Latest Offenders Flintshire

Description

A "TRULY depraved" teenager whose attitude to sex has been "warped" by access to graphic pornography has been jailed for his behaviour towards two young girls. 

Nathan Mainwaring, of Llys Maes Teg in Greenfield, appeared at Mold Crown Court for sentence on Tuesday morning.

The 18-year-old, who appeared via video link from HMP Berwyn, had admitted a number of offences at a previous hearing, including: causing/inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, sending threatening communication, making indecent images of a child, sexual exploitation of a child and make/supply article intended for use in commission of computer misuse offence.

Frances Wilmott, prosecuting, told the court the majority of Mainwaring's offending related to his behaviour towards two female children he spoke to online when he was aged 16 and 17.

In both cases, the communication was highly sexualised and graphic - with Mainwaring making degrading remarks and instructing the girls to commit sex acts.

However in the case of the second victim, it was said Mainwaring had admitted his guilt on the basis he had believed she was older than she was - which was accepted by the court.

In interview Mainwaring denied he had a sexual interest in children.

When his computer was examined, it became apparent by the programmes he had that the defendant had also been seeking to access stolen credit card details, as well as stealing passwords and hacking into other computers.

He told police he was "knowledgeable about computing" and that he'd only acquired the programmes as he was "interested in learning," but that over time he'd begun to use them.

Myles Wilson, defending, told the court: "The pre-sentence report assessed him as 'immature' and he is only 18 - but he seems especially immature.

"He's learned about sex, it seems, from the internet. He's a part of this generation which has been exposed to and has had access to eye-wateringly graphic pornography that has never been available so easily before.

"It will have warped his attitude to sex."

Mr Wilson said in some instances, the conversation on the part of both defendant and victim had been "very peculiar."

And he shared his concern that the two children became victims around a year apart - as there was a delay in bringing his client to court.

He said: "In an ideal world, he'd have never got around to committing the offences against [the second victim] over a year after he made admissions to the police about [the first victim].

"Ideally he'd have been getting rehabilitation rather than being on police bail and committing these further offences."

Judge Rhys Rowlands said Mainwaring's behaviour was "really worrying," and "beggars belief."

He told the defendant: "This is all part and parcel of an inadequate young man seeking to exercise a degree of power and control over others.

"Although you were, and remain, a young man - it's plain you were very far from functioning as one would imagine an innocent 16-year-old to behave.

"You were behaving as a sexual predator, displaying a degree of sophistication far beyond your chronological years. It is truly depraved behaviour.

"It has taken the police and CPS far too long to bring the sexual offences to court.

"The impact on the two victims has been profound."

Overall, Mainwaring was handed a 42-month term of detention in a young offenders institute.

He was made subject to a ten year sexual harm prevention order to monitor and control his use of the internet, as well as having to register as a sex offender.

A ten year restraining order was also imposed to protect the victims.

Description

A FLINTSHIRE man has been locked up after 'reverting to his old ways' and attempting to exchange sexual messages with someone he believed to be a child.

Andrew Lloyd, of Chester Road in Northop Hall, appeared at Mold Crown Court for sentence on Tuesday morning.

The 39-year-old had previously admitted an offence of attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child under 16, which took place over a period of around two weeks in October and November this year.

Karl Scholz, prosecuting, told the court the offence also put Lloyd in breach of a ten year sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) in two ways - his attempted communication with a child and his use of social networking sites without notifying police beforehand.

Lloyd made contact with a profile online which had a photo of a young girl.

Within half an hour of the 'girl' telling him she was 12 years of age, Lloyd had sent her a photo of his exposed genitals.

Fortunately, the account was a decoy under the control of a group working to identify sexual predators online.

The chat moved onto Whatsapp, where he repeatedly spoke about his genitals and asked for photos of the girl.

The vigilante group attended the address where Lloyd was staying - after he'd revealed his location in the chats - and he was arrested shortly after.

Mr Scholz told the court the defendant received a custodial sentence of two years in September 2021 for similar offences, which is when his ten year SHPO was imposed.

In interview, Lloyd accepted he was the person in the chat and apologised for his actions.

He claimed he had been "working well with probation" following his 2021 offences, but that he'd returned to using drugs and experienced a decline in his mental health following issues at his accommodation.

Elen Owen, defending told the court: "Mr Lloyd doesn't want me to make any excuses.

"He had initially been working with probation and was receiving a great deal of support, but unfortunately he was put in a bedsit with someone who made threats on his life in prison.

"That made his life extremely difficult and he was very frightened - leading to his reverting back to his old ways of taking cocaine.

"Under the totally disinhibiting effect of the drug, he went back to behaving in this manner.

"He hopes whilst in prison to access help with substance abuse."

Judge Niclas Parry told Lloyd: "Within half an hour of finding out, as you believed, you were talking to a 12-year-old girl you were sending an image of your genitalia.

"Hundreds of messages followed and you encouraged her to send sexual images to you.

"Mercifully, there was no child."

Judge Parry jailed the defendant for two-and-a-half years and extended his SHPO, as well as his requirements under the notification provisions, to last indefinitely.

"That is hanging over you forever," he added.

Description

A former footballer raped a sixth-form student while she slept. Terry Nicholas met the girl, who was then aged 17, while drinking at a pub before they went back to his house with a group of other people.

The 36-year-old waited until the teenager, who was "completely out of it" went to bed at the property. He told the others he was "just going to the toilet", snuck into the bedroom and began assaulting her as she slept.

His victim woke up during the attack and pushed him away. He then told her and another woman to leave the house.

North Wales Live reported that Nicholas, of Jubilee Road in Buckley, was jailed for eight and a half years after a jury found him guilty of the attack which took place in his home in the summer of 2021.

The court had heard Nicholas had bought cocaine as he was a "casual user" of the drug, the court heard, and the judge believed that having sex with the woman was his "clear intention" that night.

Prosecutor Siôn ap Mihangel told the court, through a victim impact statement, that young woman felt "constant uneasiness" around men since the traumatic ordeal and dreaded going to sleep due to "night terrors" and having the feeling that "someone was back on top of her". She endured a "depressive episode" and "struggled with self-worth" following the attack.

Defending, Martyn Walsh, said his client had a "reasonable career" playing football for local teams. He stressed Nicholas had "no offences of a sexual nature on his record".

However, the judge Simon Mills felt that there was some "concerning" sides to the defendant identified through a pre-sentence report for the courts. Judge Mills said the 36-year-old's attitude was "misogynistic" when he claimed he "didn't need to commit sexual offences" to sleep with women.

The judge went on to lock Nicholas up for eight-and-a-half years, listing him as a sex offender for life. He said: "You raped her and treated her with contempt. And in effect, that's what you've done ever since.

"You've not shown a shred of remorse, let alone recognition, for what you did. You provided misogynistic views verging on an attitude you could not care less about what you're facing. I urge you to take a long, hard look at yourself, the way you act, the way you treat women and the way you think."

Description

A teenager tried to take her own life after being sexually assaulted by an older man. Simon Barlow, 39, also breached a restraining order against another woman and sent her a threatening text.

A judge at Mold Crown Court today jailed Barlow for a total of 24 months. Prosecutor Alexandra Carrier told how Barlow, of Connah's Quay, had sexually assaulted the teenager, who was over the age of 16. The touching was sexual and over her clothing.

In a victim statement the teen victim said the sexual assault has "opened her eyes to the real world" and made her feel very low. She has tried to take her own life due to this incident "and other concerns".

For her part the woman said in a statement she had had panic attacks and flashbacks and is always looking over her shoulder.

Dafydd Roberts, defending, said his client has had drink and drug problems. The court heard he had drunk vodka, Bailey's and taken cocaine on the day of the sexual assault. He is now thinking more clearly on remand and is "outraged" about his behaviour, added defence counsel.

The judge His Honour Rhys Rowlands jailed Barlow for 14 months for the sexual assault on a female and for ten months, consecutively, for breaching a restraining order. There was no separate penalty for sending the threatening communication.

But he also imposed a five-year restraining order prohibiting Barlow from contacting either victim and pointed out he must keep to sex offender notification requirements for ten years.

Description

A paedophile ex-vicar with a sexual interest in boys was jailed today for sharing sick images of children from a Twitter account.

Jason Kennett-Orpwood, of Brunswood Green in Hawarden, Flintshire, who has previous convictions for sharing vile abuse images, had 11 pictures and 18 videos in the worst category of seriousness and dozens of other photographs and videos on his phone.

North Wales Police were alerted in May last year that a Twitter (X) account linked to the married vicar had uploaded illegal images, Caernarfon Crown Court heard today.

Prosecutor Richard Edwards said the images were shared with other social media users, including on the Telegram platform. There were sexually explicit online chats seemingly with boys as young as 13, Mr Edwards added.

Kennett-Orpwood told police he was sexually interested in boys over 12 and knew it was wrong. Sarah Yates, defending, said he had cooperated with the investigation and had never been to jail before and had an elderly father who was unwell.

The court heard that the 68-year-old was already a convicted sex offender, having received a community order in November 2015 for sharing vile child sex images. In 2000, he was also cautioned for making indecent images.

Judge Timothy Petts told the disgraced former Flintshire vicar: The phrase indecent images can often be used without really thinking what that means. These are illegal images of child abuse and those like you who possess, share and distribute such images are part of a cycle that perpetuates the abuse of children.

"Those who have been abused are always subject to the knowledge their images are out there circulating indefinitely with absolutely nothing they can do. Thats part of their trauma.

Judge Petts said Kennett-Orpwood was part of a paedophile discussion group on social media, adding that it was cleat he had a "long-standing interest in this sort of activity.

Its clear you have a long-standing interest in this sort of activity, the judge added. The previous conviction hadnt deterred him. It has to be an immediate prison sentence, Judge Petts said.

Kennett-Orpwood admitted 10 offences of attempted sexual communication with children, attempted incitement of sexual activity and child porn charges including distribution.

He must register as a sex offender for life and a sexual harm prevention order was made for 15 years.

Description

A paedophile distributed video and images of child sexual abuse depicting children as young as five-years-old. He was also found to have conversations with other depraved individuals in discussions about what he referred to as "young p****".

Joshua Waldron, 29, was visited by police at his then home in Oakenholt, Flintshire, on May 13, 2021, after a report was made by Yahoo that the defendant was uploading child abuse images using his email address. A number of electronic items were seized including an iPhone and a Samsung phone.

A sentencing hearing at Mold Crown Court on Wednesday heard the Samsung phone was found to contain a total of 58 category A images of child abuse, 39 category B images and 27 category C images. Prosecutor Ember-Jane Wong said Waldron was found in possession of videos as well as the images, which showed children aged between five and 15-years-old being abused.

The defendant was also found to be using an app called Telegram in which engaged in conversations with other paedophiles and distributed a total of 29 category A images, nine category B images and 20 category C images.

Waldron, of no fixed abode, was interviewed by police and attempted to distance himself from the material on his device, even going as far to falsely implicate his ex partner and her brother. This was dismissed by a jury who convicted him of three counts of possessing indecent images and three counts of distributing indecent images. The court heard he had four previous convictions of a dissimilar nature, the latest of which was burglary.

In mitigation, Simon Mintz said his client, who continues to deny the offences, had a "difficult childhood" following the breakdown of his parents' relationship and was bullied at school. He said the defendant lived a solitary life due to huis work as a crane driver which required him to travel around the UK.

Recorder John Philpotts sentenced Waldron to a total of three years imprisonment. The defendant was made subject to sex offender notification requirements for life and a Sexual Harm Prevention Order indefinitely.

Description

A pervert with a "leg fetish" has been jailed after 'upskirting' numerous women and young girls in a Mold supermarket.

Ian Betts, of Celyn Park in Carmel, appeared at Mold Crown Court for sentence on Tuesday morning.

The 61-year-old admitted numerous offences including: eight of recording under clothing (a form of voyeurism also referred to as upskirting), three of making indecent images, four of taking indecent images, one of possessing prohibited images and two of attempted upskirting.

In 2021, a shopper in Tesco Mold spotted Betts acting suspiciously - standing behind a young female wearing a skirt with his mobile in his hand.

The court heard Betts bent over towards her and pointing the phone between the girl's legs when the screen lit up.

David Mainstone, prosecuting, said the shopper took hold of the defendant and alerted the girl's parent, as well as store staff, as to what he'd been doing.

When police attended, the phone was seized - as were a number of the defendant's other devices.

Indecent images - 10 at category A, two at category B and 2,859 at category C - were found, as well as four prohibited images of children.

Officers also discovered he'd been "upskirting" on numerous previous occasions, with footage of several victims - both adult and child females wearing skirts or dresses.

Most of the recordings were made at Tesco in Mold, and by tracking the defendant's use of his clubcard, police were able to obtain CCTV footage of his offending.

On one of the occasions - charged as attempted upskirting - he attempted to record under the clothes of two young girls in Mold town centre.

When interviewed by police, he expressed regret and said he'd "take responsibility" for his actions - which he attributed to an "obsessive compulsive disorder."

The court heard he'd "surprisingly" been cautioned for 14 offences of making indecent images in 2008, but had no convictions on his file.

Victim personal statements from parents of the victims were also read out.

One said she had not informed her daughter of what had happened for fear of causing her to feel uncomfortable or embarrassed about what had happened to her.

"I couldn't believe this man had been so brazen as to take pictures of my young daughter," she said.

The court also heard a statement from one of the young victims, who said the offending had left her "paranoid" about where she went in public.

"I had so many questions going around in my head," she said.

"Why me - what had he done with the photos?"

In another statement, a Tesco staff member said the store is seen as a "safe place," and for "someone like this to come in and violate that makes me feel sick."

Robin Boag, defending, conceded that there had been responses made by the defendant in the preparation of his pre-sentence report which "aren't exactly helpful."

He said: "He is under no illusion as to the seriousness of this matter.

"In the 18 months since he was arrested, there have been no concerns of any further behaviour - despite him not being under any restrictions.

"This defendant has been free to walk around the area throughout that period.

"The defendant's deviation tends to centre on what he describes to the probation officer as a 'leg fetish' relating to females.

"Whatever deviation he has, it is not so overwhelming that he can't control it."

Judge Rhys Rowlands said while the defendant's case was thankfully not a common one, it was nevertheless a "particularly discomforting one" for the victims and their families, as well as the store as a whole.

The Judge said it demonstrated "repeated perverted behaviour" on the defendant's part.

Betts was jailed for 33 months and made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order, as well as registration as a sex offender, for ten years.

Judge Rowlands asked that a letter be sent to the Tesco customer who raised the alarm, thanking him for his public spirited actions, adding: "Had he not done so, this behaviour could have continued."

Description

A MAN from Rhyl has returned to prison after not complying with post-custodial requirements following his release, and with the sex offenders registers notification requirements.

David Nash, 27, of Clwyd Street, was released from prison on July 1, and ordered to reside each night at a supported housing project on this street, which is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Nash was accused of failing to reside there on August 4, 28, 30 and 31.

He admitted to these breaches at Mold Magistrates Court on September 10.

Nash was also accused of failing to comply with notification requirements in regards to the sex offenders register.

These notification requirements include names, addresses, all foreign travel, bank account details and passport information, among others.

He also pleaded guilty to this offence at Mold Magistrates Court on September 10.

Nash was handed a concurrent, 16-week prison sentence.

Description

A "depraved" sex offender lured young boys to his home with the promise of sweets and fizzy before "taking away their innocence". Colin Eamens, 66, of Nelson Street in Shotton, Flintshire's carried out a campaign of abuse that spanned five decades. while posing a respectable member of the community.

Eamens, 66, admitted to 17 counts of sexual abusing six underage teenage boys from the late 1970s and into the 2010s. He was sentenced to 17 years at Mold Crown Court on Friday.

Prosecutor, Brian Treadwell said Eamens would have children "drop in" and he would often provide them with cigarettes and alcohol, as well as sweets and fizzy drinks. The prosecutor said Eamens would "seek out items" such as computer game consoles and a Sodastream machine to "attract" children to hang out at his home.

Eamens targeted the boys from when he was in his early 20s through his mid-fifties.

He befriended the victims and their parents and had been regarded as a "family friend". Some of the children he would go on to abuse would, on occasions, spend the night at his home.

One victim said Eamens performed a sexual act upon himself in front of the boy which became "something of a habit". This progressed on to the boy having sexual acts performed upon him "on at least 30 occasions", the court was told.

Eamens later raped him one Christmas Day in the 1980s when he was just 15 years old. The abuse carried on for a further two years.

Mr Treadwell said Eamens sexually abused a further five boys over 30 years. He performed sexual acts either in front of or upon the children and on some occasions offered them "cash for sexual favours", the court heard.

Duncan Bould, defending, said Eamens was "very open" when confessing to his actions and is aware that a "significant" prison term awaited him.

Judge Rhys Rowlands jailed Eamens for a total of 17 years for his "disturbing" offences. He praised their "courage" in coming forward.

He said: "It is plain that as a younger man you were prone to behaving in a thoroughly depraved fashion, targeting and subjecting young teenage boys to various forms of sexual abuse. There are six victims, each of whom were young when they were abused by you.

"They had to live with what you did to them while you moved on living your life as though nothing had happened, moving from one victim to another. As youngsters they shouldn't have had a care in the world, but instead you were taking away their innocence and in some respects their childhood."

Speaking after the sentencing, DI Iolo Edwards, said: This has been a protracted and extensive investigation of Eamens activities and we welcome todays sentence. We hope that this sentence brings some closure for the victims who have supported our investigation from its outset."

DI Edwards went on to say that any person affected by sexual violence can seek support anonymously from the North Wales Sexual Assault Referral Centre. They can be reached by calling 0808 1563658.

Description

An "arrogant" child sex offender who went through the Mersey Tunnel up to 40 times to visit a woman failed to tell police where he was staying.

Calum Teeson, 26, had a conviction for possessing indecent images of children and had had to keep the authorities informed if he stayed away from his home in North Wales for a certain period of time.

But he breached that order in staying in Liverpool and not reporting it between August 3 and November 9, Mold Crown Court heard today.

He had already pleaded guilty to failing to comply with notification requirements. A judge today jailed him for six weeks. He will be released today due to time served.

Prosecutor Dafydd Roberts said in August Teeson had received an eight-month jail term, suspended for two years, for making indecent images of children.

But police checked with Mersey Tunnel staff and found he then visited Liverpool 30 to 40 times between August and November.

And because it was over a period of more than seven days, and he had not informed the authorities he was staying away from home, then he was in breach of the notification requirements of his conviction.

The prosecutor said Teeson told police he had a friend in Liverpool with whom he stayed. His friend did not know about the conviction and he did not want to lose that friendship.

Teeson, of Bryn Eithin, Pentre Halkyn, was not represented by a barrister in court.

But he addressed the court himself from HMP Berwyn via videolink.

He told the judge: "I accept I have made a very stupid mistake, and being in here has made me realise that more, by being deceiving to the (police) officers that were in charge of myself."

He said that if he is released he still has a job open to him.

"I would like to do everything I can to fix this."

But the judge, His Honour Judge Niclas Parry, jailed him for six weeks.

He said: "The reason I have imposed a custodial sentence is because this was a deliberate and arrogant breach."

He said police officers had texted him to remind him of his obligations.

The judge warned the defendant that he must keep to the terms of his original suspended sentence, including doing unpaid work and observing the notification requirements, or he will face custody.

Description

A dad who sent sexual messages and images to whom he thought were three children was in fact speaking to decoys, a court heard.

Aled Jones believed he was speaking to a 10-year-old girl when he said he wanted to have sex with her, sent an explicit image of himself, and warned her not to show it to her parents.

The 32-year-old, of Dewi Avenue, Holywell, also "pleaded" with whom he thought were two 14-year-old girls for sexual images of themselves, after telling them in explicit terms what he wanted to do with them.

However, Mold Crown Court heard Jones was talking to online undercover paedophile hunter group pretending to be young girls.

Judge Timothy Petts jailed him for 28 months after he admitted seven attempted child sex offences.

They included three counts of attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child, attempting to cause a child aged 14 to look at an image of sexual activity, attempting to cause a child aged 14 to engage in sexual activity, attempting to arrange or facilitate the commission of a child sex offence, and attempting to cause a child aged 10 to watch a sexual act.

The Airbus worker was made the subject of a 10-year sexual harm prevention order and ordered to register with the police as a sex offender for the same period.

Judge Petts said: "The offences you committed sexually were against people you believed were children.

"Unbeknown to you, they were all adult decoys.

In each case, you knew the age they were purporting to be and that did not deter you in turning the discussions to sexual language, sexualised requests and grooming behaviour.

Prosecuting barrister Oliver King, said the messages were sent on KIK, and the most explicit was to the fictional 10-year-old who mhe suggested having sex with.

Asked whether she liked dirty talk, he followed the conversation up asking for a picture, and by asking whether she ever wore tight jeans or a thong.

Despite making it clear she was uncomfortable with the chat and changing the subject, Mr King said Jones groomed her and tried to build her trust by talking about pets.

When he seemed to have developed her trust, he then turned the conversation back round to whether she had ever been kissed, Mr King said.

At one point, the court heard how he began messaging the decoy from work.

He even went as far as saying he had previously had sexual encounters with other girls and that he had made them feel ok.

The defendant also asked the fictional 14-year-old girl whether she wanted a boyfriend, before turning the conversation to what clothes she wore.

He asked whether she wore tight jeans or leggings, before eventually moving on to what underwear she had on.

Encouraging her to send explicit images, he sent one of his torso and asked for one in return.

Jones told the girl she was hot and that he had become sexually aroused by her.

He explained to her what that meant when she told him she did not understand, and then sent her an explicit image.

The defendant then asked whether he would let him touch her in private places.

Contacting a second decoy around the same time, who he also thought was a 14-year-old girl, Jones followed the same pattern of discussion.

He told the girl he wanted to kiss her and join her in the shower, before pleading with her to send images of her bottom.

Mr King said Jones made no secret of where he lived, where he worked and that he had a young daughter.

The chat logs gathered by the decoys were passed on and a sting was carried out where members of the vigilante group turned up at the defendant's address and confronted him.

It was live streamed on Facebook, the court heard, before being passed on to the police.

Jones was arrested on December 21 and admitted the offences.

Asked why he had engaged in sexualised chat with children, he said he did not know.

Defending barrister Andrew Green said Jones had never been in trouble with the police before and that the defendant had told him how the experience had scared him for life.

Mr Green said: Its important to recognise the seriousness of these offences and that they represent a sexual interest in children."

He added the offences had broken his family. He said Jones had also lost his reputation and employment as a result.

Many people would feel that he deserves nothing less, Mr Green added.

He argued Jones best mitigation was his early guilty plea, that he had no previous convictions and had shown remorse.

Recognising there were three potential victims and that activity was incited, he stressed the activity was never going to occur because they were not real children.

Description

This is the moment a man jailed for inciting children to have sex is confronted by paedophile hunters.

John Derek Sandham was snared in Denbighshire by The Hunted, a vigilante group.

Sandham, 37, tried to incite two young "girls" to send intimate photos of themselves over the internet.

The bricklayer, of Carmel, near Holywell thought he was talking to an 11-year-old girl called Sarah and a 13-year-old girl called Elle in April and May last year.

But they were adults posing as youngsters.

Calling himself David and claiming to be from Rhyl, Sandham sent intimate photographs and pornographic videos and asked the "girls" to send him images of themselves.

After collecting the evidence from online chat logs the group traced Sandham through a swingers' website and arranged to meet him last June.

They filmed their 30 minute confrontation with Sandham who was found to be wearing female underwear.

Clearly shaken Sandham he lay on the ground covering his face throughout the 30-minute video.

The police had been alerted and the video ends with officers arriving and arresting Sandham.

When interviewed Sandham insisted he believed the people he was communicating with were adults pretending to be children.

But his mobile phone was seized and forensically examined and evidence was found that Sandham had been downloading indecent images of children and distributing some of them to others.

At Mold Crown Court earlier this week he admitted charges of attempting to incite children to engage in sexual activity and sexual communication, distributing indecent images of children, possessing indecent images of children and extreme pornographic images.

He was jailed for 42 months and his details will remain on the Sex Offenders Register for life.

Judge Niclas Parry said the offences were serious because he had targeted two young girls and had been persistent in communicating with them.

Mercifully no children were harmed because there were no children, he added.

Prosecutors used evidence provided by paedophile hunters in more than 250 cases against suspected abusers in 2018

Description

A teenager claimed he had been bullied in school to look at indecent images of children.

But an investigation showed he continued to search for such images after he left school. It was said in court to have become an addiction.

Morgan Andrew Abbott, 18, of Lower Dee View Road in Greenfield, Holywell, was given a chance of a suspended sentence.

At Mold Crown Court, Judge Niclas Parry gave him a 16 month youth custody sentence but suspended it for two years.

He was ordered to carry out 100 hours unpaid work and he was placed on 60 days rehabilitation.

Abbott was ordered to register with the police as a sex offender for 10 years and a 10 year sexual harm prevention order was also made.

He admitted he made by downloading 115 indecent images and movies of children at the most serious category A; 99 images at category B, and 288 images and movies of children at category C.

Abbott admitted that in November last year he distributed indecent images/movies of children in all three categories using Skype.

He admitted possessing 244 prohibited images of children and possessing six extreme images, which portrayed, in an explicit and realistic way, a person performing an oral sex act on a dog.

Judge Parry told him it took a police investigation and his arrest for him to realise the seriousness of what he had been involved with.

He had searched for material which depicted the abuse of very young children.

It has taken this prosecution for you to understand that children who are abused suffer trauma which is immeasurable, he said.

His case was seriously aggravated by the fact some of the images had been shared, he said.

Judge Parry warned the distribution offences could attract sentences of up to five years.

But he was only 18, he committed the offences when he was immature, inquisitive and nave, and experimenting sexually.

He had no previous convictions and he had pleaded guilty.

If he received an immediate sentence then he would be released relatively early without any of the issues and problems he had being addressed, the judge told him. He had therefore decided to suspend the sentence.

Robin Boag, defending, said his client was a young man of good character with no convictions who had pleaded guilty at an early stage.

The distribution was limited to two individuals in November of last year.

He had initially been bullied into doing it but he accepted it had carried on from there.

There had been some encouragement and then he accepts it became an addiction, he said.

Description

Not on official sex offenders register.

A hardworking McDonald's staff member lived a secret double life as a burglar breaking into houses to steal womens underwear.

John Junior Sillah worked at the fast food restaurant in Mold during the day and was valued there. But once he had had a drink, he was unable to control his urges and twice broke into one womans house to steal her knickers in order to satisfy his fetish.

In between two of the break-ins, he sent the terrified woman a Facebook friend request.

He had first broken into one womans home in April last year, but went back again on Christmas Day and stole more.

On the same day, he burgled other homes in Mold . One young woman had been out when he rifled through her knicker drawer. Along the same road, at around 2.20am on Christmas morning, a man was awoken by Sillah standing at the foot of his bed. Sillah fled with the mans coat.

At Caernarfon crown court today, his defence barrister Oliver King described him as not a conventional burglar, and argued for a novel approach to sentencing him.

He said: He seems to have led a double life working at McDonalds at Mold during the day and hes valued there, yet he has this fetish. When he has a drink, it disinhibits him.

Psychiatric reports found Sillah had a mental disorder which could be controlled when he was sober.

Judge David Hale, sentencing Sillah, said it seemed that he had this compulsion to steal underwear.

Sillah pleaded guilty to four burglaries and one attempted burglary. A 2012 offence was also taken into consideration.

Judge Hale told him: These offences are far too serious for me to look to any non-custodial option.

He jailed Sillah, 20, of Mornington Crescent in Buckley, for two-and-a-half years.

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A SEXUAL predator who abused his position as a youth leader to groom teenage boys has been jailed for four years.

Former firefighter and cadet leader David Ross Gittins, 25, of Windmill, in Pentre Halkyn, Holywell, was sentenced at Chester Crown Court on Thursday (September 16).

His victims were primarily male teenage fire cadets aged between 15 and 16 from Cheshire, whom he befriended during fire cadet meetings.

He bombarded them with requests for explicit images through social networking, instant messaging and webcam sessions.

Ironically, as part of his cadet leader training, Gittins had attended a child protection course to safeguard the youngsters against sexual grooming.

He had taken part in this training during the summer of 2009, just prior to taking a role as a full-time firefighter.

Gittins first target was a female cadet, who he begged to have sex with him, despite her reminders that she was only 14.

Again, he repeatedly asked her to send him explicit photographs of herself but also confessed to her that he thought he was a closet homosexual.

After that, he struck up friendships with a number of boys aged between 15 and 16, though he later claimed that he thought the boys were all 16.

On a number of occasions, he invited the boys to his house, where he would ply them with alcohol, tell them he loved them and encourage them to engage in sexual activity, which was then photographed using a mobile phone.

These photographs were then shown to the boys peers in a bid to normalise the behaviour and recruit more victims.

Police later found 155 indecent images on his computer.

These mostly involved the male cadets, but included pictures where he had superimposed the face of a 16-year-old who he knew only from Facebook onto an explicit image.

Police also found copies of conversations with a 16-year-old boy who was not a fire cadet, but to whom he had sent images.

Prosecuting, Owen Edwards said: He is a sexual predator and these boys have been left stressed and confused as a result of his behaviour.

The pictures were used to show the next in line to encourage them to do the same.

He has abused a position of trust as their instructor for his own sexual purposes.

Mary McKeone, defending, said: It is wholly inappropriate and unacceptable as well as criminal, but his behaviour was misguided as opposed to predatory.

There was no intimidation or coertion involved, and the period of offending was short-lived.

It was inevitable that he would be discovered because of the lack of sophistication involved. It was only a matter a time before it was detected.

Judge Elgan Edwards said that Gittins conduct has been quite disgraceful.

Sentencing Gittins to four years imprisonment, he added: Your behaviour is a gross breach of trust. You were, in my view, a sexual predator, using your position in an honourable profession to further your own sexual, lustful excitement.

People like you must know that if you behave in this way towards young and vulnerable people, you must accept that an immediate custodial sentence is inevitable.

This has had a devastating effect on them and their families.

This is a sentence that you richly deserve.

As well as a custodial sentence, Gittins will be placed on the sex offenders register for life.

He is banned from using a computer or accessing the internet except for during the course of his work; using file sharing or peer to peer software; using social networking and instant messaging; inviting anyone under the age of 18 into his home without a parent or guardian present; having contact with any of the complainants.

The order also imposes a lifetime ban on working with children.