Latest Offenders

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A man from Sefton has been jailed today, Friday 2 May, after pleading guilty to 27 child sex offences targeting underage children across the country.

Michael Lymath, of no fixed address but formerly from Southport, was sentenced to 20 years in prison at Liverpool Crown Court today, plus eight years extended licence period which is additional time during which the offender is supervised in the community after their release. He had pleaded guilty to the catalogue of sex offences against underage girls at a previous court hearing.

In December last year detectives arrested and charged 43-year-old Lymath following a report from a child victim that they had been offered payment for images. A search of Lymath’s home address was conducted where numerous exhibits were seized, Lymath was initially charged with the reported offence along with Possession of cannabis, Possession of cocaine and Possession of an offensive weapon in a private place.

Lymath was remanded into custody by the courts while detectives continued investigating the full scope of Lymath’s offending, which resulted in him being convicted of 27 offences which he committed across the UK between 2020 and until his arrest in December 2024.  The long list of additional charges included Rape of a girl under the age of 13, Cause/incite a girl under 13 to engage in sexual activity, Engage in sexual communication with a child, Attempt to cause/incite a girl to engage in sexual activity, two counts of Cause a child to watch/look at an image of sexual activity, Possession of cannabis, Possession of cocaine and Possession of an offensive weapon in a private place.

The court heard that Lymath would prey on underage children on social media under various guise’s that included pretending he was a 17-year-old boy and message them.

Following a complex investigation detectives discovered that he had been in contact with several victims from across the UK. Lymath had groomed children online and had met them in person where he engaged in sexual activity.

He had also lured multiple victims to send explicit images of themselves by offering them payment.

Detective Constable Rory Quigley said: “This sentence follows a lengthy and complex investigation to bring Lymath before the courts so that he pays for his crimes.

“He was a prolific sexual predator – targeting young and vulnerable children for his own sexual gratification, thinking he could get away with it.

“He manipulated his vulnerable young victims and sent them explicit videos to watch. In one instance he told child victim that he knew where they lived to manipulate them into sending him sexually explicit images which were categorised A, B and C.”

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A Swindon man recently given a suspended sentence for indecently exposing himself in front of his neighbours has been jailed following a further incident.

James Hortop, 40, of Dennis Street, Swindon, came to police attention three times within five weeks and was arrested twice in relation to exposure offences. He was originally sentenced to 26 weeks’ imprisonment, suspended for 18 months, in a hearing on April 7.

He was arrested a third time on April 30 for a further incident of exposure after walking onto a garage forecourt wearing nothing but a dressing gown, with his genitals exposed. He proceeded to masturbate in view of two females.

Today at Swindon Magistrates’ Court he was sentenced to a total of fifteen months’ imprisonment.

Previous restraining orders and a Sexual Harm Prevention Order remain in place and Hortop is now subject to Sex Offender registration requirements for an extra seven years, making fourteen years in total.

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A man has today been jailed for 11 years for child sex offences in Portsmouth.

Colin Stear, 67, of Plymouth Street, Southsea, was charged with three counts of assaulting a boy under 13 by touching and two counts of causing or inciting a boy under 13 to engage in sexual activity.

This related to non-recent sexual offences against two victims between 2004 and 2018 in Portsmouth. 

Stear denied the offences but was convicted following a trial. He was sentenced today (2 May) at Portsmouth Crown Court to 11 years in prison, with a three-year extension to his licence period.

He was also handed an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

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A calculating sex offender, who assaulted six people over an 11-year period, has admitted his crimes. Nigel Frith, of Woolavington, pleaded guilty to 14 counts of sexual assault by touching against four children and two adults.

The 56-year-old was sentenced at Taunton Crown Court to a prison sentence of 34 months. The court heard that Frith's offending took place between 2012 and 2023.

Frith would touch, kiss and make sexual suggestions towards children as young as 10 through to adults in their 20s and 30s.

As well as his jail sentence, Frith has been given a 10-year sexual harm prevention order and a restraining order. He has also been added to the sex offenders' register.

Each of his victims wrote a personal statement which was read out at the sentencing hearing on Wednesday, April 30. One victim said: “When this happened, I was a child. I didn’t know what sexual assault was.

“When I saw [Frith], I felt uncomfortable. I saw him once outside a local shop working, he looked so unaffected by everything that had happened with me. I was frustrated he didn’t seem to understand the impact of his actions, and yet I was having to change my life to avoid feeling on edge.”

Another said: “When I think back to what happened, I feel angry. Angry at the thought he could do that and think he could do it again and get away with it.

“At the time, I shrugged it off. I remember he didn’t seem bothered by what he was doing. Even when I called him out, he shrugged it off.

“I was shocked and confused that he had done this to me. I found it incredibly invasive that he would do this to anyone.”

A third victim said: “It used to make me feel violated when I saw you. I felt that you were invading my personal space… your presence made me feel uncomfortable.

“There were so many emotions at once, it was overwhelming. I would make any excuse just to get away as quickly as possible.

“The past few months have been really difficult for me. I used to feel I had let myself down, even though it wasn’t my fault.”

Investigating officer, DC Martyn Jackson, said: “I have to commend the strength of the victims in coming forward about these horrendous crimes.

“Frith’s actions are disgraceful and left his victims feeling degraded and violated. The way he touched these girls and women, invaded their personal space and made them feel angry and terrified, is unacceptable.

“His pattern of offending shows there was thought to his actions. He knew the impact he was having on these women and girls and he violated them in a place where they should feel safe.”

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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.

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A sex offender who lured a teenage Kirklees victim to meet him and then contacted her friends has been jailed for more than three years.  

Kevin Walton (50) of Holme Close,  Wellingborough was jailed at Leeds Crown Court on Monday 28 April for three years, nine months for multiple offences against four young girls.

Walton was convicted of two offences of causing a female aged 13 or over to engage in non-penetrative sexual activity, and three offences of causing a child aged 13- 15 to look at an image of sexual activity.

He was also jailed for meeting a child aged under 16 following grooming, three offences of sexual communication with a child and three offences of causing a child under 13 to look at imagery of sexual activity.

The offending took place from late summer 2024 after Walton contacted the victim via social media while posing as a 19 year old.

He then met the victim in October and committed the contact sexual offences he was convicted of. 

The 50-year-old also made contact with three of the victim’s friends and subjected them to offending in which he sent them sexual imagery.

Reports of the offences were made to police in late 2024 leading to a full investigation by dedicated Kirklees child safeguarding detectives.

Walton was identified and then arrested in December 2024 before later being charged.

Detective Inspector Paul Greatorex of the Kirklees District Child Safeguarding Unit, said: “"We wish to thank the victims for coming forward and disclosing what has happened.  

“Their bravery and courage means that Walton, who is a dangerous individual and has used social media to mask his true identity, has been held accountable for his predatory behaviour.

“On release from prison he will also be subject to an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention order which makes it a further criminal offence for him to again try and contact children.”

He added: “We continue to urge all victims of sexual offences to come forwards.  All reports are investigated with the needs of the victim at the heart of everything we do.”  

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Work by specialist detectives has ensured a former Essex Police officer has been jailed for four and-a-half years after admitting a series of online child sexual offences.

Former PC Mark Ling, 38, formerly of Ipswich, had pleaded guilty to eight counts of sexual communications with a child and one count of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity at Ipswich Crown Court on 18 January.

A reporting restriction was put in place to prevent details of the guilty pleas to be published as there were other ongoing, related matters.

In relation to these matters, he was later charged with a further four counts of sexual communication with a child. He admitted to two of those charges at the same court on 4 February and the other two on 10 February.

The charges all relate to an investigation into the online interactions between Ling and underage girls.

Detectives went through the painstaking task of identifying the girls involved, locating them, and speaking to them securing evidence which left Ling with no option but to admit his guilt.

Today (Thursday 1 May), he was sentenced to four and-a-half years in prison.

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A 53-year-old man has been jailed after a jury at Northampton Crown Court found him guilty of sexually assaulting a vulnerable man.

Jason Mustoe, of The Medway in Daventry, was sentenced to three years and four months in prison, which was extended by a further two years on licence due to him being a dangerous offender.

He was also made subject of a four-year restraining order preventing him from contacting his victim as well as being issued with an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

Mustoe was found guilty of one count of sexual assault on a male on January 13 this year, following a four-day trial at the county’s crown court. He returned to the same court at the end of March to be sentenced.

The court heard that on July 27, 2024, Mustoe had sexually touched the vulnerable man, who he had befriended, and when told to stop, continued knowing that his actions were unwanted and unrequited.

The victim told Mustoe that his inappropriate behaviour made him feel uncomfortable, but despite apologising, Mustoe continued to make sexual advances towards the younger male, who made his excuses and left.

Once in a place of safety, the victim confided in a friend, who encouraged him to report it to Northamptonshire Police. Mustoe was arrested and subsequently charged in connection with the incident.

On July 30, Mustoe was remanded in custody after he entered no plea at Northampton Magistrates’ Court and his case was committed to the county’s crown court for trial.

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A convicted paedophile plucked a young girl’s image from the internet then sent it to a woman, claiming it was his daughter and asking if she wanted him to perform a sex act on the child.

Archibald Smith’s sick move came shortly after he sent a video of himself masturbating to the woman.

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Brandon Smith (14/02/2000) of Larch Road in Denton, was found guilty of two counts of rape, two counts of sexual assault and one assault by penetration.

He was sentenced to 12-and-a-half years at Bolton Crown Court today (Wednesday 30 April 2025) for raping and sexually assaulting a woman in July 2024. Smith will then serve three years on extended licence. 

On Friday 5 July 2024, Smith launched his attack on the woman, who was not known to him, grabbed her and threatened to stab her if she made any noise.

He then dragged her down a path off King Street and Pitt Street in Hyde before he carried out a sustained sexual attack.

He told the woman he had been watching her for six months and following the attack, he made threats to harm her family if she said anything.

Following an investigation, Smith was arrested on Sunday 7 July 2024. After a trial at Bolton Crown Court, he was found guilty on all five counts on Wednesday 8 January 2025.

Brandon Smith was jailed for 12-and-a-half years.

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A man has been sentenced after he sexually assaulted a woman at Creamfields music festival in Daresbury.

Gergel Ludanyi, of Adelaide Road, Southampton, appeared at Chester Crown Court on Friday 25 April, where he was sentenced to eight years in prison.

The 35-year-old was earlier found guilty of sexual assault by penetration, and two counts of sexual assault by touching.

During the trial, the court heard how the victim had attended the Creamfields music festival with a group of friends in August 2022. Whilst there, and in the early hours of the morning, the victim was approached by Ludanyi, who had been working on the fairground at the festival.

Ludanyi tried to kiss the victim, but she pushed him away. She then started to feel unwell and lay down on the floor before losing consciousness.

When the victim regained consciousness, the sun had risen and Ludanyi was on top of her. She tried to push him off of her before again losing consciousness.

During this time, a witness reported seeing Ludanyi move the victim’s clothing as he sexually assaulted her - all while the victim laid there unconscious.

It’s unknown how much time had passed when the victim woke up to Ludanyi lying on top of her. She pushed him off her for the third time before the witness approached and helped her to her feet. The women then reported the incident to security and Cheshire Police.

Subsequently, Ludanyi was arrested and later charged in relation to the incident.

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A seedy pervert drove around east Hull looking opportunities to approach and attack unsuspecting women – and filmed himself grabbing and intimately touching one woman as she walked home alone.

Dylan Templeman made random attacks on women – two of them within an hour of each other – and he was part of a social media group who filmed themselves performing lewd acts in public, a court heard. Templeman, 22, of Severn Street, off Holderness Road, east Hull, admitted two offences of sexual assault on women on September 21 last year.

He also admitted exposing himself to a mother and her stepdaughter in Hull on September 14 and a further offence of having indecent images of children. Julia Baggs, prosecuting, told Grimsby Crown Court that a mother and stepdaughter were walking through Sutton village at 8.40pm on September 14 when the stepdaughter became aware of a man walking closely behind them in a suspicious manner.

When they turned around in Burlington Road, he had exposed himself and was playing with himself. When he was challenged by the women, he ran off. Police were called and, through an identification procedure, they were able to identify the culprit.

On September 21, a woman was walking home alone at 12.20am in Hull, when she was suddenly grabbed on her bottom by a man. She shouted at him and he fled. The woman heard the engine of a car start up nearby and she spotted a small black car.

About 40 minutes later, another woman was walking home after her night shift at 1am on a road in east Hull, about a mile away from where the first sexual assault incident happened.

A man suddenly appeared and grabbed the woman between her legs and touched her intimately. The shocked woman broke free and ran off, pursued by the man. He ran into Bedale Avenue and got into his car.

The victims of both sexual assaults were able to give descriptions of the attacker. Police traced the car the following evening and Templeman was arrested. Analysis of his phone showed footage, which he had taken himself, of him grabbing the woman in the second assault.

Details were given in court of some of the footage shown on a social media platform in which people carried out disgusting acts in public. Templeman had three cautions for sex offences and battery in 2022.

Oliver Shipley, mitigating, said that Templeman had expressed a degree of shame and embarrassment and he said that he was deeply sorry for his actions. He was working in the information technology sector and lived at home with his mother.

Judge Gurdial Singh said that Templeman joined an online group in which "like-minded members boasted about what they did and encouraged people to do the same". The women were vulnerable because they were walking home at night.

Templeman was jailed for two years and seven months. He was given a sexual harm prevention order for life and he must register as a sex offender for life.

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A predator who raped a vulnerable underage girl has been jailed for ten-and-a-half-years.

Toray Douglas, who goes by the nickname 'Shotty', picked up the 15-year-old as she walked alone in Birmingham city centre on June 20 last year.

He bought her something to eat and they exchanged messages to meet at his bedsit the same night.

Birmingham Crown Court heard she was in the care of Birmingham City Council and had run away from a centre on the night of the attack.

Staff alerted police who tracked her phone to Douglas' HMO bedsit where they were found in bed.

When the victim was returned to her care home by police, she confided in a support worker that she had been raped.

Following an earlier trial Douglas, of Blakeland Street, Bordesley Green, was found guilty of one charge of rape and one of assault by penetration.

At his sentencing hearing, Stefan Kolodynsky, prosecuting, said the victim told Douglas "no" when he said they were going to have sex.

Mr Kolodynsky said: "He then proceeded to have sex with her, at the time he knew she was 15. He knew she was vulnerable."

Neil Baki, defending, said: "He's now 38, he's been in some trouble in the past but nothing like this.

"He's going to find his time in custody difficult because of this."

Sentencing Douglas, Judge Sarah Buckingham said the victim "has been left feeling anxious, cautious and scared in the company of men".

Douglas, who has a string of previous convictions, was also ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register for the rest of his life.

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A SEX OFFENDER from Cumbria who had secret sexualised conversations online with a 15-year-old has been jailed.

When police arrived at Billy Sowerby’s home address, they found him hurriedly attempting to eradicate any evidence of his wrongdoing by deleting his phone's WhatsApp application, Carlisle Crown Court heard.

Despite his initial denials, the defendant, 35, was also found to have other devices which he had failed to tell the police about.

Sowerby, of Croft Close, Kirkby Stephen, who was once described as a "danger to children" by a national children's charity, admitted four breaches of his existing sexual harm prevention order.

They consisted of him contacting the 15-year-old, deleting his internet history, and failing to notify his offender manager of two social media accounts.

The court heard that Sowerby was given the order in 2016 when he was given a three year jail term for his first set of sexual offences.

They involved him sexually assaulting a girl under the age of 16 and engaging in sexual activity with a child.

His latest offences came to light after police visited the defendant at his home and found him in the process of deleting his WhatsApp from a phone. When challenged about this, he claimed it was to protect somebody he had contacted.

Police later confirmed that he had been messaging a 15-year-old girl.

When police arrived at his home, he claimed to have no other digital devices other than the phone he was handling.

But when the officers said they would search the house, he went to his bedroom and retrieved another iPhone while there was a third device he had access to in the living room.

His messages confirmed he was providing the teenager with vapes, but he asked the girl to not tell her parents about this. There was also evidence he talked with her about sex and asked intimate questions.

“Her mother was completely unaware of this contact,” said the prosecutor in court, pointing out that the girl said the conversations left her feeling uncomfortable.

The prosecutor said the defendant’s online communications – and his searches online – revealed his “high level of sexual preoccupation.”

“This was determined offending for the gratification of his sexual interests,” said the barrister.

Gerard Rogerson, defending, said Sowerby was aware of how serious his situation looked, bearing in mind his record, but the defendant recognised that the girl was going through a difficult time in her life.

“He chose to speak to her about some of the issues that were causing her difficulties,” said the barrister. “He was trying to encourage her to be herself and not to change or bend to the will of other people, particularly her peers.”

He had wanted to make himself available to the teenager as somebody she could speak to, trespassing on to the remit of her parents by offering a “kindly shoulder to cry on,” said Mr Rogerson.

The barrister added that Sowerby’s online searches – including about the age of consent in different European countries – were motived by simple curiosity after the issue was mentioned in a media article he had read.

Sowerby did not even own a passport, added Mr Rogerson.

Recorder Ciaran Rankin said Sowerby’s chats with the teenager were at times “highly sexualised” in their nature, as were some of his online searches. The judge said: “I am afraid I do not accept that your communication with [the girl] was at any stage entirely innocent or from laudable motives.

“And I don’t accept that your searches were entirely out of curiosity. They were all clearly very highly sexually motivated.”

Sowerby - said by the NSPCC in 2016 to be danger to children - was jailed for five years.

It will be up to the Chief Constable to decide whether to apply to the court to have the defendant’s sexual harm prevention order extended beyond next year, when it is due to expire.

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A convicted child sex offender ordered a pregnant woman to stop on a motorway using a flashing orange light on his dashboard and told her he was a military police officer, a court has heard.

Sinister Sidney McLagan pursued 29-year-old Sian Owen down the M90 and flashed his full beam headlights at her until she pulled over.