November 2014

Cumbrian pervert caught with child abuse images has avoided jail

Kenneth Hargadon was told his actions were not part of “a victimless crime” when he appeared at Carlisle Crown Court.

“Behind every image of a young child or an adolescent girl that you may find on the internet lies a child who has been the subject of some form of abuse,” said Judge Peter Hughes QC, presiding.

“They experience that abuse so that men like you have the opportunity to satisfy your sexual gratification from their images. If it were not for people like you there would be no point in these images being taken and posted on the internet.”

The court heard that Hargadon, 63, of Ratten Row, Dalston, had previously served a prison sentence after being convicted of child sexual abuse crimes in 1999, and had also been made subject to a sexual offences prevention order in 2011 after being caught with child abuse images.

He was visited by a police officer, who asked to see his tablet computer, on March 19.

She noticed that parts of his internet search history had been deleted, which was against the terms of his prevention order.

Experts recovered the history and found Hargadon had searched for child pornography and also for sex stories which involved children.

They also found four indecent images of children.

In court, Hargadon pleaded guilty to charges of making the indecent images and to breaching the terms of his sexual offences prevention order.

Judge Hughes said: “Yours is not a victimless crime.”

He added: “The most effective punishment in your case is one which hangs over your head.”

Hargadon was sentenced to eight months in prison, suspended for two years.

He was also made subject of a two-year supervision order and a new sexual offences protection order.

He also had to sign the Sex Offenders’ Register under a new registration.

November 2014

Renwick pervert avoids jail for indecent images of children ranging between one and 15 yrs old

A pensioner given a suspended prison sentence for making indecent images of children has been ordered to register as a sex offender for an extra three years.

At Carlisle Crown Court Judge Paul Batty QC said he had made a mistake when passing sentence on 74-year-old John Arthur Sargeant at an earlier hearing. Then, Sargeant was given a nine-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, and made to sign the sex offenders register for seven years.

But yesterday Judge Batty said he now realised that the law stipulated that in such circumstances Sargeant, of Bank House Barn, Renwick, had to be on the register for a full ten years. Sargeant was not in court for the brief hearing, and his solicitor Malcolm Dodds did not object to the amendment.

At the earlier hearing the court heard that after being charged with the offences Sargeant had gone missing from his home. He was later found sleeping in a tent on the Black Mountains range in Wales. He had serious health issues, had not been eating properly and was in need of a blood transfusion when he was arrested.

Sargeant later pleaded guilty to 12 charges of making indecent photos/pseudo-photographs of girls on dates during 2001 and 2013. He had downloaded all the images from the internet. The offences involved nine moving images and 549 still images in category A, the most serious level.

There were 22 moving and 610 still images in category B and 136 moving images and 5,625 still images in category C.

The ages of the children ranged between one and 15.

November 2014

Spared jail: Sex fiend who abused girl, 12, he met in a park

A man has avoided jail after admitting sexually assaulting a schoolgirl aged 12.

Zain Shah, 23, began grooming the child after meeting her in a park. He then bombarded her with calls and text messages.

Despite knowing her age, Shah told the girl ‘he loved her and wanted to marry and have sex with her’.

The abuse took place during several meetings Shah had with the girl at a car park. He was reported to the police by the victim’s mother.

Shah also pretended to be an undercover police officer who had been shot in the line of duty to win the trust of his victim.

Shah, of Rothsay Road, Blackley, Manchester, pleaded guilty at Manchester Crown Court to sexual assault of a female under 13.

He received a three-year community punishment order requiring him to attend a sexual offending treatment programme.

He also will spend five years on the Sex Offenders Register and is banned from contacting or attempting to contact any female under the age of 16 for three years.

Det Sgt Alex Wild, of Greater Manchester Police, said: “This was a classic grooming case, with Shah using emotionally-charged language to suggest to this young girl that they were in a real, normal and healthy relationship. Of course, that is absolutely absurd.

“The reality is a 23-year-old man manipulated a child in order to get what he wanted, even pretending to be an undercover police officer who had been shot in the line of duty in order to win her confidence and sympathy.

“We take these incidents very seriously indeed.”

November 2014

Man, 62, admits performing sex act outside shops in front of girl, 12

A MAN aged 62 has admitted performing a sex act in front of a child in public.

Timothy Cawston, from Railey Road, Northgate, appeared at Lewes Crown Court last Wednesday (November 5) charged with engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a 12-year-old girl, in Dorsten Square, Bewbush, on July 11.

Cawston pleaded guilty to the offence.

The judge adjourned the case so pre-sentence reports can be carried out.

Cawston was released on bail to next appear at Lewes Crown Court for sentencing on November 28.

November 2014

Sedgley sex attack man jailed for ten years

A SEDGLEY man who carried out a string of serious sex attacks on a schoolgirl has been jailed for ten years.

Judge Martin Walsh told Phillip Morris, aged 47, he was responsible for a “course of conduct” against his young victim.

He said Morris, of Round Hill, imitated sexual conduct with the girl and matters progressed from there.

The judge said he accepted there had been no threats to the girl and no coercion but he should have known better because of her age.

Morris admitted four charges of rape and another of indecent exposure and he was told he must sign the Sexual Offenders Register for the rest of his life.

The judge also made Morris the subject of an indefinite Sexual Offenders Protection Order.

Gurdeep Garcha, for Morris, told Wolverhampton Crown Court his client accepted his actions had been “utterly disgraceful”.

He said he had taken full responsibility for what he had done adding: “He is full of self loathing and he knows he will be labelled a paedophile for the rest of his life.”

Mr Garcha concluded: “He is now at rock bottom, in custody for the first time in his life and he knows he has left behind a trail of destruction.”

Nigel Stelling, prosecuting, said Morris was a man with no previous convictions and the victim had clearly been extremely vulnerable.

November 2014

Tamworth pensioner, 78, jailed after sexual assault of seven-year-old girl

A PENSIONER who sexually assaulted a young girl in Tamworth has been jailed for four and a half years by a judge. 

Stafford Crown Court heard how loner Gordon Neill (78) indecently assaulted the seven-year-old girl while she was sitting on his lap in the garden of a sheltered scheme in Tamworth in April this year.

Neill had provided chocolate for children in the garden.

Miss Amy Jacobs, prosecuting, said the little girl’s sister saw what happened and their mother was told about it as soon as she arrived.

Neill was arrested the same day, his home was searched and also his camper van. Inside the van was a camera which contained five photographs Neill had taken of another young girl. Miss Jacobs said the prosecution had been unable formally to identify the girl in the pictures, which were taken last summer.

Neill, formerly of Glenfield, Lower Park, Kettlebrook, but now of no fixed address, admitted sexually assaulting the seven year old and taking indecent photos of a child.

Recorder Miss Tracey Lloyd-Nesling told him: “You absolutely don’t understand the gravity of what you were doing. You do now accept you have a sexual interest in children.”

In jailing him, the judge said she took in to account the fact the defendant was 78 years old.

The court heard that Neill had a previous conviction for a sexual offence. In 1971 he and a female accomplice took two teenage girls – not children – away in a car and indecently assaulted them.

Mr Andrew Jackson, defending, said the sexual assault on the little girl had been brief and did not involve penetration. The photographs of the other girl were in the least serious category.

“He has been evicted from his accommodation, he is homeless and friendless at the age of 78.”

November 2014

Darlington teenager who raped and abused boy jailed for more than nine years

A TEENAGER who groomed young boys before raping and abusing one and sexually assaulting a further three has been jailed for more than nine years.

Mark Smith was told by a judge that his crimes – committed when he was aged just 17 – had left his victims traumatised and their families devastated.

Smith abused them after watching similar acts on YouTube and searching the internet for “naked children”, “kids in the bath” and “kids on X-Factor”.

He admitted sexually assaulting three youngsters and was found guilty of raping and abusing another after a trial at Teesside Crown Court last month.

His barrister, Joanne Kidd, said the 18-year-old, from Darlington, has Tourette’s syndrome, is immature and had more in common with young children.

Miss Kidd said he had never been aggressive or threatening, and added: “He didn’t do anything above and beyond the commission of the offences to frighten.”

She told the judge that the rape was “brief and not persisted with” and said Smith had shown “real remorse” in an interview with a probation officer.

Judge Crowson imposed a Sexual Offences Prevention Order which bans Smith from unsupervised contact with under-16s and restricts his computer use.

As well as being jailed for nine years and four months, he was put on the sex offenders’ register for life and will banned from working with children.

Judge Crowson told Smith: “Although the rape was shortlived, the effect on [the boy] was very long-term, and it’s not just him. It’s his whole family.

“Although his mother thinks she is to blame for letting him down somehow, she should not think like that, as it’s not her fault. It was yours.”

In an impact statement, the mother said the abuse has had a “massive” impact on the lives of her family, and said: “It has made me a nervous wreck.”

She added: “I feel as if I have let my children down, that I didn’t protect them. I am now overly-protective of them. I try to stop them playing out.”

Smith, of Park Lane, Darlington, admitted eight charges of sexual assault, and was convicted of a a further two as well as the count of rape.

November 2014

‘Depraved’ Sheffield man and woman involved in the sexual abuse of a toddler have admitted their ‘sickening’ crimes

A man and a woman appeared at Doncaster Crown Court yesterday, (Tuesday, 11 November), charged with sexual offences against a young child, aged only one year and 10 months at the time the pair carried out their appalling crimes.

Ryan Walsh, 27, of Bowden Wood Road, Bowden Wood, pleaded guilty to sexual assault of a child under 13 and producing an indecent image of a child.

Kayleigh Shaw, 21, from Arbourthorne, pleaded guilty to producing an indecent image of a child, distributing an indecent image of a child and failing to protect a child from abuse.

Officers discovered the indecent images of the child in 2013, as part of the South Yorkshire Police investigation, entitled Operation Klan, that concluded in December last year with the two offenders pleading guilty to 55 sexual offences against teenage boys across the country dating back to 2005.

Walsh has been remanded and Shaw bailed until they are due to appear at Sheffield Crown Court to be sentenced on Tuesday, 9 December.

DC Jo Bedford investigating said: “The depraved actions of Walsh and Shaw are utterly sickening and inexcusable.

“I can only hope the child will have been of such a young age they will not be able to remember the suffering and distress endured.

“I am pleased they have pleaded guilty to the offences and in less than a month will be sentenced for their deplorable actions.”

November 2014

Police saved life of Exeter ‘child abductor’ when they went to rescue runaway schoolgirl

Police saved the life of a child abductor after they went to his flat to rescue a missing teenager and found him collapsed unconscious on a sofa.

Michael Conway died after taking a shottie of legal highs and cannabis and was resuscitated by police child protection officers who spent 20 minutes giving him heart massage and artificial respiration.

The police went to his flat in Exeter after a vulnerable 15-year-old girl in foster care went there after running away from home.

She was found under the influence of cannabis while 63-year-old Conroy was found half naked, face down on the sofa with his trousers around his ankles.

He had been issued with an order by police a few weeks earlier banning him from any contact with the girl after carers discovered she was visiting his home every day.

Conroy was warned off by police after being seen waiting in a car to pick up the girl from the special educational unit she attends in the Devon.

He said the relationship was not sexual and he was more like a surrogate grandfather to the troubled teenager. She described him as a ‘money daddy’, who gave her cash or presents.

Conway, of Hanover Close, Exeter, admitted child abduction and the possession of cannabis and was jailed for eight months, suspended for two years and ordered to receive two years supervision by Judge Erik Salomonsen at Exeter Crown Court.

He was also banned from having any further contact with the girl. The Judge told him it was not an abduction in the normal sense of the word but he had kept the girl away from her lawful carers.

“The responsibility was on you as an adult to keep away from her. You say she is a strong willed woman who does what she wants and acts as she pleases but the probation report writer describes you as a dishonest and obstructive who sought to implicate the victim in the offending.

“She came to your address and despite the earlier police warning you let her in. Inside you have both cannabis and legal highs.

“You talked about a shottie and indulged yourself in these substances. It may well be she too had cannabis in your house.

“I reject the suggestion from the defence that you were a lonely old man who did not have the strength to say no to company. The evidence does not support that.

“You took drugs and clearly had a fit or a seizure and either became extremely unwell or died and were brought back to life by CPR.”

Mr Peter Coombe, prosecuting, said Conroy was issued with a written notice to stay away from the girl In December last year by police after being seen by teachers hanging around near her school.

Police were alerted in February when she failed to return home one night and officers found her at Conroy’s home at around 10 pm.

She was tearful and appeared to police to be under the influence of drugs, Officers found Conroy unconscious with his jogging trousers around his ankles face down on the sofa and gave him CPR before he and the girl were both taken to hospital.

They found a legal high called Herbal Haze, a small amount of cannabis and a bong. The girl told officers Conway told her he was going to have ‘a shottie’ and then started humping the sofa before passing out.

Miss Emily Pitts, defending, said there had been no sexual element in the relationship and Conway had been half naked because his trousers slipped down while he was having a fit.

She said they looked on each other as grandfather and granddaughter and she spoke of him as a ‘money daddy’.

She said:”My client has no memory of what happened. He died and the police had to conduct CPR before he started breathing again.

“The nature and severity of the illness were such that if the girl had not been there and the police had not attended he would have died.”

March 2010

Jail for man who sexually assaulted 13yr old girl in Norwich

A man who groomed a 13-year-old girl by bombarding her with text messages arranged to meet up with her in Norwich and then sexually assaulted her, a court has heard.

Trevor Conway, 28, sent the girl hundreds of text messages, some of which were sexually explicit, after initially meeting her in the city.

Despite knowing she was only 13, he sexually touched her after arranging to meet her again, Norwich Crown Court heard yesterday.

Conway was arrested after the girl told her friend about what happened. Her friend contacted Childline who told her to persuade the victim to tell her parents about what happened, which she then did and police were contacted.

Conway, of no fixed address, admitted sexually grooming the girl and two offences of sexual activity with the girl, who cannot be named for legal reasons.

Hugh Vass, prosecuting, said that Conway, who was 27 at the time, had met the girl at the Castle Mall shopping centre. He said that Conway started sending 50 to 100 texts a day as well as calling her.

Mr Vass said that some of the text messages were of an “explicitly sexual nature.” Conway arranged to meet up with the girl and he kissed her and sexually touched her and she said she felt “scared and nervous” because of his age.

Jailing Conway for 12 months and placing him on the sex offenders’ register for 10 years, Judge Peter Jacobs told him: “She was very young and immature; you sent her 50 to 100 texts a day and were making all the running to try to have some sort of sexual relationship with her.”

He also made a sexual prevention order under which Conway must not have any unsupervised contact with anyone under 16.

Michael Clare, for Conway, said his behaviour had not been as sinister as someone in a position of trust, such as a teacher who then groomed a young girl.

“In this case it is an immature man feeling more comfortable with younger people,” he said.

Mr Clare added there was no premeditation involved and said the sexual touching was at the lower end of the scale.

After the case, the family of the victim said they felt that justice had not been done at the sentence handed out to Conway.

November 2014

Paedo businessman who sold school uniforms and coached youth football sexually assaulted two girls

A paedophile businessman who sold school uniforms and coached a youth football team has been jailed for six-and-a-half-years for sexually assaulting two girls.

One of Leighton Andrew Newman’s victims tried to kill herself by jumping from a bathroom window after what he did to her.

Newman, 46, denied making and possessing indecent photographs of a child, engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child and nine counts of sexual assault.

He was found guilty of all counts, bar the sexual activity in the presence of a child, following two trials at Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court.

The court heard one of his young victims, neither of whom can be named for legal reasons, had found it particularly difficult to cope with the impact of the sexual assault and the court process.

John Ryan, prosecuting, said she had been given anti-depressants to help her deal with the court environment and had tried to kill herself by jumping from a bathroom window.

Her relationship with the male members of her family had also been affected, the court heard.

In a victim impact statement read to the court her mother said: “She was a normal child. She was outgoing and enthusiastic but the offending has changed her life.”

In her own statement she described feeling “worthless” and constantly asking herself: “Why me? What did I do wrong?”

Following the sentence her mum added: “Justice has been served at last. It has been a horrendous time for both families and I hope we can put it all behind us and move on.”

The court was told Newman, of Park Prospect, Pontypridd, who continued to deny his guilt, had sexually touched his victims both over and underneath their clothing.

Lucy Crowther, defending Newman, who had no previous convictions, said: “He knows mitigation can only go to length of sentence.

The court had heard from those who have known him from other walks of life and those who have seen a positive side to him. He is a man who has spent some time in helping and encouraging others.”

Newman was a football coach, qualified referee, and director of Pontypridd-based Merlin Sports Ltd, selling school uniforms, sportswear and Scout and Guide uniforms.

Jailing him Judge Richard Twomlow said: “You were sexually attracted to her [one victim] and were in the process of grooming her for further sexual excitement on your part.

“Your behaviour has had a significant effect on your victims and their families. The girls both had to give evidence and be cross-examined twice.”

Newman, who will have to sign as a sex offender, was made the subject of two indefinite orders – a Sexual Offences Prevention Order and restraining order. He will also have to pay a £120 victim surcharge.

November 2014

Pervert’s jail sentence is increased after judges rule it was ‘unduly lenient’

A pervert who molested a schoolgirl has had his jail term more than doubled after top judges ruled his punishment was “unduly lenient”.

Andrew Michael Radcliffe touched up his teenage victim after making her watch lesbian pornography on his mobile phone.

The 44-year-old, of Heol Cefn Ydfa, Coytrahen, Bridgend, was jailed for nine months at Cardiff Crown Court in September, after being found guilty of sexual activity with a child.

But his sentence was today increased to two years by judges sitting at London’s Criminal Appeal Court, who said the original term was “unduly lenient”.

The court heard Radcliffe, who appeared in court via a video link from prison, abused the girl and then sent her a stream of text messages.In the texts, he apologised for what he had done but also told her he wanted to have sex with her, although he “knew it was wrong”.

The girl reported Radcliffe to police and he was arrested in September last year.

He denied any wrongdoing but was found guilty by the jury.

Lawyers representing the Solicitor General, Robert Buckland QC, argued Radcliffe’s jail term was nowhere near long enough to reflect the serious nature of his crime.

Upping the sentence, Lady Justice Rafferty, sitting with Mr Justice Supperstone and Sir Richard Henriques, said: “The appropriate term of imprisonment was, in our view, two years.”

November 2014

Pervert sentenced for making and possessing indecent images of children

Derek Curtis, 50, of Robin Street, Ribbleton, Preston has now been handed a suspended prison sentence and is undertaking an internet sex offenders program after 250 indecent images were found on hard drives at his home.

Preston Crown Court heard officers from Lancashire Constabulary executed a warrant at Curtis’s home in June 2012.

Five pieces of computer equipment were seized and Curtis admitted he had been looking at indecent images he had found online.

The images were analysed and ranged from the most serious category A images to category C under a new classification system.

Some of the children were believed to be younger than 10 years old and there were 15 video clips.

Karen Brooks, prosecuting, told Preston Crown Court that upon his arrest, Curtis admitted the images were his.

Beverly Hackett, defending, said Curtis suffered ill-health and was prepared to address his offending by taking part in a program of rehabilitation.

She added he had been forced to move to another area of the city after an attack on his home, adding: “He wants to put these matters behind him.”

Judge Michael Byrne handed Curtis a 10-month sentence suspended for two years and ordered him to sign on the sex offenders register for 10 years.

He also made him the subject of a sexual offenders prevention order (SOPO) for five years.

November 2014

‘I wish I could jail you for hundreds of years’: Judge blasts ‘wicked’ child abuser

A judge said he wished he could give a prison term of hundreds of years to a man who raped and molested two girls.

Alan Gregory Norster abused the young girls decades ago and ensured their silence by manipulating and threatening them

Judge Les Spittle told the 56-year-old: “I wish I could quite frankly give you a sentence on every one of these offences and add them all up.

“If I did that I’d end up with an American-type sentence of hundreds of years. I can’t do that. I’m bound by the way our system works.”

Judge Spittle jailed Norster for 12 years at Teesside Crown Court yesterday. He branded the defendant a “wicked man” and passed a string of concurrent sentences on 14 sex offences.

The two victims, now adults who cannot be named for legal reasons, listened in court to the harrowing details of their ordeals.

The first said she didn’t bear her childhood tormentor a grudge and did not wish him any harm.

She said in a statement read out in the courtroom: “My only hope is that you too will eventually be able to get the help and support you need to move on with your life and be at peace.”

The judge said this was “amazing” and showed “a compassion that frankly I doubt I could”.

Norster was a teenager living in Middlesbrough and Skelton when he abused the first younger girl, said prosecutor Christine Egerton.

When she tried to tell what happened to her, it was dismissed and she was told: “Don’t be daft.”

When she threatened to make a complaint, Norster said: “You’ll be taken away. No one is going to believe you.” He trapped her and raped her, ignoring her screams.

The victim later said: “It was horrible and painful. I just cried and cried.”

When challenged by others, Norster said: “I didn’t do anything to her. She’s lying.”

He raped her again and responded to her hysterical crying by saying: “What are you crying for? Don’t be stupid. Nothing’s happened. It’s all in your head.”

The girl contemplated jumping out of a window, said Miss Egerton.

She later said: “I couldn’t tell anybody and I just wanted to die because I just felt dirty and thought it was my fault.”

When she was older she confronted him and he said he was sorry.

She replied: “You can’t ever say sorry for what you did. You ruined my childhood. I never had one. You made me out to be a liar.”

In her impact statement, she said: “I spent my childhood feeling nothing but self-loathing, shame and disgust because of what he did to me.

“I have carried the burden of what he did to me every single day of my life.

“I hope now this horrendous secret is out in the open that in time with support I can finally learn to trust others and finally find peace within myself, to enable me to enjoy what time I have left.”

Norster abused the second young girl when he was an adult.

He touched her despite her obvious pain and pleas for him to stop, and threatened her to keep her quiet. He then raped her.

When the victim told her boyfriend what had happened at the time, she too was not believed.

She said the abuse later affected her relationship with her children, she felt miserable and could not have people sitting too close to her.

Norster carried on the sex attacks on her despite a conviction and probation order for indecently assaulting another girl.

The court heard how he was affronted by having to attend a sex offenders’ course with “all them paedophiles”.

The two girls told police of their experiences years later and Norster was arrested.

After trying unsuccessfully to trade with limited pleas, and a suicide attempt, he admitted 10 charges of indecent assault, three of rape and one of attempted rape.

In mitigation, Brian Mark said Norster felt genuine “utter remorse” and shame for his actions. He was sectioned and made a “proper attempt” to take his own life.

Mr Mark said Norster was twisted, warped and irreparably damaged by experiences in his own childhood where he was bullied and “treated worse than dog dirt”.

“He was never a man at peace,” said the defence barrister. “He didn’t have a normal life and he perpetrated these horrible acts.

“He apologises to the victims. He can’t look at himself without feeling disgusting. Whatever problems he has, his actions have done incalculable damage to others. He accepts that totally.”

Judge Spittle said Norster’s crimes showed “a persistent, appalling pattern” with “many manifestations of indecent, degrading behaviour” and “expressed and implied threats”.

He said Norster isolated and preyed on the victims, blighting their lives. He said the victims had faced the “dreadful” prospect of a trial, but he gave Norster credit for pleading guilty, preventing them having to give evidence.

He took into account Norster’s troubled background but said he still had a choice.

Norster, lately of Christon West View, North Shields, was jailed for 12 years and given an indefinite sexual offences prevention order banning him from having contact with girls under 16.

He will be banned from working with children and will be on the sex offenders’ register for life.

November 2014

Flasher jailed for spate of exposures against young girls

A FLASHER responsible for a spate of indecent exposures has been jailed.

Patrick Tamas exposed himself to a 12-year-old girl in the Brownlow Way area of Halliwell at about 7pm on October 26.

He then made a 17-year-old girl his second victim in Shepherds Cross Street, Halliwell, just two hours later.

Tamas then flashed a 32-year-old woman in Thynne Street, Great Lever, on October 27 at about 7.45pm.

As well as a 12-month prison spell, Tamas, aged 18, of Merehall Close, Bolton, had to sign the sex offenders register for 10 years after being sentenced at Bolton Crown Court on November 12.

Det Sgt Patrick Wood said: “These exposures caused a great deal of distress and anxiety in the local area, particularly among women and parents given the ages of two of the victims.

“Although this investigation has now been completed we are keeping an open mind that there may be other victims, who for whatever reason have not come forward to the police.

“I would like to appeal to anyone who may have been a victim of indecent exposure to come forward to speak to us in confidence.

“Some may trivialise the offence of indecent exposure but I want to assure the public that we take this type of incident extremely seriously and we will strive to safeguard our community, and ensure offenders like Tamas are brought to justice.”

Anyone with information should call police on 101 or the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

November 2014

Woman speaks out over childhood sexual abuse committed by her father

A FORMER St Blazey man has been jailed for two and a half years after being convicted of indecently assaulting his daughter.

Edward Whear, now 76, was sentenced to 30 months in prison, made subject to a sexual offences prevention order for seven years and ordered to remain on the Sex Offenders Register for life.

Formerly of Rose Hill, St Blazey, he appeared before Newcastle Crown Court for sentence in October.

His daughter, Lisa, has agreed to waive her right to anonymity to speak about the abuse she suffered at the hands of her father when she was just a young girl.

Now 46, Lisa cannot remember how young she was when the abuse started but believes it began during her time in St Blazey, before the family moved away to North Shields, Newcastle, in 1976.

“My first memory is of him pinning me down and I couldn’t move,” she says. “That was the first incident. Then we moved again and that’s when the night time visits started.”

Lisa was brought to the attention of Social Services in 1978 when her mother, who died several years ago, asked for her to be placed in care because she could no longer manage her 10-year-old daughter’s behaviour.

At that time Lisa’s mother told Social Services that her daughter had said her father had put his hand between her legs. Lisa had also been treated in hospital twice for vaginal bleeding, but the paediatrician who treated her was unable to say if this was linked to her allegations against her father.

She was seen by a child psychologist and, in 1970, was placed in a residential school for ‘maladjusted children’. She stayed at the school for three years before returning to her parents.

“No one spoke about why I had to be in boarding school,” she says. “I had told people but I was just shoved away, and I had to live with it.”

When she was in her 20s Lisa repeated her allegations but said “no one ever told me I should go to the police”. “Nobody cared,” she adds. “It wasn’t an issue.”

It wasn’t until last year – more than four decades after Lisa first spoke of the abuse – that she finally got the help she had wanted as a child.

She has suffered from health problems for many years, and underwent major ureteric reimplantation surgery when she was 14 after numerous kidney infections. She now suffers from chronic pain and believes her problems could be down to the abuse she suffered as a child. But doctors struggled to find a cause for the pain, and it was the suggestion that it was psychosomatic that prompted her go to the police about her abuse.

“I felt like that little girl again – not being believed,” she says. “I just broke down.” She called a helpline for adult survivors of childhood abuse and eventually decided to go to the police. “That was the first time anyone had properly asked me about it, and I cried for two weeks,” she adds.

Lisa has since been diagnosed with the inflammatory condition sacroiliitis and with post traumatic stress disorder for which she is receiving counselling.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) originally decided there wasn’t enough evidence to prosecute her father, but following a review of the case, it went to court earlier this month. The CPS has since apologised to Lisa for not bringing the prosecution.

Whear, of Sheringham Avenue, North Shields was found guilty of three counts of indecent assault when he appeared at Newcastle Crown Court on October 10.

Lisa is coming to terms with her past and rebuilding her life, but the anger remains that it took so long for her voice to be heard.

“The system has let me down all my life,” she says. “I consider myself to have survived it, and I get on with things, but I told the truth all my life and no one listened. Now, I want them to listen.”

November 2014

Sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of a two-year-old girl

A man has been sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of the murder of a two-year-old girl in her own home.

Kevin Park pulled Madison Horn’s hair, lifting her up and repeatedly striking her head against a wall. He also repeatedly hit the toddler.

Park will have to serve at least 22 years before he can apply for parole.

Park, 27, had denied murdering Madison while babysitting her in Kelty, Fife, while her mother was on a night out.

Madison died after being taken to hospital with massive brain and internal injuries.

The High Court in Glasgow heard Madison, who died from blunt force trauma to her head and abdomen, had 65 separate injuries including a fractured skull, tears to her liver and bruising to her head and body.

Park, the former boyfriend of Madison’s mother Ann Marie White, was looking after the toddler at the time of the incident.

Judge Michael O’Grady told Park that what he had done was wicked beyond all imagining.

Park hit Madison’s head off a wall at least twice, punched and stamped on her. Prosecutors also believe he may have used a broken pool cue in the violent and sustained attack.

‘Dreadful things’

Park also grabbed or pinched the ears of Madison, who was less that one metre tall, causing bruising.

Her skull was fractured and she suffered internal bleeding and tearing to her liver.

Judge O’Grady told Park: “It is the misfortune of those of us who practise in these courts to see and hear of, day after day, the dreadful things that human beings can do, one to another.

“But even by those awful standards what you have done is wicked beyond all imagining.

“A child in your care looked to you for comfort, protection and probably even love. And, instead for some reason quite beyond comprehension, you inflicted upon her a callous, cruel and no doubt terrifying death.

Park will have to serve at least 22 years before he can apply for parole

“It is said so often – because it is true – no sentence that I can impose can change anything for Madison and those who loved her and from whom she has been taken.

“In reality, no sentence I can impose can truly reflect the sheer awfulness of what you have done.”

As the jury of nine men and six woman delivered their verdict, finding Park unanimously guilty of murder, members of Madison’s family shouted: “Yes.”

Advocate depute Jennifer Bain, prosecuting, told the court that Park had 38 previous convictions, including a number for violence.

In a statement, Annemarie White, the mother of Madison, said: “This has been a very hard and difficult time for the family and friends of Madison.

“We are pleased that justice has been served.

“I would also like to express my gratitude to everyone that helped with Madison’s case and also to thank the Kelty community for being so supportive.”

Det Ch Insp Scott Cunningham, of Police Scotland, said: “What he did to a defenceless child is unimaginable, despicable and beyond any understanding.

“Following a major investigation, significant medical, scientific and forensic evidence was recovered and confirmed that he was solely responsible for causing extensive and horrific injuries which resulted in Madison’s death.

“He tried to cover up his callous and extremely violent behaviour and actions, not only with disguising the truth by claiming Madison had fallen from a bed, but also by pretending to provide first aid, while showing no remorse at any point.

“I welcome today’s verdict and wish to thank all of my team of police officers, police staff, scientific experts and partner agencies for their dedication and professionalism in what has been an extremely traumatic and heart-breaking investigation.”

Nicky Patrick, procurator fiscal for High Court cases in the East of Scotland, said: “The murder of such a defenceless child has caused shock and disbelief amongst her family and the local community.

“Park denied the murder but was successfully prosecuted, having been found guilty by the Court after trial and must now start to pay for the consequences of his violent act.”

John Myles, independent chairman of Fife child protection committee: “The chief officers group of Fife have decided to conduct a significant case review following the tragic death of Madison Horn.

“The review will be led independently and will take place in two phases. The first phase will look at information available from files, records, and policies and procedures that were in place before Madison’s death.

“Work on this phase has already started. Phase two will take into account any new information that has come to light during the criminal proceedings and will involve interviews with relevant staff.

“We would hope to conclude the review early Spring 2015.”

February 2006

A PRISON officer at Stafford jail who downloaded more than a thousand indecent pictures of children from the internet was spared a custodial sentence.

Henry Vierrath was instead put on a three-year rehabilitation order by a judge at Stafford Crown Court – because he had been suffering from depression and had sought psychiatric help.

The court heard that Vierrath rang the NHS Direct help-line over his child porn downloading problem and they were under an obligation to tell the police.

Stuart Clarkson, prosecuting, said Vierrath’s call led to a police check. He was asked if he had downloaded any pictures of children and he said he might have looked at photos of youngsters aged 16 or 14.

His computer was seized and on the hard drive was found 1,151 indecent images of children, most of them still photos, but also including just over 30 video clips.

Three of the images were of the most serious category five, but the majority, 1,032, were in the least serious category one.

When arrested, Vierrath told police his wife had seen the images on the computer and asked him how they got there. “They did a lot of talking and as a result he agreed to see a psychiatrist. He spoke to someone at NHS Direct, then went to see his GP to talk to him about other problems.

“The defendant said he had been on the internet for two years and about 18 months ago visited adult pornography sites and then graduated to child pornography,” said Mr Clarkson.

The sites he had visited were all free and he had never paid for access.

Vierrath, 48, of Lodge Road, Rugeley admitted 16 sample charges of making indecent photos of children on dates between December 2003 and February this year. He also pleaded guilty to possessing a total of 1,151 indecent images.

Along with the rehabilitation order, Vierrath was also ordered to register as a sex offender for five years, attend an internet offender programme and pay £616 costs.

Judge Simon Tonking told him: “When an indecent photograph at level three or five is taken, not only is a child exploited, they are badly abused. Without the downloaders, there would not be people exploiting children. That’s why these offences are serious.

“When these offences were committed you were under enormous pressures. You sought help.

“It was only as a result of getting that help that these matters were reported to the police. When people do recognise they have a problem and seek help, that should not be discouraged.

“Hitherto you were a thoroughly good man. You are deeply and truly ashamed. It’s led to your resignation from a job you have had for 20 years.

“Were I to send you to prison, that help you have been having would not be completed.”

Mr Daniel Oscroft, defending, said Vierrath had been clinically diagnosed as depressed.

“He made a success of himself in his personal and professional life until a situation came he was not able to deal with.”

Mr Oscroft said his wife, who holds a position of some responsibility, was standing by him, as were his friends and former work colleagues.

November 2014

The target of a police undercover sting operation into online child grooming has been jailed

Andrew Garth, 60, thought he was chatting with a 14-year-old girl in Whitehaven, engaging her in what police described as “explicit sexual conversation”.

He eventually arranged to meet the young girl, only to discover she was in fact an undercover officer.

He admitted being an adult attempting to meet a girl under-16 following grooming” and two counts of attempting to cause/incite a girl aged 13 to 15 to engage in sexual activity.

An investigation into his online activity led to him being charged with 17 counts of attempt to cause/incite a girl aged 13 to 15 to engage in sexual activity. He pleaded guilty to these offences.

Garth, from Hainsworth Moor Drive, Queensbury, Bradford, was today sentenced to two years and eight months in prison and will be the subject to an indefinite sexual offences prevention order. This will restrict his use of the internet once released from prison.

T/Detective Superintendent Rob O’Connor said following the sentencing: “This operation resulted in further enquiries which revealed that Garth had engaged in a number of highly sexualised conversations with teenage girls.

“We undertake these operations to protect young people who use the internet and social media. I hope that Garth’s arrest and sentence acts as a deterrent to those who try to use the internet to engage in illegal sexual activity – we are watching, and we will take action.”

Anyone with any concerns or suspicions around child sexual exploitation should call Cumbria police on 101, or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. In an emergency always dial 999.

November 2014

Paedophile has been jailed for 10 years for the rape of a young girl

Phillip Hollis, of Round Hill, Sedgley, was jailed at Wolverhampton Crown Court after admitting to four charges of rape and a fifth charge of exposure.

The sex offences were committed on a girl under 13 years of age. The court heard how Hollis, aged 47, carried out a number of the attacks after smoking cannabis. The assaults came to light after the child’s school was alerted by comments that were made by the girl.

Mr Nigel Stelling, prosecuting, said: “She told police he exposed himself to her and that she looked away. He then asked if she wanted to have sex.”

After the school raised concerns the police were called.

Mr Stelling said the defendant was arrested, questioned and denied that he had any such contact with the victim. He said Hollis later made an admission.

He added: “The victim was to tell officers that the act of intercourse followed him smoking cannabis.”

Mr Gurdeep Garcha, defending,

said: “He has taken responsibility for what he has done.

“He is sorry and has shown deep remorse. The reality he finds himself in now is that society will label him as a paedophile and he has to live with that.

“He’s 47 with no previous convictions and now finds himself rock bottom and about to go into prison. He leaves behind him a path of destruction.”

Judge Martin Walsh jailed Hollis for 10 years and ordered him to sign the sex offenders’ register for life.

The victim’s family said they were ‘pleased’ with the length of the jail term.