Latest Offenders Durham

Description

A vile County Durham man with a fantasy for sex attacks on women tried to rape a teenage girl walking alone in woodland.

Christopher Bates is the living embodiment of every woman and girls nightmare, a judge said as she jailed him for life on Thursday (June 26).

The 37-year-old, locked up in 2006 for attempted rape, pushed the girl into bushes and tried to rape her while she desperately fought him off and screamed for help.

It happened earlier this year when the high risk sex offender, who was living in a secure unit near Spennymoor after his release from prison, managed to escape while being taken to a dentist appointment.

Teesside Crown Court heard the teenage victim was walking alone when he approached her pretending to be lost. It was the first time he had been unsupervised in years.

Prosecutor Mr Paul Cleasby said: He asked her whether she was alone and whether she had a mobile phone.

The child gave directions but his mannerisms made her feel awkward and she decided to leave the woods.

But Bates chased her, catching up and saying he was going to do her before performing a sex act on himself.

Desperate, his teen victim lied saying she was only 10-years-old in a bid to deter his interest but he told her he didnt care, the court heard, and pushed her into thorny bushes before trying to rape her.

She managed to stop him for long enough until a passing dog walker came to her aid and he fled. The court heard her dad had previously taught her how to defend herself in case of such an attack.

Police arrested him a short time later. In bodycam footage he could be heard telling officers: To be honest I dont know what I was doing. I just lost my head.

He made no comment in two police interviews meaning the girl had to identify him from a line-up.

In an impact statement, read by the prosecutor, the girls mum said: She used to go for walks for hours. I am lucky if I get her out of the house for ten minutes.

When were out shopping if a man comes past her she starts to get scared, hiding behind her dad.

We cant go into the woods anymore. The woods where the offence occurred used to be her safe place.

The attempted rape bore a stark resemblance to the crime he had been jailed for 15 years for in 2006 when he pushed another girl into bushes before trying to rape her. His licence period ended just 17 days before he struck again.

Judge Jo Kidd jailed Bates for life, telling him: You are the living embodiment of every woman and girls nightmare.

You are the reason why from a young age we tell our girls how to defend themselves.

I have no doubt that the advice given by [the victims] dad to his daughter saved her from the most appalling and unthinkable, sadistic crime.

"You immediately set about to put a plan in place where you would relive your fantasy to drag a female into bushes."

He admitted attempted rape at an earlier hearing but was back before the court for sentence on Thursday.

He must serve six years and eight months before a parole board can consider him for release, and if he ever leaves prison he will remain on license for life.

Bates was also handed a restraining order against the victim and placed under a sexual harm prevention order which a judge said will prevent him contacting anyone under 18 if he is ever released, and even ban him wearing certain clothing.

He previously pleaded not guilty to a charge of exposure which was left to lie on file.

Detective Constable Dave Taylor, from South Durham CID, who led the investigation said:

This was an appalling and horrific crime that will have a significant and profound impact on the young girl for many years to come.

Christopher Bates targeted a young, vulnerable girl in a secluded, isolated area in a very predatory way which showed clear evidence of pre-planning.

He poses a significant risk to lone women and girls which is reflected in the sentence passed today.

I would like to take this opportunity to praise the bravery of the young girl who has shown remarkable courage throughout this investigation, which will have had a profound impact on her both mentally and physically.

I only hope that she, her family, and the community as a whole can take some comfort from the significant sentence imposed and that she is able to move forward with her life again.

Description

A child rapist who bragged he was scarring his young victim for life while he abused them has been jailed for 15 years.

Stephen Fish, 28, had previously been warned about having sex with an underage girl before he groomed, abused and raped another child, Durham Crown Court heard.

Judge Nathan Adams said the abuse was "horrific" and made "particularly disturbing" by Fish's comments, which showed he knew "full well" the impact he was having on the victim.

Fish, from Grange Villa near Chester-le-Street, County Durham, had denied wrongdoing but was found guilty of seven sex offences against a child under the age of 13, including rape.

As he abused his victim, Fish, of West Street, told them he was scarring them for life, Judge Adams said.

In a statement read to the court, the victim said they had may have been "scarred for life" but they would "never be broken" by Fish.

They said they had daily flashbacks of the "nightmare" abuse and their life had been "irreparably changed", adding: "I will likely never be able to have a truly normal life."

But, they said, they got "solace" from Fish being convicted and jailed, adding he would be "unable to hurt any innocent children" again.

'Offender of particular concern'

Judge Adams told Fish: "It's horrific to read out and recite the abuse that took place because you still deny any of this took place."

He said the abuse would have a "lifelong" effect on the victim and Fish's comments were "particularly disturbing" as they showed he knew "full well" what he was doing would have an impact on the victim.

The judge said Fish had been "warned" before about abusing children, having got a caution for having sex with an underage teenage girl when he was 17.

Fish was deemed an "offender of particular concern" and must serve a further year on extended licence upon his release from prison.

He must also sign the sex offenders register for life.

Description

Two childcare workers who abused their position and targeted a vulnerable child, supplying her with drugs and alcohol before sexually abusing her have been jailed.

On October 3, last year Liam Ramsey and Stephen Hurst took a 15-year-old girl, who was in their care into Durham City Centre.

CCTV captured the actions of the pair as they arrived in Durham and then began visiting local pubs.

To avoid detection, they used their personal bank cards to purchase alcohol, plying the victim with wine and cocktails throughout the day. On the way back to the care home, they made a detour to purchase 120 worth of Class A drugs.

Ramsey and Hurst then took the child back to the care home where they continued to supply her with alcohol and gave her cocaine.

The victim told police that because of all the cocaine they had given her, she had a nosebleed and went upstairs.

As the victim went upstairs, Ramsey came into the room naked followed by Hurst who was also naked.

The victim was then subjected to physical and sexual abuse throughout the night and into the early hours of the morning.

Both Ramsey and Hurst were on duty at the time of the offences, being her carers for the day.

Liam Ramsey and Stephen Hurst were arrested after the victim left the care home following the ordeal.

Officers later charged Ramsey and Hurst with 18 offences and they were remanded into court.

The pair made some initial admissions but also denied many of the offences and so were taken to trial.

In April, the jury found Ramsey and Hurst guilty of numerous offences including sexual activity with a child, intentional strangulation and supply of a class A drug.

Ramsey, 40, of Sunderland was jailed for 11 years whilst Hurst, 46, of Richmond was jailed for 9 years.

Both men were placed on the sex offenders register for life.

Description

A County Durham sex offender has been caged for chatting to a child on WhatsApp and Snapchat. Tony Swift was also found to have online "aliases" on an unregistered Xbox when police arrested him.

In 2019, the 39-year-old was put on the sex offenders' register and made subject of a sexual harm prevention order for offences of blackmail and inciting a child into sexual activity. As part of his order, Swift was banned from using any internet enabled device unless he notifies police within three days.

He is also prohibited from interacting with children, unless with prior consent from a parent or if it is unavoidable. But in February this year, Swift breached his orders when he began chatting to a teenager online. He'd also been using an Xbox which he had not registered with police.

On Friday, Swift, of Poplar Street, Stanley, appeared at Durham Crown Court via link from HMP Holme House, to be sentenced for two counts of breaching a sexual harm prevention order and one count of failing to comply. He had pleaded guilty.

The court heard that police spoke to a child after concerns were raised they had been messaging a man online. Kathryn Wetherley, prosecuting, said: "Police spoke to them and they confirmed they had been talking to the defendant on Snapchat and WhatsApp." Swift knew the child was under the age of 16 throughout.

Ms Wetherley said that the child Swift had been messaging did not believe any of the chats between them were inappropriate. However, Swift had asked them to delete some messages, which they did.

Swift was arrested and was also found to be in possession of an Xbox which had not been registered with police. The court heard "a number of alias names" were being used.

When arrested, Swift admitted that he knew the child was underage but denied having any sexual chats with them. The court was told he had seven previous convictions for 15 offences.

Nicci Horton, defending, said the child in the case did not feel that any of the messages were inappropriate and that the Xbox had been purchased from a friend. She said some of the alias names were of the original owner and there was "no suggestion" the games console was being used for anything other than gaming.

Ms Horton said Swift has epilepsy and a tissue disorder. She told the court: "His time in custody has been challenging for his physical health as well as his mental health. He thought this communication [with the child] was helping.

"He thought he was doing a good thing. In interview he said, 'I am slow and sometimes take a while to click on why something might not be appropriate or correct'. He understands he is completely in the wrong."

Recorder Mark McKone KC jailed Swift for 26 months. A 10 year restraining order was also imposed.

Description

A sexual predator has been jailed after being found guilty of multiple sex offences in Kirklees and Cleveland.

Daniel Field (27) from Norton in Stockton on Tees was jailed for 15 years at Leeds Crown Court today (16 May) after being found guilty of 14 sexual offences against three victims in Huddersfield and a victim in Middlesbrough over a four-year period.

The 27-year-old was found guilty at a trial in February 2025 of five offences of rape, three of sexual assault, two of causing a female to engage in sexual activity and four offences of assault by penetration.

The court heard Field had been living in Huddersfield between 2018 and 2020 and had targeted three women who he knew were vulnerable, before then offending against them.

As a result of ongoing police enquiries, he was later linked to earlier undetected sexual offences, including rape, in 2016 on a female in the Middlesborough area.

Following a complex investigation, Field was charged with the offences in early 2023.

The officer in the case, Detective Constable Jan Burrill of the Homicide and Major Enquiry Team,  praised each victim’s courage after sentencing on the 16 May 2025.  

She said: “Having heard all of the evidence, the jury saw through Field and his lies and believed each of the four victim’s compelling accounts.  They not only had to re-live and describe the horrendous acts by Field but had to listen to his lies and attempts to victim blame them during the trial.  

“This was a long and protracted investigation, and I would like to express my thanks to each of the four victims for being incredibly brave in coming forward.    

“Field targeted all of his victims, when they were all in vulnerable situations, but he underestimated each victim in terms of their strength, resilience and courage.”

DC Craig Jones of Cleveland Police, said: “Despite the length of time it took to get here, justice has prevailed. Thanks to the dedication of the Operation Thiftmill team I hope all the victims get the closure they deserve.”

Detective Inspector Phil Davies of West Yorkshire Police, added: “We hope these four brave women can take some comfort from seeing Field jailed today for the awful offences he subjected them to.

“The investigation which led to his conviction was lengthy and complex and would not have been possible without their determination to assist us in building the case to bring this man to justice.    

“As a force we always encourage victims of sexual assault to come forwards and do everything we can to deliver justice for them.” 

Description

No always means no.

That’s the message from officers after a man was jailed for 14 years for raping a teenage girl he’d just met.   

Bailey Stubbs talked to the girl – who was under 16 - on Snapchat before meeting her in person in December 2021, where he supplied her with alcohol and took her back to his home in Murton.

Once there, the 22-year-old sexually assaulted the girl several times and forced her to have sex with him, despite her repeatedly telling him ‘no’.

Stubbs also strangled the girl and spat in her face.

When the terrified girl told Stubbs she wanted to go home, he told her she couldn’t leave and that he would take her home in the morning.

The brave girl managed to alert her parents who called police and Stubbs was arrested that night.

He was charged with several offences, including four counts of sexual assault, rape, assault, and false imprisonment, which he denied.

However, a jury sitting at Durham Crown Court found Stubbs guilty of the offences earlier this year and he returned to court on Friday (May 9) where he was jailed for 14 years.

He was also placed on the Sex Offenders’ Register indefinitely and handed a restraining order preventing him from contacting the girl.

Description

A convicted sex offender has been jailed after he failed to declare he was using an online alias and had bought an internet enabled games console.

Gary Bushnall was found in possession of an Xbox with an online account attached and initially tried to claim it belonged to his daughter.

The 52-year-old also failed to disclose he was using an alias name, BEELZEBUB#3589, within three days of creating it, Teesside Crown Court heard.

He was made subject of a suspended prison sentence last summer after previous breaches of the terms of his sexual harm prevention order and notification requirements which were imposed in 2020.

Bushnall, of Leven Road, Norton, Stockton, pleaded guilty to breaching the terms of sexual harm prevention order and the condition of his sex offender registration requirements following his arrest on April 2.

Michele Turner, mitigating, said her client had admitted the offences at the earliest opportunity.

The defendant told the probation service that he had bought the Xbox to alleviate his boredom.

Following his arrest, he pleaded guilty to two charges of cause/incite a girl to engage in sex act and one of attempt to cause a child to watch a sex act.

Judge Richard Bennett said he accepted that was case as the defendant had limited contact with his family and friends following his conviction.

He said: “There were no child abuse images or search terms found on the devices or was there any evidence you used it to contact children.

“That said, you remain a high risk to children which is why you are subject to the court orders.”

Judge Bennett sentenced the defendant to a total of 12 months in custody for the latest breaches of the court orders and for the breach of his suspended sentence.

In 2019, Bushnall contacted a teenager called Amber without realising she was in fact a decoy working with the online paedophile hunter group Confronted and Caught.

He struck up highly-sexualised conversation despite the decoy telling him he was talking to a 13-year-old.

At the time, a judge heard how Bushnall sent the decoy a video of himself performing a sex act.

For those offences, a judge sentenced to four months in custody, suspended for two years.

Description

A persistent sex offender is back behind bars after he failed to tell a woman staying at his home about his perverted past.

Paul Luck had breached the terms of his sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) which was imposed after he was convicted of sexual assault.

The 62-year-old’s home was visited by police after they were alerted about a female living at his home, Teesside Crown Court heard.

Nicci Horton, prosecuting, said the defendant was legally required to alert police to any relationship he formed with a female, and he was barred from allowing women to stay at his home unless they were aware of his past.

She added: “When they entered the property, they found a female asleep on a mattress in the rear bedroom. She said that she had stayed a couple of nights at the address she and her partner were homeless.

“She had no knowledge of the defendant being a registered sex offender.”

The court heard how Luck had six convictions on his record for sexual offences.

Luck, of Easington Road, Stockton, pleaded guilty to two charges of breaching the terms of his indefinite SHPO following his arrest on March 28.

Michele Turner, mitigating, said her client had never been left alone with the woman as she was staying at his home with her partner and had been recalled on licence following his arrest.

Recorder Richard Wright KC jailed Luck for 12 months for breaching his court order.

“You are convicted sex offender with a history of committing sexual offences over a number of years,” he said.

“You have been subject to the terms of SHPO, and you know and understand full well what is required of you.

“You deliberately breached the order when you allowed a woman to stay in your house. She didn’t know that you were a sex offender or that she was placing herself at risk by being in your property.”

Description

Update

Repeat Child Sex Offender Andrew Parsons reportedly Breaching Sexual Harm Prevention Order

Andrew Parsons, 55, of Eastdene Road, Seaham, is reportedly breaching his court-imposed Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) by advertising a glory hole on the Grindr app, potentially targeting unsuspecting victims, a local community group in the town has revealed.

Parsons, a convicted child sex offender, is banned from such activity under the terms of his order.

Parsons was originally snared in 2017 by Newcastle-based vigilante group Dark Justice, after attempting to meet what he believed was a 15-year-old boy for sex. The boy, in fact, was a decoy profile.

During their chats on Grindr, Parsons was told the boy was underage, yet still arranged a secret meeting, where he was intercepted by police.

He pleaded guilty at Newcastle Crown Court for attempting to meet a child following grooming. The judge sentenced him to 18 months in prison, imposed a SHPO, and ordered him to sign the sex offenders register for 10 years.

Parsons has a prior conviction for sexual activity in a public toilet and is considered a high-risk offender.

2021-02-01

The 51-year-old chatted to a "boy" called James on gay dating app Grindr, not realising it was a decoy profile set up by Dark Justice.

Despite being told James was only 15 and a virgin, Parsons asked if he was "discreet" after describing in detail the sexual acts they could do together.

When a meeting was arranged Parsons said it should be "kept a secret".

Prosecutor Lee Fish told Newcastle Crown Court: "The defendant asked if anyone knew that James was coming to his house and he said no.

"What then happened was members of Dark Justice and the police went to the agreed meeting point and the defendant was arrested."

Parsons admitted attempting to meet a child following grooming, in April 2017.

The court heard he has a previous conviction for sexual activity in a public lavatory.

Judge Robert Adams sentenced Parsons to 18 months behind bars. and imposed a sexual harm prevention order and told him he must sign the sex offenders register, both for ten years.

The judge told him: "James said he was a virgin and had never done this before.

"This did not deter you.

"You gave him your contact details, where you lived, well aware what you were doing was wrong.

"You asked if he was discreet and could keep a secret."

The court heard Parsons claimed he had "turned a blind eye" to the boy's age and was "disgusted" by child sex abuse.

Judge Adams added: "No sexual activity with a child did occur or in fact could have occurred. No child existed, it was a decoy.

"This is a sentence which cannot be appropriately suspended, although non-custodial options are available, it seems to me there has to be some form of deterrent in cases like this, where people take risks, not expecting to be caught.

"Had this person been a child, significant harm could have been caused."

Description

A child-abusing pensioner may not be alive by the end of his lengthy prison sentence.

That was the stark message given to Alec Calvert after he received prison terms totalling 24 years at Durham Crown Court for offences on which he was convicted earlier this year.

The 77-year-old defendant of Northbridge Park, St Helen Auckland, who has no previous convictions, denied an 11-count indictment, including seven charges of sexual assault and one each for rape, inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, sexual communication with a child and attempted sexual assault.

He accused all three victims of fabricating the allegations and telling lies to the police and court.

But on the ninth day of his trial, in January, unanimous guilty verdicts were returned on all 11 counts by the jury.

Calvert had already admitted two counts of making indecent images of a child and one of possessing extreme pornography.

He appeared at the court for sentence via video link from Durham Prison, where he has been on remand.

The court was told Calvert was under investigation for offences committed against two of the victims, when he was involved in grooming-type behaviour with an older girl who he bought alcohol for, persuaded to send him intimate images of herself and drove to secluded areas to sexually assault.

When he was arrested by police last summer, he was found nearly naked with the girl in his car, parked in a disused docks area.

Impact statements were read to the court on behalf of all three of the victims.

One said she has since struggled to trust older men and distances herself from them in public places, while she had worried that she would bump into the defendant until he was remanded in custody.

Chris Baker, for Calvert, said there was not a great deal he could say on his behalf, given his denials and the guilty verdicts.

“He’s aware he’s had his trial and lost, and there’s little by way of mitigation which can be put to the court because of that.

“Perhaps the most significant submission I can make over the sentencing exercise is the issue of totality.

“It’s not an adding up exercise.

“He’s a man with no previous convictions."

Judge Nathan Adams said it was repeat offending over a number of years demonstrating the defendant’s "paedophilic proclivities for his own sexual gratification".

Imposing consecutive sentences, relating to each of the three victims, totalling 24 years, the judge said Calvert must serve at least two-thirds, 16 years, before the Parole Board can consider if it’s safe to release him.

But he may have to serve the full 24 years and, should he ever be released, he will be subject to two years’ licence extension.

Description

A man who continues to pose a danger to young females by his “deviant” behaviour has been sentenced to a third prison sentence for sexual activity with an underage girl.

Aaron Whitwell is already serving a seven-year extended sentence for previous similar activity, but his latest seven-year sentence will only begin on conclusion of that and a further two-year prison term for breaching a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO).

It means the earliest he is likely to be released from prison is in the mid-to-late 2030s.

The now 28-year-old defendant, formerly of West Cornforth, appeared for his latest sentencing hearing at Durham Crown Court by video link from HMP Moorland, in South Yorkshire, where he is serving his previous jail term.

Deborah Smithies, prosecuting, said at the time of the latest offences Whitwell was on licence from a 33-month sentence for offences involving another teenage girl, for which he was subject to an indefinite SHPO.

It included a prohibition from communication with any child under the age of 16.

Upon his release from that sentence, he was interviewed about further allegations of similar activity with a teenage girl, for which he received a seven-year extended sentence in September 2023.

Outlining details of his latest offence, Miss Smithies said Whitwell responded to the posting of an image of the underage girl with a friend, on Snapchat.

He soon asked how old she was and, having been told, he responded, saying he was 17 and gave the name ‘Aaron Hardy’.

Following ten days of exchanging messages he turned the chat to sexual matters and intimate pictures were exchanged, before Whitwell suggested that they met.

Both went accompanied with a friend, and on the first meeting the defendant kissed the girl, but during subsequent meetings sexual activity took place, one time in bushes.

The girl told police they met another five or six times when sexual activity took place, while in the simultaneous messaging the defendant told her he loved her.

Following suspicions raised by the sister of a friend of the complainant, after she heard them talking about 'Aaron', his true background emerged.

The victim said she would not have met him had she known his true age.

She said it made her feel “sick” knowing how much older he really was, and that she thought he really loved her and it made her feel for him.

But she said he had “messed up” her head and she now realised how vulnerable she had been.

Whitwell was interviewed and denied seeking out the girl on social media or contacting her, which meant she had to attend a video identity procedure when she positively identified the defendant.

In a subsequent victim statement the girl said she struggled to sleep and when she did, she suffered nightmares thinking about the events, while she has since struggled with self-confidence.

She said it caused a falling out with her family and she turned to drink and drugs to seek comfort, and would leave home for lengths of time, leading to arguments, “with everyone around me”.

The girl said the situation reached breaking point and she had to receive assistance from a mental health crisis team as her behaviour and anger were out of control, leading to self-harm.

She said it had also affected her schoolwork and her trust in other people, adding that, overall, she feels like the defendant has “ruined her life”.

Whitwell admitted six counts of sexual activity with a child, one each of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity and breaching a SHPO.

Chris Morrison, in mitigation, said the defendant was now “remorseful” and had acknowledged his guilt early in court proceedings.

Mr Morrison said it could not be denied that the defendant’s offending, “forms a pattern” for which he is receiving “condign punishment”, with his earliest release date on his previous sentence being in September 2030.

Mr Morrison said the defendant has a low IQ and suffers with social isolation plus an inadequacy dealing with people, in general, and women, in particular, of his own age.

“He acknowledges that improving himself will take some time, but he knows he will have to reintegrate into society at some stage.

“But he can’t do that until he reaches a level of maturity, insight and self-awareness.

“As far as the outside world is concerned, he has no contact with the outside world.”

But Mr Morrison said the defendant has rid himself of any form of substance misuse while in custody.

Judge Richard Bennett told Whitwell: “You are a man with deviant sexual preferences, including an interest in young girls and I have concluded you are a dangerous offender.

“You are 28 and this will be your third child sex offence, committed while on licence following a 33-month sentence for similar activity and, also, at the time, while on bail for other offences.

“You were also subject to a SHPO, prohibiting contact with any child under 16.

“But if didn’t deter you from offending.”

Judge Bennett said it had a “profound effect” on the victim, with his deception, “shattering her confidence and self-belief”.

He said the defendant was “untamed” by previous court orders, with no sign when his pattern of offending might diminish.

The judge imposed a two-year determinate sentence for the breach of the SHPO to be followed by a consecutive seven-year sentence for the new offences, to be followed by a five-year extended licence period upon release.

Whitwell must serve at least two-thirds of the seven-year custodial element of the sentence before being eligible for consideration for release.

He was also made the subject of an indefinite restraining order relating to his latest victim, plus a new SHPO, which will also run indefinitely.

Description

An “experienced and fully-fledged” sex offender with an interest in children coerced a boy and a girl to send him intimate pictures of themselves.

In return, Andrew Weir, who had amassed a “nauseating collection” of child abuse images over a period between 2016 and 2021, made them watch him perform sex acts online.

Teesside Crown Court heard he used online threats to persuade the 14-year-old boy, believed to be from Thailand, to perform a sex act on himself, and applied “persistent pressure” to illicit images of the 13-year-old girl exposing her breasts and of her genital area.

The 30-year-old defendant, from Darlington, admitted charges arising from the online exchanges with the boy and the collection of images, but was convicted at trial, earlier this year, of the offences involving the girl, which took place in 2022.

Weir was aged 22 when he contacted the boy who is now untraceable, but thought to be from Thailand, via Skype, between May and August 2016.

Paul Newcombe, prosecuting, said the defendant, purporting to be aged 15, soon turned the chat to sexual matters and, in trying to illicit intimate images of the boy, threatened to "hack" his phone if he did not follow his request.

Mr Newcombe said over the following five years Weir amassed dozens of indecent images and videos of children, many in the most serious category.

It was in May 2022 when he befriended a 13-year-old girl online and began pressuring her to send him pictures of herself.

Following his "persistent and increasingly intimidating" demands, she responded by sending two images of her private parts.

But Weir was arrested after her parents discovered the messages.

He was convicted at trial in January of causing/inciting a child to engage in sexual activity and causing a child to watch an image of sexual activity, having claimed he was unaware the girl was only aged 13.

Weir, of Brignall Moor Crescent, admitted attempting to cause a child to engage in sexual activity, ten counts of making indecent photos of a child and one of possession of extreme pornography, at the court in September last year.

Tony Davis, for Weir, said the defendant led an "isolated" existence with his life revolving around making relationships online.

Mr Davis said this would be the defendant’s first prison sentence, having spent two months in custody since his conviction at trial.

Judge Tom Mitchell told Weir he was a younger man at the time of the initial offences, but by the time of the 2022 allegations involving the 13-year-old girl he was, “an experienced and fully-fledged sex offender”, having acquired his, “nauseating collection” of indecent images over a five-year period.

The judge said Weir used “grooming behaviour”, “exploitation” and “persistent pressure” to obtain the images he demanded from his victims, causing, “real harm” in the process.

He imposed a total prison sentence of 78 months (six-and-a-half years) on the defendant, of which he must serve two-thirds behind bars, and made him subject of an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

Its terms include restricting his future online activities, and forbid him from ever communicating via the Internet with anyone aged under 18.

He was also made subject to lifetime registration and notification as a sex offender and placed on the barring list to prevent him working with children or vulnerable people in future.

A restraining order was put in place to prohibit him from contacting or approaching the girl who was subject to the 2022 offences, “until further order”.

The judge told Weir his time in prison, with the monitoring and support of professionals, could change him for the better.

But he warned the defendant that if he returned to his previous online activities, the sentence he is likely to receive would be measured, “in decades”.

Description

VICTIMS of a paedophile who "took advantage of their vulnerabilities for his own gain" have spoken out to safeguard the next generation after he was sentenced to 14 years in prison.

Sixty-seven-year-old Barry Farrant sexually abused his victims in south Essex in the 1990s and 2000s, before they both came forward and spoke to officers in 2020.

After years of investigation by Essex Police's child abuse investigation team, he was charged with seven charges of indecent assault of a girl under the age of 14 and five charges of gross indecency with a girl under the age of 14 in July 2023.

One woman said: “Barry Farrant entered my life while I was still trying to learn the world around me.

“Taking advantage of my vulnerabilities for his own gain, he created a life that no child should experience.

“When I spoke to Essex Police in 2020 I was no longer able to bury the mental and emotional pain I was suffering.

“The last four years have been difficult, upsetting and important not just for me but for any child who has experience abuse like the abuse Barry Farrant inflicted upon me.

“I gain no pleasure from speaking up, and struggle to think of strangers seeing this side of me, but what feels right is knowing that by doing this I can play a small part in safeguarding the next generation against the very real monsters threatening to take away another childhood.”

Farrant, of Front Street in Durham, had denied the offences but a jury found him guilty of all charges at Basildon Crown Court on December 5.

He was sentenced to 14 years in prison and a further two years on licence at the same court on Friday and will remain on the Sex Offenders’ Register for life.

He was also given an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order preventing him from any contact with children and requiring him to inform the police of any future relationships.

Description

A convicted child sex offender is back behind bars after he deliberately deleted an app designed to monitor his online activities.

David Smith had only been out of prison for a few weeks when he carried out a factory reset on his mobile phone claiming he had inadvertently downloaded a virus while searching for a horror film.

The 60-year-old’s fanciful claim was categorically dismissed by a judge as he was locked up for more than two years for the order breach.

Teesside Crown Court heard how the defendant was made subject to a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) in 2021 and he had been caught by an undercover police officer trying to arrange to have sex with a mother and daughter.

Judge Richard Bennett said: “In full knowledge of the terms of your SHPO, you reset your mobile telephone and in the process you deleted all of your internet history and you also removed the risk management software installed on your device.

“You claimed to the police that you did so because you downloaded something onto your mobile that contained a virus – I make it clear that I reject that explanation entirely.

“I’m satisfied that there was no such virus and you deliberately deleted this phone to hide evidence. I’m satisfied you deleted this telephone because you knew there was material on it that you did not want the police to see.”

Jenny Haigh, prosecuting, said Smith had only had the monitored mobile phone for a few days before he admitted deleting the monitoring app.

“He had only been released from prison on December 19 as a result of a conviction for failing to comply with his notification requirements and breaching his SHPO,” she said.

Smith, of Hartington Road, Stockton, who pleaded guilty to two charges of breaching his sexual harm prevention order following his arrest on January 21 this year, was jailed for 28 months.

Michele Turner, mitigating, said her client was the one who contacted the police to inform them that he had deleted the monitoring app off his phone but accepted that he often acted on impulse.

She added: “The pre-sentence report doesn’t make happy reading. The defendant is well aware of its conclusions and his almost inevitable custodial sentence.”

Description

A sex offender drunkenly groped a schoolgirl after 'targeting' her on the back seat of a bus, a court was told.

Gary Ashley Wynn ignored other empty seats after getting on the bus in County Durham and made his way to the rear of the vehicle where the girl was with a friend going home from school at 4.10pm on December 11.

Durham Crown Court was told the 49-year-old defendant, who has previous sexual offences on his record, deliberately sat close to the girl, between her and her friend.

Paul Cleasby, prosecuting, said Wynn engaged the girl in conversation as he drank from a can of beer, before placing his hand on the inside of her right thigh.

The incident was captured on the in-vehicle CCTV, showing the defendant leaning towards the girl with his hand moving in her direction.

Mr Cleasby said the girl, who was agitated and distressed, moved towards the front of the bus with her friend, who alerted the driver to what had happened.

The driver contacted the police, while the defendant got off the bus at the next stop, before urinating in public outside.

He was arrested and when interviewed told officers he had been drinking and could not recall touching the girl, claiming he did not think he had done so.

But, at a plea hearing at the court, last month, Wynn, 49, of no fixed address, admitted a charge of sexual assault.

A victim statement was read to the court in which the girl said she was initially angry, then unhappy when "the man" touched her.

She was worried she might have to give evidence at a trial but was relieved to be told the defendant had pleaded guilty.

But she said she had been worried about possibly seeing him in public.

It led to her initially becoming wary of men and even male teachers at school.

She has since refused to get on a bus alone.

The girl added that as time has gone on she has felt a little more assured, knowing the defendant was in custody.

She also thanked people who assisted her at the time, including her friend and the bus driver, who took immediate action.

The court was told the defendant has previous convictions for sexual assault on his record, most recently receiving a 16-month sentence in April 2023, for a similar incident involving a vulnerable female with learning difficulties, also on a bus.

He was also made subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) after an offence of exposure, in 2021.

Jonny Walker, for Wynn, told the court there was little mitigation he could put forward on the defendant's behalf, other than the fact he "quite properly" admitted the charge at the plea hearing, enabling the victim to be informed to offer reassurance there would not be a trial.

"He would wish, through me, to apologise.

"He's genuinely apologetic for his actions and has insight into his offending.

"He recognises what he did was extremely wrong.

"It was clearly degrading and humiliating to the victim."

Mr Walker said while in custody the defendant has taken steps to engage with the drug and alcohol services as well as the education team and others who can assist him before he regains his liberty.

"He is actively taking steps to remedy those poor decision-making incidents which have troubled him over the last few years."

Judge Advocate Tom Mitchell told Wynn: "You are 49 with 16 convictions for 26 offences, some of which are of great relevance, including several for breaching SHPOs, and one conviction for knife possession.

"I have read the assessment of the Probation Service.

"It makes difficult reading.

"This was predatory behaviour, targeting a child in public, while you were intoxicated, all aggravating features of the case.

"I agree with the author of the report that you pose a high risk of causing serious harm to the public, children and particularly lone children."

Judge Mitchell said it was fortunate that the victim received prompt assistance, including from her friend and the bus driver.

"You put her in a dreadful position by your actions that day.

"What you did was degrading and humiliating on someone who was particularly vulnerable due to her circumstances, aggravated by the fact you were drunk and by your previous convictions."

Imposing an 18-month prison sentence, the judge said there was "no question" of it being suspended, given the defendant's actions and record.

He told Wynn: "I do consider you to be a real risk and I do hope in the future that risk can be managed."

The judge extended the defendant's SHPO to ten years, while for the same period he will also be subject of notification requirements as a sex offender.