Latest Offenders

Description

A great-grandad drove for two hours to Leeds to meet what he thought was a 13-year-old girl, but was confronted by a paedophile hunter group.

Pervert pensioner Malcolm Allwood spent months grooming the "girl" online, telling her he wanted to take her to his caravan and back to his home.

The 77-year-old then drove from his home in Burton-on-Trent in Staffordshire to meet the youngster at McDonald's in Hunslet, where he was intercepted by members of the Yorkshire Predator Hunters, who had set up the decoy profile of the girl. They then livestreamed the confrontation.

He appeared at Leeds Crown Court this week where he admitted attempting to meet a child following grooming, and attempting to engage a child in sexual communication. Prosecuting the case, Emily Hassell said that Allwood contacted the fake profile online in December 2022, with the supposed girl telling him she was just 13.

He told her that he "loved her photo" and asked if she was single. Over the months he bombarded her with messages and would tell her that that she was "gorgeous". He sent photos of himself with his top off and asked her for photos.

He would repeatedly ask her what she was wearing in bed and quizzed her about sex education she had in school. He said he would massage her and take her away in his caravan or take her abroad. Then in April 2023 he suggested they meet for food, and that she should stay at his address. On April 21 last year he travelled the 85 miles from his home on Calais Road, Burton-on-Trent, to meet her at the McDonald's. Having been detained by the hunter group, he was then arrested but gave a no-comment interview to officers.

Mitigating, Stuart Field said that Allwood has no previous convictions and pleaded guilty at an early opportunity. He said: "He is not able to explain how this all arose. Thankfully, it was not a 13-year-old girl."

Judge Tahir Khan KC gave him a 12-month jail sentence, suspended for 18 months. He also gave him 40 rehabilitation days, put him on the sex offender register for 10 years and handed him a 10-year sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) to limit his internet use.

Description

A FORMER school bus driver in Witney has been jailed after raping a 14-year-old girl and encouraging a 13-year-old girl to send him naked photographs.

Peter Gibbs, 60, was sentenced at Oxford Crown Court of three counts of historic child sex abuse which happened in the early 2000s – two counts of indecent assault and one count of rape – after being found guilty at trial.

Over two decades later, Gibbs, pleaded guilty to one count each of sexual communication with a child and making indecent images of a child after six naked photographs were found of the teen on his device in 2022.

Sentencing Gibbs, of Briary Lane, Carterton, to eight years and seven months imprisonment, Judge Michael Gledhill said: “You ought to be thoroughly disgusted with yourself.”

During the sentencing, it was heard that the historic counts were first reported to police in August 2001 after the victim made a report, telling her GP she had been raped.

It was heard the assaults had happened in his car as well as on a bus where he worked as a driver.

However, the Crown Prosecution Service dismissed the case.

Gibbs was not charged at the time but was arrested again in February 2021 when a school reported that Gibbs, who was the authority’s bus driver at the time, had been messaging a 15-year-old student.

In May 2022, Gibbs pleaded guilty to the counts relating to that incident and the victim in the latest trial, who is now an adult, was contacted again by police and the case was reopened.

A victim impact statement written by the woman and teen were read out in court.

The first wrote: “Peter Gibbs ruined my life. After it happened, I couldn’t go back to school. I was extremely embarrassed. I felt my parents were disappointed in me.

“What he did to me affects me on a day-to-day basis.”

The teen wrote: “He was a person employed to keep children safe yet he made as a child feel unsafe.

“I feel like I can’t enjoy myself like my friends do because of what he has done to me.”

Defending Gibbs, his barrister explained that the defendant has not been ‘eating, drinking or taking medication’ in custody and has been placed on ‘a particular watch’.

He said: “He is very, very sorry for what he’s done and he’s remorseful for his actions.

"The man has fully, completely and totally come to his senses and has expressed his great sorrow and shame to his partner.”

Description

A convicted sex offender has been jailed again after he was found using his phone to send explicit messages to a child.

Former East Malling resident, David Knight, used social media apps to befriend the young boy and made repeated attempts to meet the victim on his own. 

Knight, 46, was previously sentenced in 2005 to more than six years’ imprisonment, for offences relating to the sexual abuse of children.

He was convicted under his former name of David Thomas and added to the sex offenders register, for life.

Name change

Upon his release from prison, he changed his name to David Knight and became the subject of new allegations made to Kent Police in August 2022.

An investigation established Knight had been communicating with a child by using internet platforms including TikTok.

Posting under the profile name of FireKnight2017, he sent several inappropriate and explicit messages, and expressed a desire to be with the child on their own.

Knight was arrested on 16 August. A police analysis of his phone found searches on the internet including ‘nude junior archives’ and ‘kids’ nudists chase game’.

Sentenced

He was charged with attempting to meet a child following grooming and with failing to comply with a notification requirement (relating to the sex offenders register).

Knight pleaded guilty at Maidstone Crown Court, where a further offence of engaging in sexual communication with a child was ordered to lie on file.

On Tuesday 19 March 2024, Knight, of no fixed address, was jailed for four years and one month. He will have to serve two thirds of the sentence before he can apply for parole.

Upon his release from prison, Knight will be the subject of an additional licence period of three years, as well as a sexual harm prevention order and restraining order, both for 10 years. 

Description

A sex offender described as a "serious risk to women" was found to have been going to Bury to "engage in a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old girl".

Callum Cox, 23, has a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) with a number of conditions and prohibitions.

He told police on a home compliance visit that he did not have a mobile phone, access to the internet or social media.  

But just 10 days later, Lancashire Police, working with Greater Manchester Police, discovered Cox had been travelling to Bury and engaging in a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old girl.

Cox, of The Grove, Oswaldwistle, was arrested, and a mobile phone was seized.

Specialist officers carried out searches of Cox’s mobile phones, where they found that he had "intentionally deceived the police in an effort to pursue multiple relationships with women online", including with a 17-year-old girl.

It was found he had travelled out of Lancashire in attempt to avoid detection.

Cox was charged with seven breaches of his SHPO and sex offender notification requirements. He plead guilty to four of the charges.

On Monday, March 18, Cox was sentenced at Burnley Crown Court to two years and seven months for breaching his SHPO.

An application to amend the existing SHPO will be heard at Blackburn Magistrates' Court on Wednesday, April 10.

Description

A convicted sex offender who deliberately went to ground instead of telling the police where he was living has been jailed after being told that he had finally "come to the end of the road" for being given chances.

Drug user David Schofield had previously been spared prison for committing "precisely the same offence" but he did not learn his lesson and he brazenly ignored his "duty" to register with the police every seven days, Hull Crown Court heard.

Schofield, 47, from Hull but recently remanded in custody, admitted breaching his notification requirements as a convicted sex offender and breaching a 24-week suspended prison sentence imposed for earlier failures to notify his details.

Chloe Pinches, prosecuting, said that Schofield was convicted on January 17, 2020 of sexual assault and he was ordered that day to register as a sex offender for seven years.

He was back in court on July 20 last year for failing to comply with notification requirements and, after he was released from custody, he told police that he would be living in Hardy Street, Hull.

On November 16, Schofield was seen by a police community support officer in Hull city centre and he said that he was of no fixed address. He was told to go to the police station and notify his details and he was reminded that he needed to do so every seven days.

"The defendant failed to do so," said Miss Pinches. Schofield was arrested on December 30 for that and other offences.

He pleaded guilty at Hull Magistrates' Court on January 4 to offences of assault and criminal damage, committed on December 12, and he was jailed for 12 weeks.

During police interview, Schofield said that he could not provide details of where he was living because of problems that he had suffered. When he was asked if he understood his conditions and whether he had made any attempt to tell police of any change in his living status, he replied "No comment."

He said that he would probably be in and out of prison for the remainder of his notification period because he would never be able to tell police of his address.

"There was a long period of non-compliance," said Miss Pinches. "The last recorded notification by the defendant was July 20. He had multiple opportunities to attend the police station to notify them of his change in circumstances but he chose not to, despite accessing agencies that support rough sleepers and advising them that he was homeless.

"This resulted in his whereabouts being unknown to the police for a long period of time." Schofield had been assessed as posing a medium risk of committing further offences of a sexual nature.

It was his fifth appearance in court for failing to comply with his notification requirements, said Miss Pinches.

Marc Luxford, mitigating, said that Schofield had suffered from drug-related problems, made worse by not having a home and living on the streets. "He accepts that the duty was on him and he ought to be registering every seven days," said Mr Luxford.

"He accepts that it was his duty and that he ought to have attended at the police station." Schofield had been in Lincoln Prison most recently after earlier being in Hull Prison, where services had been easier to access.

Recorder David Brooke KC said that Schofield showed a "deliberate failure to comply" with his sex offender registration responsibilities.

"It's a repeat offence," said Recorder Brooke. "You were in breach of a suspended sentence for precisely the same offence. The probation service has obviously tried very hard to help you and has come to the conclusion that it can't really offer anything else in the community.

"It's a deliberate failure to comply with the requirements rather than a determined attempt to avoid detection. You have been doing this not just on one occasion but two.

"I am afraid that you have come to the end of the road in terms of other alternatives."

Schofield was jailed for a total of 54 weeks.

Description

A serial flasher who exposed himself to women and girls while riding around on a bicycle was later found to have dozens of sickening indecent images of children on his phone.

Ammar Chaudhry was only stopped in his "troubling course of sexually deviant behaviour" when an off-duty policeman, who was in his car with his wife and children, spotted in his rear-view mirror what was happening and went to investigate, Hull Crown Court heard.

Chaudhry, 26, of Elmtree Avenue, North Ferriby, admitted three offences of making indecent images of children and another of possessing indecent images of children.

Michael Masson, prosecuting, said that Chaudhry was arrested on March 4, 2021 for exposure and he was interviewed by the police. "He indicated that there would be indecent images of children on his phone, engaged in lewd acts," said Mr Masson.

Chaudhry claimed that he had downloaded all the images out of "curiosity" and that he had no sexual interest in children. He claimed that no children were harmed in the images.

His phone was searched and 311 files relating to indecent images of children were found, 31 of them on a child abuse database. There were 41 images, including duplicates, in the most serious Category A and 42 videos in that category. Prohibited images, showing indecent cartoons or similar images, were found on his laptop and computer.

During police interview, Chaudhry gave mainly "no comment" replies to questions but when he was asked whether he shared the images with other people, he replied: "No." There was no evidence of any distribution by him of images.

Chaudhry had convictions for four previous offences of exposure, one of those committed near a school, and he had been given a 30-week suspended prison sentence, 20 days' rehabilitation and a 10-year sexual harm prevention order at Hull Crown Court in July 2021. He had been ordered to register as a sex offender for 10 years.

The court heard at that time that, on four occasions, Chaudhry rode his bicycle towards vulnerable women and young girls while exposing himself. On one occasion, he stood in the middle of a street just yards from schoolchildren, dropped his tracksuit bottoms and committed a sex act.

He also pursued a 16-year-old schoolgirl in North Ferriby and smiled at her as he exposed himself. She was left "disgusted and uncomfortable" but he continued to follow her.

There was another incident in Anlaby where he stared at a woman while riding his bicycle, with one hand down his trousers. She could see his bare groin area and she felt disgusted.

Chaudhry's offences, described by a judge as a "troubling course of sexually deviant behaviour", came to a halt when an off-duty police officer in Hull Road, Hessle, spotted in his rear-view mirror what Chaudhry was doing. Young children were nearby.

When he was arrested, Chaudhry asked if he could just be cautioned, the court heard that day.

Charlotte Baines, mitigating, said that the offending was serious but Chaudhry had made admissions about the images when first arrested.

"He never sought to diminish or minimise responsibility in respect of those actions," said Miss Baines. It took 10 months for a forensic report on the images to be prepared and there had been further delays before the other charges involving the indecent images came to court.

Chaudhry was given an eight-week suspended prison sentence. The previous sexual harm prevention order will continue. He will have to continue to register as a sex offender for seven years.

Description

A South London man who subjected a woman to a campaign of physical and emotional abuse has been convicted. Nam Nguyen took control of the woman's life over a 10-day period in September 2023 and held her captive inside a flat in Tulse Hill.

She managed to escape after jumping from a window. She ran to a nearby care home where she was found with extensive injuries to her face and body.

She had been raped and repeatedly attacked. Officers were called and the Met launched an investigation.

Nguyen was identified as the suspect and arrested nearby a short time later. The victim spoke at length to officers about the horrific abuse she had faced, including vicious attacks, one of which resulted in a fracture to her spine.

Detective Chief Superintendent Seb Adjei-Addoh, local policing commander in Lambeth and Southwark, said: "It's hard to imagine the pain and suffering this woman went through and I am pleased the man responsible for these awful crimes has been brought to justice. This is some of the worst offending our detectives have ever seen and I do not underestimate the impact having to speak at length about this has had on the victim.

"We will continue to support her in any way we can. This has been an incredibly complex investigation and I hope this outcome demonstrates how the Met is committed to tackling violence against women and girls.

"We will continue to ensure dangerous and predatory men face the consequences of their actions." Nguyen will be sentenced at Inner London Crown Court on Friday, May 24.

Nguyen, 26, of no fixed address, was found guilty of the following offences at Inner London Crown Court on Monday, March 18.

• False imprisonment
• Wounding with intent
• Threats to kill
• Grievous bodily harm with intent
• Rape
• Actual bodily harm
• Administering a noxious thing
• Sexual assault

Description

A former Ellesmere Port care worker has been convicted of rape and child sex offences.

Following a seven-day trial which began on March 11 at Chester Crown Court, 45-year-old Kevin Cooper-Shaw, of Kingsmead Road North, Oxton, was found guilty by a jury on 21 of the 23 charges. These were:

• Seven counts of sexual activity with a child
• One count of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity
• One count of rape
• One count of attempted sexual activity with a child
• Seven counts of sexual activity with a child by a person in a position of trust
• One count of sexual activity in the presence of a child by a person in a position of trust
• Two counts of making an indecent photograph / pseudo- photograph of a child
• One count of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity by a person in a position of trust

The court heard that Cooper-Shaw worked at a care home in Ellesmere Port between April 2018 and October 2021, where he was tasked with safeguarding and caring for vulnerable children and young people.

But during this time, Cooper-Shaw groomed a teenage girl at the care home, committing multiple offences against her.

The matter came to police attention in November 2021 and an investigation was launched by the Western Protecting Vulnerable People Unit.

Cooper-Shaw was arrested soon after the report to police. When detectives reviewed his devices, they found him to be in possession of a number of indecent images of children.

Cooper-Shaw will be sentenced on May 31.

Following Cooper-Shaw’s conviction, investigating officer DC Katie Ashcroft said: “The level of offending in this case and the acts he subjected his victim to were truly horrific.

"Cooper-Shaw was meant to be in a position of trust, safeguarding and caring for young people. Despite knowing this, and how vulnerable the victim was, Cooper-Shaw violated and betrayed that trust, abusing and deeply traumatising the young victim at a time when she should have been made to feel safe.

“I’d like to thank the victim for their immense courage and strength they’ve shown throughout this investigation – first to come forward to report the crimes, and then also to give evidence and help convict this man for his predatory and warped behaviour.

“I hope this encourages others who have been subjected to such abuse to come forward. They will get the support and advice they need to help them come to terms with their ordeal, and if they so wish, put their abuser before the courts.”

Description

A paedophile carried out a series of sexual assaults on vulnerable young girls over several decades. Dennis Yarr subjected his victims to sickening attacks leaving them suicidal, depressed and unable to feel safe around men.

The offences committed by Yarr spanned several decades and included luring a young girl into his car, sexually touching another child and forcing another to sit on his lap and perform a sex act.

A hearing at Cardiff Crown Court on Wednesday, March 20 heard Yarr, who is Scottish and was working as a bus and taxi driver in the Vale of Glamorgan, accused his victims of lying before being found guilty of indecent assault and indeceny with a child at trial in February this year. Judge Timothy Petts said Yarr had shown "no remorse" for his actions and described him as "manipulative and predatory".

The court heard Yarr, 63, of Dunstan Avenue in Westage-on-Sea, Kent, carried out a series of disgusting attacks on a young girl in the 1990s. This included touching inside her underwear and on one occasion penetrating her. He then told his victim not to tell anyone in order to prevent her from reporting the ordeal.

A statement on behalf of the victim said Yarr's attacks had meant she "grew up feeling let down and disappointed" and had "affected her choices in life", adding that she still struggled with mental health issues and had been left traumatised by it taking 10 years for the offences to be brought to light. The victim said what happened had "ruined my childhood years", adding: "Every time I hear a Scottish accent, smell whiskey and see a man with a moustache it makes me think of my abuser." She said she had self-harmed as a result of Yarr's actions and had been admitted to hospital and had been "petrified" at the idea of giving evidence at his trial.

Yarr was also found to have indecently assaulted another girl in the 1990s by encouraging her to get into his car before asking her to sit on his lap while he drove, at which point he proceeded to touch her crotch area. A statement read on behalf of the victim said what happened had left her with trust issues as an adult, only being comfortable leaving her child with close family members, wary of men and feeling unsafe taking taxis unless she sat in the back seat. She said years later that she felt "anxious, overwhelmed and distressed" when the case came to court and suffered from PTSD, and that Yarr's conviction had "given [her] closure" to move on with her life.

The court also heard Yarr had carried out another offence on a girl when he was a teenager in the 1970s by getting her to sit on his lap and perform a sex act. He later pleaded guilty to indecent assault and was given a conditional discharge. A statement read on behalf of his victim said what had happened had been "difficult to deal with" and resulted in her trying to take her own life. She said it had affected her trust in men and made her struggle in relationships even into her adult life.

South Wales Police began investigating Yarr after one of his victims came forward. He was arrested in Margate, Kent, in December 2020 and two more victims later came forward. Yarr was found guilty of four counts of indecent assault and one count of indecency with a child following a week-long trial at Cardiff Crown Court last month.

David Pernell, defending, said his client had no submissions in relation to the offences and that there had been "no change" to the position he took during trial. He said Yarr was in poor health for a man in his 60s and suffered from COPD and diabetes, adding that he had "come to court to accept his fate carrying a cocktail of prescription medication" from his GP. He summarised a letter by Yarr's partner of 18 years who said he had been "very supportive of her mental health issues" and that she would "keenly miss that support" if he went to prison.

Judge Timothy Petts said Yarr had caused "severe psychological harm" to his victims and that there was "very little" to mitigate what he had done. He said it was noted that the defendant "showed no remorse" and was "manipulative and predatory" in how he carried out the attacks and tried to prevent his victims from reporting what had happened.

Yarr was sentenced to seven years in prison and an additional year on licence. He will become eligible for parole after two thirds of his prison term has passed and will be registered as a sex offender for life. He was also banned from working with children or vulnerable adults and a sexual harm prevention order was made.

After the sentencing, Investigate Assistant Steve Gunney from South Wales Police said: “Dennis Yarr’s actions have had a devastating effect on the three women.

“But thanks to their bravery and a thorough investigation, he has been brought to justice. He has shown no remorse and during cross examination, claimed that the three women were lying and had plotted together to make false allegations."

"South Wales Police takes all reports of sexual violence extremely seriously and it is never too late to report a crime. Help and support is available for all victims of sexual violence, and we would encourage any victims; no matter how long ago the offence happened, to please come forward.”

Description

A former teacher sent pictures of his penis to what he believed was a 12-year-old girl, a court has heard. In fact Rhodri Jones was engaging in sexual conversations online with an undercover police officer.

Swansea Crown Court heard Jones' teaching career came to an end following concerns raised by parents about his "inappropriate behaviour" with girls which included flirting with a 16-year-old student and offering her private tuition. Sending the defendant to prison a judge told him he clearly had an "entrenched sexual interest in young women and children".

Sian Cutter, prosecuting, said on June 14, 2022, the defendant initiated contact with a profile on the social media platform Chatiw which purported to belong to a 12-year-old girl - in reality the profile was a decoy account being operated by an undercover police officer. The prosecutor said Jones and the decoy exchanged messages on the site before he gave the decoy his Snapchat details and the conversation moved to that app. The court heard that during the conversation Jones boasted to the "girl" about the size of his penis, and also sent her a number of pictures of his penis.

The following month officers went to the defendant's house and arrested him. Officers seized a number of electronic devices and also took a picture of the blankets on his bed, bedding which matched that seen in the background of the pictures he had sent the decoy. He subsequently answered "no comment" to all questions asked in interview.

Rhodri Jones, 44, of Phoebe Road, Copper Quarter, Swansea, had previously pleaded guilty to attempted sexual communications with a child when he appeared in the dock for sentencing. He has a previous conviction from 2016 for sending indecent images to an 18-year-old girl. The court heard a series of concerns had been raised about Jones' conduct and "inappropriate behaviour" during his teaching career between 2003 and 2011 which included him harassing a pupil, offering to give a girl a lift in his car, and flirting with a 16-year-old girl and offering her private tuition.

Alycia Carpanini, for Jones, said the defendant was a binge drinker, and the offending happened when he was drunk. She said her client was a carer for his mother who was in ill-health, and that he works online for a university book publisher in an administration role. Jones had completed the Horizon sex offenders programme following his previous conviction, the court heard. The barrister also pointed to the delay in the case with the offending taking place in June 2022 and the matter not coming before the courts until January 2024.

Judge Daniel Williams told the defendant it was clear he had an "entrenched sexual interest in young women and girls", and said a pre-sentence report had concluded he posed a high risk of serious harm. He said he did not think there was a realistic prospect of rehabilitation in Jones' case, and said the offending was far too serious for any sentence other than one of immediate custody. With a one-third discount for his guilty plea, Jones was sentenced to 12 months in prison - he will serve up to half that sentence in custody before being released on licence to serve the remainder in the community. The defendant will be on the sex offenders register for the next 10 years and was made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order for the same length of time.

Description

A man has been jailed for six years for attempting to rape a woman in Salford.

34-year-old Sediq Ali from Birmingham was found guilty of attempted rape and sentenced on Monday (March 18) at Minshull Street Crown Court.

Officers were called to an address in Salford on October 30 2020, following an incident which had happened hours earlier. Ali had threatened the woman before subjecting her to an attempted rape.

Following an investigation, Ali was subsequently arrested and charged with the offence.

In addition to his sentence, he will also be required to sign the sex offenders register and be subject to a restraining order.

Description

A WIRRAL sex offender has been jailed for breaching his Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO).

Steven Bell, 27, from Woodchurch, was sentenced yesterday (Tuesday, March 19) at Liverpool Crown Court.
 
Bell is a Registered Sex Offender and required to adhere to conditions under the Sex Offender Register and his SHPO.
 
Bell was found to have breached these condition by failing to register his home address with police, failing to register that children under the age of 18 were staying at the address and having unsupervised contact with a female under the age of 16.

Speaking after the sentencing, Detective Inspector Steven O’Neill, Manager of our Sex Offender Unit, said: "Sex offenders are quite rightly expected to provide up-to-date information about where they live, and strictly adhere to all conditions of their release.

"Any breaches are investigated thoroughly and it is pleasing to see that Bell has been dealt with robustly and sent back to prison.

Description

Following a Thames Valley Police investigation, a man has been jailed for multiple sex offences against a child in Reading.

Vlazimr Rybak, aged 63, of Oxford Road, Reading, was found guilty by unanimous jury verdict of two counts of sexual assault by touch a child and a count each of sexual assault by penetration on a child and inciting a child to engage in sexual activity following a four-day trial at Reading Crown Court, which concluded on 18 January.

Returning to the same court for sentencing today (18/3), Rybak was jailed for 16 years with an additional year on licence.

The offending happened in the last ten years, the victim was sexually abuse by Rybak on numerous occasions.

The offences were reported to Thames Valley Police in November 2020 and following an investigation, Rybak was arrested on 29 May 2021.

He was charged with the offences on 28 July 2022.

Investigating officer Detective Constable Sophie Measham, of the Child Abuse Investigation Unit, said: “I am pleased that Rybak was convicted by a unanimous jury of these offences.

“The victim in this case was a very young child and Rybak betrayed trust to commit these horrendous crimes.

“Today he has been sentenced to a significant prison sentence as a result of his offending, and I hope that this offers some closure for the victim.

“I commend the bravery and courage of such a young person to come forward and trust in the police and criminal justice system to bring Rybak to account for his crimes.

“I would also like to thank the Crown Prosecution Service for working with us to secure this conviction.”

Description

A convicted sex offender who was banned from contacting any girl who was under the age of 16 brazenly ignored the court order by repeatedly trying to have sexualised chats with girls on Snapchat.

Nathan Mulvana told one 15-year-old girl that she had an "amazing figure" and asked another girl of the same age if she had ever sent nude photos online. But he was now in a "last chance saloon" and faced being jailed if he committed any more sexual offences, Hull Crown Court heard.

Mulvana, 23, of the Inglemire Lane area of Hull, admitted attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child and attempting to breach a sexual harm prevention order on August 9, 2022.

Jazmine Lee, prosecuting, said that the original sexual harm prevention order was made at Beverley Magistrates' Court on December 6, 2018. It was designed to ban him from contacting any girl under the age of 16 but, through his actions, he was in breach of the order.

Mulvana was arrested and interviewed for separate, but similar, offences on September 7, 2022 and, as a result of that investigation, his phone was seized and examined. A Snapchat account was seen and, as part of his conversations on the social media network, it was discovered that some of the accounts that police identified involved children aged under 16.

The chats seemed to be short, but Mulvana tried to engage in sexual conversations with the girls. They did not, however, appear to have engaged with him for long. He asked one of the girls if she had been sexually active but he did not receive a response.

"He also stated that she had an amazing figure," said Miss Lee. "The account clearly stated in that conversation that she was 15 years old and he claims to be 16.

"Further, he asked another account if she had ever sent nudes and she replies that she has not. The conversation ends. She, too, clearly states in that conversation that she is 15."

There was another conversation with a girl said to be aged 14, but it ended before the chat turned sexual. During police interview, Mulvana claimed that he logged out of his Snapchat account in the May of 2022, so the conversations could not have been him.

He confirmed, however, that all the Snapchat accounts investigated by police belonged to him. He claimed that he did not recall the conversations.

Mulvana had convictions for four previous offences. They included sexual assault of a child and exposure. He had been sent to a young offenders' institution for two years and four months and was given a 10-year sexual harm prevention order.

He also had convictions for harassment and failing to comply with his notification requirements as a sex offender. He was in breach of a one-year community order imposed for those offences.

Oliver Shipley, mitigating, said that Mulvana pleaded guilty and made admissions. He realised that he had issues that needed to be tackled with the help of the probation service. He was still young and needed to mature.

Mulvana was given a six-month suspended prison sentence, 30 days' rehabilitation and a 33-day sex offenders' treatment programme. He was given a five-year sexual harm prevention order.

Recorder Bryan Cox KC said that Mulvana would be given help to try to steer him away from further sexual offences. "If you do commit any further sexual offences, there is a very high likelihood that you will be going to prison," said Recorder Cox. "This is a last chance saloon for you."

Description

The first person in England and Wales to be convicted of a cyber-flashing offence has been jailed for 66 weeks. Nicholas Hawkes was convicted under the Online Safety Act after cyber-flashing became an offence on January 31 this year.

The 39-year-old, from Basildon, Essex, was already a convicted sex offender when he sent unsolicited images of his erect penis to a 15-year-old girl and a woman in her sixties on February 9 this year.

Southend Crown Court heard on Tuesday that that evening Hawkes asked to use his father's phone to call probation. He went into another room where he sent the indecent photo via WhatsApp to a woman in her sixties, using his father's phone.

Minutes later, on the same device, he sent an explicit image to the child over iMessage, who was said to have been left "overwhelmed and crying". Both victims took screenshots of the messages and the woman reported him to Essex Police the same day.

Prosecuting, David Barr said the offences "fall as part of an established pattern of behaviour of the defendant".

The court heard Hawkes' offending has been exclusively sexual in nature and started after he was kidnapped, stabbed and held at a £5,000 ransom demanded from his father when he was 31 years old.

He does it to 'create chaos'

Barry Gilbert, defending, argued Hawkes does not receive sexual gratification from his offending and instead "does it to create chaos when he's under personal pressure" as a result of his PTSD following the attack.

However, Judge Samantha Leigh rejected the argument that he did not receive sexual gratification and said "you clearly are deeply disturbed and have a warped view of yourself and your sexual desires".

She added: "There is a duty that I have that is a duty to protect, there is only one sentence for this set of offending it clearly crosses the custody threshold."

Despite his previous offending, Hawkes has reportedly not received any treatment. Though he was offered 12 appointments with a psychiatrist, he never received them as the waiting list was too long, the court heard.

Hawkes admitted during an earlier hearing at Southend Magistrates' Court to two counts of sending a photograph or film of genitals to cause alarm, distress or humiliation. He was jailed at Southend Crown Court on Tuesday.

Cyber-flashing can involve offenders sending people an unsolicited sexual image on social media, dating apps, Bluetooth or Airdrop.

Victims of the offence and other image-based abuses receive lifelong anonymity under the Sexual Offences Act from the point they report it.

Hawkes was already on the sex offenders register until November 2033 after last year being convicted of sexual activity with a child under 16 years old and exposure, for which he also received a community order.

On Tuesday he pleaded guilty to breaching the order and breaching a suspended sentence for another sexual offence.

He was also sentenced for those offences and will serve half of the 66 weeks in prison and will then be released on license.

He was handed a restraining order for both women lasting 10 years, and a sexual harm prevention order banning him from approaching women who he does not know on public highways and in parks for 15 years.