Description
A twisted sex offender who kidnapped a three-year-old girl in his camper van and subjected her to horrendous abuse has finally faced justice. Robert Frid, 78, had lured the girl to his van under the pretence he needed help before driving away and dumping her in the street in Bracknell afterwards.
The incident, which occurred in 1986, went unsolved for 37 years until his DNA was discovered on his victim’s underwear after Thames Valley Police reopened the investigation. Frid, of no fixed abode, pleaded guilty to one count of kidnap and one count of indecent assault and has now been jailed for 10 years.
The sick paedophile is already in jail for other unconnected sexual offences and will not be considered for parole until 2027. The sentence for the Bracknell offences will run consecutive to his previous convictions, which include the abuse of another young girl.
Head of Thames Valley Police’s Major Crime Investigation Review Team, which investigates unsolved homicides and serious sexual offences, Peter Beirne said: “This was an horrendous attack on a three-year-old girl, who was playing outside with friends when Robert Frid kidnapped her in Bracknell.
“Frid approached the girl, claiming that he needed help with his vehicle. When the girl followed Frid into his VW Camper Van, he drove off. While in the campervan, Frid indecently assaulted the girl, before asking her to exit the vehicle and leaving her on her own. She was later found by member of the public and taken home.
“Advances in forensic science enabled our team to reinvestigate the case. Frid was linked to the crimes when his DNA was found on the victim’s underwear. It is in excess of one billion times more likely that Frid had contributed to the DNA found on the victim’s underwear, than if he had not contributed to the DNA discovered.
“Facing such strong evidence, Frid pleaded guilty to the kidnap and indecent assault of the girl. I’m pleased he will spend a considerable time behind bars, and after 37 years the victim now has justice. This is why my team come to work, to solve the most serious of historic crimes and secure justice for the victims and their families.
“Frid’s conviction is the twentieth that our team have secured against offenders for the most serious historic stranger attacks on woman and young girls. We have also convicted six offenders for murders across the Thames Valley.
“We will continue to reinvestigate these historic cases and use the advancements in forensic science to develop new evidence to bring offenders to justice.”