Latest Offenders

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George Chinnery, 22, of Anne of Cleves Road, was previously convicted of one count of raping a boy under the age of 13, and one count of inciting a boy under the age of 13 to engage in sexual activity.

The verdict was delivered at St Albans Crown Court on December 8, 2021, where he was also sentenced on Monday, January 31.

Chinnery committed the offences in 2013, when he was 14-year-old, in the Welwyn Hatfield area of Hertfordshire.

He orally raped the victim when they were alone together in the summer holidays, also forcing them to touch him inappropriately.

The victim felt unable to disclose the abuse to anyone until the summer of 2020, when he told a close family member what happened.

Detective Constable Laurence Harwood, from Hertfordshire Constabulary’s Joint Child Protection Investigation Team, said: “The victim in this case has suffered unimaginably due to Chinnery’s abhorrent actions, and it has negatively impacted his mental health for nearly ten years.

“Following support from mental health practitioners, in mid-2020 the victim finally felt able to tell someone he trusted about what Chinnery had done to him.

“However, the defendant denied all the allegations, meaning the victim was subjected to cross-examination by the defence during the seven-day trial.

“This, understandably, caused him and his family an indescribable amount of emotional distress but they showed nothing but honesty, dignity and true emotion throughout.

“My team and I have been humbled by the victim’s courage and we hope this result will enable him to have closure, so he can move forward and rebuild his life.

“Chinnery has never shown any remorse for his perverted crimes.

“We will always do everything we can to convict perpetrators and support victims of child sexual abuse.

“While we are pleased to have achieved this result, it sadly does not lessen the effect of the trauma suffered by the victim in the wake of the abuse he endured.

“I wish him and his family all the very best for the future, and I hope they can find some peace.”

Chinnery will be on the Sex Offenders’ Register indefinitely and has been ordered to not go within five miles of the victim’s home. On his release, he will remain on licence for seven years.

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VILE paedophile Colin Blanchard is set to spend "two more years behind bars", insiders say. The sex monster went before a Parole Board meeting last month to beg for his freedom - telling bosses hed wear an electronic tag and undergo regular lie detector tests to curb his movements. But the hearing overran because of the weight of information on the disturbing case and was adjourned to a date to be set over the next few weeks. Now we can reveal that sources believe Blanchard, 51, will not be granted freedom once the reconvened hearing is concluded. Offenders can only appear before a Parole Board every two years. Our source claimed: Blanchard has got no chance of freedom. And of debate. He will spend two more years banged up before his next shot at freedom. This is first Parole Board hearing but hes likely to have to appear at a couple more before hes deemed ready for release. The bottom line is that his offences are just too serious for him to be granted parole at the first attempt. His release into the community would be managed by dozens of limitations like lie detector tests and a tag but even so, Blanchard would remain a danger to the community. A spokesman for the Parole Board confirmed that a date for the adjourned hearing would be set in due course. Blanchard - the ringleader of a paedophile gang who convinced a nursery worker to abuse tots in her care was referred to the Parole Board for potential release in 2020 after serving his minimum nine years in prison for running one of the most sickening paedophile rings this country has seen. But parole chiefs deemed him not ready for freedom without even holding a hearing and instead they ordered that Blanchard must complete another course in jail designed to prevent re-offending and then he must be reviewed by a psychologist before they could set a date to consider his status. The Ministry of Justice referred his case to the Parole Board after he had completed his minimum sentence. His co-accused - nursery worker Vanessa George - is back on the streets after serving just ten years in prison for abusing 64 babies and sharing the sickening videos with Blanchard. Her release sparked fury after it emerged she has been given a cushy flat in the Midlands at the expense of the taxpayer. George earned the grisly title of Britains worst female paedo in 2009 after she was caged for taking the sick pictures of herself harming babies and toddlers. The fiend cruelly refused to tell police the names of all of her victims leading to a decade of hell for families who still arent sure whether their child was abused. Special needs coordinator George took pictures on her phone of her abusing babies and toddlers at a nursery in Plymouth. Her trial heard she sent pictures to paedophile Blanchard after meeting him on Facebook. Blanchard, of Rochdale, was said to be the hub of the paedophile wheel. He traded the photos to members of a paedophile ring, including prostitute Angela Allen, of Nottingham, who was jailed for at least five years. Mum-of-two George, whose two daughters have publicly disowned her, described herself to lover Blanchard as a paedo whore mum in vile exchanges between the two. Tracey Lyons, who was jailed in 2011 for sending sickening child abuse pictures to Blanchard, has now been released from prison. Tracy Dawber, who was in a year-long relationship with him, was caged for four years for abusing a two-year-old boy and letting Blanchard film it. The Sun has approached the Parole Board for comment.

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A man raped a vulnerable 11-year-old girl in his flat after grooming her on the messaging app Snapchat.

When police arrested Alex Prosser they found more than 1,200 films and pictures on his phone showing babies and children being sexually abused. A report into the defendant described him as the "epitome of a predator paedophile".

His barrister said the 34-year-old has a deep sense of shame for what he had done - "as he should".

Swansea Crown Court heard that Prosser initially made contact with another child on Snapchat, and through her went on to start communicating with an 11-year-old girl.

Carina Hughes, prosecuting, said the girl made her age clear to the defendant and he told her he was 16. She said Prosser then engaged in "clear grooming behaviour" including making persistent requests for naked pictures of the youngster and sending her photos and videos of his penis.

The defendant arranged for the child to go to his flat, and when she arrived he cuddled her on his bed before touching her breasts and genitals. Prosser then made the child perform oral sex on him.

The court heard the abuse came to light after the girl's mother found the Snapchat exchanges, contacted Prosser to confront him and then reported the matter to the police.

Miss Hughes said when officers went to the defendant's Port Talbot flat he was not at home - but officers found blood outside the property and forced entry. Inside they found a trail of blood, and a bloody knife.

An injured Prosser was subsequently located on the slipway near the RNLI station on Aberavon seafront. His phone was seized and examined, and on it officers found 1,249 indecent videos and pictures, including 700 Category A images showing the most extreme kinds of sexual abuse. The court heard some of the children in the images were estimated to be around 18 months old.

Prosser subsequently gave a largely "no comment" interview but told officers he had been "waiting to die for the last 10 years" and said his life was difficult and he had "had enough".

In an impact statement from the victim's mum, which was read to the court, she said that since learning of the abuse she had trouble sleeping - but when she does sleep, she had nightmares about what had happened to her daughter. She said the young girl rarely talks about she went through but when she does "she blames herself and apologises". The mum added that what had happened to the family was "every mother's worst nightmare".

Alex Prosser, of Trinity Court, Port Talbot, had previously pleaded guilty to the rape of a child under 13, assault of a child under 13 by penetration, causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, three counts of possessing incident images of Class A, B and C, and possession of extreme pornography when he appeared in the dock for sentencing. He has no previous convictions.

Eugene Hickey, for Prosser, said it was clear from a pre-sentence report that the defendant led a lonely and isolated life and suffered from depression and low self-esteem which had led him to self-harm. The barrister said the main mitigation he could forward were his client's guilty pleas which meant there would be no trial, adding: "He has a deep sense of shame - as he should."

Judge Catherine Richards told Prosser he had raped and sexually assaulted a vulnerable young girl. She said she had carefully considered the contents of the pre-sentence report into the defendant - the author of which had described him as the "epitome of a predator paedophile" - and she was persuaded that an extended sentence was necessary.

With discounts for his guilty pleas Prosser was given a 13-year extended sentence comprising 10 years in custody with a three-year extended licence period. The defendant must serve two-thirds of the custodial element before he can apply for release but it will be for the Parole Board to decide if he can be let out at that point. He was also made the subject of an indefinite sexual harm prevention order, and will be a registered sex offender for the rest of his life.

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A former Stevenage-based police officer has been jailed after pleading guilty to corruption and making of indecent images of children.

Ben Pitelen, 45, was suspended from Hertfordshire Constabulary in July 2020 when the offences came to light, and dismissed from the force at a special hearing last September.

Pitelen - who was based with the Roads Policing Unit at Stevenage - appeared at Aylesbury Crown Court last Friday and was sentenced to 25 months in prison.

The police corruption matter relates to inappropriate sexual communication with a third party.

He joined the constabulary in 2000 and worked solely in uniform roles. He was a response constable from 2000 to 2004 when he moved to roads policing and remained until these matters came to light.

Temporary Assistant Chief Constable Matt Nicholls said: These are very serious offences involving an officer who has betrayed the trust placed in him in an appalling way.

"I hope the public is reassured by our continued efforts to tackle corruption in the service and bring offenders to justice.

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A serial sex offender described as a risk to children has been jailed for breaching a court order by carrying out internet searches for pornography. Michael Graham was jailed in 2010 for child abduction and again in 2015 for outraging public decency in a library. He was also under a sexual harm prevention order but admitted breaches by trying to access pornography. Appearing at Carlisle Crown Court, the 33-year-old, of Monks Close Road, was jailed for two years. Graham was jailed for five years in 2010 for abducting two girls in a park who he lured to an isolated area on the promise of showing them "some dens". In 2015, he received a four-year jail term for outraging public decency by performing a sex act in Carlisle library. He was ordered to sign the sex offenders' register and made subject of a sexual harm prevention order.

'Worrying sexual history'

The court heard Graham had already flouted that order four times before he fell foul of the authorities once again at the beginning of this year. During a visit to his home, police found a mobile phone and PlayStation Vita which he had not declared to police or the probation service. Graham admitted two sexual harm prevention order breaches and a breach of a sex offender notification requirement. The hearing was told the defendant had been "lonely and isolated" and his only contact with the outside world was through a computer. However, Recorder Tony Hawks said: "You have a worrying sexual history of offending. "You have got to understand that if you don't stop breaching these orders you are going to spend most of your adult life in prison. "You have a serious problem that needs to be addressed."

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A teaching assistant has been found guilty of having sex with a 14-year-old pupil in a supermarket car park. The boy was a pupil at a school in Hoddesdon, in Hertfordshire, where Hannah Harris, now 23, worked. She tricked the boy's parents by claiming to be the mother of the boy's fictional girlfriend. However, she was caught in 2020 when the boy's older brother found out, and has been convicted of sexual activity with a child. Sentencing is next month. St Albans Crown Court heard Harris had contacted the boy's parents, telling them her name was Olivia, and that her teenage daughter Kayla was their son's girlfriend. In one text, Harris wrote: "Seems Kayla and [the boy] are getting on well, so I am happy to ferry them around." "The names Kayla and Olivia were fictions to hide the fact they were meeting up," prosecutor Simon Wilshire said. "The parents were in fact talking to Ms Harris, as that was the number they had been given for 'Olivia'."

'Duped'

When the victim's older brother found out about the relationship in January 2020, the boy admitted both Olivia and Kayla were fictitious. "When the parents became aware, they realised they had unwittingly facilitated the contact," Mr Wilshire said. "They had been duped by the boy into the belief he was seeing someone of his own age. "As a teaching assistant at his school, she [Harris] would have known his age - such activity is a criminal offence regardless of whether he believed himself to be a willing party." In a police interview, Harris said the first contact was initiated when the boy sent her an Instagram message. She said she replied and communication continued until she agreed to meet him outside school hours.

Custody 'inevitable'

Harris, from Harrier Mill, Henlow, in Bedfordshire, denied four charges of sexual activity with a child in December 2019 and January 2020. Three of the charges related to offences alleged to have taken place on Dunstable Downs and at her home, but she was cleared by a jury on those counts. However, she was found guilty of one count of having sex with the boy in a supermarket car park. Following the verdict, defence barrister Julia Flanagan said Harris was now in a stable relationship. She said there had been concerns for her mental health, but she had returned to working in IT, a job she held down before becoming a teaching assistant. Judge Caroline Wigin said: "The sentence is inevitably going to be custody." She bailed Harris and told her she must abide by a curfew between 19:00 and 07:00 GMT, and that she will also have to register as a sex offender. Sentencing is due on 9 March.

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Sex offender Gavin Ross, who was jailed for dancing at the side of the A90 with his trousers around his ankles, shouted to the guard: What do you think of this, then?

The 41-year-old appeared at Perth Sheriff Court and admitted intentionally exposing his genitals in a sexual manner to an employee at the citys jail on August 29, 2020.

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A Bradford man has been jailed after he was found guilty of raping a woman following a re-trial.

Christopher Davies was convicted at Bradford Crown Court on 14 January 2021 following a five-day trial.

The initial trial was held in May 2021, but jurors failed to reach a verdict.

The incident occurred on 6 January 2019, when Davies, 49, invited the victim to his house in Thornton Drive, Bradford.

Davies lured the victim into the property, before raping her. The victim fled the property on foot when Davies went into the bathroom.

She then reported the incident to the police and Davies was arrested and later charged with rape and sexual assault.

Following his guilty verdict, he was remanded and today at Bradford Crown (4 February 2022), Davies was sentenced to seven years and three months for rape and one year and nine months for sexual assault, to run concurrently.

He has also been ordered to sign the sex offenders register for life.

West Yorkshire Police Detective Emma Lindley, who led the investigation said: I would like to praise the victim for coming forward and reporting Davies actions. Its not been easy especially going through a re-trail, but she has shown courage throughout and Id like to thank her for her bravery.

I hope this sentencing brings comfort to the victim and also brings closure, as she moves forward with her life.

We take all reports of this nature seriously and anyone who is a victim of a sexual assault can rest assure we will do all we can to bring the perpetrators to justice.

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A former sergeant in the Spanish army was jailed for 44 months for storing and distributing the worst child sex abuse videos and images.

Gabriel Gonzalez, 43, had one 17-minute long video called Daisys Destruction, which showed the abuse of an 18-month old girl.

The police officer who viewed it said it was the worst he had ever seen and said other police should not look at it, Luton Crown Court heard yesterday (February 3).

The sentencing follows that of Bedford couple Nicholas Harris and Clare Buttrice, who were jailed for a combined 35 years for sexually and mentally abusing children last week.

Prosecutor Alex Kettle-Williams said that acting on information, the police raided a multi-occupancy house in Campbell Road, Bedford, on the morning of 18 October, 2018.

The officers seized one laptop and three hard drives from Gonzalezs room. He was not there at the time, but handed himself in later. He made no comment to the police questions.

Ms Kettle-Williams said 404 images were found on the devices, along with 182 videos. The total length of the videos was 20 hours, with the longest single film lasting 3 hours and 19 minutes.

Gonzalez had distributed nine moving images at Category A, the most serious level, and three Category B moving images to other paedophiles.

He had downloaded 85 still and moving images at Category A, 65 at Category B and 379 Category C images and 57 images of extreme pornography.

The images were stored under the names of music albums in an attempt to disguise them.

Ms Kettle-Williams said: He had a personal video library of indecent images. They showed pre-pubescent girls, with the victims in pain and crying. There was also bestiality and torture.

He said Gonzalez had used computer search terms such as 'sadistic', 'torture' and 'snuff'.

Gonzalez, now of Pine Road, Didsbury, Manchester, had earlier pleaded guilty to two charges of distributing indecent images of children, three of making (downloading) and one of possessing extreme pornography. He had no previous convictions in England and Wales or Spain.

Defending, Richard Saynor said he had pleaded guilty at the first opportunity.

He said: He served successfully in the Spanish armed forces and worked his way up to the rank of sergeant.

He gained a psychology qualification. He moved to the UK and gained employment using his psychology qualification by assisting people with autism. At all times he was working with adults.

After his arrest he moved to Manchester, where he had been working in a car wash.

In a letter of apology to the judge, Gonzalez said: Serving as a sergeant taught me strong standards of protecting community and having personal integrity.

I realise in the position I am in today I have fallen far from those high standards. I wanted to apologise to all the victims in this case.

Referring to the Destructing Daisy video, Recorder Bal Dhaliwal said: This was the horrific, sadistic and tortured abuse of a completely vulnerable child of 18 months.

The investigating officer stated it was the worst he had seen in his five years in this role. He said other officers should not have sight of it. The abuse was beyond words.

The judge ordered the forfeiture and destruction of the laptop and the hard drives.

Gonzalez must abide by the terms of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order, is barred from working with children or vulnerable people, and register as a sex offender indefinitely.

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A PAEDOPHILE has been locked up for more than two years of possessing and sharing indecent images of children. James Krengel was jailed for 28 months when he appeared at Chelmsford Crown Court last week. The 41-year-old pleaded guilty to sex offences including possessing and distributing indecent images of children and a breach of his notification requirement order. Essex Polices Online Investigation Team (POLIT) arrested Krengel at his home in Nipsells Chase, Chelmsford, on December 30, 2021. It came detectives received receiving information he had uploaded an indecent image of a child. During the investigation, officers discovered Krengel had breached a sexual offences notification requiring him to register at a police station yearly. Krengel was charged in December 2021 and admitted the offences during a separate hearing at Chelmsford Crown Court. Following sentencing, investigating officer Courtney Evans said: James Krengel is rightly behind bars now where he cannot pose a threat to the children in our society. There is nothing more important than protecting children and young people from those who are intent on exploiting or abusing them. This is the work we carry out every day to keep the people of Essex safe, and this sentence will keep the public just that bit safer. The Police Online Investigation Team are a team of specialist officers dedicated to the investigation of offences involving indecent images of children and paedophilia material held on a computer.

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A sexual predator who wanted to emulate serial rapist Joseph McCann when he attacked a string of women on the streets of east London has been jailed for 20 years.

Abdallah Baballah, 26, targeted women as they walked home alone at night, threatening to stab the victims as he carried out violent sexual assaults and stole their possessions.

When he was captured by the Met Police, officers discovered Baballah had looked online at news articles about his attack and even downloaded CCTV footage which had been released in a bid to catch him.

His phone also revealed internet searches for Joseph McCann, who had carried out rapes and sexual assaults on 11 women and children just a couple of months before Baballahs crimes.

At Snaresbrook crown court on Thursday, Baballah was jailed for 20 years and will spend an extra five years on licence when released from prison.

Baballah is an extremely dangerous offender who targeted these women as they walked home alone in the dark, said Detective Sergeant Sara Yems, of the Mets Specialist Crime Command.

He waited for the most opportune of moments before making his attack and his actions have left these women traumatised by what happened to them.

"I would like to thank them for coming forward and supporting the police investigation, and for providing crucial evidence which led to this conviction and has ensured Baballah cannot subject anyone else to such horrific attacks.

Baballah, a former Barking and Dagenham College ESOL student, carried out the attacks over the course of 11 days in July 2019, targeting the first victim when she stepped off the N15 night bus in Plaistow at 2.30am.

After following her down the street, he told the woman: Give me your phone or I will stab you and then dragged her to a secluded spot where she was raped three times.

Baballah then stole cash from her wallet, but handed back the victims phone complete with a thumb print which helped police to identify him.

The second victim had just left Leyton underground station at 3am on July 6, 2019, when Baballah grabbed hold of her and stole her phone. He demanded she perform oral sex on him, but the woman managed to get away.

An hour later, Baballah attacked another woman in Leyton, sexually assaulting and raping her, punching the victim in the face and stealing her phone and ring.

At around 3am on July 8, 2019, he struck again on a woman getting off the N15 bus in Dagenham, chasing her down the road while demanding she hand over her phone.

The final victim was attacked in East Ham on July 11, 2019, when she was dragged into a side road by Baballah who pinned her down and started punching her.

The woman managed to break free and sought help from a nearby resident, while Baballah stole her bag and phone.

Baballah was carrying one of the victims phones when he was arrested on July 25, and was linked to the crimes by his Oyster card use.

His phone records revealed searches for man raped two women in east London and rape rule in Britain.

The Sudanese national, of no fixed address, admitted rape, attempted rape, two charges of robbery, and assault occasioning actual bodily harm. He was convicted after a trial of three further rape charges, three robberies, sexual assault, attempted rape, and making a threat to kill.

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A paedophile who sexually abused an award-winning Scottish actress was today convicted of offences against two other children after she gave evidence against him for a second time.

Colin McKissock, now 70, was jailed for three years in 2017 for offences he committed against the star when she was aged just 11.

After reading reports of that case on the internet, a man went to Hertfordshire Police to say he had been a victim of McKissock when he was aged between 11 and 13 and was living in Watford.

A woman also told officers she had been touched by McKissock, who now lives in Northampton.

McKissock, who was released on bail pending sentencing next month so he could receive cancer treatment, was warned by a judge that he would be returning to prison.

The star, who cannot be named for legal reasons, told a jury at St Albans Crown Court she had been groomed by McKissock who had 'blindsided her by sweets'.

In the 2017 case, Ayr Sheriff's court heard he exposed himself to her, showed her pornographic films and magazines, performed a sex act in her presence, used a sex aid, persuaded her to expose herself and perform a sex act.

He was also found guilty of indecent practises and behaviour towards a friend of hers.

McKissock, a retired bank worker and finance manager, from Bellinge, Northampton, was convicted of 13 charges: eight charges of indecent assault on a male, three charges of indecency with a child and two of indecent assault on a female.

The male victim from Watford said he was aged between 11 and 13 in the early 1990s when he went to McKissock's home after school where he found him in a dressing gown watching pornography on a television and masturbating.

He said McKissock got him to engage in sexual activity saying he was 'giving him an education'.

The female victim said she was aged 12 and 13 when he touched her on two occasions.

McKissock, who still denies the 1980s offences, said he never discussed sex with any of the children and did not have pornography on the television when they were present. He said he was not sexually interested in children.

Judge Richard Foster said McKissock will be sentenced on Friday March 18.

He granted McKissock bail as an 'act of mercy' so a treatment plan can be prepared for his diagnosis of cancer but he warned him: 'When you come back you will be going to prison so prepare yourself for that.'

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A Wiltshire man who sexually abused two girls over a number of years has been jailed.

Semi Tuilovoni Lave, 31, from Tidworth, was found guilty of six counts of rape of a child and one count of sexual assault of a child by touching, following a four-day trial at Salisbury Crown Court.

On Thursday (February 3) he was sentenced to 15 years in prison.

The court heard his offending came to light in July 2020 when his young victims bravely reported the abuse and police arrested Lave.

Detective Constable Claire Heathcote, from Wiltshire Polices Public Protection Department, praised the victims for the way they had handled the case.

She said: We know how incredibly difficult it can be for victims of sexual abuse to tell someone about what has been happening to them, especially when the victims are children.

Once these girls took the very brave step of reporting these horrendous crimes, we have worked hard to ensure they have been able to receive the relevant help and support they need, particularly when they had to re-live that abuse giving evidence in court due to the fact that Lave refused to admit his actions.

We welcome the verdict in this case and todays sentence and I hope it provides some reassurance to the victims that justice has now been done.

I also hope it gives others the confidence to speak out if they have been the victim of similar crimes. If you dont yet feel ready to speak to the police, then please just tell someone you trust. There is help out there and you dont have to suffer in silence.

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A disgraced Metropolitan Police officer who sexually assaulted a seven-year-old girl after sneaking into her bedroom at night has been jailed for four years.

Andrew Kirkland, 42, crept into his victims room and pulled down her bed sheets before performing a sex act, Reading Crown Court heard.

Jurors were told that traces of his semen were found on the child's pyjamas and sheets after her mother suspected Kirkland and handed them over to police.

The jury returned a unanimous verdict Thursday following a four-day trial, finding Kirkland guilty of sexual assault on a girl under the age of 13 years.

Judge Kirsty Real sentenced him to four years' imprisonment and he will remain on the sex offenders' register for life.

Kirkland, a former neighbourhood officer based in Ickenham, London, was kicked out of the Met for theft and fraud in 2014, the court heard.

At trial, prosecutor Paul Fairley explained how Kirkland encountered a seven-year-old child in Berkshire in March 2021.

He told the jury that Kirkland had gone into the child's room at night and had pleasured himself over her, believing the little girl was asleep.

The prosecutor added: 'The next thing that the mother remembers is her daughter at the door saying 'my bed's wet' and saying someone had made it wet but it was not her.

'She said she thought a man had been taking photos of her on his phone.

'As you could imagine, her mind was going at 1,000 miles an hour and racing all over the place.'

Mr Fairley told the jury that the girl's mother immediately took the bedsheets and Kirkland's phone to the children's school, where police were called.

Officers seized the bedding, the girl's nightie and Kirkland's phone and arrested him for questioning.

DNA evidence taken from the samples given to police revealed that there were semen traces on three items, including the victim's bedsheets and pyjamas, all matching with that of Kirkland's.

Sarah Kalageros, a DNA expert, told the court: 'In my opinion, the scientific findings provide extremely strong support for the view that Andrew Kirkland had entered the victim's bedroom and ejaculated onto the bed rather than he did not.'

Kirkland maintained in his defence in court that the semen was on the bedclothes because he had performed a sex act alone earlier and may have had semen on his hands.

Less than three hours after the jury was sent out to consider its verdict, the panel filed back into crown court and convicted him on the charge of sexual assault on a child.

As the verdict was announced, loud sighs of relief could be heard from the public gallery.

Kirkland's head fell into his hands after hearing the word 'guilty.'

The prosecutor then read a statement from the child's mother, who cannot be identified for legal reasons.

She said the child kept thinking she was seeing Kirkland and hearing him throughout the day, and that while walking down the road certain noises would make her jump.

Kirkland was dismissed from the Metropolitan Police in 2014, after having convictions for theft by an employee, taking money from the workplace and two counts of fraud by abuse of position.

One of the latter charges related to an incident were he was convicted for using his work phone to contact sex chat lines, the court heard.

Defending the former policeman, Colin McCarraher said: 'He is an ex-Metropolitan Police officer. When he goes off to serve his sentence, that will not be an easy sentence to serve. He is an ex-copper.'

Sentencing Kirkland, Judge Kirsty Real said: 'The victim was particularly vulnerable, ostensibly asleep and at a young age.'

She had earlier been told that detectives found internet searches on Kirkland's phone for porn websites which included how to get into bed with a sleeping person.

The judge added that, although the pornographic videos found on his phone 'showed contemplation, there was no significant planning.'

Kirkland, of Leicester, was sentenced to four year's imprisonment.

He was also ordered to sign onto the Sex Offender's Register for the rest of his life and a Sexual Prevention Harm Order application is to be adjusted at a later date.

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A dangerous sex offender who groomed an 11-year-old-girl over a period of three years in incidents dating back to the 1990s has been jailed. John Best appeared before Judge Graham Knowles at Preston's Sessions House on Thursday, after admitting nine counts of indecent assault on a girl under the age of 13. The court heard how Best, now 55, had groomed his victim from the age of 11 by plying her with sweets and cigarettes. At an earlier hearing, prosecutor, Peter Barr said the offending 'progressed' over 12 months, starting with Best attempting to kiss his victim, before inappropriately touching her, over the top of and then underneath her clothes. Mr Barr told the court the offending only came to light in May 2020, following an incident whereby Best had gone missing from his home. When he was found, he was arrested and admitted his guilt. Best, of Church Street, Accrington, has 20 convictions from 67 offences, including a long period where he was driving while disqualified and went to prison time and time again, but no previous sexual offence convictions. It was heard that the courts had also tried something other than immediate imprisonment but to no success. In a personal statement, Best's victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said she had been affected by the incidents her entire adult life. Her statement read: "I feel like I lost my childhood. As I grew into an adult I developed anger issues, and find it difficult trust anyone. "It's affected my relationships with my family and friends and has caused me severe mental health issues. "It's affected me my whole life and I am still suffering now, all these years later. "I found the police investigation difficult but he needs to be held responsible. "He took my childhood from me and he needs to be punished." Best was given an extended sentence and jailed for 11 years and given 10 years on licence and placed on the sex offenders register for life. He was also made subject to a sexual harm prevention order until further notice. Detective Constable Vicky Heys, of Blackburn CID, said: Best abused his young victim over a number of years to satisfy his own twisted sexual desires and has robbed her of her innocence. This conviction and sentence is justice for her and I commend her for her courage in coming forward and facing her abuser through the court process. "It must have taken extraordinary bravery to do this, especially after so many years and she has behaved with dignity throughout this investigation. Lancashire Constabulary remains committed to investigating allegations of this nature, no matter how historic, and no matter what the role, position and status of the alleged offender, and we would encourage anyone who has been a victim of a sexual offence to come forward safe in the knowledge that they will be treated sensitively and professionally.