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Description

A teen girl who fought off a sex attacker in Surrey has been honoured with a bravery award. The girl - who was 15 at the time of the attack - kicked "dangerous sexual predator" Nathan Smith and managed to run away.

The teenager was walking through the alleyway next to Ewell station when she was approached from behind by a man who inappropriately touched her and tried to pin her to a fence. During her struggle to get away, the man punched her in the head.

She was able to kick him off and run home. Police used CCTV footage from the station and facial recognition software to identify the man as Smith, 32, of Revelon Road in Lewisham, London.

The hunt to find and arrest Smith came to an end a month later when he was arrested in London for shoplifting. He was flagged as wanted in the shared police database and was transferred to Surrey where he was questioned in connection with the sexual assault.

He denied the allegation and attempted to manipulate officers in his interview with confusing contradictions about why he was in the alleyway. However, during a trial at Guildford Crown Court, Smith’s movements that evening were shown to the jury.

CCTV captured him leaving Ewell station and scoping out the alleyway, walking up and down several times before returning to the train station. Moments later, he was seen to notice the victim get off a train and walk towards the alleyway when he then followed her.

Smith was found guilty of sexual assault and common assault at the same court on Friday (February 3). He was sentenced to six years in prison with a further four years to be served on license and will also be on the sex offenders' register for life.

The girl, who is now 16, was given the High Sheriff award by a Judge for her bravery in fighting off Smith.

Victim showed 'astounding bravery'

Detective Constable Nicola Dell, who investigated the case, said: “This result is testament to the victim who showed astounding bravery from the moment she fought him off, right through to court. Her testimony left the jury in no doubt of Smith’s abhorrent, pre-meditated intentions that day.

“Not only has she been through a terrifying ordeal, but she has also been able to excel at her exams whilst supporting our investigation, and I know that I, along with the officers in my team, are incredibly proud of her achievements. We were committed from the outset of this investigation to bringing Smith to justice, using every tool available to us to identify and arrest him.

"He is clearly a dangerous sexual predator and should not be allowed to threaten the safety of women and girls who have every right to walk home without fear."

The victim and her family commented: “We would like to take this opportunity to thank Surrey Police, from the bottom of our hearts, for their care, support and professionalism in bringing this criminal to justice. Knowing that justice has been served will go a long way in starting the healing process.”

We would encourage all survivors of rape and sexual assault to come forward – whether directly to us, to a support service, or to someone you trust, such as a healthcare professional.

Description

A sex offender breached the terms of a court order with his “clandestine” collection of electronic devices on which he searched for indecent images of children.

David Alan Carr was back before Durham Crown Court for sentence today (Wednesday February 8) for four breaches of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) imposed in the same building, in October 2018.

On that occasion, a judge imposed a suspended sentence order on Carr over his large collection of indecent and prohibited images of children, found on devices retrieved by police from his home in Murton, in 2016.

The sentencing judge in 2018 said he hoped that by suspending the sentence the Probation Service could work with Carr to help him overcome his, “entrenched behaviour”.

But the court heard today that on a monitoring visit to his home, in Woods Terrace, on October 19 last year, police discovered various devices capable of allowing internet access which he had failed to inform them he owned.

Andrew Finlay, prosecuting, said, officers seized 17 hard drives and lap-top computers and it was discovered Carr had used a covert internet browser and online cloud storage.

Examination of three of the hard drives uncovered the presence of 60 indecent images of children, 29 in the most serious category, 553 prohibited images of children and 78 classed as, “extreme pornography”, portraying scenes of bestiality.

Mr Finlay said 443 of the illicit images were accessible and all were said to have been originally downloaded between 2007 and 2010, pre-dating the images over which he was convicted in 2018.

When police returned to his home on November 10 and arrested him, he was asked if he had a mobile phone, and he handed over a device which was found to have an internet “history” dating from October 2021.

It emerged he had asked a relative for help with a SIM card and the phone had been in use since August 2022, despite Carr’s previous claims to police that he did not have a phone.

He made no reply to police questions when interviewed, but, appearing later before magistrates, the 44-year-old defendant admitted four breaches of the 2018 SHPO and possession of indecent and prohibited images of children, plus possessing extreme pornographic images.

His advocate, Martin Scarborough, told today’s sentencing hearing that it had to be accepted these were “persistent” breaches of the order over a few weeks in October last year and that the offending images pre-dated those found in his earlier single conviction.

Mr Scarborough described Carr as, “a socially-isolated individual” and the recent breaches followed his return to drinking more heavily after discovering a close family member’s illness was more serious than previously believed.

But Mr Scarborough said the defendant made immediate admissions on the first opportunity at court and added that it was still thought he could work with the Probation Service to overcome his predilection, while he could also be given an alcohol abstinence order to curb his drinking.

But Judge Kidd said despite the age of the images discovered last October, Carr was still able to retrieve them, which was an “aggravating feature” of the case.

She said: “It’s equally clear that in 2022, and from 2019, he continued to search for images of children and I must pass sentence over a significant quantity of them.

“He was given the opportunity to engage with the Probation Service when he was given the suspended sentence order in October 2018.

Description

A former judo coach twice previously jailed for sex offences against boys is back behind bars following a further similar conviction.

In all cases Wayne Burnham, a divorcee, was accused of giving his victims cider and allowing them to smoke, sometimes cannabis, at his home, at the time, in Langley Park, County Durham, before carrying out the offences, all committed in the early 2000s.

Burnham received a three-year prison sentence in November 2003, after admitting indecently assaulting two boys aged under 16, at Durham Crown Court.

Further allegations arose in 2015, also stemming from the early 2000s, when another victim came forward.

It led to a trial at Durham Crown Court in March 2017 at which Burnham, by then living in Erith, in Kent, was convicted of the rape and indecent assault of a boy.

He received a 12-year prison sentence and was made subject of registration as a sex offender and the terms of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO), both for life.

Having only recently been released from that sentence on licence supervision, he was back before magistrates in County Durham on January 10, this year, when he admitted a charge of indecent assault on a boy under 14.

The case was sent for sentence today (Tuesday January 7), at Durham Crown Court, where the now 56-year-old defendant received a further two-year prison sentence.

Robin Turton, prosecuting, said the offence dates from the summer of 2002, when the victim recalls being given cider and being allowed to smoke, at Burnham’s home.

On one occasion he was given so much cider that he passed out, due to heavy intoxication, and awoke to discover the defendant with his hands in his underwear fondling him.

Mr Turton said the boy recalled Burnham making light of it, trying to laugh it off by making a remark about the boy’s genitalia.

In an impact statement, read to the court by Mr Turton, the victim said he only began to realise the effect the incident had on him when he reached adulthood.

He has suffered depression and anxiety for which he has turned to alcohol as a coping mechanism.

The victim said as a boy he looked up to Burnham for allowing him to drink alcohol and smoke, both of which he had not previously done, and which he considered, “cool”, at the time.

But it led to a longer-term addiction to alcohol, from his early teenage years onwards, which he believes has affected his employment prospects, as he has been unable to hold down a job on a long-term basis.

The court was told of Burnham’s past convictions, some post-dating the offence he was answering for at today’s hearing.

Christopher Carter, in mitigation for Burnham, told the court: “This happened more than 20 years ago when the defendant was struggling with alcohol abuse and was coming out of a relationship, and coming to terms with his own sexuality.

“He served a sentence at the time for similar offences and it’s regrettable this case has come to court so late.

“But, it is understandable. He acknowledges the long-term suffering of the victim in this case.

“He was only recently released from prison for the sentence imposed in 2017 and was immediately given this date to appear before the court.”

Jailing him, Judge James Adkin told Burnham: “The aggravating feature of the case is it demonstrates this incident was not an isolated one, but part of a pattern of sexual offending where children were targeted by you for sexual gratification.”

The judge added that had he taken the case to a trial the latest sentence would have been three years.

On his eventual release, Burnham will remain subject to both the lifetime notification and SHPO requirements put in place after his 2017 conviction.

Description

Jurors convicted a man of breaching his court order by having unsupervised contact with two children.

Alan Thompson, 56, of Long Wittenham, was originally given his sexual offences prevention order after he was convicted 15-years-ago of sexual activity with a child. The order bans him from having unsupervised contact with children, unless he had the permission of the child’s parents or the contact was ‘inadvertent’.

CCTV at the hotel where Thompson was staying in November 2020 showed him driving his mobility scooter towards his ground floor room – followed by a teenage boy and girl, Oxford Crown Court heard. The pair went to the toilet, while he went to his bedroom.

He was allowed to be with the boy, as the child’s guardian was aware of his previous convictions.

But despite Thompson’s claims to the contrary, the girl’s mother told jurors she had no idea that he was a registered sex offender.

Cross-examined on Monday, it was put to the woman that she had been aware of his past and had even replied to Thompson’s confession of his past offending with the words: “Okay, thanks for telling me, we’ll leave it in the past where it belongs.”

However, she maintained she ‘didn’t know nothing about his background’.

Jurors convicted Thompson on Tuesday (February 7) of breaching his sexual offences prevention order. He will be sentenced next month, with Judge Ian Pringle KC ordering a pre-sentence report.

The maximum sentence for the offence is five years’ imprisonment, although punishments vary depending on the blameworthiness of the offender and the amount of harm they have caused.

Description

A man from Banbury has been jailed after being found guilty of nine child sex crimes over a two-year period.

Spencer King, aged 54, formerly of Banbury, abused the victim over a two-year period, before she bravely reported it to Northamptonshire Police and he was subsequently charged with a number of offences.

When interviewed by the police, King denied the allegations and went on to plead not guilty at Northampton Crown Court, which meant forced the case to go to a trial.

King was convicted of by a jury of seven counts of sexual assault, one count of sexually assaulting a girl under 13, and one count of sexually assaulting a girl aged 13-15 by penetration last November.

Last week (February 3) King was sentenced to nine years and six months in prison at Northampton Crown Court and was also handed a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and a restraining order which will run indefinitely.

Detective Constable James Wright of the Child Abuse Investigation Unit, said: “This case took a long time to bring to trial due to a number of issues and the Covid-19 pandemic, but the victim never waived.

“She has shown strength, bravery and tenacity beyond her years, facing Spencer King at court during the trial to tell him and the jury exactly what he had done to her. She showed him that what he did to her, although having a profound effect on her, was not going to rule her life.

“King continued to deny the allegations that were made against him during the course of the investigation and in the giving of his evidence during the trial, but the jury saw through these lies and convicted him of a number of serious sexual offences.

“He will now serve his sentence for this horrendous abuse, and hopefully the time that he will spend in prison will give him the opportunity to reflect on his abhorrent actions.”

Description

A 26-year-old Exeter man has been jailed for raping a 12-year-old boy. Christopher Houghton committed multiple sex assaults on the child and tried to buy his silence by offering gifts.

He also took indecent photos of his victim and shared them with another paedophile. The boy told his parents about what had happened and Houghton was arrested.

The defendant, of Brunswick Street, pleaded guilty to two charges of sexual assault against a child under 13, four charges of raping a child, and one each of making and distributing indecent images. He was jailed for eight years.

Mr Rupert Taylor, defending, said Houghton had not tried to lie about his behaviour and has shown remorse. He has been diagnosed on the autistic spectrum with learning difficulties. He is a man of previous good character. Exeter Crown Court was told the abuse had led to the boy suffering mental health issues.

Judge Anna Richardson said the defendant was only 23 at the time and barely had an adult brain. References said he was a 'kind and thoughtful' man and he has been behaving well in custody since his arrest and addressing his behaviour by attending courses.

The defendant must serve two thirds of his sentence in prison before he can be considered for release.

Description

Paul Thomas, 45, was sentenced to eight years in prison at Cardiff Crown Court last month. He was also put on the sex offenders register for life and given an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

Following a four-day trial, a jury found Thomas guilty of assault by penetration.

In April 2021, Thomas sexually assaulted a woman while she was asleep. Within hours of the offence, Thomas was arrested and was charged after a thorough investigation.

Detective Constable Matt Pryce said:

“I am pleased Thomas will go to jail for a significant period, the sentence is welcomed as it displays a clear message that such acts will not be tolerated.

“This was a horrific ordeal for the woman, but she, with the support of her family, has shown immense strength and courage in coming forward and supporting a police investigation. I would like to thank the brave victim for her strength, I hope the conviction goes some way to providing closure after what must have been a horrific ordeal.

“South Wales Police encourages anyone who is victim or witness to sexual assault, to contact us- there is zero tolerance for such serious offences.”

Description

A Romanian man caught out by paedophile hunters was arrested at an airport after sending a teenage girl indecent images and videos.

Gheorge Paris, 33, told officers he was a "religious" person and "wouldn't do that" when he was questioned about the sexualised chat he had attempted to have with a 13-year-old girl named Lily-Rose.

Lilly-Rose was a decoy used by members of Predator Exposure - a group that works with the police to snare offenders who try and use social media to talk to children for their own sexual gratification.

Prosecutor Bashir Ahmed told Leeds Crown Court on Friday Paris, who appeared via a video link from HMP Leeds, began talking to Lily in May 2021. He said: "She made it clear to him she was 13-years-old. The chat very quickly became sexual in nature. He asked if she wanted to meet in private at his home address. He gave her details of his address and some other personal details like his cars.

"He asked her to send photographs of her naked."

The court was told Paris then sent indecent images of himself, videos of him masturbating and images of naked women. Mr Ahmed said: "He asked her if she wanted to have sex with him and said he would teach her how to do it. She told him she was too young. The chat ended on around 22nd June 2021."

Predator Exposure went to the address in Leeds Paris had given them but he was not there. It was not until April 2 last year that he was arrested at Liverpool John Lennon Airport, the court heard.

Mr Ahmed said: "He was interviewed at a police station and denied being in any chat with Lily or sending pictures or videos to her. He said he was a religious person and wouldn't do that."

Paris also suggested the offences could have actually been the work of a "disgruntled customer seeking revenge for buying a faulty car off him." He entered guilty pleas to the charges of attempting to communicate sexually with a child and attempting to cause a child to watch a sexual act at a plea, trial and preparation hearing in January this year.

The court heard he had previous convictions for offences including sexual activity with a child which had taken place in Romania. He had been given prison sentences for the offences.

Mitigating, Jim Littlehales, told the court Paris would be deported at the end of his sentence.

Her Honour Judge Penelope Belcher jailed Paris for 22 months and told him: "The pre-sentence report says you have pro-criminal attitudes especially in relation to sex offending and considers there is a high risk of sex offending with a significant impact on those impacted by it.

"These findings are enormously concerning."

Paris was also ordered to comply with notification requirements as a sex offender for ten years. He was made the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for the same amount of time.

Description

A serial sex offender who abused nine women over a 15-year period has been jailed for 12 years.

Stephen Kidd, 36, was earlier convicted by a jury of offences in the Aberdeen area between 2005 and 2020.

At the High Court in Edinburgh, he was told by Lord Weir that a lengthy custodial term was required.

Passing sentence, the judge also ordered Kidd to be supervised by the authorities for three years following his release from custody.

Kidd shot a video of himself sexually assaulting one of his victims.

The jury returned guilty verdicts to charges including rape and indecent assault.

During proceedings last December, Kidd accepted that the evidence painted a picture of him being a violent and controlling individual.

On Tuesday, defence advocate Gary Allan KC told Lord Weir that Kidd still maintained he was innocent of any wrongdoing, but accepted he would be going to prison for his crimes.

'Commend their bravery'

The judge told Kidd: "The jury must have been satisfied that you were responsible for the offences which show of your sinister and controlling conduct.

"There's no alternative in this case to the imposition of a lengthy custodial sentence.

"I'm also satisfied that in light of your crimes that there has to be a period of supervision - that is necessary to secure the public from serious harm when you are released from custody."

Police Scotland welcomed the conviction of Kidd, from Peterculter, and said it was hoped it would bring some closure to the women involved.

Det Insp Gordon Patullo said: "Our thought are very much with Kidd's victims. I commend them all for their bravery in coming forward.

"Kidd subjected women to sexual and physical assault over a 15-year period. He has shown no remorse for his crimes.

"I would urge anyone who wishes to report a sexual crime, no matter how long ago, to contact us."

Description

Paedophile hunters teamed up to catch a pervert with an "unhealthy" sexual interest in children after they tricked him into thinking that he was meeting up with a 14-year-old girl at Hull railway station.

Andrew Nudd began chatting with her on Facebook before sending an intimate picture of himself in an attempt to groom her for sexual activity - but the girl was really a decoy and did not even exist, Hull Crown Court heard.

Nudd, 55, of May Street, Hull, admitted attempting to communicate sexually with a child that he believed was 14, attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity and attempting to meet a child following sexual grooming. Stephen Robinson, prosecuting, said that a woman who was part of an online child protection group set up a profile on Facebook of a fake 14-year-old girl to see if anyone would start a conversation with her.

Nudd sent a message on November 1, 2021 but the non-existent girl sent a message back that made it clear that she was supposedly at school and in a lesson. There were further messages about how they could communicate.

Nudd told her that she was pretty and that they could be friends or more. The conversations became sexualised and he asked the decoy girl for a picture and talked about sexual parts of her body. He asked her if she was turned on.

He sent an intimate picture of himself and spoke about his use of cannabis and said that he was "stoned" while doing so. Text messages were exchanged.

He suggested that they could "get stoned" together and that he would be honoured to be her first boyfriend and that he would be gentle with her.

A meeting was arranged between them at Hull railway station after she had supposedly arrived on a train from Manchester. But the woman behind the fake profile approached a member of another paedophile hunters group for help in apprehending him. Nudd was identified and detained nearby, with others live streaming the confrontation to Facebook.

Screenshots of messages that he sent were handed over to the police, who arrested him. He claimed during interview that he never believed that the fake girl was aged 14 because "everyone lied on the internet".

They had chatted on Facebook for two weeks and it became sexual. The court heard that Nudd had previous convictions, including for affray in September 2021.

Nudd was given a two-year suspended prison sentence, a sex offenders' treatment programme, 20 days' rehabilitation and a 10-year sexual harm prevention order. He must register as a sex offender for 10 years.

Recorder Anthony Hawks told Nudd: "You must have had an unhealthy, perverted sexual interest in pre-pubescent girls. Anybody who hears the facts in this case would be disgusted by your behaviour. You had better start accepting responsibility. The purpose of this probation order is to try to stop you doing this again."

Ben Hammersley, mitigating, said that Nudd appreciated how close he had come to being jailed that day.

Description

A pervert turned up at a Newcastle hotel hoping to meet a 14-year-old boy he had been grooming online but was instead greeted by police.

Brett Lambert, described as a "risk-taking sexual thrill seeker", had expressed fears the online profile he had been engaging with was a decoy being run by the police or vigilantes but decided to go ahead with the meet-up anyway. When he checked into a hotel in Newcastle city centre, he found his fears had been correct and the '14-year-old boy' was actually an account set up by police

Newcastle Crown Court heard it was in May last year that oil rig worker Lambert was travelling home from Aberdeen on a train and went on the Fab Guys website. He got talking to someone whose profile suggested he was 18 but who said he was actually 14.

Lambert was told the lad was in class and asked for a picture and was sent an image of a boy in a school uniform holding a piece of paper. Lambert refused to send a picture of himself and asked if the boy knew any females who would have a threesome.

Lambert questioned if the profile was being run by a "nonce hunter" but when told they could cancel meeting up he said he was "still up for it and just nervous". He also told the boy to bring a condom.

Lambert arrived at the Easy Hotel, in Newcastle, took his bags to his room and went down to the lobby to meet the boy but was met by police and arrested. He claimed he had a "weird fetish" where he liked to arrange to meet people but just watch them and not engage with them. He added that he thought it was a vigilante group or the police and he was "intrigued who would turn up" and denied having any intention to follow through with any sexual activity.

Lambert, 29, who has no previous convictions, pleaded guilty to attempting to meet a child following sexual grooming and was sentenced to 15 months suspended for two years with 100 hours unpaid work and rehabiliation. He was also ordered to sign the sex offender register and will be subject to a sexual harm prevention order for ten years

Description

Karl Davison claimed he "hadn't set out to find" the disturbing material but had been sent it after "finding himself" in a couple of groups online. A court heard that, despite the 33-year-old stating he'd deleted some of his collection, 44 sick photos and videos were still found on his phone.

Magistrates were told that Davison had 23 category A pictures and films, which are the most serious kind and involve penetrative sexual activity. He also had 22 category B and one category C.

Davison, of Chillingham Road, in Heaton, could now end up behind bars after he pleaded guilty to three counts of making an indecent image of a child. The case was adjourned for the preparation of a pre-sentence report but the pervert was warned custody was still an option.

Rob Lawson, prosecuting at Newcastle Magistrates' Court, said: "The material in question was saved on the defendant's phone. With the early guilty plea, this case may fall within your sentencing powers. The aggravating factors are the ages of the children involved, between six and 14, and at least one of the videos shows distress suffered by a child."

Mark Humble, defending, said: "Mr Davison didn't set out to find these images. He found himself in a couple of groups online and that led to the images coming his way. He did delete some of them but, when his phone was examined, there were the images you have heard about still retained on the phone."

Magistrates adjourned the case for the preparation of a pre-sentence report. Davison was released on unconditional bail to next appear before the same court on February 22. In the meantime, he must sign the Sex Offenders' Register.

Description

A ‘sexual predator’ who persistently abused a nine-year-old girl in her own bed has been jailed.

David Howie, 52, has been handed a six and a half year sentence today after he was found guilty at a trial of sexual assault on a child under 13, and causing or inciting a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity.

The court heard how the girl, who was aged between nine and 13 at the time, was ‘relieved’ when she could finally report the ’persistent’ abuse to her grandmother.

The incidents took place between the Blackburn and Scarborough areas, with some incidents taking place in the girl's bed.

Prosecutor Kristian Cavanagh said: “She felt relief at being able to tell her Grandma.

“She knew what was happening wasn’t right but she was scared and the years were tough.

“She has struggled to concentrate in school. The court proceedings were hard but she is glad she was believed by the jury.

“She is hopeful for the future.”

Mr Kavanagh said between 2016 and 2020, Howie slept in the girl's bed a number of times when he would touch her legs, bottom and vagina.

She once stayed at his home where he also touched her inappropriately.

Between 2018 and 2020, Howie and the girl would have video calls where he asked her to show him her pubic hair and asked her to perform provocative dances.

Howie also told her ‘not to tell her mum she had seen his willy’.

The girl's mother told police about how she could not believe the allegations her daughter was making and is upset Howie had 'stolen her daughter's innocence'.

Mitigating, Matthew Moore-Taylor said Howie had been diagnosed with prostate cancer and he would struggle to access the necessary treatment in hospital.

Mr Moore-Taylor added Howie also struggles with mental health issues and he has already lost a lot since the prosecution.

Mr Moore-Taylor said: “He has reached a terminus in his life.

“He is already suffering the consequences. He has lost what gave his life value. He had a family, a child.

“He lost his work, he lost his home and will lose his liberty.”

Judge Heather Lloyd said she did not believe Howie felt any remorse or insight into what he did.

She said: “You were well loved. You stayed in the girl's family home and in same bed as the girl.

“Unbeknownst to the risk of the family, you were a man who became a sexual predator.

“You took advantage of the opportunity you had to sexually abuse a girl in her own home.”

Howie, now of Bridlington, in the East Riding of Yorkshire, was jailed for six years and six months in a hearing at Preston Crown Court.

DC Jo Billington, of Lancashire Police's East Rape and Serious Sexual Offences team (RASSO), said: “David Howie has taken advantage of this young girl to satisfy his own perverted sexual desires and by doing so has effectively stolen her innocence.

"I would like to commend her for having the courage to both come forward and disclose what happened to her and for going through the court process which has meant reliving her abuse.

“I hope this conviction and sentence will give others who may have suffered similar abuse the courage to speak up in the knowledge that we will believe them, we will investigate professionally and sensitively, and we will do all we can to bring offenders to justice.”

Description

A 'sleazy' Solihull man who sexually assaulted a teenager on a train has been jailed. Ben Pountney, 30, targeted the 17-year-old victim on a quiet train.

Pountney, of Swallows Meadow, Solihull, boarded a quiet train from Stratford-Upon-Avon and sat opposite the victim, Warwick Crown Court heard. He proceeded to persistently ask the teen about her shoes and went on to sexually assault her, before leaving the train.

Labelled "vile" by investigating officers, Pountney pleaded guilty to one count of sexual assault at a trial on December 5 2022. He was sentenced to 20 months in prison at trial on Thursday, January 26.

Officers say Pountney was identified and arrested following help from the public and a media appeal.

The court heard how on Tuesday, October 13, 2020, the 17-year-old victim was travelling on a quiet train from Stratford-upon-Avon when a man boarded a few stops later and sat opposite her. She noticed the man looking at her and after a short while, he began speaking to her. He persistently asked about the shoes she was wearing and her shoe size.

He stated that he wanted to buy a similar pair for his niece while getting closer to the girl and leaning in towards her. He then sexually assaulted her and got off the train.

Following a number of enquiries and a media appeal to the public, Pountney was later identified and arrested. Investigating officers at the British Transport Police said actions like Pountney's will not be tolerated on the transport network.

'Vile' offender

Investigating officer Police sergeant Daniel Hart said: “Pountney is a vile offender who targeted a lone teenager and subjected her to a distressing sexual assault.

"His sleazy behaviour is a prime example of the harassment and intimidation of women and girls which we are dedicated to tackling on the network. It simply won’t be tolerated, and we will bring offenders to justice.

"If you are a victim of, or a witness to, a sexual offence on the railway - I urge you to report it to BTP by texting 61016 or via the Railway Guardian app. We will always take you seriously."

Pountney was sentenced to 20 months in prison, handed a 10-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order and ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register for 10 years at his sentencing last month.

Description

Thomas Lock, 32, carried out the disgusting act with the aid of a cuddly toy in front of a child

A County Durham pervert who carried out a sex act involving a "cuddly toy" in front of a child has been put behind bars.

Thomas Lock carried out the disgusting act with the aid of a cuddly toy in front of a child. The 32-year-old told the child he was carrying out a "naughty game" and denied everything when arrested.

Lock was sentenced at Durham Crown Court on Thursday for engaging in a sexual act in the presence of a child. He continues to deny the offence but was found guilty by a jury after a trial.

Nick Adlington, prosecuting, said Lock - who appeared at the court via link from HMP Durham - carried out the sex act and involved a "cuddly toy" whilst in the presence of a child.

Mark Styles, defending, said Lock had no previous convictions and still does not accept the verdict of the jury. He said: "This is a difficult time for the defendant as he's never lost his liberty before. It came at a time in the wake of the death of his father, which had been anticipated. It was very difficult for him."

Mr Styles added: "He's got a good work record and was only unemployed for a limited period of time whilst awaiting trial in this matter. He's attempting to use his time in custody wisely and understands the significant impact this has had."

Sentencing Lock, Judge Jo Kidd said: "You were convicted by a jury and maintain you are not guilty. This was a deeply troubling incident, potentially foreshadowing further sexual offences, and was used in a manipulative way by using a toy to normalise your sexual activity. You called it a naughty game."

Lock, of High Etherley, near Bishop Auckland, was jailed for 30 months and will be on the sex offender's register indefinitely. An indefinite sexual harm prevention order was also imposed.