended licence period of seven years on his release, due to his dangerousness.

Cutler will also have to adhere to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and a Restraining Order, with notification requirements for life.

Description

A man sexually assaulted and raped his partner while she was asleep, a court has heard. Daniel Blight even stopped during the assault to take a sick selfie photo.

The victim only realised the full extent of what had happened when she checked CCTV footage from her house. Blight has been jailed for seven years and the victim, Sarah Jones, has waived her legal anonymity to talk about what happened to her in her own home, a place she says she should have felt safe.

Swansea Crown Court heard the attack took place at Miss Jones' home in Aberdare in August 2022 while she and Blight were spending the evening together. After Miss Jones fell asleep on the sofa in the living room the defendant took the opportunity to sexually assault and rape her, taking an intimate selfie of himself as he did so. The court heard when Miss Jones awoke she was unaware of what had happened and the couple went to bed. Later that night she caught sight of the selfie on her boyfriend's phone and realised something was not right.

The next day after Blight had gone to work Miss Jones checked footage from the Hive CCTV camera in her living room - although trained on the inside of the front door, the camera also covered the sofa. It was then the 39-year-old coffee shop worker saw her boyfriend and assaulted had raped her while she was asleep. Talking after the sentencing she said: "I couldn't believe what I was watching. This was somebody I trusted. I was asleep in my own home. I should have been safe. It was such a massive abuse of trust. He was my partner and he claimed to love me."

Miss Jones said she phoned Blight to confront him about what happened, and he at first claimed she had been awake during the incident, then that he thought she was awake, and then finally admitted he knew she was asleep. Miss Jones ended the relationship but said the pair kept in touch over the following months while she encouraged Blight to have counselling as he "clearly had issues with sex". She said the pair briefly resuming their relationship at the end of 2022 but following another incident of an intimate nature the victim ended the relationship for good and reported the earlier assault to the police.

Daniel Blight, aged 37, of Buckingham Road, Bonymaen, Swansea, pleaded not guilty and at trial at Swansea Crown Court claimed he believed he had implied consent for sex with his partner. The jury convicted him of two counts of sexual assault by penetration and one count of rape. The defendant has one previous conviction for 13 offences of possession of indecent images from 2012 for which he was given a community order.

In mitigation barrister David Leathley said the defendant was "slavishly in a state of devotion" in regards to Miss Jones who was "the divinity he was worshiping". He said in his client's mind what he did on the night in question was "an act of worship" towards his partner. The barrister described the case as "truly bizarre" and said his client had been a "crass idiot" to act in the way he did.

Judge Huw Rees said a pre-sentence report on the defendant explored his "preoccupation" with sex which was a "predominant factor" in his life.. Blight was sentenced to seven years in prison comprising seven years for rape and four years for each of the sexual assaults all to run concurrently. He will serve two-thirds of that sentence in custody before being released on licence to serve the remainder in the community. The defendant will be a registered sex offender for the rest of his life, and was made the subject of a 1o-year restraining order banning him from contacting his former partner either directly or indirectly.

Miss Jones said the rape at the hands of someone she trusted has had a massive impact on her life. "If I'm honest I'm still trying to fully process what happened. It has affected my trust in everyone, and I feel so anxious and vulnerable. I used to be very sociable and enjoyed going out with friends, now I tend to avoid mixing with people. I'm worried about what the future may hold. How can I have trust in a future relationship? Invite someone into my house again?

"Waiting for the trial made my anxiety worse. I believe he [Blight] thought I would be too embarrassed to go through with the trial, too embarrassed to have the CCTV footage shown to a room of strangers. What he did to me can't be undone but if I can stop him doing it to anyone else I have to do it. What happened will stay with me for a long time - perhaps for the rest of my life. Hopefully with the conviction I can begin to move on."

Speaking after the sentencing South Wales Police detective constable Elizabeth Picton said: "Daniel Blight preyed upon his victim when they were completely helpless, but was crucially caught on camera in critical evidence for his conviction. At South Wales Police we relentlessly pursue the perpetrators of sexual offences and ensure that the victims receive justice. It takes great bravery for a victim to report a sexual offence, and this behaviour will never be tolerated."