Latest Offenders Bournemouth

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A MAN who raped a 15-year-old girl in the sea off Bournemouth Beach in a ‘brazen’ act in broad daylight has been jailed for six and a half years.

Gabriel Marinoaica, of Darlastan, Walsall, West Midlands, was found guilty of three charges of sexual assault and another charge of rape in March and was sentenced at Bournemouth Crown Court today, April 19.

Marinoaica, now 20, ‘took what he wanted and used his victim in the process’, Richard Tutts, prosecuting, said.

This was a ‘brazen act committed in broad daylight with many people around’ on someone who was ‘entitled to believe she would have been safe in such a circumstance’.

Marinoaica was 18 at the time and dragged his victim out to sea off the beach on July 18, 2021.

She was visiting the beach with two friends and were playing with a ball in the shallows, which floated towards him.

Initially, he refused to give it back, and then after returning it to her and exchanging names, he pulled her arm deeper into the water where she could not touch the bottom.

The victim told him ‘repeatedly no’ and that she was feeling uncomfortable, something Judge Evans said was ‘plainly frightening’ to her and ‘made her vulnerable’.

He then asked the victim if she wanted to ‘smash’, meaning to have sex, to which the victim said no, before Marinoaica touched her ‘everywhere’.

Judge Evans said: “I know what you were asking and she made it clear she wasn’t comfortable with that.”

He then raped her for about a minute, placing his hand over her mouth meaning she could not scream for help.

“That was a very significant thing to do,” Judge Evans said.

“It is quite apparent from that action that you knew full well that she was not consenting.”

He then ‘pursued’ the victim to get her Snapchat details.

“It may have been on your mind to try and make it look consensual, but you knew full well it wasn’t,” Judge Evans said.

Marinoaica was arrested 11 months later after semen found in the girl’s bikini matched his DNA.

In a victim impact statement read out by Mr Tutts, the victim said she suffers panic attacks and nightmares.

“During the day, my mind wanders and I think through the attack,” she said.

“I’m left with the image of him in my mind.”

The statement said she feels ‘mentally drained’ and that she has been ‘left feeling wary of male motivation towards me’.

“I used to have a huge love for the beach and the sea but I have lost it and I am left feeling uneasy,” she said.

“I feel so unsafe in the water now, going into the water makes me feel sick, I do not think I will ever be able to go in without someone with me as I am full of fear it will happen again.”

She added: “Even on my better days it is forever a part of me that will never be undone.”

Mitigating, Sophie Murray said that Marinoaica was immature and had a ‘lack of consequential thinking’ because of his age at the time, being 18.

He was on holiday with his family and had not been expected to have any interactions with ladies, and so was ‘overexuberant’ in response to her attentions.

He was ‘unable to see the consequences of his actions’ and ‘unable to control his sexual attractions’.

Ms Murray said he will have to ‘bear the brunt’ of the impact this has had on his family, and that he ‘feels the shame’ of that.

Judge Evans said the incident would ‘undermine the public confidence’ of being safe on a busy beach.

“Young people should be safe on a busy beach on a sunny afternoon. Sadly, that was not the case,” she said.

The judge also told the court how Marinoaica had been questioned by police in June 2021 about an unconnected allegation of rape but no further action was taken as the sex was found to have been consensual.

She said: “The police were involved and that interaction with the police doesn’t appear to have acted as a sufficient warning to you on how you should conduct yourself in sexual matters in the future.”

She sentenced Marinoaica to six and a half years in a young offenders’ institute, and will serve two thirds of the sentence in custody, before being released on licence.

Marinoaica was placed on the sexual offenders register for life and was given a sexual harm prevention order for 20 years.

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A SEX offender told an undercover police officer, posing on a dating app, that he was a ‘genuine paedophile’.

Leonard Vandervail confessed his sexual interest in children on a dating app and bragged that the youngest he had abused was four years old.

The 43-year-old thought he was messaging a woman, aged 22, with three children on the app but was speaking to an undercover police officer.

Prosecutor Rod Blain told Bournemouth Crown Court on March 7 that Vandervail told the woman he was looking for a little girl.

After saying she had three children, the undercover police officer asked the defendant if he wanted to meet them, and he said yes.

They began messaging on another messaging platform where the defendant ‘wasted no time’ in asking how old the children were.

She told Vandervail that her two ‘daughters’ and ‘son’ were aged 10, two and seven.

The defendant then admitted his sexual interest in their ages, saying the youngest he had abused was four years old.

He said that this happened regularly and ‘assured’ her that he was a ‘genuine paedophile’.

When asked if anything was off limits, he said he would do anything.

After confessing further details of ‘activities’, Vandervail and the woman arranged to meet her ‘children’.

The defendant said he was from Bournemouth and sent a picture of himself, which police were able to use to identify him.

Dorset Police then confirmed that Vandervail was already a known sex offender and had previously been given a sexual harm prevention order.

Mitigating, Nick Robinson said that the harm made was to a fictitious child and that according to the defendant, the comments made were fantasy whilst under the influence of drink and cannabis.

Mr Robinson said that Vandervail completed the sex offender programme eight months ago and ‘did very well’, but has regressed to previous behaviour.

He added that the defendant is sorry and is keen to engage with probation to reduce the risk of this happening again.

Vandervail, of Wootton Mount in Bournemouth, was charged with three counts of making indecent photograph/ pseudo-photograph of a child and breaching a sexual harm prevention order.

His Honour Judge Robert Pawson said the defendant has a ‘very troubling’ history that is rooted in sexual attraction to children which goes back over 10 years.

Vandervail was sentenced to three years in prison, given a sexual harm prevention order indefinitely and put on the sex offender register for life.

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A 21-YEAR-OLD man was caught with indecent images of children and animals just two months after being sentenced for sex offences.

Tomasz Willmington was found with the disturbing images by police who were monitoring his laptop.

The defendant was convicted in July 2022, and sentenced the following month, for five counts of similar offences relating to pornographic images of children.

Willmington was handed a three-year community order and made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order for ten years, allowing police to monitor his devices.

Prosecuting, Althea Brook, told Bournemouth Crown Court that officers were notified in October 2022 that the 21-year-old was accessing indecent material at his home on Northport Drive in Wareham.

When interviewed by police, the defendant admitted to the offences and later pleaded guilty.

Willingham appeared at Bournemouth Crown Court on February 2 to be sentenced for making indecent photos of a child and possessing a prohibited image of a child.

He was also charged with possessing an extreme pornographic image involving animals, specifically dogs.

Mitigating, Kevin Hill, said that Willmington is living at home with his mother and has since started working which is helping.

“He takes this very seriously and is very sorry that he committed this offence again.”

Judge Susan Evans KC noted that the defendant reoffended so soon after his first sentencing that he had not begun his rehabilitation programme.

However, since completing it, he has been making progress.

Judge Evans added that maintaining a job and working with others will improve his social isolation, which is relevant to his current offending.

“You are relatively young and are maturing,” said Judge Evans.

“There is no suggestion you have offended any further.”

Willmington was handed a sentence of 14 weeks, suspended for 15 months.

He must do 100 hours of unpaid work and will be given both a sexual harm prevention order and a sex offender notification order for seven years.

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A man was caught having sex with a cow after triggering an alarm set up by farmers who suspected their livestock were being abused.

Liam Brown, 25, sneaked onto a farm in Burton, near Christchurch, in the dead of night to commit the disturbing act.

But he was detected by the farm's surveillance and found on the premises by farmers who rushed to the scene.

A DNA sample taken from a calf proved 'intercourse' had taken place on June 12, 2022.

Brown sobbed as he pleaded guilty to sexual penetration with a living animal and causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal during a brief hearing at Poole Magistrates Court on August 25.

The case has been transferred to Bournemouth Crown Court for sentencing as magistrates said he may be facing a custodial sentence.

Prosecuting, Charles Nightingale said the farm off Martins Hill Lane had installed alarms and other surveillance equipment after becoming concerned about the welfare of their young livestock.

He said Brown had been known to the farmers since he was a child because some of his family members were previously employed at the farm.

Mr Nightingale said: The defendant was found by members of the farming family who had concerns regarding the welfare of the young livestock in question and set up alarms in the area.

On the night in question they were alerted by alarms and equipment they had set up with the result that the defendant was found.

Subsequently, samples were taken from the animal confirming the intercourse in question.

The court heard that Brown had no previous convictions and had not returned to the farm since the incident.

Mr Nightingale added: The family who own the farm want him nowhere near it.

Defending, Harry Price-Smith agreed that the case should be committed for sentence at a crown court, and the defendant was given unconditional bail.

Brown, of Grosvenor Gardens in Boscombe, was addressed by the magistrates who said: It is going to crown court because the offences are so serious it is possible you need greater punishment than we can give.

The sentencing will take place on September 22.

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A pensioner with an ‘irrational impulse’ to collect things downloaded hundreds of child sex abuse images, a court heard.

Peter Calladine, 77, accessed the material online for many years and made an unsuccessful attempt to stop his offending by taking up bird watching.

Bournemouth Crown Court heard the RAF veteran would periodically delete the indecent content he had downloaded, only to find more images on the internet.

Calladine was spared a custodial sentence when he appeared to be sentenced on Friday, August 25.

Prosecuting, Rob Griffiths said: “In September 2021, Dorset Police received information that there was an IP address that was responsible for either sharing or downloading indecent images of children and the subscriber to that address was Mr Calladine.”

Officers attended two months later and the defendant was arrested.

Calladine was “frank and candid” when interviewed by police, detailing the search terms he had used to locate material of young teenage girls.

Forensic analysis suggested he had accessed such images since 2011.

The defendant told police he had tried to stop looking at indecent images by taking up bird watching but it had not worked, the prosecutor said.

Police found 115 category A, 197 category B and 1,144 category C moving and still images on his computer.

Calladine pleaded guilty to three counts of possessing indecent images of children.

Mitigating, Oliver Hirsch said Calladine had served in the RAF before working in intelligence translating messages during the Cold War.

A serious injury while in this role led to him losing his hearing and he was forced to retire.

Mr Hirsch said the defendant spent a great deal of his time at home alone which led to him developing a “habit of browsing” adult websites.

The barrister said this led to finding material of children, however, there was also a large amount of adult pornography on his computer.

The defendant described having an “irrational impulse” to collect things all through his life, Mr Hirsch said.

In his childhood, this could include stamps and took different forms in his adult life.

Mr Hirsch said: “He would periodically delete the images he downloaded because he was disgusted with his behaviour.”

The court was told Calladine had taken significant steps to change, including engaging with the Lucy Faithfull Foundation, and since his arrest, he tried to stay busy by litter picking up to 18 hours a week alongside charity work.

Judge Jonathan Fuller KC said: “There are two or three very disturbing images which are very much the minority of the images in category A and on their own they would justify sending you to prison straight away.

“You have to understand that beyond the screen in the real world there is or there was a five-year-old child and in one case a six-month-old baby being grossly abused, that being orchestrated by undoubtedly criminal organisations who were then filming that so they could put it out on the internet to be watched and to make money out of it. That is the hard reality of these cases.”

The judge said the defendant was of “positive good character”, having “not only served your country but you continue to serve your community”.

There had been a significant delay in the case coming to court, there was a realistic prospect of rehabilitation and the offender was remorseful, Judge Fuller KC said.

It was accepted the defendant might have undiagnosed obsessive behaviour which manifested itself in the offending.

Calladine received a two-year community order and must do 25 rehabilitation activity days and pay £340 in costs.

He was made subject to a sexual harm prevention order and placed on the sex offenders register for five years.

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A man has been found guilty of entering a ladies’ toilet block and engaging in a sex act in front of three girls.

Jurors took less than two hours to return unanimous verdicts against Ahmed Elbasry.

The defendant, 38, denied three counts of engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child and went on trial at Bournemouth Crown Court.

Following the three-day trial, the jury of seven women and five men found Elbasry guilty of all counts on Thursday, August 17.

The offences related to an incident at the seafront toilets in Undercliff Drive near Boscombe Pier on the evening of May 8 last year.

Prosecutor Tom Wright told the jury the girls, who were aged between 11 and 13, had been at the beach with family when they went to the toilets before making the trip home.

He said they were the only people in the women’s bathroom when they saw the defendant in the corridor.

In evidence, they said he was looking at them and smiling. The complainants said he exposed himself with his “boxers” halfway down his thighs.

During the trial, the defence said they were green swimming trunks and he also had chino shorts.

The girls described how Elbasry was touching himself and how scared they felt.

The court heard that the complainants locked themselves in two of the cubicles before the defendant, who lived less than two minutes away, entered the only other one.

One of the 13-year-olds said Elbasry tried to put his head through the gap at the bottom of the partition wall, which separated the stalls, before he put his arm under and tried to grab at them.

By this point the girls were screaming until one of their parents, who they had called on the phone, arrived in the toilet block, the jury heard.

The court heard the defendant went out of the cubicle he was in and went into the men’s toilets where he put his shorts on.

Prosecutor Tom Wright said the offender was challenged by the parents and he was prevented from leaving the scene until police arrived.

Elbasry’s account of what happened differed from his police interview and when he was in the witness box in the trial.

In his interview, he denied going into a cubicle in the women’s toilet and touching himself.

At court, he said he was desperate to go to the toilet and took his penis out before going into the stall.

His barrister, Nick Cotter, suggested to the jury he had committed an honest mistake going into the women’s toilets rather than the men’s facilities.

Judge William Mousley KC remanded the defendant, of Marina Close, Bournemouth, on unconditional bail ahead of a sentencing hearing at Bournemouth Crown Court on Monday, October 2.

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The prison sentence of a taxi driver who was found guilty of sexually assaulting a 17-year-old girl will not be increased.

A request was made to a government legal advisor to consider appealing the sentence Mahdi Ferhane received at Bournemouth Crown Court last month.

Solicitor General Michael Tomlinson was said to be “shocked and appalled” by the case.

However, the MP for Mid Dorset and North Poole decided against making a referral to the Court of Appeal through the unduly lenient sentence scheme.

Ferhane, a father of two, was jailed for 28 months by Judge William Mousley KC after he was found unanimously guilty of sexual assault.

The 38-year-old offender was found not guilty of attempted rape following a crown court trial in April and May.

A spokesperson for the Attorney General’s Office said: “The Solicitor General was shocked and appalled by this case.

“After careful consideration, the Solicitor General has concluded that this case cannot properly be referred to the Court of Appeal.

“A referral under the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme to the Court of Appeal can only be made if a sentence is not just lenient but unduly so, such that the sentencing judge made a gross error or imposed a sentence outside the range of sentences reasonably available in the circumstances of the offence.

“The threshold is a high one, and the test was not met in this case.”

As reported, Ferhane “took advantage” of the “vulnerable” girl, who he had picked up alone in Bournemouth town centre.

He came into contact with the complainant when he pulled up alongside her when she was sat on a bench in Old Christchurch Road in the early hours of May 29 last year.

After a short conversation, the teenager got into the front seat of his car and asked to be driven to her home, but the defendant went to a clifftop car park and insisted that she drive his vehicle.

The defendant then took the complainant to an address he owned in St Peter’s Road.

Inside the flat he removed her dress, massaged her shoulder, pushed her face down onto a mattress and touched her with his penis.

Ferhane drove the teen home and charged her £12 for the trip as a taxi passenger.

It came to light after the trial that Ferhane previously had a licence revoked by Bournemouth Borough Council.

The local authority removed his driver's licence in late 2017.

He then applied for a licence with New Forest District Council in December 2021 and was granted permission to operate as a private hire driver carrying out pre-booked trips only.

A spokesperson for NFDC said Ferhane did not disclose that he previously held a licence in Bournemouth or that it had been revoked.

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A convicted child sex offender who poses a high risk to girls was snared by paedophile hunters twice in the space of a month.

Ryan Lee James Highfield, 37, arranged to meet a ’13-year-old girl’ at McDonald’s in Boscombe.

Highfield had actually been sending messages and making arrangements with an account operated by an adult posing as the teenager.

The defendant was stopped by members of the sting group at the fast-food restaurant in Christchurch Road on the evening of October 27, 2022, before being arrested by police.

Bournemouth Crown Court heard he was released under investigation and went on to arrange and meet a decoy pretending to be an 11 or 12-year-old girl at Pokesdown Railway Station on November 20 last year.

Highfield was again met by paedophile hunters and arrested by police, who were aware of the defendant communicating with a ‘girl’ profile run up by a third vigilante organisation.

In total the defendant messaged five ‘girls’, often using the same opening line of “hey, you are stunning”, between August and November.

At the sentencing hearing on Tuesday, May 23, Judge William Mousley KC told Highfield: “You are a high risk to females and in particular to female children.”

The judge said he was satisfied the defendant was a dangerous offender due to the crimes he was being sentenced for, his previous convictions, the contents of a pre-sentence report and his medical records.

In law, dangerous offenders are people who pose a significant risk of serious harm to the public by the commission of further specified offences. They are made subject to extended licence conditions on top of their custodial sentence.

Prosecuting, Stuart Ellacott told the court the defendant had 13 previous convictions for 26 offences dating back to 2000.

Highfield had been subject to a sexual offences prevention order since 2012 after being convicted of sexual activity with a 14-year-old girl and arranging to meet a 13-year-old girl following sexual grooming.

Mr Ellacott detailed some of the messages the defendant sent to the ‘girls’ in his recent offending.

This included him writing “if only you were older”. When asked why by the ‘child’, he said “because I would love to **** you”.

The court heard the age the decoys purported to be was made clear to the defendant during the communication.

In one conversation, he wrote: “I bet you look well sexy in your uniform.”

The defendant indicated he wanted to have penetrative sexual activity with several of the ‘girls’ he was messaging.

Highfield sent a pornographic video and an indecent photograph of himself and invited a ‘child’ to come to his flat.

The offender also asked one of them to send a picture of themselves back to him and to perform a sex act on herself.

“None of these children were real children,” the judge said. “They were adults posing as children.

“Adults attempting to discover and lead to the apprehension of people considered to be paedophiles.”

Highfield, previously of Haviland Road East, Bournemouth, pleaded guilty to five counts of attempted sexual communications with a child, one count of attempting to meet a child following sexual grooming, one count of arranging or facilitating commission of a child sex offence, one count of attempting to cause of incite a child to engage in sexual activity, one count of attempting to cause a child to watch a sexual act and five counts of breaching a sexual offences prevention order.

Mitigating, Nick Robinson said the offending was unsophisticated with Highfield messaging using his real name and photograph on his profile.

The defendant had experienced trauma in his childhood and was placed in care from the age of six, the barrister said.

“Every day in prison may well be much more difficult for him than the average offender,” Mr Robinson said.

Highfield, who has learning disabilities, “acted out his impulse” by arranging the meetings, Mr Robinson said.

He added: “He is at his computer and he has a complete lack of consequential thinking, as many offenders do.”

Judge Mousley KC sentenced Highfield to eight years imprisonment, with a three-year extended licence period.

The defendant will not be considered for release by the parole board until he has served five years and four months behind bars.

He was made subject to a sexual harm prevention order and placed on the sex offenders register. Both of these measures were imposed indefinitely.

Detective Constable Matt Loader, of Dorset Police’s paedophile online investigation team (POLIT), said: “Ryan Highfield is a repeat offender whose behaviour clearly indicates he had the intention of committing sexual offences involving children and he posed a threat to vulnerable young people.

“We have worked hard to compile evidence in this case and our detailed investigation has helped to ensure that Highfield now faces a significant period behind bars.”

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A MAN has been jailed for more than seven years for the repeated sexual abuse of a young girl over many months.

Detectives have praised the victim and her family for their “bravery”, which led to Jamie Hollingsworth being put behind bars.

Hollingsworth, aged 37, was sentenced at Bournemouth Crown Court on Tuesday, October 4, after being found guilty at an earlier trial of causing or inciting a child under the age of 13 to engage in sexual activity.

The defendant, of Turbary Park Avenue, Bournemouth, was sentenced to seven years and nine months in prison, as well as being made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order for an indefinite period and was also placed on the sex offender’s register for life.

The charges related to the repeated abuse of a young girl over a nine-month period. 

Hollingsworth was arrested on Thursday, February 11, after the victim made disclosures to her family and they reported the matter to police. 

 Detective Constable Jo Shewbridge, of Dorset Police’s Child Abuse Investigation Team (CAIT), said: “I want to praise the young victim in this case and her family for having the courage to come forward and for the support they have given throughout the investigation and court process.

“Through their bravery, Jamie Hollingsworth has been forced to face the consequences of his abusive behaviour.

"I hope this might inspire others who have been the victims of sexual offences to come forward in the knowledge that they will be supported and we will do all we can to bring offenders to justice.” 

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A POLICE detective has praised the immense bravery of a victim after the man who raped her was jailed.

Connor Curtis repeatedly ignored the woman telling him no when he carried out the sexual assault.

Curtis, 24 and of Christchurch Road, Bournemouth was jailed for eight years by a judge at Bournemouth Crown Court on April 20.

He had previously pleaded guilty to two counts of rape and one count of sexual assault.

In a statement after Curtis was jailed, Detective Constable Joanne Thomas, of Dorset Police, said: I would like to praise the victim for the immense bravery she has shown in standing up to Connor Curtis and reporting what happened to police.

The victim showed a lot of courage while the investigation was carried out and the court process was ongoing.

"I hope this case will again demonstrate that Dorset Police takes these offences extremely seriously.

"We will always listen to and support anyone who reports matters to us and offenders will be held accountable for the crimes they commit.

As reported, Curtis denied his offending when interviewed by police. He told the officers the sex was consensual.

The defendant pleaded not guilty to the charges at a crown court hearing in October last year, but changed his pleas to guilty earlier this year.

Prosecutor Gemma White told the court the victim had suffered nightmares and flashbacks since Curtis had raped her.

Alongside the prison sentence, of which Curtis will serve at least two-thirds behind bars before being released on licence, the offender was placed on the sex offenders register for the rest of his life.

DC Thomas said: If you have been a victim of rape or sexual assault, and you want to report directly to the police please call 101 and ask to be put in contact with a specially-trained police officer. Always dial 999 in an emergency. Alternatively, you can contact The Shores Sexual Assault Referral Centre on 0800 970 9954.

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A SERIAL rapist who held his victims captive for days at a time has died in prison, it has been confirmed.

Gene Benjamin held his victims prisoner and strangled them into unconsciousness before repeatedly raping and beating them and was jailed in 2011.

He preyed on women across Bournemouth over a six-year period.

One victim was six months pregnant and another was attacked with a claw hammer. Others were threatened with knives and an axe.

Benjamin, previously of Belle Vue Road, Southbourne, was convicted of seven counts of rape, one count of wounding and eight counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm following a trial at Bournemouth Crown Court.

Judge Samuel Wiggs sentenced him to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 11 years.

Due to time already spent in custody, Benjamin became eligible for parole last year.

However, on his first appearance before the Parole Board, his release from prison was refused.

It has now been confirmed that the offender died in a Yorkshire prison last month at the age of 64.

A Prison Service spokesperson said: HMP Wakefield prisoner Gene Benjamin died on February 11.

"The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman has been informed.

Benjamin, who was known as Barry, was found guilty of the offences committed between January 2004 and February 2010 after an eight-week trial.

Most of the women the rapist targeted worked in Bournemouth as prostitutes.

The victims had been aged between 18 and 40 years and the attacks were carried out at 15 different locations.

Benjamin got away with his vile and vicious crimes for years because his victims were too scared to go to the police.

Judge Wiggs told him: You preyed on the prostitutes of Bournemouth. You were in their community and used intimidation and violence on them."

At the time of sentencing, the officer in the case, Detective Sergeant Lindsay Dudfield, said: Im pleased with the sentence.

Gene Benjamin is an incredibly dangerous man and this ensures the safety of Dorset residents.

She added: I commend the bravery of the women who gave evidence."

The Daily Echo can also confirm that Benjamin was refused parole last year after serving his minimum term.

A Parole Board panel it was not satisfied Benjamin was suitable for release. It also decided that the benefits of a move to open prison were considered to be limited and to be outweighed by the remaining risks that Benjamin presented.

A document detailing the Parole Board's decision said the risk factors at the time of his offending included his use and willingness to use violence and weapons and preferring sex to include violent or controlling behaviour over women.

It added he did not care about the effects of his actions on other people and said he had attitudes that support sexual violence.

The Parole Board also examined the release plan provided by Mr Benjamins probation officer and weighed its proposals against assessed risks.

The panel concluded this plan was not robust enough to manage Benjamin in the community at that stage because there were outstanding risk factors that needed to be addressed.

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A MAN has been jailed for 18 years after being found guilty of historical child sex offences against two girls.

Stuart John Aldridge, aged 52 and of Bournemouth, was convicted of rape, two charges of indecent assault and two counts of sexual activity with a child following a trial at Bournemouth Crown Court.

The offences were committed over a period of around 10 years, starting in the late 1990s and involved two child victims.

One of the victims first disclosed the offences to police in April 2019 and the second victim was interviewed by officers the following month.

Aldridge was subsequently arrested and charged. He appeared at Bournemouth Crown Court for sentencing on Wednesday, February 16, where a judge sentenced him to 18 years' imprisonment.

Detective Constable Jo Shewbridge, of Dorset Polices Child Abuse Investigation Team, said: These two victims have shown great courage incoming forward to report the despicable abuse they suffered at the hands of Stuart Aldridge.

This led to a detailed investigation by the Child Abuse Investigation Team and, with the support of the victims throughout our enquiries and the court process, we have now been able to bring him to justice for his terrible actions.

I hope this case demonstrates that we will take reports of this nature extremely seriously and will fully support victims of sexual abuse who come forward.

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A WEYMOUTH sex offender living rough on the streets of Bournemouth failed to let police know of his changed circumstances and assaulted a community safety officer, a court heard.

John Mark Poole - who also goes by the name Leon Park - admitted to failing without reasonable excuse to notify police that he was no longer residing at his registered address in Park Street, Weymouth, which he was required to do within three days under the Sexual Offences Act.

Appearing at Poole Magistrates Court via live video link on Tuesday January 11, Poole also admitted assaulting a victim on November 8 2021 who was acting in his duty under a community safety accreditation scheme, and a further offence of criminal damage while subject to a conditional discharge order.

The case was adjourned until February 17 in order for a medical or psychiatric report to be prepared.

Poole was granted conditional bail until the next court date, during which time he must report to Weymouth Police Station and live and sleep in Weymouth to ensure appearance at his next court date, and to prevent reoffending. He must also engage with REACH drug and alcohol service and engage with psychiatrists in the preparation of a report.

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A MAN crept into student accommodation and broke into a flat before sexually assaulting a woman.

The victim told her attacker, who also attempted to sexually assault a second female, he took away their right to privacy and the right to sleep without being sexually assaulted.

Akash Krishna Shrestha, 25, of Portland Road, Bournemouth, admitted sexually assaulting a woman and trespassing with the intent to sexually assault in Bournemouth in September 2021.

He appeared at Bournemouth Crown Court for sentencing on Monday, December 20.

The defendant wrote a letter to his victims, claiming his drink was spiked after a night in Cameo.

Prosecuting Andy Houston said the defendant recently graduated from Arts University Bournemouth.

The two women had been in bed since about 11pm when Shrestha crept into the building behind a group of people at around 5am.

Footage played in court showed the defendant tensing his muscles in the mirror before getting out.

Mr Houston said: [The victim] woke with the lights off, she had gone to sleep with them on.

She saw a figure standing over her in her room. She had no idea how long he had been there.

The victim tried to cover herself with the duvet when the defendant took off his trousers and underwear and got onto her bed.

She said he squashed me into the corner, started kissing me and put his hands into my knickers, the prosecutor added.

The victim eventually managed to get away and went to find a security guard.

Shrestha then went into another room and pulled the blanket off the woman.

She shouted at him and he left the room.

A victim impact statement from the first victim said: I want him to know how he has affected innocent peoples lives because he cant control himself.

I never deserved any of this.

Because he thought it was okay to trespass into an innocent persons home he took away their right to sleep safely, their right to privacy, to dignity and how about the right to sleep without being sexually assaulted?

The second victim said she dreamt of studying in Bournemouth but the defendant had ruined her experience.

Mitigating, Robert Grey read letters from the defendant to the victims where he apologised, said he was shocked by his actions and that he believed his drink was spiked.

He said this behaviour was out of character and his family describe him as kind.

Despite this, Judge Brian Forster QC sentenced Shrestha to four and a half years imprisonment with an extended licence period of five years.

He will also have to notify as a sex offender indefinitely.

Judge Forster QC said: The offences have had a considerable impact on the two victims.

They were terrified at the time that the incident took place.

What has taken place has had a very significant impact on their day to day lives.

They have understandably lost confidence.

They have trouble sleeping, they fear for their safety.

Description

A MAN who arranged to meet a ‘mother and her two daughters’ with the intent of having sexual activity with a child has been jailed after a undercover police sting.

David Merrick Taylor began talking to a woman online who he believed was a single mother who had two daughters, aged eight and 11.

Taylor sent pictures of himself and discussed what he wanted to do to the girls before arranging a meeting at Bournemouth Pier.

The meeting in January came just days after first exchanging messages with the undercover officer who had assumed the role of the fictional mother.

The 48-year-old was then identified by officers and arrested.

He had a rucksack with him which contained lubricant, condoms and sweets.

The defendant, of Havilland Road East, Bournemouth, admitted a charge of attempting to arrange or facilitate sexual activity with a child at Poole Magistrates’ Court on January 23.

He was jailed for four years after appearing at Bournemouth Crown Court.

Prosecuting, Richard Sedgwick said Taylor committed this offence while subject to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO), which had first been issued following an extremely similar crime in 2017.

On that occasion he was caught by a paedophile hunter group, who passed information on to police.

Mr Sedgwick said on January 19 of this year the defendant started messaging the undercover police officer on messaging service Chatiw and the content of what he said became explicit and of a sexualised nature.

The meeting was arranged in the days that followed and officers arrested the defendant at the pier.

During interview, Taylor, who has autism and Asperger’s, initially made no comment but went on to say the situation had been a “fantasy he never intended to go through with”.

Mitigating, Roderick Blain told the judge it was a question of “how long” his client was jailed for rather than the type of sentence issued in this case.

He said first contact with the undercover officer to arrest covered just three days.

The barrister described the way Taylor behaved as “very unsophisticated”.

Judge Brian Forster QC said the case was “particularly serious” given the defendant had been sentenced to a significant period of imprisonment for a very similar offence in 2017 and he was already subject to a SHPO.

“You travelled to this area (the pier) for the purpose of carrying out sexual activities with a child aged eight or 11,” said the judge.

“You travelled to the area equipped with lubricant gel, fruit flavoured condoms children’s sweets and binoculars.”

He added: “Courts have a clear duty to deter sexual predators from committing crimes against children.”

Taylor was placed on the sex offender’s register indefinitely, with terms of a new SHPO made at a later hearing.