Latest Offenders

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Sebastine Kava Liliu - the first Solomon Islander to join the service - raped his vulnerable victim in bushes just yards from The Astoria nightclub in Winston Churchill Avenue and left her in floods of tears on February 11 just after 1am.

Liliu, of no fixed address, was charged with rape before admitting the offence at Portsmouth Crown Court previously and was sentenced to six years in prison at the same court today (Thursday 13 June). He will also be subject to the Sex Offenders Register for life.

Upon sentencing the judge, Michael Bowes KC, said: “What you did that night has had a very profound effect on the aggrieved. As well as the physical damage you caused, you have caused psychological harm that will remain with her for many years, and probably the rest of her life.”

A 28-year-old man from Portsmouth previously arrested on suspicion of rape as part of police enquiries was released without charge and will face no further action.

DI Marcus Baker from Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary’s specialist Operation Amberstone team said: “Today’s sentence sends a clear message that Sebastine Kava Liliu’s behaviour will not be tolerated. He targeted a woman who was enjoying a night out and had attacked her within twenty minutes of first coming into contact with her. Our officers on patrol in the area identified that she was in a distressed state shortly afterwards and an investigation was immediately launched.

I’m pleased that this sentence will finally provide some closure to his victim. I’d like to commend her bravery and I hope this case encourages others to speak out and seek support if they have been victims of sexual assaults.

We are continuing to carry out work in Portsmouth to keep people safe in our night time economy. This involves dedicated patrols and work with other agencies, including Portsmouth City Council, the Violent Crime Reduction Unit, and security and staff at all of our licensed premises. We have also been focused on educating the public on what constitutes a sexual offence, how they can report and the support available to them.

We take all allegations of rape and sexual assault extremely seriously and have specially trained teams that can investigate these kinds of offences and provide support to victims. If you have experienced these kinds of offences, it is our promise to you that you will be heard and listened to, and your report will be believed. We are determined to put victims first and relentlessly pursue offenders, especially when investigating these kinds of cases.”

A police spokesperson added: “We want to encourage anyone who has been affected by sexual assault to contact police on 101, where you can speak to an officer in confidence.

“We recognise that not everyone has the confidence to talk to police about what they have experienced. Please be reassured that there are other services available that can offer you specialist support to help you deal with the impact of abuse.”

For information and contact details relating to sexual abuse support services, visit: https://www.hampshire.police.uk/advice/advice-and-information/rsa/rape-and-sexual-assault/support-for-victims-of-rape-and-sexual-assault/

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A RAPIST has been jailed for eight years at Bradford Crown Court.

Luke Fox, 37, of Mornington Road, Bingley, pleaded guilty on the third day of his trial to rape, strangulation, battery, and assault occasioning actual bodily harm (ABH).

The court heard that Fox had previous convictions for violent conduct and harassment and had served time in prison, but Judge Nadim said: “You appear to have learned little from that experience.”

Judge Ahmed Nadim treated the rape as the lead offence, which was aggravated by the charges of strangulation, battery, and ABH, and sentenced Fox to a total of eight years in prison.

He told Fox, who appeared via video link from HMP Leeds, that the victim was scarred by his actions and suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder.

“You will serve two-thirds of the sentence that I have passed upon you in custody whereafter you will be released on licence,” he said.

Fox will be added to the sex offender’s register for life.

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A registered sex offender who breached his Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) multiple times has been jailed.

Graham Robinson, from Faversham, was convicted at Canterbury Crown Court in 2018 of possessing indecent images of children and was made subject to strict conditions on his behaviour.

These included restrictions around his access to mobile phones or computers and his use of the internet.

He was also required to notify the police of any devices and bank accounts he possessed and allow his devices to be examined whenever it was requested.

The SHPO also required Robinson to install monitoring software on his phone and other internet-enabled devices, to allow officers to check he was not committing further offences or breaching the conditions imposed by the court.

Between 2020 and 2022, investigators completed unannounced visits to Robinson’s home and discovered multiple breaches.

On one occasion, a smartphone was recovered at his property that he claimed belonged to a friend.

When the officers called the number they had had for Robinson the phone rang and it was seized.

Two phones and two internet-enabled devices that he hadn’t declared were recovered during a further inspection and investigators found Robinson had been using software to wipe his phone and computer.

In February 2022, Robinson was arrested and officers located a tablet, multiple USB drives and other storage devices at his home.

They also found he had several bank cards and accounts he had not disclosed.

During the search, the constables seized a flick knife and a credit card that concealed three blades.

The devices seized from Robinson were forensically examined and found to contain more than 460,000 images.

A proportion of the content was reviewed, and officers discovered 138 indecent images of children.

Eight were of the most serious category. There was also evidence of 23 extreme pornographic images.

Robinson, of Beech Close, was later charged and, at Maidstone Crown Court pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent images of a child, three counts of possessing extreme pornographic images, seven counts of breaching his sexual harm prevention order, three counts of failing to comply with notification requirements of the sex offenders register and having an offensive weapon in a private place.

Today (Thursday, June 13) the 66-year-old was sentenced to three years in jail.

He was also handed a Sexual Harm Prevention Order which will remain in place for 15 years and was also added to the Sex Offender’s Register indefinitely.

Detective constable Jamie Easdown, of the Swale offender management unit, said: “We regularly visit registered sex offenders living in our communities to monitor their conduct and ensure they are complying with any conditions in place to prevent further crimes. We install software on their devices to monitor activity online and will promptly complete searches at home addresses if we suspect further offences.

“In this way, we endeavour to protect the most vulnerable in our community and, where any breaches are discovered, they will be arrested and brought back before the court to answer for their actions.”

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A 39 year old man has been jailed for 18 years after he spiked a woman’s drink, dragged her to his hotel room and raped her.

Following a British Transport Police Investigation dubbed Operation Milkwort, Siyabonga Dunga, of Sweet Street, Holbeck, Leeds, was found guilty of committing an offence with the intention of committing a sexual offence, rape, kidnap and administering a substance with intent by a jury at Leeds Crown Court on Friday 19 April.

He was jailed for 18 years today, Thursday 13 June and must sign the sex offenders register indefinitely.

The court heard how, in the early hours of Saturday 21 January 2023, Dunga gave the woman a drink at the Back Room Bar in Leeds and shortly afterwards she became disorientated and confused.

On the pretence of coming to her aid, Dunga helped the woman outside to get some air and in a bid to separate her from her friend, asked the friend to go back into the club telling her the woman had left her phone inside.

In fact, he had the woman’s phone in his pocket.

While the friend was inside looking for the phone Dunga took the woman, who could not walk unaided, back to a nearby hotel.

CCTV from the hotel shows the woman collapse and become unresponsive while Dunga dragged her back to his room where he carried out the rape.

Investigating officer DC Andy Jones said: “Dunga is a dangerous and calculating sexual predator who is thankfully now off the streets.

“By her own admission the woman has been left a shell of her former self. Her last memory is of being in the club and saying to her friend she wanted to go home before waking up in a hotel room with Dunga.

“I commend her bravery and strength throughout the investigation – she has supported us every step of the way despite struggling with the trauma which she still endures. She remained insistent that this should not happen to anyone else.

“The events of that night continue to haunt her and it is hoped that now Dunga is behind bars where he belongs it will help in some small way to her getting her life back.

“We take all reports of sexual offences seriously and I hope this sends a strong message to offenders that we will do everything in our power to ensure that justice is served.”

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A man who was previously convicted of a series of sexual abuse on a young girl more than 20 years ago has been jailed for 28 years.

Mark Anthony Foster, (who is also known as Tony), of Forster Avenue, Weaverham, was found guilty of 11 counts of indecent assault on a girl under 14, four counts of rape of a girl under 16, four counts of gross indecency with a girl under 14, plus one count of rape of a girl over 16, on Friday 12 April following a 13-day trial at Chester Crown Court.

The 62-year-old appeared back at the same court to be sentenced on Thursday 13 June.

The court had heard Foster committed a number of indecent assaults and rapes on a girl between 1995 and 2001, when the victim was aged between nine and sixteen.

The case came to the attention of Cheshire Police in August 2020 when the victim bravely came forward to disclose what had happened to her.

She reported the offences took place in the Northwich area by Foster. Over a period of seven years, Foster groomed the victim, subjecting her to multiple indecent assaults and rapes.

The offences became more violent as time progressed, including administering the victim with medication before raping her.

In interviews following his arrest, Foster continued to deny the allegations, but was subsequently charged in January 2023 and found guilty following a 13-day trial.

On top of his 28-year custodial sentence, Foster will be subject to an indefinite restraining order to protect the victim, an indefinite sexual harm prevention order, and will be subject to the sex offender register for life. 

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Steven Kerley, 36, of Park View, Brierley, in Barnsley, has been sent to prison for a series of offences including sexual assault.

Officers responded to a report of a sexual assault of a 25-year-old woman in Barnsley on 2 May 2021.

An investigation was immediately launched, and a scene established at the location of the assault, attended by CSI. House to house and CCTV enquiries were also carried out.

In addition, officers put safeguarding measures in place to ensure the wellbeing of the victim.

Officers arrested Kerley on 5 May 2021, and he was bailed pending further enquiries. Kerley was charged with assault by penetration on 10 August 2022.

Kerley was convicted of sexual assault by penetration, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, and engaging in coercive/controlling behaviour, at Sheffield Crown Court court on 24 April, and was found not guilty of six other counts.

He was handed an extended sentence of 21 years comprising of 18 years imprisonment and an extension period of 3 years at the same court on Friday 7 June.

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A 60-year-old Fife man is behind bars for sexually assaulting two women and taking photos and video during one attack on an unconscious victim.

George McGillvary used a sex toy on one of the women while she was unconscious on the floor at an address in Inverkeithing.

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A disgraced Perth scientist caught with an illicit stash of child abuse material used a new name without telling police, a court has heard.

Connor Sword was arrested in 2019 after police unearthed hundreds of obscene files on his home computer.

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Pervert Neil Darlington used artificial intelligence to blackmail 'children' into sending him nude photos of themselves. The 'isolated' 51-year-old downloaded images of children as young as three being raped and abused.

And in February this year his offending escalated and he engaged in sex chats with two schoolgirls online. However, he was in fact talking to undercover police officers.

He asked them to send naked pictures of themselves and when they finally relented and sent clothed pictures he used AI technology to alter the images so they were naked. He then blackmailed the 'youngsters' to send him genuine pictures of themselves with nothing on or he would send the pictures he had manipulated to people they knew.

Now Darlington has been jailed for 12 months at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court. He was made the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for 10 years and was placed on the sex offenders' register for the same period.

The court heard on February 14, Darlington, using an alias, chatted online with an 11-year-old girl from Norwich. He said he was 16. The conversation very quickly became sexual.

He was unaware it was an undercover officer and he sent her a picture of his private area and a video of himself performing a sex act. He persisted in asking the child for sexual images of herself. But she sent a picture of herself clothed. He altered the image using AI technology and sent her the image back of herself naked. She said, 'Oh my God, please delete that'. Darlington said, 'How many boys you know would like to see this'? She said, 'Please do not show anyone the photo. I am scared'.

He told her to take a naked selfie of herself. She told him she was at school and was going to cry. But he sent her a screenshot of a conversation of him offering to show her picture to someone else. She said, 'Why would you do this to me? I have been nice to you'.

Darlington told another girl he was 16 and then changed his age to 25. He engaged in sexualised conversation with her between February 5 and 12. He sent images of his private area and a video of himself or someone else performing a sex act.

He sought sexual images from the child. She eventually relented and sent a picture of herself clothed. Darlington again altered the picture using AI technology. She begged him not to show it to anyone. But he asked her for a naked picture of herself naked or said he would distribute the image to her family or friends.

Darlington said he was going to kill himself when he was arrested on February 22.

Police found indecent images of children at categories A, B and C and pseudo images of children on his phone. The children were aged three to 15. The images showed children as young as three being raped.

Darlington, of Mayer Avenue, Newcastle, pleaded guilty to two charges of blackmail; three charges of making indecent photographs of children; making indecent pseudo images of children; two charges of attempting to cause a child to watch sexual activity; and two charges of attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child.

Robert Holt, mitigating, said Darlington had never been in trouble before. He said: "There have been a poor run of events in the last 10 years and he became isolated and did not communicate with many people. He has fallen into a vicious trap."

He said Darlington was remanded in custody over the weekend which led to him suffering an angina attack and being a high risk of a stroke. Mr Holt said: "The defendant tells me the last four days have been horrific. They have terrified him."

He said Darlington's viewing of images began in 2021 but escalated in a two-week period this year when he began to engage in chat rooms. Mr Holt added: "He accepts his responsibility for this. His remorse is genuine."

Judge Michael Maher said blackmail is 'one of the ugliest crimes and is rightly regarded by the public with loathing and contempt'. He said: "Causing a child to watch a sexual act is a precursor to you blackmailing the children for genuine sexual images. I regard the blackmail as a serious aggravating feature. In this case you sought to take advantage of the perceived vulnerability of your child victims and you used embarrassment as the leverage to secure genuine sexual images of the children for your perceived sexual gratification. Your intention was manifestly clear.

"I regard the blackmail aspect as a serious aggravating feature. This sentencing exercise should have a deterrent aspect to it. I cannot impose anything other than a sentence of immediate imprisonment."

Description

A RAPIST has been jailed for more than four years for multiple sexual offences and making indecent images of children.

An investigation into Alex Symeonides, of Westcliff Park Drive, Westcliff, was launched in October after Essex Police's specialist team received intelligence that the 20-year-old was using an internet connection to view indecent images of children.

He was arrested and during interview he admitted accessing indecent images of children.

As the investigation progressed, officers found a number of indecent images on his devices. They also discovered evidence of sexual assault offences.

Following this work Symeonides was charged with two counts of rape, one count of sexual assault and three counts of making indecent photographs of a child, and he admitted all these charges at court.

Symeonides appeared at Basildon Crown Court on Monday, 10 June where he was sentenced to four years and eight months in prison.

Detective Constable Matthew Wright, who led the investigation, said: “Symeonides is a dangerous offender and Essex is a safer place with him behind bars.

“We are committed to protecting people from harm and will leave no stone unturned in our work to secure charges against predatory offenders.

“Our forensic and detailed work throughout this investigation revealed additional offending and with the evidence placed in front of him, Symeonides had no option but to admit his guilt.

“Essex is no place to hide for sexual offenders and those who abuse children.

“I hope this sentence helps those impacted by Symeonides’ crimes on their road to recovery.”

Alongside his jail sentence Symeonides was issued with a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and placed on the Sex Offenders Register for life.

Last year, Essex Police's online investigation team made more than 600 arrests or suspect interviews for these offences and secured 424 charges – the most of any force anywhere in the UK.

In the past year the team also solved 92 per cent of the 450 investigations they carried out.

Essex Police has the third highest conviction rate for sexual offences which make it to court, while last year the force also safeguarded more than 2,500 children from sexual crimes.

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A paedophile who managed to stay out of jail said he would take his own life is he was put behind bars for breaching the sex offender register.

Ricky Johnson was known as Terence Murkin when he was given a suspended sentence last year for trying to groom a 13-year-old online. But he then breached the terms and was brought back before Leeds Crown Court this week.

The court heard that the 63-year-old had threatened suicide if he was jailed, but Judge Simon Batiste, who also dealt with him last year, locked him up. He told him: “In my judgement, you were warned by me that you must complete the requirements of the order. It was made to clear to you [what would happen if you didn’t comply], and I’m going to keep my word in that regard.”

He was handed a 21-month jail sentence, suspended for 24 months in February of last year when he was caught making sexual suggestions to a young girl online. The profile was run by a hunter group trying to catch out predators online.

As part of his sentence, he was also given 130 hours of unpaid work, 30 rehabilitation days, and ordered onto a sex offender programme. He was also put on the sex offender register and given a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO).

Prosecutor Amber Walker said during routine police checks at his home on Earl Street, Wakefield, following his conviction, they found he had opened a bank account and had not told officers, which put him in breach of the sex offender register.

It was also found that he deleted his internet search history, which he is forbidden to do under the terms of the SHPO. He admitted both breaches this week, having initially denied them.

Mitigating, Leila Taleb said he had initially accepted his wrongdoing during his police interview, but said “acting on legal advice”, then denied it, before finally seeing sense.

Judge Batiste jailed him for 21 months in total, including 12 months activated from his suspended sentence. He said that steps would be taken to ensure his welfare after making the comment about taking his own life.

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A sex offender spent years frequenting schools, parks, and children's parties after deceiving police about his living situation.

Lorry driver Robert Bevan, who is under a lifelong sexual harm prevention order intended to restrict his access to children, but for years went about normal family life apparently without any of the other parents he came into contact with being aware of his past.

Swansea Crown Court heard there was no suggestion he has sexually offended since his last sentence in 2011 but for years lied to the police and his offender manager about his domestic situation. Sending Bevan down a judge told him he had deliberately withheld information from the police and now the time had come to pay the price, reports WalesOnline.

Harry Dickens, prosecuting, said Bevan's sexual offending began in 2007 when he was sentenced for engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child under 13 and continued with convictions in 2009 for engaging in sexual activity with a child, taking indecent images of chid, exposure, and outraging public decency and in 2011 for further acts of exposure and outraging public decency. The court heard the defendant is subject to a lifelong sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) designed to control his access to children and is a registered sex offender.

The barrister said around seven years ago Bevan embarked on long-term relationship with a woman he met through a dating website. During this time Bevan would do school runs, attend parks and soft play areas, and go to children's parties. The court heard that though Bevan had been managed by a sexual offender manager for some 14 years he had never once disclosed the details of his new domestic arrangements nor disclosed that he was a father. There is no suggestion of any new sexual offending since the defendant's last conviction.

The court heard the failure to abide by the terms of the SHPO came to light in April this year when police made unannounced visits to an address he had registered in Swansea. The defendant was not home but was spoken to on the phone and told officers he was only at the address infrequently due to his work as a long-distance lorry driver. Bevan was required to provide a list of places where he was "tramping" – that is places where he was sleeping overnight as part of his job – and police then searched his vehicle. The court heard officers found children's toys in the vehicle along with letters in the defendant's name which were addressed to his mother's house. When police searched his mother's property they found bedrooms with children's beds and drawers full of children's clothes.

Robert Bevan, aged 36, of St Helen's Road, Swansea, had previously pleaded guilty to two counts of breaching a sexual harm prevention order and failing to comply with the requirements of the sex offenders registration scheme. He has six previous convictions for 27 offences some 22 of which are sexual offences. For the latest court reports sign up to our crime newsletter here.

John Allchurch, for Bevan, said after being released from his last custodial sentence the defendant had taken steps to turn his life around, successfully addressing his Class A drug addiction and training to be an advanced HGV driver. He said his client accepts he made a "massive mistake" by not notifying the police of the nature of his domestic arrangements and said he realises that when he is released from custody he will have to work with the authorities. The advocate added that Bevan's mother, father, and sister were at court to support him.

Judge Geraint Walters said Bevan had committed a "flagrant and persistent" breach of court orders which had been imposed due to the defendant's offending including his "history of disturbing exposure" offences. He said the defendant had taken a deliberate decision to withhold information from the police and would now have to pay the price. With a one-third discount for his guilty pleas Bevan was sentenced to two years in prison. He will serve up to half the sentence in custody before being released on licence to serve the remainder in the community.

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Female sex offender who attacked two women in nightclub toilets jailed.

Jennifer Mallee spiked her first victim's drink before leading her to a toilet cubicle where she sexually assaulted her. She attacked a second woman less than three weeks later

A woman who attacked two others in nightclub toilets just 19 days apart has been jailed for four years and three months.

Jennifer Mallee spiked her first victim's drink before leading her to a toilet cubicle where she sexually assaulted her. Less than three weeks later the 28-year-old sexual predator carried out a similar attack on another young woman who she trapped in a cubicle in another club.

The first victim only came forward three years later when she read about the second attack and posted on Facebook: "She did it to me, too." Both victims became friends and attended court together to watch Mallee be sent to jail. Judge Robert Pawson told her that had she been a male sex offender the public would expect them to receive a custodial sentence.

The first attack happened in the early hours of New Year's Day 2019, when the victim met Mallee at the DYMK club in Bournemouth, Dorset, after being dumped by her boyfriend. The woman, who was 22 at the time, said she had three rum and cokes then started feeling 'weird' and 'like a zombie'. She believes her drink was spiked.

Mallee, who was aged 23 at the time, led her to the toilet, locked the cubicle door and assaulted her. Charles Gabb, prosecuting, said: "This was a sustained incident, the victim was particularly vulnerable by way of her state. We cannot prove who it was administered the substance but for anybody who cared to see, she was seriously affected. Anybody would have noticed there was clearly something very wrong with this person."

On January 20, Mallee attacked another young woman in the toilet of Cameo nightclub, trapping her in the cubicle, with the assault lasting about 20 seconds. Mallee admitted the sexual assault and was given a 12-month community order and placed on the sex offenders' register for five years.

After reading about that incident, the first victim commented on social media 'she did it to me too'. The second victim reached out and they met up for coffee to share their experiences. She then made a complaint to Dorset Police and Mallee was charged with the first attack. She was found guilty of three counts of sexual assault against the first victim.

Chetna Patel, defending, told Bournemouth Crown Court said the "very unpleasant incident" was not sustained but short, spontaneous and fuelled by alcohol. She said: "She desired to use the facilities, this is not a case where she was taken and dragged to the toilet against her will. Both of them had been willingly consuming alcohol.

"Miss Mallee has not committed any further offences in the five years since. She recognises her consumption of alcohol played a significant part and rarely drinks or indeed goes out. This was out of character. Her behaviour was isolated to that period of time." The court heard that Mallee was physically larger than her victim and knew she was intoxicated and vulnerable.

In jailing her judge Robert Pawson told Mallee: "The victim was at a low ebb and she sought out your company. I have no doubt, having heard the evidence, that night someone slipped (her) a Mickey Finn. Although there is a very strong inference you were involved in administering that, there's a lurking doubt in my mind and I resolve that in your favour. But I am sure on the evidence that you knew or perceived that she was intoxicated and very vulnerable.

"You knew the state she was in and you formed an intention to do what you did and led her to the ladies, whether she resisted or not she was going to become subservient to your will. While you had no convictions at the time, you offended similarly within less than three weeks. I see little remorse in what I have read and heard. I have to consider the public's perception if a man in your position was given a suspended sentence. The sex of the perpetrator should not be decisive in terms of sentence."

Judge Pawson also made a restraining order preventing her from contacting the two victims and a sexual harm prevention order banning her from being in a public toilet cubicle with another women. She will also have to remain on the sex offenders' register for life.

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A man has been jailed for sexually assaulting a teenager and woman in the Aston and Perry Barr area of Birmingham this year.

Irtiza Abbas of Lozells Road, Birmingham pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a schoolgirl and a university student after compelling CCTV evidence showed him selecting and following his victims.

Both victims have bravely allowed us to tell their story and show CCTV in the hope that anyone else who feels they've been a victim and hasn’t come forward to do so.

On the afternoon of Tuesday 16 January, the 25-year-old hung around the area near to Aston University and followed a woman who was walking on her own.

He followed the 22-year-old along Dartmouth Middleway for a while to make sure she was definitely on her own and that there was no other person in the street and then grabbed her and assaulted her.

And on Tuesday 16 April he followed a 15-year-old schoolgirl as she walked home in the Perry Barr area.

CCTV shows him following her closely along a street and looking around to make sure he was alone.

Only when he was sure that there was no-one else around, he grabbed the girl and assaulted her.

The 15-year-old bravely rang her father who was luckily driving nearby. They drove around the area and spotted Abbas, but following a tussle, Abbas escaped and fled the scene.

Officers painstakingly pieced CCTV together linking the assaults and a suspect was identified.

Abbas was arrested from his address in Lozells on 22 April and clothing matching the description in the

CCTV was recovered. Although he didn't admit his guilt in interview, he knew the evidence against him was so compelling that he pleaded guilty at court. 

He was sentenced at Birmingham Crown Court to two years in jail.

The investigating officer, Detective Inspector Joe Davenport, said: "We strongly believe due to the nature of the offences that Abbas may have committed more offences.

"CCTV has shown him lingering on the streets and carefully selecting his victims. He would follow them to make sure they were on their own before he struck.

"Although he's pleaded guilty to two offences there's a real time line gap and we have really strong suspicions that he may have offended again and again.

"Thanks to the support of the victims and their bravery and our teams’ efforts in tracing every single piece of CCTV that we could, we've managed to take a serial offender and a potentially dangerous man, whose offences were deliberate, methodical and repeated, off the streets of Birmingham.

"If anyone feels that something similar has happened to them and that they've not come forward before, we'd ask them to reconsider. Please contact me or one of my team and we promise that we will take your account seriously."

We are committed to identifying individuals who pose the highest risk of harm to women and girls, and actively managing them to prevent or reduce offending.

We are encouraging any more victims to come forward by contacting us by calling 101 or visiting our Live Chat function on our website and quoting crime number 20/412643/24.

Victims of sexual assault receive life-time anonymity.

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A dad who discovered that his young daughter had been sent sexual messages online was living "every parent's nightmare".

The parent discovered the highly explicit messages from John Barker, 33, which had been sent to his primary-school aged child earlier this year. The victim had not known Barker before he contacted her.

After contacting police, Barker was arrested and granted bail. But as police investigated, he then went back online and contacted another 'child's' profile, and tried to get them to take part in sex acts with him online.

However, Barker was actually talking to an adult who had set up a fake profile, as part of a child protection group's efforts to catch paedophiles. Barker, who is now of no fixed address but formerly of North Lodge Terrace in Darlington, pleaded guilty to engaging in sexual communication with a child; inciting a child to engage in sexual activity; and two counts of making indecent photos of a child.

On Friday, he stood in the dock at Teesside Crown Court as Judge Jonathan Carroll told him: "A dad found what is every parent's nightmare - that his young daughter had engaged in sexual communication with an unknown male.

"It's the adult world's responsibility to protect and care for our children. The internet and social media is becoming the hunting ground of people like you, who see children as easy sexual targets to be exploited.

"It was abundantly clear that she was young. It is clear that you were seeking to go down exactly the same path with the second user as you did with the child victim."

Barker was jailed for 53 months. He will serve half of the sentence, before he is released on licence. He was also made the subject of an indefinite sexual harm prevention order, and he will sign the sex offenders' register for the rest of his life.