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Daniel Williamson – Greenock/Port Glasgow

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October 2014

A PORT man sexually abused a five-year-old girl while she played computer games in his bedroom.

Evil Daniel Williamson, 33, told the terrified child that her grandad would die if she told anyone about what had happened.

He abused her and another child over several years at addresses in Greenock and Port Glasgow, beginning in 1997.

But Williamson will NOT be jailed for the vile crimes — as he was deemed unfit to stand trial due to his ‘mental fitness’.

Instead, an ‘examination of facts’ case was heard at Greenock Sheriff Court in which Sheriff Derek Hamilton ruled that Williamson had committed the offences.

He heard evidence from both victims, who bravely took to the witness box to describe what happened to them.

Their evidence was so harrowing that some family members left the courtroom in tears.

Williamson, of Lilybank Road, showed no emotion throughout the two day hearing.

One of his victims, now aged 19, told depute fiscal Pamela Brady that she visited the home of a relative at weekends where Williamson was staying at the time.

Much of the abuse she recounted in court is too upsetting to be published.

She said: “I was in the house and would be asked to keep Daniel company and play the PlayStation with him upstairs in a bedroom.

“He would set up PlayStation and play it himself and then show me. His hands would clutch the inside of my leg.

“The first time (it happened) he told me that if I told anyone I wouldn’t see my dad again and that it was our secret.”

Williamson also told the girl that her ‘grandad would die’ if she revealed the abuse and she said she remembered his ‘heavy breathing’.

Police took action against the former taxi driver after one of the girls first told her mum about the abuse when she was aged 16.

It led to an investigation in which the Crown produced three charges against Williamson, all of which he denied.

The first stated that on various occasions between April 1997 and April 2000 he used lewd, indecent and libidinous practices and behaviour towards a girl then aged between four and six at an address in Grant Street, Greenock.

Another charge stated that he used the same practices and behaviour against another girl, then aged between four and seven, on various occasions between February 2000 and February 2002 at the same address.

A third charge stated that between February 2004 and February 2005 he used the same practices and behaviour against that same girl, then aged between eight and nine, at an address in Lilybank Road in Port Glasgow.

The girls’ mums gave evidence during the two-day hearing and confirmed that their daughters had been at the homes on the dates concerned.

The abuse happened unbeknownst to Williamson’s relatives, who were inside the addresses at the time of the offences.

A police officer gave evidence in which he described carrying out a video identity parade with the victims.

He said both girls separately identified Williamson as their abuser from photographs of nine men.

When asked by the officer what he had done to them, one said: “He used to take me up the stairs and make me play the PlayStation and touch me inappropriately.”

The other girl told him: “He sexually abused me, he took my childhood.”

Ms Brady, summing up the case against Williamson, told the court about the ‘distress’ the abuse had caused the girls.

She said: “There is a pattern here and the abuse progressed.

“He told the girls it was their secret and told one that her grandad would die.

“The child felt too frightened to disclose this.

“One of the victims struggled with this and realised it was wrong when she got older. She told her mother when she was 16.”

Solicitor John McElroy told Sheriff Hamilton that there had been three reports from ‘eminent psychologists’ into the mental fitness of Williamson and that the defence and Crown agreed that he was unfit for trial.

He also referred to evidence that the girls had spoken to each other about the abuse ahead of the trial.

Sheriff Hamilton said: “We are dealing with events going back a possible 17 years involving people who were children at the time.

“It’s clear that memories can be distorted and can fade over the passage of time.

“Was there discussion about the events? Of course there was, there’s nothing sinister or unusual about that at all.

“I have come to the conclusion that both witnesses gave clear and compelling evidence about what happened.”

Sheriff Hamilton added that he was ‘satisfied beyond reasonable doubt’ that the abuse had occurred.

He called for two medical reports and a further report from a mental health officer ahead of sentencing next month.

Williamson has been placed on the sex offenders register.


Paul Ayling – Witney

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October 2014

Paedophile avoids jail term after downloading 43,000 indecent images of children

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A PAEDOPHILE who had more than 43,000 indecent images of children on his computer has avoided prison.

Paul Ayling, 50, of Manor Road, Witney, admitted downloading the images between 2008 and 2013 and was given a 12-month suspended jail sentence.

Prosecutor Matthew Walsh said Ayling was arrested on May 9 last year at an address in Berinsfield and the photos were found on a Dell desktop computer.

He told Judge Gordon Risius that at least 412 of the images were classified as Category A – the most serious level covering images that depict the sexual abuse of children.

Mr Walsh said all the subjects of the pictures were female and aged between seven and 12.

He added that Ayling also has six offences on his record for crimes of dishonesty dating back to the 1980s.

Claire Fraser, defending, said her client had spilt up with his partner of 19 years as a result of his crime and now had no access to his three children, aged 12, 13 and 19.

She said: “Mr Ayling has shown an immense amount of remorse.

“He feels disgusted with himself and relieved he was caught.

“He no longer has a computer and he has no intention of having one in the future or having access to the internet.”

She added that his crimes had started after a kidney problem left him unable to work and he ended up spending 12 hours a day playing computer games.

Judge Risius said he recognised that Ayling suffered from serious medical problems and had been punished already by the loss of his family.

But he said: “This is the least sentence I can properly pass, given the devastating impact such images can have on the children depicted in them.”

Gordon Brown – Ayr

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October 2014

Serial flasher jailed after exposing himself to children again in Ayr

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CHILDREN have been robbed of their innocence in Ayr by a pervert who has exposed himself AGAIN.

Gordon Brown, 59, flashed at the five youngsters on his home street – Thornyflat Road – in May.

The grandfather was added to the sex offenders registers in 2012 for exposing himself to kids when he was sentenced to unpaid work.

But his record did not stop him preying once more and he subjected children aged eight, nine, 10 and 11 to the terrifying ordeal.

He was jailed for two years at Ayr Sheriff Court last week.

He denied the charges against him but a jury found him guilty.

A mum-of-two of the victims, 32, said: “My nine-year-old daughter has been too scared to go out all summer.

“She is petrified. After it happened they all came home straight away but she was hyperventilating. She couldn’t speak.

“I feel so shocked – how could anyone do this to children?

“The last few months have been heartbreaking. He got a very light sentence the last time he appeared in court.”

The Advertiser reported how Brown exposed himself to a five-year-old and two 11-year-olds in 2012.

Sheriff Norman McFadyen sentenced the predator to two years in prison and he was placed on licence for a further two years following his release.

He was also added to the sex offenders register indefinitely and placed on a Sexual Offences Prevention Order for five years.

Furthermore he will not be allowed any unsupervised access to children under 16 and his internet use will be heavily curtailed.

Sheriff McFadyen told him: “You are a danger to children.”

Benjamin Fish – Norfolk

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October 2014

Pervert who groomed, raped & sexually assaulted two young girls, has been jailed for 12 years

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A man, who groomed and sexually assaulted two young girls, has been jailed for 12 years, and given a four year extended licence for the protection of the public.

Benjamin Fish, 38, formerly from North Norfolk, was also placed on the sex offender’s register for life and banned from ever working with children.

Fish, of no fixed address, admitted rape and sex assaults on one victim, which began when she was seven years old. He also admitted sex assaults on a second girl.

Andrew Shaw, prosecuting at Norwich Crown Court, said Fish told one of the victims he would kill her if she told anyone about the sex assaults. He said Fish groomed the victim by buying her a number of expensive items.

Mr Shaw said it was only when she was older that she found the courage to come forward and make a complaint about Fish.

In an impact statement, one of the victim’s said she still has nightmares about what happened.

Judge Stephen Holt imposed a 16 year extended sentence on Fish jailing him for 12 years and ordering that he be on extended licence for four years on his release for the protection of the public.

He said that Fish had committed a number of serious sex assaults on the two girls and said: “You groomed them by buying expensive presents such as bags and phones.”

Judge Holt said that one of the victim’s, who suffered the most serious assaults, had turned the corner after she came forward to make a complaint: “Once she had the courage to tell people about what had happened that seemed to help her turn the corner.”

Judge Holt gave Fish credit for his guilty pleas for sparing the victims coming to court.

Michael Clare, for Fish, said he never used any violence and deserved credit for his pleas.

“He has an insight into what he has done and the harm he has caused and is showing genuine remorse.”

He said Fish was showing a willingness to address his problems.

Colin MacDonald – Fort William/Inverness/Oban

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October 2014

Sex predator who sexually abused three children over a decade has been jailed for five years

Colin MacDonald, 45, was just 11 years old when he targeted his first victim at an address in Fort William.

The High Court in Edinburgh heard how MacDonald raped the ten-year-old girl and sexually abused her over an six-year period in Fort William and Inverness.

He also sexually assaulted a nine-year-old girl between 1981 and 1983 at an address in Fort William.

Between August 1988 and August 1991, MacDonald repeatedly abused another girl in the Oban area.

MacDonald was finally heard caught after his victims found the courage to contact police about their ordeal.

MacDonald, of Potterhill Gardens in Perth, was found guilty last month of sexual assault charges before judge Lord Jones.

Sentence had been deferred until Monday in order for the court to obtain reports about MacDonald’s character.

During proceedings, the court heard MacDonald claim he was innocent and that his victims had invented their stories.

He told prosecution lawyer John Scullion: “I’m the victim of a conspiracy.”

However, the jury refused to believe his claims and returned a guilty verdict.

On Monday, defence advocate Ronnie Renucci told the court his client still maintained that he was innocent of any wrongdoing.

Mr Renucci added: “He accepts that prison is inevitable. He will lose his employment and he will lose the lifestyle that he has become accustomed to.

“I would ask your lordship to be as lenient to him as possible.”

But Lord Jones said he had no other option but to send MacDonald to prison.

Robert Roach – Southminster/Haverhill

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October 2014

Pensioner pleads guilty to historic sexual offences against young girls committed in Haverhill

A pensioner who used to live in Haverhill has admitted committing sexual offences in the town.

Robert Roach, 72, appeared in Ipswich Crown Court today and pleaded guilty to two counts of indecent assault.

Roach, who previously pleaded not guilty, was due to stand trial.

The offences took place between October 18, 1980 and October 17, 1981 against a 14-year-old girl and between July 17, 2000 and September 10, 2000 against a 12-year-old girl.

Christopher Paxton, prosecuting, told the court that both offences represented a breach of trust.

Judge David Goodin said: “The offences to which you have pleaded guilty are very serious ones.

“They plainly cross the custody threshold. Because of the age of them the court has to sentence you with the maximum sentences available at the time.”

Judge Goodin added that sentencing would have been “considerably higher” had the offences taken place more recently.

Roach, now of Brewers Yard, Southminster, Essex, has been granted bail until sentencing on November 5.

Ronald Cox – Deal/Ramsgate

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November 2004

Teacher’s career ruined by affair with pupil

A MATHS teacher threw his career away when he started an improper relationship with a 16-year-old girl at the Deal school where he worked.

Canterbury Crown Court heard how the couple were caught in compromising situations on separate occasions by a school secretary and a 13-year-old boy.

The 52-year-old teacher grabbed the boy and flung him against a wall, telling him that he was “deaf, blind and stupid” and that if he was reported, he would lose his job.

Ronald Cox, of Edith Road, Ramsgate, had earlier been warned by a senior teacher that for his own protection he should not be left alone with any of his pupils.

Cox had been committed for sentence by Folkestone magistrates having admitted charges of abuse when in a position of trust and common assault.

The court heard that Cox, who had been teaching since 1998, had resigned from the school and was now running his own plumbing business.

Judge Anthony Webb said that it appeared Cox had instigated the behaviour but that e-mails from the girl showed she had “responded positively”.

“But you know you should have disentangled yourself,” he said.

“You had plenty of warning. You had been seen by a 13-year-old pupil and warned by a senior teacher prior to these offences.

“You know you will never be permitted to return to teaching.”

Cox was made subject of a three-year community rehabilitation order with a condition that he attends the Thames Valley Sex Offenders programme. He will also be on the Sex Offenders Register for five years.

Ian Foinette, prosecuting, said that it was in May that the secretary saw Cox and the girl in a cupboard in a classroom in a close embrace. His hands were on her hips and there was no protest from the girl. The secretary had the impression she was a willing partner.

Fifteen minutes later Cox asked the secretary to type his resignation letter but she refused. He was then suspended.

The 13-year-old had also seen Cox and the girl in a compromising situation and it was then he was grabbed and flung against the wall.

The incident was reported to the school authorities. Both parties at first denied anything happened and Cox denied behaving in such a way and said he was like a grandfather to his pupils.

“He was warned in March for his own protection to make sure he was not left alone with any of his pupils,” said Mr Foinette.

The girl when questioned described how he kissed her when she wasn’t expecting it and she wasn’t terribly keen because when he came to the school he was less than popular at first.

It was after she stood up to him that he became more popular. She thought things began happening about Christmas last year and after he kissed her for the first time she said it was a bit weird.

“There was no overt coercion from Cox,” said Mr Foinette. The girl said Cox told her he would like to make love to her but she said she didn’t want things to go that far. There was some touching in the breast area both over and under her clothing, added Mr Foinette.

The two continued to meet after his suspension but it was nothing more than a kiss and a cuddle, she said in interview. She said she saw him briefly on the seafront and they went to an empty car park.

She told police Cox said he missed her and she went to Sandwich to meet him.

Referring to the emails, Mr Foinette said there were messages in endearing terms towards Cox from the girl.

Matters came to light because the girl realised they had been seen together.

Rizwan Ashiq, for Cox who had been teaching since 1998, said his biggest mitigation was his early plea which saved the girl having to give evidence.

He has suffered from depression and at the time his relationship with his partner was not going well and the stress added to his depression.

“As a consequence he was spending more and more time at school. He was craving some kind of attention and was not thinking straight.

“It was clearly something out of character which would not have happened under normal circumstances,” said Mr Ashiq.

He said the girl’s self-confidence grew and her academic work improved as she came to rely on Cox and discuss her personal problems with him.

“He realised at the time what was happening was wrong but he was in a situation where he had a problem in his home relationship and he developed feelings for this girl and found it hard to extract himself from this situation,” said Mr Ashiq.

“He accepts he has been very foolish and made a big mistake. As a result, his relationship has taken a battering and he has had to sign on the sex offenders register. He has brought shame on himself and his partner.”

Mr Ashiq said Cox had twice tried to commit suicide by slitting his wrists and taking an overdose and knew the court would be looking at a custodial sentence.

“What he did was unethical and immoral considering their ages but she was over the age of consent.”

He said Cox was now working as a self-employed plumber and had managed to salvage his relationship with his partner. The consequences of a prison sentence would be devastating and there were fears of another suicide bid if he was jailed.

Sentencing Cox, Judge Webb said he took into account his plea and his depressive illness which may have had some influence on his behaviour but he had breached the trust placed in him.

Adrian Mannion – Motherwell

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November 2008

Pervert postman banned from every park and school in Scotland

A ROYAL Mail worker has been banned from every park and school in Scotland for making sick comments to two girls.

Adrian Mannion has also been ordered to stay off the internet and is forbidden from having contact with anyone under the age of 18.

The rare restrictions were imposed after Mannion, 27, admitted the “lewd and inappropriate” outburst in front of the youngsters, aged 10 and 11.

Sheriff David Bicket was told there was a high risk of Mannion reoffending.

Mannion works for the Royal Mail at Wishaw sorting office but has been off sick since June.

He had to move out of his Motherwell flat after he was confronted by angry neighbours.

The charity Children 1st yesterday welcomed the sentence.

They said: “A man who is known to have made indecent comments to young girls is clearly someone who should not be coming into contact with them – either in the real or the virtual world.”

Mannion was put him on the sex offenders register for three years and given three years probation at Hamilton Sheriff Court.

Mannion’s lawyer Mark Lunny said: “He has been assessed fully and has been honest about his behaviour.

Probation will allow monitoring of him and provide protection for the public.”


Craig Preston – Oxford

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October 2014

Man jailed for 13 years for sex assaults on young girls

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A 30-YEAR-OLD man who sexually abused two young girls has been jailed for 13-and-a-half-years.

Craig Preston was convicted of two counts of rape of a child between 2011 and December last year.

An Oxford Crown Court jury also found him guilty of six indecent assaults and an attempted rape on another girl when Preston was a teenager between 1998 and 2003.

Preston, of Bulan Road in Oxford, was yesterday sentenced at the court following the 11-day trial in August.

Prosecutor George Heimler said the older victim had blamed herself for the abuse.

He said: “She never trusted men. She thought because of the abuse it was her fault.

“She was surprised she was believed by people and taken seriously.”

Preston was handed ten years in prison for each count of rape and one to two years in prison for each of the indecent assaults, each of which will run concurrently.

The judge sentenced him to a further 3 and half years for attempted rape.

Nadia Chbat, defending Preston, said some of the crimes were committed when her client was a young teenager himself.

She asked the judge not to give Preston an extended sentence, adding: “He’s still 30 years of age and I ask your honour to consider a sentence that will give him some light at the end of the tunnel.”

Judge Zoe Smith, sentencing, said Preston had used Internet video calling service Skype to tell the girl she would get into trouble if she had talked.

Preston was also made to sign the sex offenders’ register and a sexual offences prevention order was made to keep him away from young girls.

Gerrard Gibbs – Waltham Forest

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October 2014

“highly regarded’ foster carer who downloaded hundreds of indecent photographs of children, including some as young as two

A “highly regarded’ foster carer who downloaded hundreds of indecent photographs of children, including some as young as two, will be sentenced later this month. 

Gerrard Gibbs’s home in Sunnydene Avenue, Highams Park, was searched by officers from the Child Abuse Investigation Unit in April this year following intelligence suggesting he had accessed the images online. 

Officers seized his computer and found 178 indecent images of children which Gibbs had downloaded and then deleted between March 2013 and March 2014 this year.   

Following his arrest on April 4, the 59-year-old registered foster carer and primary school mentor, was charged with five counts of taking an indecent photograph or pseudo-photograph of a child. 

He pleaded guilty to all five counts at Thames Magistrates Court on September 15 and was released on conditional bail to reappear for sentencing yesterday. 

In mitigation, Gibbs’s solicitor Tony Meisels told the court yesterday how his client had downloaded the images from the internet, but could not be charged with possession as the images were not ‘live’ as they had been deleted from his hard drive. 

Mr Meisels explained how Gibbs was “highly regarded by the local authority as an excellent carer”.

His sentencing was adjourned until October 27 for further risk assessments.

Christopher Court – Chippenham

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October 2014

Chippenham man who sexually abused two young children pleads guilty

A man who sexually abused two young children has been ordered to register as a sex offender.

Christopher Court, 33, also admitted having indecent images of children when he appeared at Swindon Crown Court on Friday.

Court pleaded guilty to four counts of sexual assault and two of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.

Court, who gave the court a care of address in Oate Hill, Chippenham, also admitted seven charges of making and possessing indecent images of children.

The offences, against a boy and girl under the age of 13, took place between 2010 and April this year.

Judge Tim Mousley QC adjourned the case to Friday, October 24, to give the probation service time to compile a report and released him on bail until then.

Abdul Rahim Al-Malik – Dewsbury

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October 2014

Dewsbury pervert wins ‘cut in jail sentence’ even though he admits abusing more victims

A pervert who was jailed after coming clean about abusing four girls – even though he had been told he would not be prosecuted – had his sentence cut.

Abdul Rahim Al-Malik, 28, of Southwaite Close, Dewsbury, abused the girls, who were all under 13, by groping them and touching their private parts.

He admitted six sexual assaults and was jailed for seven years – with a four-year extended licence period – at Leeds Crown Court in April.

But after hearing how the offending came to light, three senior judges slashed the custodial part of his sentence to five-and-a-half years.

The Court of Appeal heard two girls had made complaints against Al-Malik, also known as Shaun Connell, but there was not enough evidence to charge him.

He was told he was in the clear, but a few months later walked into a police station and put his hands up to abusing the girls.

He also admitted abusing two more youngsters, who had not even disclosed the offences to anyone.

Lord Justice Jackson said the attacks on the other two might never have come to light if Al-Malik had not volunteered the information.

Lawyers for the pervert argued that the way he confessed was ‘powerful mitigation’, justifying a shorter period in prison.

Giving judgment, Lord Justice Jackson, sitting with Mr Justice Wyn Williams and Mr Justice Globe, agreed.

‘Additional credit is due because the appellant went to the police voluntarily,’ he said. ‘He confessed to the offences at a time when the prosecution said the evidence was insufficient and they weren’t going to prosecute.

“Not only that, but he confessed to offences that hadn’t been disclosed”.

The sentence was reduced to five-and-a-half years custody, followed by four years of extended licence conditions when that term has expired.

 

 

Michael Porteous – London

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October 2014

Ex-teacher jailed for historic sex abuse of boy at west London prep school

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A pensioner who sexually abused a boy he taught at a prestigious London prep school 40 years ago has been jailed.

Former art and music teacher Michael Porteous preyed on his 12-year-old victim at Richmond’s King’s House Prep School in the 1970s.

Porteous, now 78, sat next to and abused the boy on a coach full of oblivious teachers and pupils on the way to sports grounds on “several occasions”.

When the victim, now aged 51, made the allegation in December 2012, Porteous was living in Thailand.

But he was arrested and charged during a visit to Sussex to see his family in September the following year.

Porteous’s victim said he had never spoken out about the abuse because his parents had worked hard to pay for his education and he didn’t want then to feel let down. The school now charges almost £5,000 per term for pupils to attend.

Porteous was jailed for sexual abuse for two and a half years and placed on the sex offenders register for life at Kingston Crown Court yesterday.

Detective Constable Nikki Honey, of the Met’s sexual offences unit, said: “Porteous preyed on a vulnerable young boy, who didn’t really understand what was happening to him at the time.

“He used his position to abuse a child, and thought he had got away with it. His victim only came forward as he became a father himself to a much longed for child a few months before he made the allegation.

“He stated that when he looked into his son’s eyes and saw such innocence, coupled with the media attention of the Jimmy Savile inquiry, it gave him the strength to make the allegation.”

 

Timothy Walton – Nuneaton

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December 2008

Child rapist jailed for eighteen years

A NUNEATON man who raped an 11-year-old girl a number of times and then accused her in court of lying has been jailed for eighteen years.

Timothy Walton, aged 47 of Stretton Road, Nuneaton, had denied three charges of raping the girl and also denied three charges of attempting to rape another youngster.

But a jury at Warwick Crown Court took less than two hours to find him guilty of all the charges by unanimous verdicts at the end of a five-day trial.

Prosecutor Simon Ward had said: “The question is did he do these things to these girls, and if he did, did he only do it once, or was it twice or more than that? The defendant says nothing of the sort happened at all.”

Walton had got to know the mother of the young rape victim because she had known a former partner of his, and she trusted him.

But something that was said to her by another child after a party made her suspicious, and when she asked her daughter if Walton had touched her, she said he had.

The police were informed, and the 11-year-old girl described to an officer how Walton had touched her intimately and had shown her a book called 100 Sex Tricks – which the police later seized from Walton’s home.

When Walton was arrested, he denied any sexual touching of the girl and accused her of lying – as he did through his barrister, when she gave evidence during the trial.

A few days later, the girl broke down in tears and, after first saying she could not tell anyone why, she told her mother that Walton had hurt her.

Interviewed again by the police, she described how Walton had had sex with her on about six occasions.

Mr Ward added that the police investigation also revealed that Walton had tried to have sex with another young girl on a number of occasions, but had not been able to.

That girl was also accused of lying when she was questioned via a television link during the trial.

Jailing Walton, Judge Marten Coates told him: “You have been found guilty, on the clearest of evidence in my view, of raping and attempting to rape two girls.

“Girls of that age cannot stand up to people like you, and when you say you are going to kill them if they say anything, they believe it.

“Had you acknowledged your guilt, you would have had a discount in your sentence of 30 per cent. But forcing them to give evidence means they had to re-live their experiences with you, and they arrived at court to be accused of telling grave lies in an attempt to discredit them.”

The Judge also ordered Walton to register as a sex offender for life and banned him from ever undertaking any paid or voluntary work with children.

Nigel Holt – Lymington

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October 2014

New Forest man to take part in programme after police find indecent images of children

A NEW Forest man is to undergo a sex offenders treatment programme after being caught with more than 200 indecent pictures of children.

Nigel Holt, 57, was arrested following a tip-off from Canadian police that he had been buying sordid videos, and the images were found on his laptop. He admitted to police that he had been attracted to boys aged between 10 and 15.

Holt, of Clarendon Park, Lymington, admitted ten charges of making indecent images.

Chris Gaiger, defending at Southampton Crown Court, said Holt had fully co-operated with the police and attended eight counselling sessions. “He is extremely ashamed and remorseful.”

Judge Gary Burrell QC described the offences as “abhorrent” but said that rehabilitation instead of prison was a better way of protecting the public.

He gave Holt a 12-month suspended sentence with a two-year community order incorporating supervision and a direction to attend an Internet sex offenders’ treatment programme. Holt was also placed on the sex offenders’ register for five years.

Holt was said to be of previous good character.


Daniel Wakefield – Bournemouth

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October 2014

Man jailed after viewing more than 1,000 indecent images of children

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A man has been jailed for viewing more than 1,000 indecent images of children aged as young as five.

Daniel Wakefield had admitted 11 counts of making and two of possessing pictures and movies showing children being sexually abused, with 12 images and 34 movies in the most serious category.

Prosecutor Simon Jones told Bournemouth Crown Court that the 51-year-old was arrested in July last year by police following a tip-off from Interpol, which was investigating a file-sharing site.

“When officers attended the defendant said he was not surprised they were there as he had accessed that type of indecent material in the past,” he said.

Jailing Wakefield for eight months, Judge John Harrow said: “This is an evil and disgusting trade and people like you help to fund it.”

He said it was a “monumental fall from grace” for the defendant, a “self-made man” who had led a “blameless” life.

“It may be easy for people like you to put it out of your mind as it is so remote, it may be children of a different culture thousands of miles away,” he said.

“You only thought of securing your sexual gratification, and people who do that have to pay the price.”

Mitigating for Wakefield, of Queen’s Park Avenue, Bournemouth, Richard Tutt said his client had admitted his offence to police immediately, describing it as a “phase” which he regretted.

“He had issues towards pornography generally and his attitudes towards sexual matters,” said Mr Tutt.

“It is probably fair to say he had become de-sensitised.

“He said when he viewed the images they made him uncomfortable. He did realise it was not right.”

Mr Tutt said Wakefield, who trained as an apprentice with British Aerospace and has been in constant employment since, had voluntarily sought out a self-help group in the United States and psychotherapy sessions to improve his “relationships with other people”.

As well as the jail term, Judge Harrow imposed a Sexual Offences Prevention Order on Wakefield with various conditions regarding his use of electronic equipment, and ordered him to sign the register for 10 years.

Bartle Frere – Shipton Gorge

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October 2014

Ex-BA pilot Bartle Frere guilty of arranging sexual abuse of a child in India

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A former British Airways pilot has been convicted of arranging the sexual abuse of a child in India.

Bartle Frere, 50, from Dorset, was found guilty of two counts of arranging or facilitating the commission of a child sex offence.

Bournemouth Crown Court heard he lavished a boy in India with gifts.

He was convicted on six counts of possessing indecent photographs, which related to DVDs of naked Ukrainian boys found at his home.

The jury failed to reach a verdict on 17 other charges. The Crown has 14 days to pursue a retrial.

The offences he was convicted of related to messages sent over Facebook to a boy in India for whom he bought phones and clothes.

He arranged to meet him in his hotel for “baths and cuddles”.

Frere, of Shipton Gorge, who no longer works for British Airways, had pleaded not guilty to all 25 charges during a trial at Bournemouth Crown Court.

Those charges on which the jury could not reach a verdict included sexual activity with a child, indecent assault, indecency with a child and attempting to record a person doing a private act.

The panel of eight women and three men were discharged by Judge Peter Johnson.

The judge said: “The Crown is likely to seek a re-trial in respect of the outstanding counts and I give them 14 days.”

He renewed Frere’s conditional bail and said he would be placed on the sex offenders register in the interim.

Colin Stratton – Shrivenham

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October 2014

Market trader repeatedly sexually abused boy over 6 yr period starting when child was 11 years-old

Colin Stratton molested the child, from Swindon, over a six-and-a-half year period, starting when the boy was just 11 years old.

And a court has been told the 56-year-old already has a conviction for abusing another young lad at around the same time in the mid 90s.

Now a judge has said he may rule the defendant poses a significant risk of serious offending in the future and impose an extended licence on the jail term.

Stratton pleaded guilty to six counts of indecent assault and two of indecency with a child when he appeared at Swindon Crown Court.

He admitted carrying out sex acts on the lad in his bedroom, his van and the bathroom on numerous occasions between September 1989 and March 1996.

Stratton, of High Street, Shrivenham, pleaded not guilty to three further counts of indecent assault and one of indecency with a child.

Colin Meeke, prosecuting, said they would not seek a trial on those matters saying ‘I am satisfied the court has sufficient sentencing power’.

He said the defendant’s only previous convictions were for similar matters which post dated the current offences.

Mr Meeke said they involved another young boy and the series of offences took place in 1997 adding ‘They are very similar in fact to some of the allegations made here’.

Mike Jeary, defending, asked for his client to be released on bail before sentencing so he could ‘get his affairs in order’.

He said “He has an invalid father. He knows exactly where he stands. He is in great turmoil at the moment because his father is in ill health.

“They live in social accommodation. He know he has got to do something, because he knows the inevitable will happen, that his father has somewhere to live and people to look after him in the knowledge that the sentence he is going to get is a custodial one.

“He is desperate not to leave his father and go into custody, it would leave him in great difficulty both financially and generally.”

Judge Tim Mousley QC allowed bail on condition he does not contact witnesses in the case or go to certain areas of Swindon.

The judge put the case off to Thursday October 16 and said “There will obviously be a custodial sentence of some length.

“I am going to grant you bail between now and then only because of the difficulties as far as your father is concerned.

“There are two conditions: first is that you reside at the address where you were living. That means live and sleep every night.

“In addition there is a condition that you co-operate with the probation service in preparation of the report. There are already other conditions that will remain.

“As I have indicated, there will be a prison sentence. It will be of length, and I will be considering the issue of dangerousness in your case which may give rise to an extended sentence.”

Peter Griffiths – Aberdare

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October 2014

Man given community order after he admits to indecently assaulting a young boy

A man tried to commit suicide after promising to turn himself into police for sexually assaulting a young boy, a court has heard.

Peter Griffiths, 55, of Herbert Street, Aberdare, admitted the indecent assault of the boy in the mid 1990s.

He was committed to Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court for sentence where David Elias, prosecuting, said the matter had only been brought to police attention following a separate investigation years later.

He told the court that the boy had been allowed to visit his home to watch pornographic DVDs.

The court heard how Griffiths had walked in on the boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, when he was engaged in a solo sexual act.

Griffiths intimated that things would be better when a girl was involved before performing a sexual act on him.

“The boy did not like that and curled up into a ball and told him to get off,” said Mr Elias.

The incident lasted five seconds and Griffiths stopped immediately.

Mr Elias told the court a separate investigation, which had not resulted in criminal proceedings, had been carried out by the ambulance trust.

“It was an investigation into an incident between this defendant and someone in his care when he was a paramedic eight years ago,” said Mr Elias.

The court heard that the incident Griffiths admitted came to police attention in September 2014 and he resolved to turn himself in.

But Mr Elias said there is some suggestion he instead made an attempt to end his life and ended up in hospital.

The court heard Griffiths, who has no previous convictions, had been confused about his own sexuality as a result of his troubled abusive background.

Judge Patrick Curran QC imposed a three-year community order with supervision and ordered him to complete the sex offender programme.

He will also have to sign as a sex offender for seven years.

Neil Skinner – Bournemouth

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October 2014

Rapist jailed for 18 years for “protection of public”

A BOURNEMOUTH man has been jailed for 18 years after raping two girls and attempting to rape a man.

Neil Skinner, 49, had pleaded guilty to eight counts of rape and sexual assault and admitted two further separate offences – attempted rape and sexual assault – at Bournemouth Crown Court on Friday last week.

Sentencing, Judge Samuel Wiggs imposed a 12 year concurrent sentence for each of the first eight counts, with a six year extension period added as Skinner is considered a dangerous offender.

“I am quite satisfied in these circumstances that it is necessary for the protection of the public from serious harm caused by you to impose an extended sentence,” he said.

He said Skinner had “preyed” on his “very young” victims and his crimes would affect them for the rest of their lives.

Speaking in mitigation, Fern Russell said Skinner would welcome a longer sentence to protect the public and to protect “himself from himself”.

“It is unusual in defence to come across someone with such disarming candour,” she said.

In the case of the attempted rape she said Skinner had claimed to police he was trying to cheer up his male victim as they both “felt low”, and he was sorry he had upset him.

She said a previous relationship he had had with an older man may have warped his attitude to sex.

Skinner, of Robert Louis Stevenson Avenue, received concurrent three year and one year sentences for the latter counts of attempted rape and sexual assault, respectively.

He was ordered to sign the sex offenders register and ordered to comply with a Sexual Offences Prevention Order, both of which were applied indefinitely.

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