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A former Harrogate headteacher has been found guilty of making indecent images of children.

Matthew Shillito, 42, pleaded not guilty to making 20 Category B images and 3,829 Category C images between December 3, 2012 and December 31, 2015.

Shillito was appointed headteacher of Western Primary School in 2019.

He was previously headteacher across the Goldsborough Sicklinghall Federation of schools.

None of the offences related to his employment.

Shillito appeared before York Magistrates Court this morning, where District Judge Adrian Lower found him guilty on both charges.

He said the evidence showed Shillito had a corrosive, addictive interest in child pornography.

During the case, making was defined as knowingly accessing a site that contained an indecent image.

The court was told that there was no evidence that Mr Shillito downloaded the material onto his laptop.

The prosecution opened proceedings at Harrogate Magistrates Court last month and said the indecent images were found on the cache in Shillitos computer, which could have only have got there had he accessed sites with those images.

Philip Morris, prosecuting, said there were indicative terms found on Shillitos laptop which showed intent to access the images.

Police arrested Shillito and seized two computers at his address on January 4, 2020.

Officers recovered a Dell laptop and a MacBook Pro, which contained a back up from an iPad mini which was not found.

Giving evidence to the court last month, Zoe Warboys, a digital forensic investigation officer at North Yorkshire Police, said that while the defendant may not have been aware of the cache, he could have only got them by accessing the material.

A Russian website named in court was frequently accessed on the Dell laptop, which Ms Warboys told the court was a site which contained indecent images of children.

The site is public and allows users to upload albums of images which others can view.

The court heard how the site was frequently visited on February 26, 2011.

Mr Morris told the court that Shillito visited some of the pages which were indicative of possibly including indecent images 30 times.

Shillito repeatedly denied both charges throughout the case.

This morning, District Judge Lower adjourned sentencing Shillito until September 7. He bailed Shillito but warned him all sentencing options would be considered including jail.

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A MAN has been jailed for attempting to sexually assault a woman in her 70s. Kaspars Grikis has been a registered sex offender for five years since sexually assaulting four women in a supermarket in Crawley in 2020. The 38-year-old admitted the attempted sexual touching of the elderly woman near his home on July 22 this year. Crawley Magistrates Court heard that he had approached the woman, who he didnt know, and tried to engage her in conversation. He then touched and attempted to kiss her. She resisted and police were informed. Grikis, of Clappers Gate, Crawley, was given a 12-month prison sentence and will be on the sex offenders' register for another five years. He was also given a restraining order to last until further notice, prohibiting him from any contact with the woman. Police Constable Mat Wyatt said: "Grikis has already been a registered sex offender for five years following his conviction in June 2020 for sexual assaults on four women at a supermarket in Crawley. The new five-year requirement imposed on August 2 will make him subject to our supervision for a total of ten years from 2020. "When the incident was reported in July we took prompt action to protect the victim by ensuring this persistent offender was brought back before the court, who have now given him the maximum custodial sentence for this offending, taking him off the streets, and imposing further restrictions on his conduct."

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A sex offender arrested for spying on mums changing babies' nappies in a supermarket has been jailed. Pervert Paul Thomas was made the subject of an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) after grooming and meeting a child.

But, as reported by StokeonTrentLive, the 41-year-old was then arrested in October 2020 after watching parents in the baby changing area clean up their children for his own sexual gratification.

And during police interview, he disclosed that he had been in a relationship with a woman who had three children, including two under the age of 16. As a result, he breached the order by staying overnight at her address without informing the authorities.

Prosecutor Harinderpal Dhami told Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court how Thomas disclosed he had been in a relationship with the mum who had no idea of his offending history. On October 4 he handed his phone to police and he disclosed to his probation officer he had deleted messages received from the Plenty of Fish dating site.

Mr Dhami said: "His phone was analysed and there were 6,529 web entries that had been deleted. There was no suggestion that material being sought was indecent images of children.

"He also deleted WhatsApp messages. There were 507 internet search items deleted. It seemed to be indicative that the defendant searched for his own name and details."

Thomas, of no fixed address, admitted breaching a SHPO and two charges of failing to comply with notification requirements of the sex offenders' register. Stuart Muldoon, mitigating, said: "He is sorry for what he has done. The remorse is genuine.

"He did not wish there to be any interference by the authorities in that relationship. That is why he did not disclose it to the authorities."

Judge Sally Hancox jailed Thomas for two years. She said: "You formed a friendship with a woman who had three daughters, two were under 16 at the time. You stayed overnight with that woman at her home, she being in complete ignorance of your previous offending record.

"You failed to comply with the notification requirements in that you failed to tell those who monitor you that your address had changed. There was no wrongdoing on your part towards her or her family.

"You breached the SHPO by deleting your internet usage and search history on your mobile phone. You remain a risk. Thankfully, nothing found to be deleted was a concern. It was still a deliberate breach of your SHPO."

Speaking after the case, Police Constable Sarah Gifford said: Thomas thought he could lie and deceive police about his activities and cover his tracks. Im glad he has been handed a custodial sentence and hope it goes to show how we continue to monitor sexual offenders in order to bring them to justice.

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A shamed Asda boss has been convicted of sexually abusing two girls. George Gallagher, 30, groped a 12-year-old girl at the supermarket in Glasgow's Forge shopping centre on April 19, 2021.

He earlier attacked another girl aged between 11 and 13 at various locations in Glasgow including his home in the city's Dennistoun as well as a caravan park in Strathaven, South Lanarkshire, between February 2017 and 2019.

Glasgow Sheriff Court heard that the first girl wandered from her mum to look at jewellery in the women's department when Gallagher struck. Prosecutor Jessica McGowan heard Gallagher - who was applying to join the police - spent minutes claiming to look for a colleague and clothing. Gallagher groped the girl as she walked past him.

The court was also told that, while on a visit to the caravan park, Gallagher wrapped the second girl's legs around his waist before cuddling and groping her.

The girl claimed that she got extremely upset at the thought of being alone with Gallagher. It was stated that Gallagher would wait to get the girl alone where he would lift up her skirt grope and cuddle her.

Gallagher was convicted of two charges of sexual assault and a separate charge of engaging in a sex act with someone underage. Sheriff Iain Fleming told Gallagher that he preferred the victims' evidence to his.

The sheriff added: "I regard that the touching was sexual in intention by you. The [12-year-old] girl said that 'he rubbed his arm against me and it was a really hard touch'. You had ample room to avoid her but you chose to walk close to her.

"You had no business being in that area of the store. You had no reason to be in the women's department when your area is fruit and veg - you should not have been there. I'm satisfied beyond reasonable doubt of you guilt."

Members of the public gallery clapped after the verdict was read and Gallagher was put on the sex offenders register. Sentence was deferred pending background reports until next month.

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A "wicked and cruel" man who tied up and raped a woman after attacking her with an axe has been jailed. Mark Yeates, 51, hit the woman on the head with the weapon at a property in Accrington, Lancashire, on 28 February. Yeates, of Nuttall Street, Accrington, posed "a real risk of further offending towards women", Lancashire Police said. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison at Preston Crown Court after pleading guilty to three counts of rape and one of assault. A police spokesman said officers were alerted to a serious sexual assault at a property at about 10:25 GMT on 28 February. 'Dangerousness' He said Yeates was quickly identified as the prime suspect and arrested later the same day, but answered no comment to all questions put to him during interview. Yeates was given a further eight years on extended licence and ordered to sign the sex offender's register for life. Speaking after sentencing, Det Con Jo Billington said he was "a wicked and cruel individual, who, as recognised by the judge, poses a real risk of further offending towards women". She said she was pleased with the sentence he received, which reflected "his dangerousness". She added that the woman who he attacked deserved praise for her "bravery" during the case. "I hope the courage she has shown... will encourage other victims of sexual offences to come forward," she said.

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A woman raped by a "brutish and violent" thug while pregnant went on to suffer a miscarriage soon after.

The woman was repeatedly raped by Faran Abbas during a nine month long campaign of abuse which left her feeling scared, broken and unable to recognise herself in the mirror. Preston Crown Court today heard that Abbas attempted to use his religious background to justify his behaviour but that was rubbished by a judge who told him: "There is no excuse, nor could there ever be."

The victim had only known Abbas, 28, for a few months but after an initial good impression, he soon began to "treat her life as his own, her body as his own". In a powerful victim impact statement read to the court, the woman revealed the extent of the impact caused by Abbas' evil action. He, meanwhile, has since remarried a "new, young wife".

In a trial at Preston Crown Court, Abbas, of Church Street, Accrington, was found guilty of five counts of rape and two counts of controlling and coercive behaviour. Each of those rape charges accounted for more than one incident and the jury took just one hour to make a decision.

That trial heard that the woman kept a heartbreaking diary in which she wrote: "He took and took from me until I no longer existed." She said Abbas repeatedly raped her during the eight month ordeal and that members of his family turned a blind eye, while her own family saw her go from a "bright, bubbly, confident young lady to a woman they hardly recognised".

Abbas returned to the court to be sentenced today as David Traynor, prosecuting, summarised the victim's impact statement. He said she had been left suffering from nightmares and insomnias, had lost friends and her career and was constantly scared of being attacked and kidnapped.

It continued: "I feel I'm a stranger in my on reflection. I don't recognise myself in the mirror. I do want to believe the broken person staring back is me. I have lost everything [...] because of what he did to me."

Defending, David Ellis accepted the was no credit available after what he described as an exceedingly fair trial. Arguing against a life sentence, he offered the small mitigation that this wasn't a "campaign" in the legal sense that it wasn't multiple victims. Mr Ellis described Abbas as "a creation of his upbringing and his own heritage" and that he had five character references from people who supported him, including one from his "new, young wife".

Sentencing, Judge Simon Medland QC said: "You behaved in a brutish and violent way. You treated her as someone whose opinions were not worth listening to, who could be treated with the utmost contempt and indeed on many occasions with cruelty.

"You sought, in my view, to subvert the peaceful and respectable religion of Islam to use that as an excuse for your conduct. Islam is no excuse for your conduct. There is no excuse, nor could there ever be. The impact on your victim is very significant indeed."

"Over a period of nine months, I am quite sure you behaved in a violent and brutal way to a woman who did not deserve any such treatment. Treating her life as your own and her body as your own."

Ruling out a whole life term, Judge Medland handed Abbas an 18 year sentence. He also ruled that Abbas should be classified as a dangerous offender. That means that he will only be released if a parole board approves it and that he can only apply for parole two thirds of the way through the sentence.

He will also spend an additional two years on licence after the full term and will be subject to notification requirements for the rest of his life.

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Police have issued an appeal to find a wanted sex offender. Paul Chapman failed to comply with his probation licence, cops have said.

The 58-year-old also reportedly breached sex offender notification requirements. Chapman is from the Dudley area and a warrant is out for his arrest.

Anyone who sees him or has information on his whereabouts is asked to call 999 immediately.

A spokesperson for Dudley police said on Twitter: "Do you know where Paul Chapman is? The 58-year-old from Dudley is wanted on a warrant for failing to comply with his probation licence & breaching sex offender notification requirements.

"If you have any information please call 999 quoting 20/183619/22."

Cops shared an image of Chapman alongside the statement. It showed him with a grey beard and blue eyes.

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A self-professed paedophile who blackmailed dozens of girls as young as 12 into becoming his 'sex slaves' today pleaded guilty to his crimes.

Jordan Croft, 26, of West Sussex, forced his victims to perform sexual and degrading acts on themselves and other children as part of his depraved desires.

Croft was caught after he was linked to 20 different online profiles in which he would intimidate victims aged between 12 and 22 before coercing them into his 'contract of sexual slavery'.

Once online Croft would weave his web of deceit, conning victims into believing he was a teenage boy so he could befriend them before confessing he was a much older 'catfish' who was 'into girls aged 12-14'.

He would then demand his 26 different victims to send him increasingly graphic child sexual abuse images and videos on demand.

On just one messaging platform he contacted more than 5,000 people, and would label the abuse the children sent him with a list of their social media followings, in addition to their names and ages.

Croft's stash was even designed to cover his traces, with all content uploaded to a USB device he owned being programmed to ensure activity was deleted once plugged into a computer.

He today pleaded guilty to 65 counts which include inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, blackmail, intentionally causing the sexual exploitation of a child.

Croft will appear before Lewes Crown Court for sentencing on Thursday, November 10.

One of Croft's rules was that all victims must speak to him on Telegram, an encrypted platform, and send him any photographs or videos he requested.

He would first ask for a naked 'custom pic' that he would decide on, and use that to leverage increasingly depraved and graphic content.

Croft would request images and videos were sent in a very short timeframe, further dominating them by forcing them to ask permission to go to the toilet and inform him when they would be busy, so he didn't think they were ignoring him.

Numerous police forces had filed reports of online abuse connected to Croft.

Once they identified him as the paedophile behind multiple usernames, they arrested him in September 2019, seizing two mobile phones and a USB stick.

The messaging applications were on an encrypted side of both phones where Croft collected the vile material from his child victims.

Even more content was discovered on the USB stick which was programmed to ensure all traces of activity were deleted after it was plugged into the computer.

Croft's charges include multiple counts of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, blackmail, making unwarranted demands for indecent images of children, intentionally causing or inciting the sexual exploitation of a child.

He was also charged with making more than 900 indecent images of children in categories A-C. Category A images are the most obscene, with a minimum of six years imprisonment for making them.

Martin Ludlow, senior investigating officer at the National Crime Agency, who led the investigation, said: 'Jordan Croft is a prolific offender who has caused heart-breaking suffering to many victims and their families.

'The sexual depravity he consistently displayed during this abuse of both young female children and adults is horrific.

'Like many offenders Croft thrived on the power he was able to exert over the victims. He sought the feeling of control and obtained it by deceit and abuse.

'He showed no compassion for the victims, pushing them to breaking point and issuing threats, even when they begged him to stop.

'I commend these young women who have shown such bravery in speaking out against him.

'Croft is an example of an adult sexual offender who deploys plausible online profiles to hide their real identity and exploit children.

'We know children are increasingly sharing personal material on social media sites, but I urge them be aware of the hurt and long term damage manipulative offenders like Croft cause, and to think carefully about who they may be communicating with online.

'The NCA will continue to pursue the most serious offenders, including those who believe they can hide behind the anonymity of the internet to abuse children. Like Croft they will be brought to justice.'

Heather Wilkinson of the CPS said: 'Croft admitted to sexually abusing 26 people and actively sought victims as young as 12 to sexually abuse and exert power over.

'Although he attempted to hide his activity through private networks, evidence uncovered against him included age filters he set on a phone app and the controlling rules he shared.

'This guilty plea means the victims of his abuse will now not be forced to re-live their trauma through a trial.

'Our Organised Child Sexual Abuse Unit has specialist prosecutors to enable us to bring offenders like Croft to justice, helping stop online abuse and extortion, and its devastating impact on victims.'

Croft today pleaded guilty to all 65 counts at Lewes Crown Court and is due back at court for sentencing on 10 November.

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A MAN caught by a group of 'paedophile hunters' attempting to meet a teenage girl has had his sentencing put back. Darren Rybak was stung by the group at Barrow's railway station after he exchanged messages with a 13-year-old girl who turned out to be a decoy. A video of the sting was posted on social media by the group Elusive Child Protection Unit. Rybak, 50, of Nelson Street in Barrow, admitted attempting to meet a girl under 16 following grooming and attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child. He was due to be sentenced at Preston Crown Court on Tuesday but did not show up. A warrant was issued but it later transpired he had told his solicitors he was unwell. He is now due to be sentenced on Friday. In the video Rybak is confronted by members of the group outside the railway station, who claim he has arrived there to meet a girl who has travelled more than two hours from Manchester. Rybak tells the group he was going to take the 'girl' back to his home to 'watch movies'. He also admits sending explicit images of himself to the decoy account. Rybak also tells the group he would class himself as a 'paedophile'. The dating site account he had communicated with was operated by a member of the group. Until his sentence he is subject to interim notification requirements under the Sexual Offences Act Police in Cumbria have made it clear they do not condone the methods of 'paedophile hunter' groups. Peter McCall, the county's police and crime commissioner, said: "It's a difficult area - what we don't want is people going around taking the law into their own hands. "But there is no doubt information they have supplied has led to catching and prosecuting some offenders. "The message is: if you do have information concerning these online predators feed it to the police and they can look into it." A spokesman said: "Cumbria Constabulary will act appropriately on any information which is reported. "However, the Constabularys position on so-called paedophile hunter groups reflects the position of the National Police Chiefs Council, in that we understand the desire to protect children but any member of the public who has information about child sexual abuse, online or otherwise, should contact police so it can be investigated and bring offenders to justice."

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A paedophile piano teacher was found with tens of thousands of pictures and videos of child sexual abuse, including horrific videos that he had captured of his own students. Ben Thomas, 30, taught piano lessons to children as young as eight and captured "upskirting" videos of the youngsters during lessons.

His horrifying crimes were discovered when the mum of his eight-year-old student found "innapropriate" messages between her child and Thomas, who had asked the child to send him videos of her "blowing him a kiss". He had also asked the eight-year-old to dance naked for him.

Thomas, of Westbourne Grove, Hessle, has been jailed for two years, after pleading guilty to taking indecent photographs and videos of children, and of possessing indecent photographs and videos of children. Analysis of his phone and other devices found a shocking 26,461 images and 445 videos in Categories A, B and C.

A total of 1,625 of these were of the most serious category, which includes the penetrative sexual activity of children. Victims in the images that were found on Thomas' devices were as young as three years old, Grimsby Crown Court heard on Friday (August 5).

A total of 16 of Thomas' students were victims of his crimes, with 64 videos taken of the children between June and July last year. The paedophile would teach the students at a North Lincolnshire school, as well as in his own home and their homes, GrimsbyLive reports.

During his lessons, Thomas would ask the girls to lean over the piano in order to examine the instrument's "inner works", at which point he would secretly film them on his mobile phone. The court heard that none of the children were aware of what was happening.

Prosecuting, Nigel Clive QC told the court that Thomas was finally caught when the mother of one of the victims discovered inappropriate WhatsApp messages between him and her daughter, who was just eight years old at the time. The court heard that the girl's piano lessons were supposed to last for half-an-hour, but over time they became "longer and longer".

Thomas would contact the girl via WhatsApp and send pictures and videos of his cats, he also asked her to send him a video of her "blowing him a kiss". He had also filmed the girl playing with his cats at his home and, in the video, he asked her to perform several gymnastics moves such as the crab and splits.

When the mother found the messages, she contacted Thomas and told him that his messages were innapropriate and that he should stop contacting her daughter, which he did. The mother then contacted Humberside Police.

Thomas was arrested and officers seized his mobile phone and laptop, which was found to have tens of thousands of images and videos "systematically stored". He was initially interviewed by police on August 11 last year, during which he provided the codes to unlock his devices.

He was then bailed pending the analysis of his devices. When he was re-interviewed by police on December 21, he answered "no comment" to officers' questions. But the disgusting content on Thomas' devices helped to secure a conviction.

The impact of Thomas' horrific actions was heard in court, when parents of the girl's that he taught read their victim statements. One parent said: "For someone that age she is not trusting of people. She was such a confident girl but now she won't wear a skirt or a dress, even during the summer."

Another said that their daughter is "less trusting of teachers and men". They added: "She is more suspicious of everyone and feels misled by this defendant. She is shocked that someone would take advantage."

Mitigating, Alexander Leach QC said: "It was a descent into a world of internet porn that led to indecent images of children and culminated in the production of the indecent images of children. The most serious aggravating factors are the abuse of trust, the fact that the children were known to the defendant and the number of children. There was a profound abuse of trust and a damage to the confidence of these children."

Mr Leach told the court that Thomas had "unfettered access" to internet porn and unregulated file sharing platforms from the age of 11. He said: "This was a course of conduct that was put in place from a very young age. He has taken exceptional steps to rehabilitation, he has engaged with therapy."

Sentencing, Recorder Kelly addressed Thomas: "The fallout does not simply remain with you recording images of them. Some of the parents have expressed how guilty they feel by allowing them to be in your presence. But it is not their fault, it is your fault alone. You fooled them into thinking you were trustworthy.

"You lost your employment, your fiancée called off your engagement, but these risks must have occurred to you as being a consequence of how you were acting. You have lost your good name and also the possibility of forming an adult relationship. The impact of the offending will live with you for your adult life, but you only have yourself to blame.

"The children don't seem real to you. The abuse these children suffered to enable these images to be made are real. For every image you downloaded, a child had to be sexually abused. You and people like you fuel the need for children to be sexually abused."

Thomas was also handed a ten-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order which will prohibit him from using any device which accesses the internet. He also cannot delete any messages on any electronic device, live with any female under the age of 16 or have any contact with any female under the age of 16. He is also required to sign on the Sex Offenders Register for 10 years.

Officer in the case Detective Constable Becky McInnis from Humberside Police's Protecting Vulnerable People Unit said: "The actions of Ben Thomas cannot be described as anything other than deceitful. He abused his position of trust preying on some of the most vulnerable members of our society who looked up to and trusted him.

"I am pleased he is now being punished for his unforgiveable actions. I’d like to commend the bravery and the courage of his victims and their families throughout the entirety of the investigation and court proceedings.

"I hope the outcome will provide them with some comfort in knowing that, by having the courage and strength to come forward, they have undoubtedly prevented others falling victim to the actions of this man."

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A Royton man used his knowledge as a computer repair technician to download images of children being sexually abused, a court has heard. Kevin Lane of Wendlebury Green pleaded guilty to making indecent photographs of a child and downloading images of children over several years. The 53-year-old appeared at Minshull Street Crown Court on Thursday (August 4), where he was sentenced to 21 months imprisonment suspended for 24 months, placed on the sex offender register for 10 years and subjected to a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) for 10 years. Lane was also given a 40-day rehabilitation activity requirement. An internal inquiry by Lanes employers is meanwhile set for next week and will result in his dismissal. In mitigation, defence barrister Richard Orme said Lane had no previous convictions and had taken full responsibility for his actions and expressed genuine remorse. Mr Orme also called on Judge Hilary Manley to consider the effect of Lanes incarceration on his son who has severe medical issues. Judge Manley acknowledged Mr Ormes points in mitigation and discussed the sentencing guidelines with prosecutor John Kennerly. Turning to Lane, Judge Manley said: Over several years you downloaded images of children being sexually abused. Some of those images were of very young children. As a result of your work as a computer repair man you knew exactly what you were doing and the steps to take to cover your tracks. She added: Having been caught you lied and lied again. You couldnt bring yourself to own up to what you did and then finally pleaded guilty at trial before being convicted by a jury. Judge Manley however said she accepted Lane had expressed remorse, all be it late in the day and acknowledged he had no previous convictions. Addressing Lane while passing sentence, Judge Manley said: If you fail in any way to adhere to what the probation service set out for you to do over the next two years you will be back before me and regardless of the effect on your son, I will have no choice but to act on the suspended sentence.

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This is the face of a predator who has been locked up for 17 years for child sex offences.

Kieron Jackson, from Salford, was put behind bars on at Bolton Crown Court on Tuesday (August 2), police said. The 33-year-old was first reported to officers by a 'concerned party' who alleged that he had had sexual contact with a child.

An investigation was launched and a judge has now jailed Jackson for 17 years for sexual offences against children. Police said the child now has the 'justice they deserve'.

Officers posted about Jackson, of Holm Court, on the Greater Manchester Police Salford Facebook page. In full, the post said: "#LOCKEDUP | A Salford man has been jailed for 17 years for sexual offences against children. Kieron Jackson, 33, of Holm Court, Salford was jailed at Bolton Crown Court on 2 August 2022, for sexual offences against children.

"Jackson was reported to GMP on 8 June 2020 by a concerned party who alleged hed had sexual contact with a child."

Investigating SIO, DC Paula Birchby, said: "I am extremely pleased for the child and her family, who now have the justice they deserve. The hard work of everyone involved in the case meant that Jackson was convicted and that a lengthy sentence has been issued.

"The police and courts have shown that this terrible abuse will not be tolerated."

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A judge has praised the courage of the victims of a serial stalker and rapist in giving evidence against an offender branded a danger to society.

Lord Richardson made the remarks as he handed former squaddie Ian Ewart Ramsay, 49, a 13 year sentence for an appalling campaign of abuse against nine terrified women. The High Court in Edinburgh had heard how Ramsay obsessively pursued women during a six-year crime spree and used blackmail to get a woman to continue to have sex with him.

Ramsay, who served in the first Gulf War, physically assaulted the women, stalked them and raped four of his victims, who cannot be named for legal reasons. Ramsay, of Kelso, in the Scottish Borders, had denied a string of charges during his trial.

He originally faced a total of 47 charges, but the jury was only asked to return verdicts on 21 charges. He was acquitted of one rape, three assaults and a stalking allegation following a trial last May.

Sentence had been deferred for the court to obtain reports on Ramsays background. The case called again on Friday and the court heard how Ramsay still expresses no remorse for his offences. Passing sentence, Lord Richardson told Ramsay that hed be supervised and be under licence for three years following his release from custody.

He said: The offences to which you have been convicted of show that you engaged in a course of behaviour that can only be described as a campaign of abuse against these women. You refused to take no for an answer.

"It is clear to me from both from the evidence that I have heard and from the Victim Impact Statements which I have read that you made the lives of these women traumatic and utterly intolerable. They are to be commended for coming forward to give evidence against you.

During proceedings, the court heard from one woman who was raped by Ramsay in hotels. She said: "He is so manipulative. He is evil. He is a horrible, horrible person and is a danger to society."

The 51-year-old manager met Ramsay, whom she knew as Ewart, through an online dating site and he told her he was a farmer and was previously in the Army. She said: "We would meet in various restaurants and hotels in Glasgow and occasionally the Borders."

But the woman said he became possessive and controlling. She told the court: "It was non-stop harassment. A number of times I tried to break off with him but he would not have it. It was horrendous. It was the worst experience of my life."

She said that Ramsay stole her phone and took images from it to blackmail her with. She added: "It was terrible. I couldn't get rid of him. At one stage I was even contemplating suicide it was that bad. I would need to go along with him and meet up with him in various hotels and I just did not want to be there."

Prosecutor Kath Harper asked her if she had wanted to have sex with him on these occasions and she replied: "No. I thought it was the only way I could manage the situation because he had these images."

She said Ramsay had taken intimate images and videos of sex from her phone and threatened to send them to her boss, family and friends. She added: "I was absolutely traumatised. It was horrendous."

She said Ramsay was "unhinged" and added: "He just would not take 'no' for an answer." The woman said that during a confrontation at a spa hotel in Renfrewshire he head butted her in the face, leaving her bleeding.

She said she made her way to the reception and added: "I was terrified. He was roaming the grounds looking for me." Staff at the reception contacted police.

Ramsay was found guilty of raping the woman on various occasions between January 1 and December 31 in 2014. He was also convicted of stalking her by repeatedly calling and sending her messages, making threats to disclose intimate images of her and accessing her phone and downloading the images without her permission. He was also convicted of assaulting her by headbutting her.

Ramsay went on to rape a second woman at an address in Jedburgh while she was asleep or intoxicated on occasion between January 2016 and December the following year and bombarded her with calls and messages and threatened to distribute intimate images of her. Another woman was raped by him at a house near Kelso while she was asleep or intoxicated between November 2016 and January 2017 on two occasion.

The fourth rape victim was subjected to sex attacks by him in Jedburgh in 2019. She was also physically assaulted by him. She said she was subjected to blackmail by him. Ramsay admitted he had images of the woman which he claimed they had taken together but denied using them to threaten her.

He continued to commit stalking offences against women into 2020 and even perpetrated the abuse when he was freed under court bail orders. Ramsay, who was previously jailed for theft and assault, was remanded in custody for the preparation of a background report.

On Friday, defence advocate Ronnie Renucci QC asked Lord Richardson to be as lenient as possible with his client. He said: He has been a valuable member of society in the past. He served in the army and he has served in the first Gulf War.

Since being discharged from the army, he has been almost continuous employment. Hes not an unintelligent man. He accepts that if he does not address his offending, he spend the rest of his life in and out of prison.

However, Lord Richardson told Ramsay, who has been placed on the Sex Offenders Register, that jail was the only sentence available to him.

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The two-month string of lewd Facebook and WhatsApp messages saw the pervert ensnared in an online sting A paedophile digger thief sent a picture of his naked bum to a 13-year-old girl. Matthew Tipping, from Ellesmere Port, sent a string of lewd messages to the teenager over the course of nearly two months. But, unbeknown to him, he was actually being ensnared in a paedophile hunter sting. Liverpool Crown Court heard yesterday that the 36-year-old sent a friend request to the decoy account on Facebook on December 8 last year. Tipping messaged the profile and was immediately informed of her supposed age, initially apologising and stating he "didn't realise". But he "persisted with the conversation", despite also being told she was autistic and a carer for her nine-year-old sister. The pervert "told her she was pretty" and said he "bet she had lots of males chatting her up". When the teen told Tipping she had a cold he instructed her to "rub Vicks into her chest", which he asked for a picture of. He then suggested that they should have a video call together. Tipping, of Harrisons Terrace in Little Sutton, stated that he "wished she was older" and "asked if it was bad". He then sent a photograph of himself lying in bed without a top on and told her he "wished he had her as his girlfriend". The dad asked her if she "would be ok with an older guy" and said they "wouldn't be able to take it public", but she could "have him all to herself". The chats continued on WhatsApp, where Tipping asked for a picture of the girl in the bath and in her underwear. When she refused, he told her "you don't have to be shy with me" and said "girls younger than you have sex" - adding that she "should trust him". He also stated that the "age thing didn't matter as long as they trusted each other". Tipping then sent a photo of himself in his underwear and another "looking down his back" with his bare bottom exposed. He made requests for pictures of the girl in her underwear and "of her body". After being denied, he sent a message on January 9 saying he "expects more in a relationship". The conversations continued until January 27, and the messages were passed over to the police in mid-February. Under interview, Tipping stated that "it was embarrassing" and claimed he knew that he had been talking with a decoy. His defence counsel told the court that he had been "very down and depressed" following his release from prison on licence, leading to him engaging in the sickening chats. He had previously been jailed for a year in July 2021 after what was described as a "brazen, professional, broad daylight theft" of two diggers worth 42,000. The Volvo 360 excavator and Takeuchi microdigger were taken from Kinmel Bay and Rhyl in North Wales respectively. Tipping, then of Connah's Quay in Flintshire, was imprisoned alongside 27-year-old John Lee, of Suez Street in Newton-le-Willows. The latter defendant was handed a four-month stretch, to be activated in the event that a two-month curfew was breached. While Tipping has no previous sexual matters on his record, he has 20 convictions for 39 offences - the majority being for theft, driving matters and failing to comply with court orders. It was heard on Thursday afternoon that he "effectively realised he had to stop and that he was doing wrong". The "remorseful" sex offender admitted attempting sexual communications with a child during an earlier hearing. He was handed a 12-month imprisonment suspended for two years. Sentencing, Judge Denis Watson QC said: "You are to be sentenced for your communications with someone who you thought to be a 13-year-old girl. In fact that was an adult, but you didn't know that. "All your messages were, in your mind, intended to be received and acted on by a 13-year-old. The evidence makes plain you were in regular, persistent contact with an individual you believed was 13. "The context was you pursuing your sexual interest in her. Effectively, you were flattering her and trying to normalise sexual conduct for those of her age. "The reality is you would serve about six months, but you would not have any positive opportunity to deal with whatever was going on in your head. My concern is that this interest is rather more deep rooted than you would have me accept. "You would like me to believe it was a bit of a blip when you were released from custody. You were feeling a bit low and down, and this is something that can just be moved past. "I'm not at all sure it is. I've decided you are someone with a reasonable prospect of rehabilitation." Tipping told the judge he would "do anything" to avoid prison when asked if he would comply with any community order imposed. Judge Watson replied that he had come "perilously close", adding: "This is your one chance." He was also handed a 20-day rehabilitation activity requirement, a 10-year sexual harm prevention order and a notification requirement lasting the same period. Tipping was told to pay a victim surcharge.