Latest Offenders

Description

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Description

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Description

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

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

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

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

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

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

https://youtu.be/20Zu7frax90

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Description

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Description

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Description

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Description

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Description

A sex offender who attempted to groom three teenage boys has been jailed for three years.

John Paul Card, 76, admitted breaching a previous sexual harm prevention order on three separate occasions and approaching the boys to start “unsettling” conversations.

Ipswich Crown Court heard that Card was convicted of offences of sexual touching and sexual activity with a child in 2011 and had subsequently been made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order restricting his contact with boys under 18.

In February this year, Card approached a 16-year-old boy at the Old Cattle Market bus station in Ipswich and asked if he would mow his lawn.

John Card has been sentenced to three years in jail (Image: Suffolk Police)

He took down the phone number of the 16-year-old who agreed and Card later messaged him to say he would visit the boy at the pub he worked at, which unnerved the boy because he had never told him he worked at a pub.

Card messaged the boy on several occasions asking him to mow the lawn but after the boy Googled the sex offender’s name he contacted the police.

In 2023, Card pursued a 15-year-old boy who had spread leaflets about his fundraising plans for a school trip to Ecuador.

The leaflet only asked for a £1 donation to a GoFundMe page, but Card turned up at the boy’s address with £40 in cash.

The boy personally thanked him and Card later posted him a letter offering more money and said he would like to help him fundraise for other projects.

A victim impact statement from the boy’s mother was read out in court: “My son was subject to persistent pestering by Mr Card in what should have been a positive and rewarding endeavour.

“The harassment has taken a toll on his emotional wellbeing and the incident left him feeling unsettled and wary of future interactions with strangers.”

On top of this breach, which he was arrested and bailed for, he approached a 17-year-old boy at a bus stop in 2022 and sat “uncomfortably close” and left the boy concerned.

This boy also Googled the defendant's name then reported him and Card was arrested and bailed for this offence.

Judge Richard Kelly said during these conversations Card used subtle but calculated probes into boundaries and sexual preferences, which left the boys “shaken”.

He sentenced Card, of Jervis Close, Holbrook, to three years in prison.

Card was also given a suspended sentenced in 2020 for similar offences and this was partially activated concurrent to the three years.

Description

A man from Brownhills has been jailed for 15 years for inciting boys on the internet to engage in sexual activity and for distributing vile and depraved indecent images of children.

David Brown, 59, had already pleaded guilty to three charges of making indecent images of children and one charge of distributing an indecent image of a child.

He had pleaded not guilty to four charges of attempting to cause or incite a boy aged 13 to 15 to engage in sexual activity and two charges of arranging or facilitating the commission of a child sex offence. However, he was found guilty following a trial at Wolverhampton Crown Court in March and was jailed on Monday (15 July) at Birmingham Crown Court.

As well as being given a 15-year prison sentence, Brown was placed on the sex offender register for life and will also be the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order For Life.

We received intelligence to suggest Brown was using the internet at his home to share indecent images of children and on 17 October, 2018 officers from our Online Child Sexual Exploitation Team attended Brown’s home and seized his digital devices.

Brown’s computers were forensically examined and found to contain 175 indecent images of children as well as internet search terms relating to the sexual abuse of children.

A vast quantity of online conversations were also retrieved with a considerable amount concentrating on the horrifying and systematic sexual abuse of children both in the UK and abroad. In one, he had instructed a man in Africa to carry out abuse in exchange for payment.

Description

A child rapist made his victim watch indecent videos at a young age before embarking on a years-long campaign of abuse. Andrew Bate has been locked up for 21 years and must serve an extra five years on licence.

Bate, of Libson Close, Warrington, was found guilty of 16 sexual offences against the child - including rape; sexual assault; engaging in sexual activity with a child; and sexual touching.

During a trial at Liverpool Crown Court, the victim told how the offences developed over a number of years, initially beginning when they were forced to watch indecent videos.

Following an initial incident, the abuse escalated. Bate raped and sexually assault the child on multiple occasions. The victim said they pretended to sleep to stop him. No matter what they did, he continued.

Bate's offending came to light in January 2023 when the victim reported him. He denied every allegation. Detective Constable Maurizio Lucchesi, who led the investigation, said: "Firstly, I want to praise the victim for the courage that they have shown throughout this investigation.

"Bate is clearly a sexual predator, whose only interest is to fulfil his own sexual gratification. He showed no regard for the victim and even when faced with all the evidence against him, he refused to plead guilty to any of the charges against. Instead, he forced his victim to relive their experiences in court, which could not have been easy for them.

"Thankfully, as a result of the bravery of the victim, and the evidence we gathered, the jury have seen through his lies, and he is now being held accountable for his actions. I hope that the sentence handed to Bate will provide the victim with some closure and allow them to move forward with their lives, knowing that he will never be able do the same to any other children.”

Bate was ordered to sign the sex offender register and comply with a sexual harm prevention order for life. DC Lucchesi added: "Nobody should have to experience what the victim has been though and if anything can come from this case, I hope that it encourages other victims of sexual offences to come forward and report them to us."

Description

A 28-year-old man has been jailed after exposing himself on a train in Preston.

Kane Hargreaves, of Elizabeth Street, Burnley was found guilty of two counts of exposure at Preston Crown Court on Friday 28 June.

He was sentenced to nine months in prison, and must pay a £187 victim surcharge.

The court heard how, on Wednesday 10 April this year, Hargreaves was staring and exposing himself  to a 21-year-old woman sat a few seats away on the 2.44pm Preston to Bradford interchange train. The woman moved away and told rail staff before reporting it to British Transport Police.

A second incident occurred on Monday 22 April onboard the 1.44pm Preston to Accrington train when Hargreaves again exposed himself, this time to a 17-year-old woman.

Investigating officer DC Ella Harvey said:  "We will stop at nothing to deter, pursue, arrest and bring sex offenders on the railway network to justice.

Description

A Bedford man has been sentenced to 13 years in prison after he was found guilty of sexually abusing two children two decades apart.

Brian Watts, 79, was in his 40s when he sexually abused a young boy in the early 1990s, after inviting him over to his home to play on his games console.

The victim kept the abuse to himself for a long time but decided to report it to police in 2020 after realising how much it was affecting his mental health.

Another victim had disclosed that Watts had been sexually abusing her since she was six or seven. She was a teenager when she disclosed this to a trusted adult in 2019, who then reported it to the police.

An investigation was launched by Bedfordshire Police’s Protecting Vulnerable People team and Watts was arrested and interviewed but denied sexually abusing either child.

After an 11-day trial at Luton Crown Court, Watts of Kimble Drive, Bedford, was jailed on Friday (19 July) for 13 years after being found guilty of the following:

• Four counts of indecent assault of a male
• Four counts of indecency with a child
• Three counts of sexual assault of a child
• He will also be the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order on his release

In an impact statement, each victim described how the abuse has had a huge impact on their lives.

“I’ve carried this secret, the shame, sadness and anger with myself for too long and I don’t know the person I could have been if this hadn’t happened.”

“It’s hard to explain but I still struggle with physical touch from anyone. I am just not comfortable in my own skin, and this is because of him and what he did to me.”

Description

A 'manipulative' man blackmailed two young women into having sex with him.

Joshua Bromage preyed on his victims, one as young as 17, on Instagram, threatening to expose intimate images of the women unless they sent him more images.

Bromage has been jailed for 14 years and will be a registered sex offender for the rest of his life after being sentenced at Winchester Crown Court on Thursday.

Judge Peter Henry said the 30-year-old had cynically manipulated his victims into complying with his demands.

Bromage, of Holybourne Road in Havant, previously pleaded guilty to four counts of rape.

The court heard how in April 2021, a 17-year-old girl in Southampton reported that she had been forced to have sex with Bromage and that she had been blackmailed over Instagram by an unknown person to send indecent images and videos.

This person was later identified as Bromage.

Bromage was arrested and an examination of his phone found category C indecent images of children, as well as images of the victim.

It also revealed a series of text conversations in which Bromage demanded explicit images of the victim, threatening to release intimate photos of her online if she didn’t comply.

In November 2023, while the initial police investigation was ongoing, a 22-year-old woman, from Southampton, came forward to police.

The 22-year-old reported that she had also been raped by Bromage and blackmailed by an unknown person, again later identified to be Bromage, via Instagram.

The woman told officers how she had been blackmailed into sending indecent images and videos of herself, with the perpetrator again threatening to release other indecent images of her if she did not meet his demands.

Bromage further manipulated the victim by telling her that he was receiving similar threats, and that the blackmailer was requesting images and videos of the two engaging in sexual acts.

Following a thorough and complex investigation, Bromage was charged with four counts of rape, which he pleaded guilty to.

Detective Constable Andrew Ferguson, who led the investigation, said: “Bromage’s actions were incredibly manipulative, calculated and controlling and the impact he has had on his two young victims is immeasurable.

“I hope that this sentence reassures other victims that they will be listened to when reporting incidents of this nature to the police.”