November 2014

Child sex beast caged for attacks on kids as young as FIVE in care home

A sex beast who exploited his position as a worker at a children’s home to attack vulnerable youngsters 40 years ago is finally behind bars.

John Cowan used his role as “father of the house” at a home in Ealing, west London, to abuse children as young as FIVE.

Cowan, known as Jock, was finally caught after one of his victims had the courage to come forward last year and report his sickening attacks on her.

The victim was aged just seven or eight at the time of the shocking assaults, that took place in the home’s attic in 1971 and 1972.

The offences took place at a children’s home in Ealing where Cowan worked as what was known as a house father for two years before he left in 1973.

Following her brave statement, police launched an investigation into the pervert and officers identified a further five women who were abused.

The youngest was aged just five at the time of the attacks, while the oldest was only 10.

Officers also discovered twisted Cowan had also attacked a boy who was just six.

The victim, now a man, described how on more than one occasion Cowan took him from his bed saying the boy needed the toilet.

Once inside the bathroom, Cowan sexually assaulted him.

Vile Cowan, 72, of Hither Green, Lewisham, was charged in July 2013 and today found guilty at harrow Crown Court of of 10 counts of historic indecent assault and one count of gross indecency.

He was jailed for eight years but police are now appealing for other victims to come forward.

Detective Constable Cathy Hewitson, from the Child Abuse Investigation Team at Northwood, said: “Cowan took advantage of his senior position at the home to abuse a number of vulnerable children, the majority of whom had already suffered heartache and trauma in their short lives and should have been in a trusted environment.

“I praise the courage of the victims in coming forward and reliving this very difficult period in their lives, forced to give evidence in open court by Cowan’s refusal to admit to his crimes.

“Cowan worked in a number of children’s homes in Essex, London and Scotland from the 1970s onwards.

“It is highly likely there are other victims out there who perhaps have felt too scared to come forward before or thought there was little point given the passage of time.

“Today’s conviction proves it is not too late to bring Cowan to justice and I would ask anyone with information to contact us in confidence.”

Sex beast Cowan previously lived and worked in and around Chelmsford in Essex in the early 1970s, Linlithgow near Edinburgh in the late 1970s and Renfrew near Glasgow and early 1980s.

During the trial, the jury heard that Cowan has 24 previous convictions for sexual offences against children.

He was jailed for 12-and-a-half years in 1994 on 16 counts and is on the Sex Offenders’ Register for life.

November 2014

Blurton grandad downloaded indecent images of children

PERVERT John Dean downloaded indecent images of children on his computer.

The 63-year-old grandad told police he looked at the pictures and movies out of curiosity and was ashamed of himself.

Now Dean has been jailed for eight months and placed on the sex offenders’ register for 10 years.

Prosecutor David Bennett told Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court police went to the defendant’s Newstead home at 10.40am on September 18.

Mr Bennett said: “He said he could not speak to the officers because he was online to Ghana, speaking to his wife.

“He tried to close the door but the officer put his foot in the door and Dean allowed them in.”

Police recovered a computer tower and Dean made some admissions to viewing indecent images of children.

Mr Bennett said: “He said he had not copied any to discs or shared any with anyone.

“He could not explain why he did it. He said it was through curiosity and he was ashamed of what he had done.

“He said he found the images disgusting. He said he viewed them once a week and also viewed extreme pornographic images.”

The computer tower contained two category C images; four category B images; 11 category A images; five category C movie images; 14 category B movie images; 54 category A movie images and 57 extreme pornographic movie images.

Dean, of Waterside Drive, pleaded guilty to six offences of making indecent photographs of a child and possessing extreme pornographic images.

Jason Holt, mitigating, said Dean uses the internet a lot and met his wife through it.

Mr Holt said: “He used the specific site in question for the downloading of music. Pop ups came up. He was curious. He accepts saving the images.

“He thought the images of bestiality were silly, not the ones of children.”

Mr Holt said Dean’s son does not want anything to do with him and added that if his client was sent to jail it would effect his wife and her children in Ghana as he pays for the youngsters’ education.

Judge David Fletcher told Dean: “These were images that were downloaded by you from a file sharing site.

“I accept that initially you may not have been looking for the sort of material you ultimately downloaded.

“There are not thousands but nevertheless a lot of them are movie images.

“These are very serious matters indeed. The children are being forced to behave in the way you saw on those images, forced against their will. They were extremely distressed, some were very young indeed.

They are being forced to behave in this degrading manner for the benefit of people like you.”

Dean will serve half the sentence in custody.

He was also made the subject of a 10 year sexual offences prevention order.

November 2014

Snapchat predator jailed for online sexual harassment of young girls

A Snapchat predator has been jailed for luring underage girls into sending him naked pictures after pestering them with messages on the hugely popular teen website.

Aaron Finnie ensnared 11 different girls aged 13 to 15 into sending or receiving indecent images after spending hours trawling Facebook and other social networks for potential victims

He concentrated on those living close to his home in Devon and tried to arrange meetings or sleepovers with them, Exeter Crown Court was told.

He had to be escorted off school premises after turning up at an after-hours club and trying to take a 15-year-old schoolgirl home with him 

Finnie used emotional blackmail to force the girls to comply, telling them he would commit suicide and even sending one a picture of him holding a gun to his head.

His technique was to look for girls on Facebook, then move his messaging to Snapchat, where images are not recorded permanently. He also used the Whatsapp site to contact girls.

Police found 7,000 pages of Facebook messages on his computer and believe he may have been involved in sexualised conversations with many more girls.

He was arrested and bailed twice with conditions not to contact girls on the internet but carried on doing so until he was finally remanded in custody earlier this year.

Finnie, 20, of Hartley Road, Paignton, admitted eight counts of sending indecent messages, six of causing under age girls to send him images, and one of causing a child to engage in sexual activity.

He was jailed for three years by Judge Francis Gilbert, QC, who ordered him to sign on the Sex Offenders’ Register for life and made a Sexual Offences Prevention Order which will allow police to monitor his use of the internet on his release.

He told him: “You befriended 11 girls who were under 16 online and asked them to send you indecent photographs, despite knowing their ages. You also sent indecent images of yourself.

“You threatened to commit suicide and sent a picture of you holding a gun to your head. Can you imagine the stress that would have put upon a young girl. She must have been very, very distressed.

“These are serious offences and are all the more reprehensible because you continued to offend in the same way in deliberate and obvious breach of your bail conditions.”

Joss Ticehurst, prosecuting, said: “He befriended girls on Facebook and Snapchat, sending images of his erect penis and seeking to obtain photographs of them in return. There were 11 girls who were treated in this way.

“It appears there has been more extensive contact with other young girls but they do not appear on the indictment.

“There were 7,000 pages of Facebook conversations with young females and he was a prolific Facebook user who was looking for girls to make friend requests to.

“There were numerous Facebook conversations going on with a number of different people at the same time which were all of a sexual nature and indicated he was seeking to meet girls.”

Once Finnie made contact with girls he suggested moving the conversations to Snapchat so they could exchange photographs.

He said Finnie sent some of the girls indecent pictures of himself with messages such as “please help me” and “turn me on”. He met some of the girls and one had to ask a teacher to remove him from school premises when he turned up at an activity evening.

Mr Ticehurst said many of the girls were upset and flustered by his demands for pictures and shocked and frightened by his threats to commit suicide.

Jeffrey Segan, defending, said a psychiatric report had concluded Finnie was of lower than average intelligence, immature for his age, and his behaviour showed a compulsive tendency.

He said the police were able to trace many of the girls because of the help which Finnie gave them and he had not tried to hide what he was doing, even when he was in breach of his bail conditions.

He urged the Judge to send his client on an internet sex offenders treatment programme in the community rather than send him to jail.

November 2014

Man jailed for historic sex offences against schoolgirl in Northallerton

aul Marven, was a private gas man working in the Northallerton and Darlington areas in the early 1990s when he befriended a teenage girl and abused her over a two-year period.

Marven, aged 57 and of Lane, Newquay, Cornwall, was sentenced to six years and three months’ imprisonment at Teesside Crown Court on Wednesday 26 November 2014, after being found guilty of six counts of indecent assault.

Marven committed the offences between 1991 and 1994 in Northallerton, when the victim, who is now aged 36, was in her early teens.

Detective Constable Steve Alderson, of Northallerton Protecting Vulnerable Persons Unit, welcomed Marven’s sentence: Paul Marven probably thought the had got away with sexually abusing a vulnerable teenage girl but thanks to the bravery of the victim, who found the courage to come forward after so many years, he has now been brought to justice.

I hope that she can take some satisfaction from the fact that Marven is now behind bars and continue to rebuild her life.

This case highlights the fact that no matter how much time has elapsed sexual offenders can still be caught and punished for their actions.

I would urge anyone who has been sexually abused, whether it was recently or occurred many years ago, to come forward. The police will take your case seriously and with sensitivity and will offer you all the support you need.

November 2014

Paedophile sentenced to life for systematic abuse of multiple young girls

A former soldier who inflicted horrendous sexual abuse on five girls as young as six over a period of more than 30 years has been jailed for life.

A judge said it was one of the worst cases he had known to come before the court.

“The picture that has emerged is one of extreme – even breathtaking – depravity,” Judge David Griffith-Jones QC told Richard Songhurst

“You used young girls as playthings for your sexual gratification as and when you wished without compunction.

Despite pleading guilty to 29 offences, 50-year-old Songhurst could not resist an even stare at some of his victims sitting in the public gallery as he was led away to the cells.

He will have to serve seven-and-a-half years before he can be considered for parole. He will be on licence for the rest of his life.

Songhurst, of St Mary’s Road, Strood, admitted seven offences of rape, 14 of indecent assault, three of indecency with a child, three of sexual assault and two of assault by penetration.

Maidstone Crown Court heard on Friday Songhurst was aged 18 and on leave from the Army when he began the abuse.

He involved two of the victims at the same time. It led to him molesting them, getting them to touch him and finally rape.

Songhurst’s depravity only came to light when one of his victims plucked up the courage to come forward to police in 2013 – more than three decades after he began abusing.

The 50-year-old systematically abused one of his victims from primary school age and began raping her from as young as ten. At one point he was abusing her every day and forcing her into sexual activity with other children while he watched.

Prosecutor Isobel Ascherson said one girl was unconscious when Songhurst had sex with her.

Three more victims followed.

He was eventually arrested when one went to the police last year and others came forward.

Miss Ascherson said Songhurst made partial admissions but there were “still levels of denial, even behind he pleas”.

November 2014

‘Sex predator’ jailed for 14 years for abusing 6 children

A man who sexually abused six children from the north Down area has been given a 14-year prison sentence for his “predator activity”.

Alastair Carswell, 48, whose address was given as HMP Maghaberry, but who is from Bangor will spend seven years in prison and the remainder on supervised licence.

He was sentenced on Friday at Downpatrick Crown Court, sitting in Belfast, on a total of 25 charges.

The court heard the charges included multiple offences of indecent assault.

Passing sentence, the judge said there had been a “pre-meditated nature” to some of Carswell’s offending.

He said three of the victims had suffered long-term effects from “sustained periods of abuse suffered at the hands of the defendant”.

He added: “The sentencing must take account of the damage caused by the actions of a defendant, which by their nature can have consequences in terms of personal development and sense of self-worth, which blights the lives of the victims for many years.”

The court was told that three of the victims were targeted on a single occasion, while Carswell’s other three victims – two boys and a girl – were abused over a sustained and prolonged period.

The ages of the victims ranged from seven to 16 and the abuse was carried out between 1995 and 2012.

Carswell was arrested in connection with the abuse in June 2013, and denied the claims against him, branding them “malicious”.

He also claimed that after being involved in a road crash in 2007, he was left suffering from penile dysfunction.

A defence barrister told the court he acknowledged Carswell was being sentenced for “serious matters”, but said none of the charges were in the more serious category of a penetrative nature.

The barrister also said Carswell intended to comply with probation when he is released from prison, to try and get back “some semblance” of his life.

The court heard the judge talk of the need to protect the innocence of children, and described Carswell as a “person who is controlling and who is willing to exercise control over others”.

November 2014

Paedophile snared by policewoman posing as 13-year old schoolgirl

A sex offender was caught after the young girl he was chatting to online turned out to be an undercover policewoman.

Thomas Farrar, 58, believed he was chatting to a 13-year-old girl called Sophie when he logged on to the popular chat site Lycos.

But the Dunbar man was unaware the young teenage girl’s profile had been set up by undercover police officers in a bid to catch online predators.

During the chat sessions Farrar made “vile comments” to ‘Sophie’.

Farrar, who logged on to the chat site with the user name Mad-Cheffy, told ‘Sophie’ he wanted to teach her how to make love properly.

The chat sessions then switched between the Lycos site and Skype before Farrar asked the girl if she would be willing to meet up with him at a hotel near to her Cumbria home during the pair’s online contact last year.

Police swooped on Farrar’s home in East Lothian, after logging his computer IP address.

He appeared at Haddington Sheriff Court on Thursday and pleaded guilty to intentionally sending sexual communication to an undercover police officer, who he believed may be a child between 13 and 16, over a period between November 13 and 20 last year. Farrar has now been banned from owning computer equipment and placed on the sex offenders’ register for the next three years.

Solicitor Matthew Patrick said it was possible Farrar was “not targeting children” during his illicit online chat sessions, but had “lost a sense of reality to what was going on”.

Mr Patrick added Farrar was a “sad and lonely individual who has been living an online life” who would willingly accept any restrictions on him accessing the internet.

Sheriff Peter Braid said: “The comments you made were vile and if you had been speaking to a 13-year-old girl rather than an undercover policewoman you almost certainly would have received a custodial sentence. Nonetheless, I am satisfied in your case there is an alternative to custody.”

Sheriff Braid also sentenced Farrar to a 200-hour unpaid work order.

Farrar’s Lycos profile, which is still active, shows 452 females visited his page, but only 34 males.

November 2014

Paedophile from Banbury jailed after being caught for second time with indecent images of children

A PAEDOPHILE who downloaded 12,696 indecent images of children, some as young as 18 months, has been jailed.

Richard Shurmer, of Albert Street, Banbury, admitted two charges of making indecent images and one charge of breaching a sexual offences prevention order (SOPO).

He was sentenced to two years and eight months in prison.

Michael Roques, prosecuting at Oxford Crown Court, said the 38-year-old had already been convicted of 19 charges of making indecent images at Worcester Crown Court in 2010.

Judge Ian Pringle said that between 4,000 and 5,000 of the images were of the most serious category.

Claire Fraser, defending, said her client suffered from a “schizoid personality disorder” and could be treated for his illness in the community.

But Judge Pringle told Shurmer: “These are real children who are really being abused, and people like you create a market for that.”

Shurmer was made subject to a more strict SOPO, which bars him from privately using the Internet completely, except his TV box.

November 2014

73-year-old child sex offender groomed children

A 73-year-old sex offender has been sent to prison branded a “deceitful” groomer of children.

William Jewitt gave lifts to families and their children without revealing his criminal past, Teesside Crown Court heard.

Judge Deborah Sherwin told the pensioner in the dock that he was befriending families and gaining their trust.

She said: “It may be that these offences didn’t involve you being alone with any of the children.

“But I take the view, looking at your background, that what you were undertaking was the grooming of these children.

“I have no doubt that if you had your way, things would have evolved in time so that you could have been alone with those children.”

Jewitt was jailed for six years for 11 child sex offences in 1995 – seven of indecent assault and four of gross indecency. They included molesting two girls in his car.

Cleveland Police successfully applied for a sexual offences prevention order (SOPO) in 2005.

The indefinite order stayed in force since, banning Jewitt from associating with under-18s.

He repeatedly breached it, as well as failing to register one address with the police.

He was given a 15-month prison sentence in 2010 after he befriended families with young children and mums unaware of his history.

He was at Teesside Crown Court today for flouting the court order by taking children into his car, although they had adults with them.

He never mentioned the lifts to the police officer who supervised him in visits every four months.

One mother later said she was “horrified” to learn the truth about the convicted sex offender.

She said she would never have allowed contact with the children if she had known of his background.

Prosecutor Paul Lee said there was no suggestion Jewitt had been left alone with the children.

He was arrested on October 30 after an officer who came to a reported incident on a Middlesbrough street and saw him with children.

The 73-year-old accepted he gave lifts to adults with children present, but denied intending to harm any of the children.

Jewitt, formerly of West Terrace, North Ormesby, Middlesbrough, admitted five breaches of the SOPO.

The offences carried a maximum prison sentence of five years.

A pre-sentence report said Jewitt’s sole intention was to gain access to children for his sexual gratification.

John Nixon, defending, said Jewitt denied this and maintained “he would never have done anything to hurt the children”.

He said Jewitt had not been convicted of a sexual offence since 1995, nor had there been any suggestion of “improper motives” in his SOPO breaches.

He told the court Jewitt did not try to isolate the children in the latest offences, which came to light after he called police over a domestic incident.

This showed Jewitt seemed “oblivious” to the fact that he was committing a crime, added Mr Nixon.

He told how Jewitt’s home was vandalised, ransacked and boarded up after his neighbourhood discovered his past, and he was now homeless.

Judge Sherwin said the pre-sentence described Jewitt as “very deceitful and always looking to have contact with children”.

He was deemed to be “not truthful about anything” and a high risk of re-offending, she added.

She told him only custody could be justified and jailed him for 20 months.

November 2014

Jehovah’s Witness elder jailed for 12 years for multiple sexual offences against young girl

A Jehovah’s Witness elder has been jailed for 12 years at Truro crown court for sexually abusing a young girl over a period of six years

David Dennis, 60 of Chawleigh Close, Gunnislake pleaded guilty to all 25 offences of which he was accused

The charges:

1. Nine of indecent assault of a child aged under 13 years old

2. Twelve of sexual assault of a child aged under 13 years old

3. Four of sexual assault by penetration of a child aged under 13 years old

The female child was systematically sexually abused from the age of just five or six years old at a previous address in Harrowbarrow

The child suffered a catalogue of harrowing abuse which took place over a period of six years.

Court documents showed that Dennis admitted that the child would beg him to stop the abuse but he would continue to force to her to do it regardless of her pleas

Perverted Dennis showed no remorse at the sentencing and even blew a kiss to the family of the child after been sent down.

The judge said it was a serious and extreme abuse of trust. The judge continued by saying that in his world Dennis may of been seen as a pillar of the community and well respected within his religion but he had a very sordid side to him

The judge branded him evil and depraved as he imprisoned him for twelve years

David Dennis will be registered as a sex offender for life and was banned from working with children indefinitely

November 2014

Man who filmed himself molesting schoolgirl jailed for eight years

A man who filmed himself molesting a schoolgirl has been jailed for eight years.

Richard Sharpe (46) was caught when two people he shared a house with became suspicious about his behaviour

When he was on holiday in Portugal, they looked at a camera he left behind and found shocking video footage of the abuse.

The police arrested him at the airport on his return.

Sharpe, formerly of Went Road, Birstall, had groomed the innocent youngster by offering her treats and sweets.

He pleaded guilty at Leicester Crown Court to five counts of sexual assault committed earlier this year.

In a victim impact statement the victim’s mother, who was in court to see Sharpe jailed, said: “He’s robbed my daughter of her innocence.

“I don’t think the full effects of this nightmare are over yet.”

Sentencing, Judge Nicholas Dean QC said: “Thankfully your behaviour was discovered within a short time.

“You filmed quite a lot of the abuse you inflicted upon this child, which meant you had no choice but to plead guilty.

“I don’t know what possessed you to behave in the way you did.

“Your mental health doesn’t provide any explanation for why you did what you did.

“Having seen the footage, it’s clear you behaved in a calculated manner and made her familiar with some of what you did to her, by some form of grooming process no doubt using rewards and persuasion.

“You know that what you did is unforgivable and it was highly damaging.

“It has also affected her behaviour.”

The court heard that when the police spoke to the youngster, a primary school pupil, she did not remember much about what was clearly shown on the video images.

Julie Warburton, mitigating, said: “He’s been on suicide watch since being remanded into custody and is self-harming on a daily basis.

“He’s no explanation for what he did and mercifully it was short lived.

“He doesn’t put forward any excuses and he knows he can never be forgiven and doesn’t expect to be.

“He wishes to apologise.”

Sharpe was shaking uncontrollably in the dock throughout the hearing.

Judge Dean said he will have to sign onto a sex offender register for life and will be automatically barred from ever working children.

An indefinite sexual offences prevention order was made, which includes a ban on having unsupervised contact with youngsters.

May 2014

Man pleaded guilty to indecent images of children

An 18-year-old man has pleaded guilty to possession of indecent images of children.

Shaun Ferguson, from Tower Road in Brighton was charged with four counts of possession of indecent images of a child on November 4 last year.

He was due to stand trial at Hove Crown Court on Wednesday (May 21) but on Tuesday (May 20) he pleaded guilty to all four counts.

He will be sentenced on June 16.

Ferguson was arrested for child sexual exploitation offences an during this investigation his mobile phone was seized and examined by Police. 

A number of indecent images and videos of a child were identified. 

The child involved was identified and her safety was paramount in the investigation.

Detective constable Naomi O’Keeffe, of the Safeguarding Investigation Unit base in Brighton and Hove, said: “Ferguson has demonstrated he is a predatory young man and he choose an exceptionally vulnerable young girl to manipulate into doing what he wanted them to do. I can now reassure the public that he will be regularly monitored to ensure he doesn’t offend aganist young people in the future.”

December 2014

Pervert jailed for bid to lure schoolgirls into van

A PERVERT who followed schoolgirls in his work van before trying to kiss them and lure them into his vehicle has been jailed for 18 months.

Richard Conlin approached three young girls – one in her school uniform – in a bid to get them into his van after pretending to stop to ask them for directions.

Conlin drove to secluded roads in East Lothian last year in his search for young girls, even taking a Labrador puppy along on one trip in a sick bid to get the girls into his vehicle.

The 41-year-old pulled in behind the teenagers as they walked along a road before getting out of his van and quizzing them about boyfriends, attempting to kiss and cuddle them, and offering to drive them home.

Conlin, from Stirling, spotted his first victim, a 15-year-old girl in her school uniform who had been sent home early due to her feeling unwell, on a country road near Gifford on September 26 last year.

Two further incidents took place at the A198 Prestonpans to Longniddry road on November 22.

Conlin appeared at 
Haddington Sheriff Court where he admitted three charges of conducting himself in a disorderly manner.

December 2014

Paedophile children’s doctor jailed for 22 years after admitting to sexually abusing 18 seriously ill boys in his care

A paedophile children’s doctor who admitted abusing 18 seriously ill boys in his care was jailed for 22 years today.

Myles Bradbury, 41, a consultant paediatric haematologist at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge, admitted abusing boys aged between ten and 16, including children with haemophilia, leukaemia and other serious illnesses.

Judge Gareth Hawkesworth, sitting at Cambridge Crown Court, described Bradbury’s actions as ‘one of the worst forms of sexual abuse imaginable’.

Married Bradbury, from Herringswell, Suffolk, carried out medical examinations on boys ‘purely for his own sexual gratification’, the court heard.

He filmed some of them using a spy pen and abused others behind a curtain while their parents were in the room.

In total, he pleaded guilty to 25 offences, including sexual assault, voyeurism and possessing more than 16,000 indecent images, against boys aged between 10 and 16, and was sentenced today.

Judge Gareth Hawkesworth said Bradbury’s sentence would be reduced because of his early guilty pleas although ‘some might observe’ that the overwhelming evidence against him meant he had little choice but to admit the offences.

Describing Bradbury as ‘manipulative”, he added: ‘For a doctor to attack children in this way is one of the worst forms of sexual abuse imaginable.’

The judge continued: ‘These boys were all vulnerable and gravely ill.

‘In all my years on the bench, I have never come across such a grotesque betrayal of your Hippocratic oath.

‘There are almost too many aggravating factors to list in your prolonged carefully, planned and cruel abuse.

‘It is implicit in what you did for your own sexual gratification that you were targeting the most vulnerable, sick children.’

He added that he had no doubt Bradbury had caused ‘serious psychological’ harm to his victims and there was a risk he would do so in future but said the doctor’s recognition of his deviancy meant the risk could be managed. 

At the beginning of Bradbury’s sentencing hearing on Friday, prosecutor John Farmer said the defendant had a ‘longstanding, unlawful, sexual interest in boys’.

He added: ‘The defendant, through the trust he had acquired, circumvented the procedures and encourages a number of young patients to see him alone.

 

Doctor: Bradbury, from Herringswell, Suffolk, carried out medical examinations on boys at Addenbrooke’s Hospital ‘purely for his own sexual gratification’, the court heard

‘It was in these circumstance under the guise of legitimate examinations he went entirely beyond the bounds.

‘He took the opportunity of fondling the boy’s genitals and encouraging them to masturbate in his presence and obtain erections for his own personal gratification.

‘On some occasions, when he failed to exclude the parent, he simply carried on behind the curtain behind which the boy had gone to remove his clothes.’

The offences took place over four-and-a-half years, beginning within six months of him taking up his post in 2008 and continuing to the day he was suspended on November 28 last year when the first concerns were raised.

Some 800 families of children cared for by Bradbury were contacted about possible abuse, distracting staff from their main job of caring for the sick. 

At some point, he began using a camera pen in an attempt to gain images of the boys when partially clothed, Mr Farmer added.

Police found 170,425 images on this pen but none of these were classed as indecent.

Mr Farmer explained Bradbury was first arrested in December 2013 after police were alerted by Canadian authorities that he had bought a DVD containing indecent images of children as part of Operation Spade.

At that point Cambridgeshire Police were already investigating after concerns were raised about his conduct.

Prosecutor John Farmer told Cambridge Crown Court that, although Bradbury was a maverick who had operated outside all accepted norms of his profession, his behaviour had forced fellow specialists to adjust their approach to avoid suspicion.

Mr Farmer added: ‘The gravity of these offences does not lie in the actual extent of the sexual conduct but the grave breach of trust which has had a profoundly undermining effect on these and other patients to the point that the practice of this area of medicine has had to be re-approached to regain the lost trust and put in procedures to avoid not only such conduct but the perception that it might happen.’

Bradbury, who, the court heard, was also involved in church and Scout groups, was described as ‘a man of great charm and persuasiveness’ whom everybody trusted.

Cambridge Crown Court heard that the combined effect of the illnesses suffered by the boys and their treatment can lead to concerns about development in puberty, meaning medics must monitor genital and sexual development.

But the court also heard that Bradbury’s examinations went way beyond the norm, had no medical justification and were carried out purely for his own sexual gratification.

When one victim raised concerns with his mother, she responded: ‘He’s a doctor, it must be necessary.’ 

Mr Farmer said: ‘That was the very image that really protected him from anything other than the most persistent line of complaint.’

Outlining details of some of Bradbury’s victims, the prosecutor said the familiar routine involved isolating them from their parents, asking them to remove their clothes and then groping their genitals.

The depth of the examinations were often increased to meet Bradbury’s sexual needs, not any medical requirement, he added.

The first to raise concerns had suffered from leukaemia from a young age but had been in remission.

During one visit, Bradbury asked him to take his clothes off and give himself an erection. This abuse escalated on a later visit.

Mr Farmer said Bradbury used reverse psychology to keep his victims quiet, saying that they could tell their parents if they liked, but they might prefer it to remain confidential.

He added: ‘This boy showed great wisdom.

‘He could not see why it should be secret so, once in the car, he told his family.

‘By gentle cross-examination, his grandmother got the full story out of him, mulled it over and started the chain that brings the defendant here today.’

Although the sexual contact was not the most severe in nature, the abuse of trust had a serious impact on the victims, Mr Farmer added.

One said in a statement read to the court: ‘I am now anxious to go to the doctor because I don’t know who I should trust.

‘I have haemophilia and a pain in my side so I know I should go but I feel disgusted and weird.

‘I didn’t think it would happen to me and I feel angry every time I think about it but also relieved it wasn’t just me but we shouldn’t have to go through it.’

Another said he had regular nightmares, felt stressed and lacked confidence.

‘I’d like to see Myles Bradbury and ask him why he did what he did to me,’ he added. 

Mitigating, Bradbury’s barrister, Angela Rafferty, told the court that her client had repressed homosexual tendencies during puberty and this may help explain his crimes.

She added that, unlike some paedophiles, he recognised that what he did was ‘repugnant’ and had never sought to justify his behaviour.

Bradbury graduated from Medical School at the University of Birmingham in 1996.

He held a number of roles before entering the General Medical Council’s specialist register in haematology in 2007.

His first consultancy was in paediatric haematology at Birmingham Children’s Hospital in 2007 but he moved to Addenbrooke’s in Cambridge after a little more than a year.

He continued in that role until a complaint was made about possible abuse by the grandmother of a patient and he was suspended on November 28 2013 – exactly five years after he took up the post.

Ms Rafferty conceded in court that any good Bradbury had done through his job was negated by his abuse.

‘He knows he will not get any understanding or forgiveness because what he did was unforgivable,” she said.

‘His medical life may have done some good at some time but that means nothing now.

‘He accepts that that was the life which allowed him to commit those offences.’ 

The respectable family man who volunteered at an African orphanage… but secretly targeted vulnerable children

On face value, Dr Myles Bradbury was a respectable professional and an active member of the community.

Living in the pretty and affluent village of Herringswell, Suffolk, the 41-year-old was married and his wife gave birth to their first child, a girl, during the course of the police investigation into his abuse.

He was a church-goer, played a role in the Scout movement and went on a church mission to an orphanage in Swaziland to help children with Aids as recently as 2012.

 

Respectable: Bradbury was a church-goer, played a role in the Scout movement and went on a church mission to an orphanage in Swaziland to help children with Aids as recently as 2012

One neighbour said: ‘He seemed like somebody who wanted to do good. Everybody’s in complete shock because he seemed normal and nice.

‘We just feel for his wife who had no idea what was going on.’

Bradbury graduated from Medical School at the University of Birmingham in 1996.

He held a number of roles before entering the General Medical Council’s specialist register in haematology in 2007.

His first consultancy was in paediatric haematology at Birmingham Children’s Hospital in 2007 but he moved to Addenbrooke’s in Cambridge after a little more than a year.

 

Serious: A photo from a trip to Africa during which Bradbury was left alone with children

He continued in that role until a complaint was made about possible abuse by the grandmother of a patient and he was suspended on November 28 2013 – exactly five years after he took up the post.

Hospital bosses have said the consultant paediatric haematologist deliberately targeted the most physically and emotionally vulnerable children in a manner which has fundamentally undermined trust in the medical profession.

Cambridge University Hospital NHS Trust, which employed Bradbury, said his crimes have had a ‘profound and devastating’ impact on patients, their families and staff.

His abuse extended to deliberately misleading patients into thinking their conditions were more serious than they actually were in order to encourage them to attend more appointments than necessary, a statement from the Trust said.

And the trauma forced bereaved parents to relive the pain of losing a child after learning they had been abused.

‘For these parents and families, they cannot ask the painful questions open to others nor receive reassurance,’ a trust spokesman said.

The hospital spokesman said the abuse has had a long-lasting impact.

He added: ‘Almost a year on, the effects of his cold and calculating actions continue to cause anguish and sadly, for many, may do so for years to come.

‘First, and most importantly, there is the effect of his abuse on the young male patients in his care.

‘We should remember that his patients were being treated for cancer and serious blood disorders, which is highly traumatic in itself, especially for children and adolescents.

‘He appears to focus his attention on the most physically and emotionally vulnerable children under his care.

‘It is clear that he betrayed the trust he had built up with these patients over months and years.

‘Many of these patients have lost faith in the medical profession and, for those facing ongoing treatment, are now understandably fearful of returning to hospital.’

He said parents had been persuaded to place their children in a vulnerable position, believing it was in their best interest.

‘This betrayal has shaken their trust in the medical profession at a time when they needed it most,’ the spokesman added. 

November 2014

Indecent images of pupils found on computer belonging to dead deputy headteacher Martin Goldberg

December 2014

Stevenage paedophile who tried to groom girls in chat rooms jailed for string of sex offences

A paedophile from Stevenage has been jailed after admitting trying to groom two girls and unlawfully having sexual intercourse with another.

Steven Stapleton will spend five years in prison and a further four years on licence after attempting to meet two girls having spoken to them in online chat rooms.

The 29-year-old, who used to live Stevenage but has no fixed address, was arrested in August 2013 after trying to arrange to meet a girl under the age of 16 in the town earlier the same month.

Stapleton also admitted unlawful sexual intercourse on another girl under 16 between August 2007 and August 2008.

At his sentencing on Friday, St Albans Crown Court heard how Herts police’s dedicated Child Online Safeguarding Team arrested Stapleton after a concerned member of the public contacted police about a video which had been posted online a few days before.

The video showed Stapleton being confronted by a man who had posed as a child in order to meet with him and expose him for grooming children. Information was also disclosed that Stapleton may have sexually assaulted a girl a few years before.

Officers spoke to the victim and sought the appropriate orders to interrogate chat accounts used by Stapleton to talk to young girls.

Det Sgt Laura Randall has praised officers from the COST team she leads following the sentencing, which also includes two counts of publishing obscene articles which relates to the explicit conversations he had in online chat rooms.

She said: “The tenacity of my officers to gain evidence from internet site providers proved vital in this case. I hope this sentence sends a clear message to other offenders that we will use every tool available to us to bring those committing these appalling crimes to justice.

“Cases involving child sex abuse are extremely serious and have a huge emotional impact not only on the victims, but on whole families, and communities. I would like to reassure you that protecting victims vulnerable to these crimes and bringing offenders to justice is a priority for Hertfordshire Constabulary.

“We also fully understand how difficult it can be for a victim to seek help but I would encourage anyone who has been subject to abuse to please contact police. Your case will be treated with sensitivity and fully investigated.”

December 2014

Convicted paedophile repeatedly moved address and failed to tell the police where he was living

Gary Clark, 51, of Adelaide Street, Blackpool, pleaded guilty to breaching a Sex Offenders Registration (SOR) order.

He had two previous convictions for failing to comply with the order. Clark was bailed for pre-sentence reports with all options, including custody, to be considered by Blackpool magistrates.

He must live at his given address and report three times a week to police as conditions of his bail. John McLaren, defending, said his client had had problems with accommodation.

December 2014

Paedophile clown cries in court as judge orders his outfit be destroyed

A CLOWN wept as a judge ordered the destruction of his outfit — for repeatedly breaching a sexual offences prevention order (SOPO) barring him from working with children.

Brian Russell, 52, also known as Joe Joe the Clown, carried on working as a children’s entertainer, despite a ban imposed after he was cautioned for indecently assaulting underage girls.

He cried on Friday as Recorder Gerard Pounder, sitting at Basildon Crown Court, in Essex, ordered for his clown outfit to be destroyed to remove the temptation for him to take up his beloved trade.

Russell, of Station Road, Westcliff, Essex, had earlier admitted seven counts of breaching a SOPO.

“Mercifully nothing has happened but you disobeyed this order,” the judge said. “Parents are entitled to expect people to obey these orders. 

“One can imagine the feelings of the parents when they discovered someone who is subject to a sexual offences prevention order was acting as a clown on various occasions – at a restaurant and a school.” 

The court heard that the sex offender was hit with the order in 2003 after receiving two cautions for indecently assaulting underage girls in North Yorkshire and Northern Ireland. 

But despite a prohibition, Russell — who was born into a travelling circus family — just could not resist taking up his trade. 

He was spotted in his outfit at the Green House pub in Eastwood Road North, Leigh, in April 6 2012, where he offered his services as a balloon artist. 

Russell was also seen by swimming teacher at Earls Hall School in Carlton Avenue, Westcliff, who asked him to help distribute leaflets about an upcoming event at the school. 

Later, he wormed his way into working at the school as a balloon artist and children’s entertainer on June 5 and July 19, 2013 and then again on July 19, 2014. 

But during one of his appearances a member of the public recognised him and called the police. 

Russell was also been found to have broken the order at the pub on March 29, 2013; August 3, 2013; April 4, 2014; and July 19, 2014. 

December 2014

Pensioner jailed for 50 years of sexual assaults on women and children

TO THE outside world pensioner Gwynfor Rhys Jones was a respectable member of the community.

But on and off over a 50 year period he secretly sexually assaulted women and children.

Jailing him for 12 years, Judge Rhys Rowlands said that fortunately it was highly unusual for a man to have repeatedly offended for such a long time.

Jones, aged 77, of Cae Derwen, Llanfair TH near Abergele, still maintained his innocence.

But he was convicted of 12 charges of indecent assault, attempted indecent assault, sexual activity with a child and sexual assault during a trial last month at Caernarfon Crown Court.

Sentencing him at Mold Crown Court, Judge Rowlands said that over the years there were seven separate victims.

One was a grown woman in her 40s, another a teenage girl, and the others were all very young.

His “deviant and wholly reprehensible behaviour” had been repeated over a period of years between 1960 and August of 2010, in the region of 50 years, he said.

“Yet you sit there with no comprehension at all of the harm your have caused them,” the judge told Jones.

Jones had no previous convictions but that feature was watered down by the fact that he had been committing offences over such an extended period of time.

“You appeared to be an entirely responsible individual in the small community in which you lived.

“But outward appearances can be very deceptive indeed,” he said.

“For a man of 77 in ill-health the sentence I am about to impose means it is unlikely in the extreme that you will ever be in a position to offend in a similar way again.”

He had shown no remorse .

He had offended from his early 20s on an off until the last offence against a grown woman when the defendant himself was in his early 70s.

“Such repeated depravity on the part of a man is thankfully very , very unusual indeed.”

Jonathon Austin, defending, said that his client did not accept the verdicts of the jury.

He suffered ill-health including a heart condition and maintained the support of his wife who was in court to provide him with moral support.

December 2014

Deal phishing scammer Lewys Martin stole Lloyds bank customer details – and downloaded child abuse images

A phishing scammer who obtained thousands of bank details from Lloyds customers has been jailed after police discovered indecent images of children on his computer.

In May 2013 Lewys Martin, from Deal, contacted Lloyds Bank, threatening to reveal thousands of customers’ details, illegally obtained using phishing software.

The 22-year-old blackmailer demanded £207,000 from the bank to be paid in Bitcoins, an untraceable digital currency. 

Martin included samples of the stolen details to prove he was genuine, but the bank contacted the police.

The Metropolitan Police Cyber Crime Unit launched an investigation and traced the blackmail threat to Martin.

Detectives seized his computer and phone and found stolen bank account data – including  740,000 email addresses – as well as three programs designed for phishing.

But that was not all they discovered – Martin also had a number of indecent images of children stored on his system.

Martin pleaded guilty to blackmail, possession of articles for use in fraud, and possession of indecent images of children.

He was jailed for 27 months for the fraud and blackmail and 23 months for possessing indecent images of children – a total of four years and two months in prison.

He was also given a five-year Sexual Offences Prevention Order at Southwark Crown Court.