Latest Offenders

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A SEX offender breached a court order again by deleting an app from his phone after telling police he was being blackmailed by two men claiming they ‘worked for Fox News and the FBI’.

The court heard that Shaun Smith was made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order in December 2018 after admitting attempting to meet a child following sexual grooming and attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity.

This order barred him from deleting apps or internet history from his devices.

On September 1, Smith contacted 101 reporting that he was being blackmailed.

Officers attended the defendant’s address on Glanafon in Betws on September 9. He told the officers that he had been contacted on an online messaging application by a woman making demands for money.

He said he was then contacted by two men who claimed they worked for Fox News and the FBI making further demands for money.

When the officers asked Smith to show them the demands, he told them he had deleted them as he had been told to when he called 101. Upon reviewing the 101, the officers found this wasn’t true.

Smith was arrested for deleting the communications app – which put him in breach of his sexual harm prevention order for the fourth time.

“He deliberately deleted the app,” prosecutor Ms Wilson said, adding that Smith’s previous breach of the order relating to him deleting the Telegram app.

On that occasion, Smith told police he had been “talking to a woman” on Telegram and via a third-party explicit website, but then deleted the app and its history because “someone was trying to scam me”.

The court heard that 58-year-old Smith had eight previous convictions for 12 offences.

“The only real mitigation is that Mr Smith had the good sense to plead guilty,” said David Singh, in mitigation.

“He did the right thing initially by reporting it to the police.

“It would suggest this is not necessarily someone trying to cover up his tracks, but it is a person with a degree of naivety.”

Addressing the defendant, Judge Geraint Walters said: “This is altogether becoming tiresome now. You pay scant regard to the terms of the sexual harm prevention order.

“What sort of site you were on, I can’t begin to imagine, which led you to call the police saying you were being blackmailed by people working for Fox News and the FBI.

“You are a devious individual, it seems to me, hell bent on non-compliance.”

Smith was sentenced to 10 months in prison.

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A former school welfare officer and Army cadet leader has been found guilty of sexually assaulting teenage girls.

Neil Beckett, 43, with an address at Kilmore, near Crossgar in County Down, was told by the judge that from "this moment on, you are a registered sex offender".

Beckett was found guilty of 16 counts of sexual assault and one count of sexual grooming.

They span a period of eight years between 2015 and 2023.

Eleven teenagers had brought charges against Beckett.

Nine were Lagan College pupils and two were Army cadets.

Beckett was found not guilty of rape which was alleged to have taken place sometime between 2013 and 2015 while he was an Army cadet leader.

He was also found not guilty of sexual communication with a child and 10 further counts of sexual assault.

During the trial, which spanned five weeks, the court heard from Lagan College pupils and Army cadets who said that Beckett had hugged them, kissed them, touched their thighs under the girls' skirts and tickled them.

In doing so he had made them feel uncomfortable, the court was told.

The judge thanked the jury for their commitment over what he described as a long trial and said they had taken great care and attention with their duties.

Beckett will be sentenced on 6 December.

Description

A man who sent videos of him performing a solo sex act to what he believed to be a young schoolgirl has been jailed for 12 months.

William Young contacted an online profile belonging to a ‘12-year-old girl’ and sent her vile images of his genitals and videos of him performing sex acts. Young, 55, also sent requests to meet up with the child and asked her to send him naked pictures of herself.

Edinburgh Sheriff Court was told the depraved offender was in fact in contact with a paedophile hunter group and was snared after he had sent his address so the victim could send him a Christmas card.

Members of the group, called Confronted and Caught, then turned up at Young’s former home in Tranent, East Lothian, and subsequently called in the police on December 9 last year.

Young pleaded guilty to attempting to cause a child to view indecent images, videos and attempting to communicate indecently with a child when he appeared at court earlier this year. He returned to the dock for sentencing on Friday where Sheriff Charles Walls said the disposal should “reflect the seriousness of the offence” and the “public disapproval”.

Defence agent Paul Dunn said his client “accepted” he knew the girl’s age during the online chats even though he had denied that in the social work report.

Mr Dunn added: “He knew what he was doing was wrong and was bang out of order. But it is clear he knew how old the person was.”

Sheriff Charles Wall said: “You have been convicted of two serious offences on indictment. I have heard the Crown narrative, read the social work report, listened carefully to what Mr Dunn has said and seen the Crown productions of the screenshots of you engaging with a 12 year old girl.

“In all the circumstances I am satisfied there is no alternative in this situation to a custodial sentence.”

Young was jailed for 12 months and placed on the sex offenders register for 10 years. The sheriff also said Young’s name will be forwarded to Scottish Ministers for consideration that his name be added to the list of those banned from working with children and vulnerable groups.

Fiscal depute Morgan Beattie told the court an adult member of the Confronted and Caught hunter group set up a Facebook account in the name of 12-year old Louise Grey.

Young contacted the profile and began sending revolting messages asking “do you like older men” and “wish I was in bed with you”. The messages also stated that he “loved young girls” and he repeatedly asked the child what sexual positions she enjoyed.

The sordid chats moved to WhatsApp where Young sent messages including “I love you in your school uniform” and asking if she had seen an adult man naked.

Young asked to meet up with the girl for a sexual encounter and unwittingly sent his address when the decoy pretending to be the child said she wanted to send him a Christmas card.

Young pleaded guilty to causing a child, who was in fact an adult, to look at sexual images, sending indecent images and videos at an address in Tranent, between November 13 and December 9 last year.

He also admitted to a charge of sending written and verbal communications, repeatedly asking the child what she was wearing, repeatedly requesting she send indecent images of herself and asking if she would engage in sexual intercourse with him between the same dates.

Description

A man branded a 'dangerous sexual predator' by police raped a vulnerable woman on the top deck of an X43 bus service to Manchester city centre.

Rahmat Qalander - now behind bars - also sexually assaulted a 16 year-old girl on another bus just five days later, police have revealed. The 23 year-old, who police said was classed by a judge as a dangerous offender, has now been jailed for 10 years.

Qalander targeted the woman on the X43 bus from Burnley to Manchester on February 1 this year. He's said to have sat next to his victim upstairs before forcing her to go to the back of the bus with him, where he raped her.

In a statement after he was locked up, Lancashire Police said: "He then got off the bus in Manchester and the victim, aged in her 20s and with a number of vulnerabilities, reported what had happened to the driver and police were called."

Following enquiries, Qalander, from Nelson, Lancashire, was identified and arrested. He was charged with rape and sexual assault.

Police said he denied the charges, but was found guilty after a trial in August. The attack on the teenage girl took place on a bus in Nelson on February 6.

The force added: "Qalander was classed as a dangerous offender by the judge at Preston Crown Court. He was told he must serve two thirds of the 10-year sentence before he is released. He will then be on licence for a further three years."

Temp Detective Chief Inspector Sarah Denson, of East CID, praised the victims for coming forward. She said: "Qalander is clearly a dangerous sexual predator who targeted lone and vulnerable young women to carry out his offending.

"I would like to commend the victims in this case for their bravery in disclosing what happened to them and for having the courage to go through the court process.

"I am pleased that justice has been served for them and for the wider community who will be protected from this dangerous offender for many years."

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A rapist who targeted underage girls and abused partners for more than a decade, before being brought to justice with the help of a social media appeal, has been jailed.

Darren Gibson admitted preying upon women at addresses in Fife between 2008 and 2019.

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A pensioner who used a driving lesson to give the 17-year-old learner a vibrator has been jailed and placed on the sex offenders register.

Alexander Bell also repeatedly touched the girl’s leg during lessons, despite her friend also being in the vehicle.

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A MAN from Llangollen who “took advantage” of a group of “vulnerable” and “troubled” teenagers has been jailed.

Stephen Thomas, of Erw Deg, was sentenced at Mold Crown Court today (October 10) to six years and six months’ imprisonment.

The 46-year-old had previously admitted breaching a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO), supplying a class A drug (cocaine), and attempted sexual assault of a child.

Simon Rogers, prosecuting, told the court that Thomas invited the group into his home, with the promise of drugs, alcohol, and a “place where they could spend time”.

This took place across a six-week period in January and February 2022 – he was already a registered sex offender, so was subject to a SHPO at the time, which meant his mobile phone was being monitored.

He told the teenagers he was dying, which made them “sympathetic” to him and exchanged mobile numbers with them.

Thomas was also moving SIM cards between multiple phones at the time, while the phone he used to contact the group was deliberately hidden from police.

Inviting the teenagers to “chill” at his house became a “regular occurrence”, Mr Rogers said, adding that Thomas began to buy them alcohol and cocaine.

One of the teenagers also said Thomas would “always want pictures of us on his phone, but he would never be in them”.

On one occasion, one of the females passed out on Thomas’ sofa after he had given her cocaine and alcohol, while most of the rest of the group were outside.

Thomas carried her upstairs and lay her on his bed before starting to remove her clothing, but it was at this point that some of the group returned and noticed him.

They became “angry” at him, because it was apparent that Thomas was seeking to “take advantage of an extremely vulnerable girl for his own sexual gratification”.

Following this, police became involved – at the time of his arrest, Thomas had an old mobile phone on his person, which the battery was falling out of.

In interview, he painted the children as “liars”.

One of the children said in a statement: “I don’t want to be his victim. I just want to be OK. I will be a survivor, not his victim.”

Another said they felt “violated” by Thomas, and added that he “ruined my childhood”, while a third said they “feel sick at the thought of seeing him”.

A fourth child added: “I feel like life just spiralled out of control. I’ll always be scared of him, he made my childhood hell.”

Defending Thomas, who had four previous convictions for 34 offences, Duncan Bould said his client is suffering from “chronic and serious ill health” which “isn’t going to get better”.

He said Thomas has made “a little bit of progress” since being remanded in custody, and asked the court to acknowledge his “limited number of previous convictions”.

Sentencing, Judge Nicola Jones told Thomas: “You put them in positions of particular vulnerability for the purposes of grooming them.

“It’s clear that the aim was to groom these children for sexual purposes.”

Thomas was made subject to a SHPO and sex offenders register notification requirements for an indefinite period.

Judge Jones also issued indefinite restraining orders, preventing Thomas from contacting five people.

All items seized from him by police were ordered to be forfeited and destroyed.

Description

Christopher Cooper, 36, of Portland Road, Birmingham (previously of Leamington) has been jailed after he exchanged sexually explicit communications with a teenage girl while he was subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO).

Cooper was arrested by officers from Warwickshire Police Sex Offender Management Unit (SOMU) on the day he was released from prison where he was serving time for breaching the SHPO which was put in place when he was previously convicted of child sex offences. The SHPO prohibited him from making contact with anyone he believed to be under the age of 16.

While he was in prison detectives found evidence that he had exchanged the messages with the girl in 2022. Cooper claimed to be 18 while the victim had made clear early on in the exchanges that she was only 14.

Cooper was jailed for three years and four months at Warwick Crown Court last week having pleaded guilty to four counts of breaching a SHPO and one count of inciting a girl aged 13-15 to engage in sexual activity. He will serve a further six years on licence. If he breaches the terms of this licence he can be returned to prison.

Detective Constable Matt Collins from the SOMU said: “The sentence reflects the danger Cooper poses to children. It also demonstrates the power of the SHPOs in allowing us to monitor the behaviour of sex offenders and shows how seriously the courts treat offenders who breach them.

“This case also shows the dangers of social media and how it is important for parents to be aware of what their child is doing online.

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A care worker from Maidstone who sexually abused a severely disabled person has been jailed.

Naguib Lootfun, 69, of Mill Walk, abused a vulnerable patient while working for an assisted living facility.

Suspicions about his behaviour were raised on 8 May 2024 after colleagues found an empty condom wrapper discarded in a bedroom at the premises after he had been on night shift.

Lootfun alleged the wrapper had been in his pocket and claimed it had fallen out as he worked.

He was suspended from work while an investigation into the circumstances was underway.

The following day, a used condom was found in a bin bag within the care home and Lootfun was arrested on suspicion of rape.

Lootfun initially denied allegations of sexual abuse but, following an extensive search of the premises, a second used condom was found in the waste bin area outside and an examination of DNA linked him to the offences.

Convicted

He was convicted on 9 July at Maidstone Crown Court, after he admitted to having sex with the victim, who was unable to consent.

He was remanded in custody pending a hearing at the same court on 9 October, where he was sentenced to 11 years and ordered to serve an extra four years on licence.

Description

A registered sex offender from Medway who was serving a suspended sentence has been jailed for failing to comply with court restrictions. 

Richard Howes was issued with a sexual harm prevention order at Maidstone Crown Court on 20 August 2021, following a conviction for making indecent images of children.

The conditions of this order required him to make any internet-enabled device available for inspection by the police on request, and to notify them within three days if he acquired any new devices. 

Attempts to deceive

On 28 February 2024, officers visited Howes after they suspected he had a new phone and had failed to notify police. Howes presented a phone and a tablet for inspection and denied having any other devices. 

He was arrested and a search of his property located two further tablets and another phone he had not declared.

Howes, of Prospect Row, Chatham, pleaded guilty at Maidstone Crown Court to three breaches of a sexual harm prevention order.

The 59-year-old was sentenced on Thursday 3 October, to one year and six months’ imprisonment. This included six months for breaching a suspended sentence.

Description

A man who preyed on girls as young as ten years old has been sentenced to more than two years and given a 20-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order by a judge at Southampton Crown Court after being previously found guilty of child sex offences by a jury.

Paul Wright, aged 46, of Tyndalls, Hindhead in Surrey was convicted of sexual assault of a girl under 13 by touching and engaging in sexual communication with a child when the offences took place in August 2020 in the Winchester area.

The jury heard how Wright, who was known to the victim and their family, had been sending inappropriate messages to the victim, who was 10 years old at the time of the offences, which very quickly became sexual. He had also previously requested explicit images of the child.

The jury were also told that he had set up a separate social media account, utilising a different name, to speak to the victim in private in order to stop other people interfering.

At an earlier hearing at Southampton Crown Court on Tuesday 29 August 2023, Paul Wright pleaded not guilty to the aforementioned offences.

During a three-day trial in August 2024 at Southampton Crown Court, a jury reached a verdict of guilty against the count of sexual assault of a girl under 13 by touching and engaging in sexual communication with a child.

Paul Wright was sentenced on Tuesday 8 October at Southampton Crown Court to two years and four months in prison. The judge also granted a 20 year Sexual Harm Prevention Order against him in addition to requiring Wright to sign on to the Sex Offenders’ Register for a period of 20 years.

PC Kallum Sillence of Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary’s Child Abuse Investigation Team (CAIT) said: “Paul Wright betrayed the trust of a family, who unknown to them was a previous Registered Sex Offender. I am certain that had they been aware of this fact, they would not have allowed such contact and we would not be in the position we are in today in that a young girl had been sexually assaulted.

“The disclosures made by Paul Wright about the allegations were damning in this case. It is clear that Mr Wright posed a significant risk to young children through the course of his actions.

“The sentencing is a result of outstanding bravery by the victim in disclosing the interactions in the first instance and while this sentence in no way will negate what has happened to her, the hope is that she can now begin to put this ordeal behind her, and move forward, knowing that justice has now been served.”

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Walsall man who won an award before being jailed for sex offences

This is the face of a man from Walsall and a former chauffeur for the mayor of Birmingham who is starting a jail term of nine years for child sex offences.

Kenneth Bond, aged 56 of Sycamore Road, was awarded the Royal Human Society Testimonial last year after persuading a woman who was standing in the road brandishing an eight-inch knife to give the weapon up.

Description

Andrew Burke, from Cardiff, has been jailed for rape and other sexual offences.

The 60-year-old was found guilty of rape, violence against a child, indecent assault, engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child, taking an indecent photo of a child, and assaulting a girl under 13 by touching.

Burke was sentenced at Cardiff Crown Court on Thursday, October 3, to 15 years in prison. He is also subject to a 30-year restraining order and Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO).

Description

A NORTHWICH man collected hundreds of indecent images of children and shared one of the most serious with someone via WhatsApp.

Paul Birleson has avoided jail after pleading guilty to a string of seven offences relating to the possession and distribution of images of children and animals.

At Chester Crown Court on Monday (October 7) the 48-year-old was handed a 24-month sentence - reduced from 30 months on account of his early guilty plea - suspended for two years.

If you had a trial I could not have given the sentence I did today, that is how close you came to going to prison, said judge Simon Berkson.

Prosecutor Tom McLoughlin explained that police raided Birlesons home on July 28, 2022, following reports of suspicious behaviour on his Google account.

Police analysed his devices and found a total of 529 images, including 28 category A images and 115 category A videos, the most serious.

Birleson was also found to be in possession of 40 category B images and 89 category B videos, as well as 124 category C images and 106 videos.

Also found on the devices were 25 extreme pornographic images involving dogs and cats.

Mr McLoughlin continued to explain there was evidence Birleson had watched these images on a TV at his home.

He had also distributed one category A image by sending it to someone over WhatsApp.

David Morton, defending, said his client was utterly ashamed of what he had done.

He added Birleson has a complicated medical history, and is currently undergoing chemotherapy.

Birleson, formerly of Emmett Street in Barnton, also has no previous convictions and was described by the Probation Service as having a low risk of reoffending.

Ordinarily he is a bright, articulate and capable individual, said Mr Morton.

He has made it clear he is willing to put his back into effective work to rehabilitate.

Mr Morton continued, saying his client had shown he is capable of change, highlighting his battle with alcoholism, with Birleson now the best part of 20 months sober.

Taking this all into account, Judge Berkson sentenced Birleson based on what he saw as the most serious of the seven charges distribution of a category A indecent photograph of a child.

He said: Not only do you like to watch child abuse on screens in front of you but you are prepared to distribute them to others with similar interest.

Medical conditions are not in themselves a get out of jail free but here we have a combination of factors.

Birleson, now of Carlingford Road in Chester-le-Street, was also ordered to complete 35 rehabilitation activity requirement days and a 120-day alcohol monitoring requirement.

On top of this, Judge Berkson imposed a sexual harm prevention order for 15 years.

Description

A former police officer has pleaded guilty to sex offences after he was confronted by paedophile hunters outside his home in a Norfolk town.

Christopher Sheldrick, 56, of Suffield Road in Gorleston, was arrested on September 29 after being approached by a member of The Ghosts Online Child Protection Team.

He was then charged with engaging in sexual communication with a child, attempting to breach a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and failing to comply with notification requirements of the sex offender register.

He was remanded and appeared at Norwich Magistrates' Court on Saturday, October 5 where he pleaded guilty to all three offences.

Sheldrick is now due to appear before Norwich Crown Court on November 4.

Norfolk police confirmed that Sheldrick had been a police officer but had not served with them.

When confronted by the paedophile hunter group, Sheldrick admitted to them that he is a former police officer who has been out of the force for some years.

Sheldrick admits to the group in the video that he was fired from the force for a breach of misconduct and later he also says he served in the military.

A member of the group then began reading transcripts of the conversation between Sheldrick and someone who he thought was a 14-year-old girl.

The person told him that they were 14 and Sheldrick asked her to "stick her tongue out" and made a suggestive comment.

Sheldrick confessed to sending the account a pornographic video telling her "she needs to learn" about sex.

He said in the video that he had been in prison for sex offences.

Additionally, when asked if he is sexually attracted to children he replies "Partly I suppose" before confessing to speaking to "three or four" other children who he says have sent him indecent images.