Latest Offenders

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A waiter at a Chinese restaurant 'persuaded' a 15-year-old girl to have sex with him after taking her back to his flat.

Christopher Chan, 34, took a 15-year-old girl, who cannot be named for legal reasons, back to his flat in Southport and had what the court was told was 'consensual sexual intercourse' with her. On two of the occasions Chan had given the 15-year-old alcohol, but a judge found that was to 'develop their relationship' rather than to facilitate the offences.

Liverpool Crown Court heard on Friday, April 22, that Chan committed the offences while “on the bounce” after the end of a serious relationship. In an impact statement read to the court, the girl told how he persuaded her to have sex with him. 

She said his behaviour had affected her ability to concentrate at school and she went from having very good grades to poor ones which spoilt her chances of attending Cambridge University. She began self-harming and took an overdose, and has since been diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder and is on medication.

The girl said: "I now have trust issues with men, worrying they want to take advantage of me for their own needs."

Chan, who worked at Lings On Kings in King Street, Southport, had been found guilty of four offences of engaging in sexual activity with a child involving penetration.

Jailing him for three years Judge David Aubrey, QC, pointed out that the defendant had been twice her age and she had told him that she was under the age of consent.

He said: "You were not in a good place at the time because a long term relationship had broken down. However you knew it was against the law and wrong to engage in sexual activity with your victim

"There is no doubt whatsoever your victim has been impacted to a considerable extent by the relationship that she had with you."

Arthur Gibson, defending, pointed out that the offences took place with a two week period when the girl was three months short of her 16th birthday.

He said the offences happened after the break down of a very serious relationship. He suffers from agoraphobia and depression and it was his continual demands on her that led to her leaving him.

Judge Aubrey ordered Chan, of Manchester Road, Southport, to sign on the Sex Offenders Register for life.

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A sex offender accused his three victims of being liars when he was arrested almost two decades after subjecting them to abuse. Sirfraz Ahmed preyed on the girls in the early 2000s when they were aged between three and seven years old. Leeds Crown Court heard how the abuse took place in different areas of the city. Ahmed, 32, was aged in his early teens at the time of the offences. The court heard how one of the victims was abused in front of other children. Another victim was abused after Ahmed took the child into a garden shed. Leeds Crown Court heard Ahmed was finally arrested in 2020 after his victim found the courage to report the offences to the police. Ahmed, now of Albion Street, Dewsbury, initially denied any wrongdoing and accused the victims of making up false reports about him. He later pleaded guilty to four counts of indecent assault. One of the victims read a statement to the court describing how she found the strength to report Ahmed to the police after she saw him years later and he taunted her about the abuse. She told the court: "This decision was not just to get justice for ourselves but to prevent there from being any more victims." Ahmed has previous convictions for robbery, burglary, theft and driving offences. In 2015 he was given a 78-month prison sentence for robbery. Taryn Turner, mitigating, said Ahmed pleaded guilty to the offences at an early stage. Ms Turner said the defendant was himself a child when he committed the offences. The barrister added Ahmed had been assessed by the probation service as being a low risk of reoffending. Ahmed was jailed for 28 months and told he must go on the sex offender for ten years. Judge Timothy Clayson told Ahmed that he had caused psychological and emotional harm to all three of his victims.

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Steven Hobson, aged 29, was placed on the Sex Offenders Register for 10 years in 2017 after being jailed for making and distributing indecent images of children.

Upon his release he had to agree to abide by strict rules, including notifying the police of any change of address.

Hobson is now wanted for breaching the Sex Offender Notification Requirements.

South Yorkshire Police said: As part of the terms of the Sex Offenders Register, Hobson is required to regularly update his address with police, however he has now failed to register an address with us since January 2022.

Extensive enquiries have been made to locate Hobson but despite speaking to him, he has failed to provide us with his current location.

Hobsons last known address was in Sheffield but he also has links to Rotherham, Lincolnshire and Lancashire.

Questions have been raised over why it took South Yorkshire Police so long to notify city residents that the sex offender was missing.

Jacqueline Howarth said: Why has it taken four months to release this information? I hope he is found quickly and taken off the streets again. We all have a duty of care and protection towards all children whether they are your own or not.

Addressing South Yorkshire Police, Dale Young said: So he's been missing since January, a DANGER to children and your letting the public know NOW. Wow do we not think the public should of been updated on day one of the offender missing?

Hennifer Rach added: Since January they've not known where he is and only just made the public aware.

Others are suggesting a change in the law, including sex offenders being tagged upon their release from prison.

Dawn Cartwright said: Shouldn't he have one of them things on his ankle, so they know where it is at all times?

In agreement, Julie Beales said: They should be on tag for 10 years and the register for life.

Anyone who spots Hobson should dial 999 immediately.

Description

A football coach who sexually abused boys after grooming them through online gaming and relentless messages has been jailed for 15 years and 10 months.

Alfie Morel, 24, from Hampshire, was found guilty of eight offences in January, including attempted rape.

A school of one of the victims and the FA both raised concerns about Morel not following safeguarding rules and travelling with boys in his car alone.

A victim's mother told the BBC it was "your worst nightmare as a parent".

Another parent said: "He was highly thought of. Everyone liked him, everyone trusted him, we thought he was great with the kids. We were totally groomed by him."

The crimes - carried out over eight months in 2020 and 2021 - came to light when one of the victims, who was 12 at the time, told his mother Morel had sent him sexual messages.

The boy revealed the coach had committed a sex act in front of him, sexually assaulted him and bribed him to perform sex acts on him in exchange for money or Fifa football video games points.

The court also heard Morel would share images with his victims on Instagram, before moving the conversations to Snapchat, allowing him to "delete compromising messages".

Prosecutors said he had targeted boys who were "vulnerable and insecure" and had divulged personal information about his own mental health to gain leverage. He carried out abuse in the victims' homes and in his car.

At one point during the sentencing hearing at Portsmouth Crown Court, the judge told Morel to "stop smirking".

'Shocking case'

One parent read out a victim impact statement and said her son had remained "tormented" since the abuse.

"Guilt, anger and sadness has taken over my life. I am totally broken. I have lost faith in systems and the ways children are protected," she told the court.

Passing sentence, Judge Richard Shepherd said Morel had "ingratiated" himself to the boys who were "football mad".

"You lied, manipulated, coerced, bribed and cajoled for your own sexual pleasure. All the victims looked up to you, you were in a position of trust." he added.

An FA spokesperson said it "welcomes the conviction and sentencing of Mr Morel and we wholly condemn the horrific abuse that this individual inflicted.

"The young victims have shown remarkable courage in speaking up and in giving evidence so that criminal justice could be delivered. Our thoughts are with these children and their families at this time," they added.

Hampshire County Council declined to reveal what action was taken after the school flagged its concern, but said the matter was passed to its children's services department.

"We do not provide information about referrals as this must necessarily remain confidential," a spokesperson added.

"Schools are responsible for undertaking safeguarding checks for staff they employ, as are any third-party organisations providing services to schools.

"However, it is important to understand that individuals who breach their position of trust do so deceptively and will do whatever they can to conceal their actions."

Det Sgt Barry Martin, of Hampshire Constabulary, said: "Even for us who work in policing, and specifically in the investigation of the abuse of children, this is still quite a shocking case."

He said that without the "character" of the victims to come forward and give evidence against Morel he might have offended further.

Morel was also found guilty of three counts of sexual assault of a child under 13, causing or inciting a child into sexual activity, engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child and two counts of sexual communication with a child.

He admitted another count of sexual communication with a child during his trial. He was acquitted of a charge of rape.

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Francis Ward, 36, of Fox Street, was jailed for 25 years at Liverpool Crown Court on Friday, April 22, 2022.

A rapist looked stunned as he was jailed for 25 years for sexually assaulting two teenage girls.

Francis Ward refuses to to accept he raped one of the teenagers and sexually assaulted the other even after being found guilty earlier this year. The two girls and their families faced him down in court today and celebrated as the sex attacker was led to the cells. 

He was open mouthed as Judge Robert Trevor-Jones sentenced him to a lengthy jail term. David Birrell, prosecuting, said Ward, from Fox Street, Liverpool, committed his first attacks on one girl before then targeting the second girl. 

He said that after being arrested Ward, who turned his head away from the victims seated in the public gallery for much of the hearing, denied the attacks took place. Mr Birrell said: “He was arrested and taken into police custody. He was questioned and answered 'no comment' to each and every question."

Ward's denials continued through all of his court hearings, including the trial. Jurors found him guilty of the attacks on March 18. Jonathan Duffy, defending, said Ward still disagreed with the jury’s verdict. Mr Duffy said: “As your honour knows from having heard the trial and what is said in the pre sentence report, the defendant does not agree with the verdicts of the jury but he respects them and understands your honour will have to sentence him on the facts as the jury found them.”

One of the girls addressed the court today, explaining how Ward’s attack had made her contemplate taking her own life. A statement from the second girl, read out by Mr Birrell, outlined similar psychological trauma.

Judge Robert Trevor-Jones told Ward his actions continued to have far reaching consequences for both girls. He said: “Each of them clearly articulated an enduring trauma and scarring. As far as they are concerned, I am satisfied you inflicted serious harm on them.”

Judge Trevor-Jones added that Ward’s continued denials during his trial had forced both girls to “relive the horrors of this abuse, branding them liars in the process”. He jailed Ward for 18 years for the rape and sexual assault of one of the girls and for seven years for the sexual assault on the other.

The length of the sentence appeared to take Ward by surprise. He was open mouthed and shook his head a number of times after the verdict was announced before being taken down to the cells.

Description

Samuel Morris has pleaded guilty to 40 counts of sexual offences against children aged between 11-15yrs old. He was sent to prison for 11 years and has also been given an indefinite sexual harm prevention order.

Morris offences included inciting children to engage in penetrative activity, inciting sexual activity and numerous offences of sexual communication with a child.

Morris also pleaded guilty to possessing indecent images of children of Category A, B, C, extreme pornography and prohibited images and to the distribution of indecent images of children online.

South Wales Police Online Investigation Team (POLIT) conducted a thorough and complex online investigation which resulted in children being identified within the UK as well as in USA and Australia.

POLIT detectives identified that Morris had been posing as a 16 year-old boy on social media platforms such as Instagram and Snapchat to meet children and establish a relationship.

He encouraged children to send indecent images of themselves which he captured with screen recording equipment and saved to his devices before sharing a number of these with other sex offenders via online forums.

The investigation resulted in 31 children aged between 11 and 15 years old being identified as victims.

Due to the complex and thorough investigation conducted by South Wales Police Detectives from the Specialist Crime, Police Online Investigation Team led to an early guilty plea and todays sentence.

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A “DANGEROUS” rapist who “uses his charm to do what he wants” has been jailed.

Ian Mark Whittaker, now 24, put a cloth over the victim’s face to keep her quiet and grabbed her round the neck during the Christmas rape.

Afterwards he used emotional blackmail to try and stop her going to the police, York Crown Court heard.

For two years she didn’t tell officers, but finally she got the courage to do so and Whittaker was convicted.

In her victim personal statement, she said she will never recover from what he did.

“She describes him as a dangerous man, dangerous through his charm and presenting well,” said David Lamb, prosecuting. “He uses that to do what he wants and thinks he will pull the wool over everyone’s eyes with his charm.”

Summarising the statement, the barrister said Whittaker had tried to turn others against her and made “empty promises” that he would admit his guilt and not put her through the ordeal of giving evidence.

But he didn’t and she described “being interrogated in a crown court full of strangers and the defendant forcing her to explain details of the disgusting things he had put her through,” said Mr Lamb.

During the trial “he didn’t show an ounce of remorse, he didn’t even have the decency to look at her,” the barrister said.

She had trusted him and “he had abused that trust and manipulated it to his advantage.”

After the rape more than three years ago, he claimed she would “ruin his life” if she went to police and told her she was “damaged as a result of the rape and no-one else would want her,” said Mr Lamb.

Judge Simon Hickey said the rapist had used emotional pressure to try and prevent the victim going to the police.

In the trial, the jury read several messages sent by Whittaker to the victim about the rape which the judge described as confessions.

They heard how, in a separate incident, Whittaker had put a cloth over the victim’s face and poured water over it.

Whittaker, of Bransholme Drive, Clifton, was jailed for six years and nine months, put on the sex offenders’ register for life and banned from contacting the victim in any way or posting on social media about her, also for life.

He had denied rape but was convicted at trial.

The judge said there was another side to Whittaker and quoted a reference from the defendant’s stepfather which described him as hard-working with good technical skills.

After being made redundant during the pandemic from his security job at York Hospital, he had become a delivery driver.

He had matured in recent times, said the reference.

Defence barrister Katherine Robinson said Whittaker had wanted to go in the Army but would now be unable to do so.

He had no previous convictions.

Description

A man has been given an extended 23-year-sentence after being found guilty of multiple sexual offences in Kirklees.

Adnan Afzal (35) who lived in the Dewsbury area was sentenced for six sexual offences including rape at Leeds Crown Court on Friday (April 22).

The 34-year old was sentenced for rape, attempted rape, and sexual assaults on his victim which took place between 2017 and 2019 in the Kirklees area.

One of the sexual assaults took place when the victim was a young teenager.

He was jailed for 17 years with an extended licence period of six years making for a 23 year term in total.

Afzal was arrested in by officers from the Kirklees Police Child Safeguarding Team in 2019 after the offences were first reported by the victim and her family.

He was found guilty of all six offences by a jury following a four day trial at Leeds Crown Court.

DC Samantha Smith of the Kirklees Child Safeguarding Team, said: I want to praise the courage of the victim in this case in coming forwards and reporting the offending Afzal subjected her to.

We welcome the sentence he has received which reflects the very serious nature of his sentencing and his refusal to admit his crimes against his victim and put her and her family through the ordeal of a trial.

Victims of sexual offences will always be listened to and we will do all we can with partners to support them, investigate reported offences, and seek justice for them.

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A man was arrested in a Norwich car park after arranging to meet a teenage boy who turned out to be a police officer.

Adrian Stevens, 50, had arranged to meet a 14-year-old boy he had been communicating with online at a car park in Albion Way, Norwich.

Norwich Crown Court heard Stevens was in fact met by an undercover police "decoy" who he thought had been a teenage boy.

Nicholas Bleaney, prosecuting, said Stevens, who was 49 at the time of the offending, had hoped to have sex when he met the boy.

Mr Bleaney said the meeting came after "significant planning" by Stevens who had offered to purchase gifts and also talked about trips to McDonalds with the decoy.

Stevens, of High Way, Lingwood, appeared in court for sentence on Friday (April 22) having previously been found guilty after trial of attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child between August 19, 2020 and September 2, 2020.

He was also convicted of arranging the commission of a child sex offence.

Jailing Stevens for four years, Judge Alice Robinson said he had been the person who suggested a meeting with the person he thought had been a teenage boy but in fact was a police decoy.

Michael Clare, mitigating, said no physical offence was actually committed nor could have been committed, given that the 14-year-old boy never existed.

He said the defendant was an intelligent man with a good job and it was a "terrible waste" he found himself in this position but accepted "he only has himself to blame".

Mr Clare said Stevens was almost 51 and apart from this matter had no previous convictions.

He added the defendant helped look after his mother and had mental health difficulties.

Stevens was also made the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) for 10 years and ordered to sign on the sex offenders' register indefinitely.

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A PORTSMOUTH predator has been sentenced to four years in prison for sexually abusing two children. Duncan Daniels, 21, of Sackville Street in Southsea, appeared at Portsmouth Crown Court today (April 22) for sentencing having previously pleaded guilty to three counts of sexual activity with a child, one count of sexual communication with a child and one count of sexual assault on a child. The offences first came to the attention of police in June 2019 when one of the victims reported that Daniels had touched her inappropriately on several occasions earlier that month when he was 18 and she was 14. Two days later, a second victim came forward to report that Daniels had sexually assaulted him in a number of incidents when he was just 12-years-old and again two years later when he was 14. Officers launched an investigation and Daniels was arrested and later charged. DC Maria Sweeney, who led the investigation, said: Daniels repeatedly took advantage of his two young victims in vulnerable situations and we would like to commend them for their courage in coming forward to report this abuse. Without their bravery, we would not have secured this conviction. I sincerely hope that this sentence begins to bring some closure to those he affected, and that it helps others who have suffered similar abuse to find the confidence to come forward and speak to the police knowing their voices will be heard. Police encourage anyone who has been a victim of child sexual abuse to contact police on 101 where you can speak with our specialist detectives in confidence.

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A PENSIONER who sexually assaulted a woman was jailed after a judge condemned him for his gratuitous degradation of her. Paul Darnell, 73, from Abertillery, was branded a cowardly bully by Recorder Richard Booth QC, who told him he had humiliated his victim. The defendant had denied the offences but was convicted by a jury following a trial. Sign up to our Crime and Court newsletter to get all the days news direct to your inbox Darnell, of Commercial Road, Llanhilleth, was found guilty of assault by penetration, sexual assault and common assault. He had denied all the charges against him. Matthew Cobbe, prosecuting, said the woman had made a victim personal statement in which she revealed how the defendant had terrified her. Cardiff Crown Court heard how she now suffers flashbacks of her ordeal. She said: I feel embarrassed and ashamed of what happened. Ive never been so frightened in my life as I was on the day of the incidents. I live like a scared animal. Kathryn Lane, representing Darnell, asked the judge to take into account the defendants age and that he was a man of previous good character. She added how her client suffers from a host of health issues which include anxiety, depression, diabetes and a heart condition. Recorder Booth told Darnell: You spanked her and in the course of a terrifying incident you made unwanted sexual advances upon and unwanted sexual demands of your victim. The judge added: There was the gratuitous degradation of her. These were the offences of a cowardly bully. He was jailed for three years and told he will have to serve half of that time in prison before he will be released on licence. Darnell will have to register as a sex offender for life. The defendant was ordered to pay a 181 victim surcharge following his release from custody.

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A seedy sex offender started searching for sickening images of child pornography just a month after being spared prison for having "very lewd" sexualised online chats with a decoy 12-year-old girl. Devious and sneaky Anthony Press tried desperately to cover up what he was doing by deleting his internet search history but he was caught out when police made checks on his activities and discovered what he was secretly doing.

It was a "deliberate" breach of the "golden opportunity" that he had been given to turn over a new leaf and change his ways, Hull Crown Court heard. Press, 40, of Wentworth Way, Hull, admitted breaching a sexual harm prevention order and failing to register his details as a sex offender.

Stephen Welch, prosecuting, said that in March 2019, Press was given an 18-month suspended prison sentence at Hull Crown Court for attempting to communicate sexually with a child. He repeatedly contacted a fake 12-year-old girl, who told him her supposed age, and he used "very lewd language" to her in their messages.

Within a month of being given the suspended sentence, Press was searching on the internet for indecent images of children. A detective asked to look at his phone as part of monitoring on April 2, 2019 but there was no search history on it and Press claimed that he had to reset it and lost the internet history.

This was in breach of a court order which banned him from deleting his internet history. He had searched for "teen brunette f****d" in the early hours of that morning but claimed that it was "just out of boredom".

On January 31, 2020, the detective went to the home of Press, who was very nervous throughout the visit. There were no indecent images of children on his computer equipment but search records suggested that he had been seeking such images. Settings put in place erased data after the internet was exited.

"This was a very serious breach," said Mr Welch. "The defendant accepts that it was done deliberately to avoid detection on downloading indecent images of children. All of that which he was seeking for was going to be illegal."

Press should have gone to the police to update and confirm his details on September 13, 2020 but he did not do so until September 23 - 10 days late. Hannah Turner, mitigating, said that, apart from these incidents, Press had fully complied with the terms of the suspended sentence and had increased insight into his behaviour and the impact that it had on others.

"It's obviously a deliberate breach," said Miss Turner. "We don't know what actual material was accessed. We have just the search terms.

"There is no hiding from the fact that this offence occurred within a month of that suspended sentence being imposed. He feels embarrassed and ashamed in respect of what he has done."

Press had medical difficulties and walked with the assistance of a walking stick. Judge John Thackray QC told Press: "The court gave you a golden opportunity to rehabilitate yourself. Within a month of receiving that golden opportunity, you were committing these serious offences.

"You were doing your best to find indecent images of children and to hide the fact that you were looking for indecent images of children. Indecent images of children and those who attempt to obtain them fuel child sexual abuse and untold suffering and harm to the children who are abused, photographed and videoed, at or from a young age, often with adverse consequences for them.

"I am not satisfied that your risk can be managed in the community or that you can be rehabilitated in the community."

Press was jailed for one year. The sentence included a consecutive four months after part of the original suspended sentence was activated.

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A pervert asked what he believed was a 13-year-old girl to ring him for a sick phone call, but didn't realise he was actually speaking to an undercover cop. Paul Barrett has been jailed for two years after failing to convince a jury that he thought that the account he was speaking to was an adult 'role playing'.

Barrett, who was 40-years-old at the time of the offence, used an online chat room to speak with a profile called 'Sasha' between January and February 2019, Bolton Crown Court heard. Despite the account telling Barrett that she was 13-years-old and in school, he turned the conversation sexual.

In the first conversation, Barrett asked if she liked getting kissed and also asked if she wanted to perform sexual acts on him. The following day he asked the account questions about her school uniform and detailed sexual acts that he wanted to perform on her.

Sickeningly, Barrett then sent a message with his phone number and asked if he could speak with the girl directly so he could 'hear her orgasm'. The undercover police officer operating the account rang the number twice but Barrett did not answer.

Barrett, of Nearcroft Road, Wythenshawe, was arrested in March 2019 but denied the offences in interview and subsequently pleaded not guilty to a string of crimes under the Sexual Offences Act. Following a trial, a jury found him guilty of sexual communication and three counts of attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity.

Defence barrister Helen Longworth told the court that Barrett has a 'supportive' family, including a partner and two step sons. She said that at the time of the offence, he was going through 'family difficulties' and 'stress' at work.

Ms Longworth also said that Barrett, now 43, has no previous convictions and cited the long delay between the arrest and case going to trial. She added: "Imprisonment will affect him but also have a significant impact on his family who clearly rely upon him."

Judge Tom Gilbart jailed Barrett for two years. He said: "I find it utterly mind boggling to consider how a father could act in this way to a person he thought was a 13-year-old child."

"These were extremely serious offences in which you sought to engage a child in sexual activity of the most serious kind. It was predatory behaviour by you."

Barrett will be subject to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for the next 10 years. He will also have to sign the Sex Offender Register for the same length of time.

Description

A predatory sex offender who attempted to seek out vulnerable teens online has been jailed.

Luke Winder, 27, interacted with four online profiles which he believed were operated by young girls, aged about 12 or 13.

Norwich Crown Court heard two of the profiles he contacted were actually undercover police officers.

John Morgans, prosecuting, said as part of the offences, which happened between 2016 and 2020, asked the profiles he was engaging with to send pictures of themselves.

He received a photo on at least one occasion.

Mr Morgans said some of the offending happened at the time when Winder was 21 and the girls he thought he was contacting were 12 or 13.

Winder, of Thorpe Road, Norwich, appeared at court for sentence on Thursday (April 21) having previously admitted attempting to cause a child to engage in sexual activity

He had also previously admitted three counts of attempting to engage in sexual communications with a child.

Jailing Winder for 36 months, Judge Katharine Moore described Winder's behaviour as "predatory" and "corrupting".

Judge Moore said he was "seeking out or attempting to seek out vulnerable young teens".

The judge said it was his "sexual interest in young girls" which resulted in these offences.

Rob Pollington, mitigating, said these were attempts, or "decoy offences", rather than actual offences.

He said the defendant, who admitted his offending, had a significant issue with his health having suffered a brain haemorrhage which had inhibited him to a great extent.

He said the defendant did not feel comfortable speaking to peers and sought companionship in an electronic world.

Mr Pollington said his client felt more attractive to those he interacted with online, which he acknowledged was wrong.

But he said he does suffer from "an entrenched problem" which he needed to get to grips with and be rehabilitated.

Winder must sign on the sex offenders' register indefinitely.

The defendant might also be made the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) but that has been adjourned until April 28.

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A FORMER karate coach caught with more than 100 indecent images was caught red-handed when he tried to talk to a minor online. Jordan McCarthy-Simmonette was arrested in October 2019 by officers from one of Northumbria Polices most specialist units the Paedophile Online Investigation Team (POLIT). Detectives acted after receiving information the 24-year-old had been talking to someone he believed was a 14-year-old male online but was actually engaging with a registered sex offender, who was the subject of a separate ongoing police investigation. When he was arrested his Newcastle home was also searched and a tablet and mobile phone were seized and taken for examination. Digital Investigators soon uncovered 109 Category C images stored on the devices, and McCarthy-Simmonnette was charged with attempted sexual communication with a child and possession of indecent images of children. Following his arrest, extensive partnership work was carried out between officers and partners from the local authorities to ensure McCarthy-Simmonette was removed from his role as coach and appropriate measures put in place. McCarthy-Simmonette, of Teviotdale Gardens, in Heaton appeared at Newcastle Crown Court on Wednesday (April 20) where he was sentenced to 10 months imprisonment suspended for two years, after previously pleading guilty. He was also given a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) for seven years and placed on the Sex Offenders Register for 10 years. Speaking after the sentencing, Detective Constable Rob Smoult from POLIT said: As a force we are committed to keeping children and young people safe from harmful and dangerous online predators. In this case, McCarthy-Simmonette believed he was engaging with a 14-year-old boy and unfazed by this. That behaviour is completely unacceptable. Thanks to a thorough investigation, a solid case was presented before the courts and McCarthy-Simmonette was left with little opportunity to deny his actions and I am pleased he has admitted his guilt. We know that cases like this can cause concern in our communities, but I want to reassure people that we are constantly working with our partners in the local authority and across a wide range of services to ensure the right measures and appropriate safeguards are in place to keep children and young people safe from harm. We will continue to work with schools, youth groups and parents to highlight the dangers which can be present across different platforms and would encourage adults to keep talking to their children about who they engaging with, and to keep promoting the use of privacy settings.