September 2013

Community order for perverted pensioner

A PERVERTED pensioner who downloaded indecent images of young babies being abused from the internet has been sentenced to a three-year community order.

Convicted “flasher” William Sanderson, 65, had more than 700 images on his computer tablet and Bradford Crown Court heard yesterday that some of the shocking material involved babies that were just a few months old.

Police officers monitoring Sanderson’s behaviour discovered the indecent images when they visited his home in July last year.

Prosecutor Charlotte Eastwood told the court that Sanderson, who has several convictions for indecent exposure dating back to the 1960s, initially claimed to have only been visiting naturist websites.

In July this year Sanderson admitted 11 charges relating to his possession of the indecent images and yesterday Judge John Potter imposed a three-year community order with a three-year supervision requirement.

Judge Potter said Sanderson had downloaded the material for his own perverted sexual gratification, but he was now indicating, for the first time in his life, a willingness to undertake work with specialist probation staff.

“It is clear to me, Mr Sanderson, that you are somebody who is a determined sexual deviant,” said the judge. “I want to make it very clear to you that downloading material of this type has a direct effect upon children being caused harm. You contribute to that harm of children.”

Sanderson, of Greycourt Close, Halifax, will also have to undertake a high-level activity programme for 50 days and he will be subject to a sexual offences prevention order which restricts his access to the internet.

He will also have to register as a sex offender with the police for five years and he is now banned from any work with may involve contact with children.

September 2013

Morley man jailed for eight years for raping child

A Morley man who raped a young girl during three years of sexual abuse has been jailed for eight years.

Paul Richards, 45, preyed on the youngster when she was aged between nine and 11 years old, Leeds Crown Court heard.

The offences were committed during the 1990s when Richards, of Margaret Close, Morley, was in his 20s.

Leeds Crown Court was told the offences came to light last year when the victim reported Richards to the police through fear he may target other youngsters.

Richards pleaded guilty to three offences of rape, three of indecency with a child and one of indecent assault.

He was also ordered to go on the sex offenders list for life when he was sentenced.

Judge Geoffrey Marson, QC, told him: “I have read the profound effect that your offending has had upon her life.

“She has carried this for many years, feeling guilty about what happened between you when she bore absolutely no responsibility for it.

“This campaign of sexual abuse is so serious that only a custodial sentence can be justified.”

Charles Blatchford, mitigating, described the case as “tragic”.

He said Richards was sorry for what he had done and had pleaded guilty at an early stage after he was charged with the offence.

The barrister added that Richards still had the support of his family but accepted that he must be punished for what he had done.

Det Chief Insp Gail Lawrie, of Operation Topaz, West Yorkshire Police’s dedicated rape investigation unit, said: “Richards carried out repeated sexual offences against a young and vulnerable victim.

“She has been extremely courageous in coming forward and speaking out.

“We take reports of this nature very seriously and have specially trained officers who will work with victims to bring the matter before the courts where those responsible will face the consequences of their actions, just as Richards has.”

September 2013

Kernan man (49) admits child abuse images

A Portadown man will be sentenced next month for making and distributing indecent photographs of children.

Rodney Jeffers (49) of Kernan Grove, appeared for arraignment on Monday at Craigavon Crown Court.

He admitted three charges of making indecent photographs of children, four charges of distributing indecent photographs and five charges of possessing indecent photographs of children.

The offences happened between April 14, 2009, and June 14, 2012. Jeffers was remanded on continuing bail to appear for sentencing on October 11.

A pre-sentence report will be prepared.

The defendant will be given notice of the duration of requirements to comply with the act when dealt with in due course.

September 2013

Man who sent explicit text images told 12-year-old girl ‘age is only a number’

A Fife man sent sexually explicit messages to a 12-year-old girl and told her age was “only a number”, Cupar Sheriff Court has heard.

Jon McDonald McClure Walker, 23, described as a prisoner at Perth, admitted that between February 2 2013 and May 15 this year he sent the girl a photograph of his genitals at Tower Well, High Street, Newburgh, as well as other sexually explicit messages.

He also pleaded guilty to being in possession of indecent images or pseudo images of children at the same address on June 26 this year.

The court heard after receiving an indecent message, the girl responded to Walker asking him if he knew how old she was to which he replied: “Yes, and I don’t care. Age is only a number.”

Police were called after the child’s mother became aware of the messages and a search warrant was obtained to search Walker’s Newburgh home.

Further indecent images were found on a laptop owned by Walker, including 124 at level 1 of the SAP Scale and four at level 2.

Police also found 18 videos, of which six were level 4 and one was level 5.

Another laptop and memory card were also found at the address which contained 39 further indecent images at level 1.

Defence agent Robin Beattie said Walker, who has a previous sex offence conviction, was “very apologetic” and “accepted full responsibility”.

Sheriff Charles Macnair deferred sentence until October 3 for reports and remanded Walker in custody.

October 2012

Liverpool man avoids jail for grooming schoolgirl because judge says it’s not in the public interest

A MAN who groomed a 14-year-old schoolgirl for sex over the internet avoided prison after a judge said jailing him was not in the public interest.

Philip Mottershead, 33, found the girl’s profile on Facebook last year and began to bombard her with compliments and requests for pictures.

Derek Jones, prosecuting, said he told her she was “gorgeous” and asked her to make him a Facebook friend.

From his flat in Beetham Tower on Old Hall Street in Liverpool city centre he sent messages and texts suggesting: “I think you should come and get naughty with me. Come get in my bed XXX.”

He said: “You are nine and half out of ten. Ten out of ten if you meet me. Twenty out of ten if you had a threesome. Would you?”

She told him she had to be home by 9.30pm and he said: “Even if I only got to see you for an hour … we could do a lot in an hour. Give me your sizes and there will be underwear and a bottle of champagne waiting.”

At one point the girl who is from Wirral but cannot be named said it was “weird” that he was asking these things because he was old enough to be her dad.

He said: “I’ve never considered anything like this before. You are just wow.”

Eventually the girl told a cousin what had been happening and she encouraged her to go to the police.

Mottershead was arrested and pleaded guilty to grooming a child.

Derek Jones said the girl had nightmares because of the incident, was on sleeping pills and was scared he would turn up at her school.

Judge Robert Warnock, said:

“Having heard the content of your pathetic imprecations towards the child I’m relieved no actual meeting took place.

“Had you been convicted by a jury I would have had no compunction whatsoever in sentencing you to prison for 18 months to two years.

“But simply imprisoning you would not protect the public as well as the course set out in the pre-sentence report.”

He ordered Mottershead to attend a sex offender’s programme for three years, made a seven year sexual offences order which prevents him from accessing social network sites and banned him from working with children.

He added: “If you breach any terms I’m making now you will be brought back to court before me and the second best alternative will take place. You will go into custody.”

September 2013

Charity scam British paedophile sent to Thai prison

A BRITISH sex offender who ran a children’s “charity” from a rubbish dump in Cambodia is being forced to return to the country to serve ten years in jail for rape.

David Fletcher, 67, from Saffron Walden, Essex, is to be extradited from Thailand where he has spent the past three years on the run.

The pervert was originally sentenced in Cambodia’s capital Phnom Penh in 2011 after being convicted of twice raping a 17-year-old girl. Sentence was passed in his absence.

Before the sex attacks he had plotted to marry his victim by paying £100 to her poverty-stricken mum. Fletcher fled to Thailand to avoid prosecution in 2010 but was arrested.

A Thai court ordered his extradition to Cambodia a year later but he appealed the decision. But an Appeal Court judge in Bangkok has now ruled Fletcher can be returned to serve his sentence as it does not breach his human rights.

Fletcher, born in Littleport in 1946, successfully ran a series of hairdressing salons in Cambridge and Saffron Walden was convicted at Norwich Crown Court in July 1997 of the statutory rape of a 15-yr-old girl and for filming the ordeal, whom he first plied with champagne and to whom he offered £250 cash for sex. He also admitted possessing offensive weapons, two pepper sprays and two canisters of CS gas. He was jailed for just eighteen months.

But he used it to groom children for sex, according to charity Action Pour Les Enfants.

September 2013

Cadet instructor jailed for sex attacks

A CADET instructor has been jailed for 11 years for sex attacks on girls.

Glen Stanbury raped one victim and sexually abused two others.

The 29-year-old former army soldier denied one charge of rape and three of sexual activity with a child but was found guilty by a jury at Newcastle Crown Court.

Judge Penny Moreland told Stanbury his victims may never recover from his actions.

She added: “The impact on the complainants cannot be overstated.

“What you have done has caused them enormous damage, damage from which it is unlikely they will ever recover.”

Judge Moreland said Stanbury, of Oak Avenue, South Shields, must sign the sex offenders register and will be barred from working with children for life.

Tony Hawks, defending, said Stanbury comes from a “respectable and caring” family and has a good background.

Judge Moreland said Stanbury was of “previous positive character”.

The judge told him: “You come, I accept, from a good and respectable family and distress will be caused to them by what you did.”

January 2012

Dying paedophile sentenced to 15 years

A child abuser with cancer will die in jail after he was sentenced to 15 years in prison for a catalogue of offences.

Great Hollands man Terence Morgan was sentenced for 13 counts of sexual abuse against two children which took place over a number of years up until May 2011 and included raping a girl under 13 years old.

Judge Bruce McIntyre was invited to reduce the 66-year-old’s sentence on the grounds that he is suffering from cancer, but he ignored the plea, although he did express regret that Morgan may only have weeks to live.

Sentencing at Reading Crown Court on Friday, December 23, Judge McIntyre said: “It seems to me that I ought to sentence on the basis that you are not ill.

Your behaviour in committing these offences points at strange interests on your part in having sexual relationships with young girls. You betrayed trust to satisfy your sexual appetite.”

June 2011

Jailed over underage sex act with underage girl

This is the face of a former drug addict who performed a sex act with an underage girl in the ladies’ toilet during his sister’s wedding.

Lee Defferary, 26, was caught when his 14-year-old victim’s father burst into a cubicle and found him drunk and with his trousers open with the girl on August 21, last year.

Staff at the Holiday Inn in Basingstoke Road, Whitley, were called and Defferary began punching and shouting racial abuse at security officer Suleyman Inal.

Defferary then went outside, got in a car and began driving it towards the hotel reception, despite being over the limit, Reading Crown Court heard. He was later found in possession of a quantity of cannabis.

He told police he had no recollection of what happened but later admitted one count of sexual activity with a child, one count of racially aggravated assault and possession of a Class B drug on May 5.

He denied one count of rape and another of sexual activity with a child, which was accepted by the Crown, and the case proceeded on the three other charges and a summary offence of drink-driving.

The court heard Defferary had previously had an addiction to cocaine and heroin and while he was not of good character he had never been convicted of a sexual offence.

Sentencing, Judge Richard Parkes said the girl had held a fascination for Defferary but had “suffered to a considerable degree” after what happened at the hotel, despite her consent.

Judge Parkes described the offences as “appalling” but credited Defferary for his early guilty plea, adding he did not consider him to be a “predatory paedophile”.

He added while Deferrary’s behaviour was abusive to Mr Inal, it was “out of character”, which was backed up by the defendant’s Asian employer who described him as “an honourable person”.

Judge Parkes sentenced Defferary, of Drewett Close, Whitley Wood, to two years and six months for sexual activity with a child and a further four months for racially aggravated assault, to be served consecutively.

He gave no separate penalty for cannabis possession but placed him on the sexual offenders’ register for 10 years, banned him from driving for 18 months and ordered him to resit the driving test.

March 2011

Child cruelty couple jailed

A couple who admitted child cruelty have each been sentenced to 26 weeks in prison.

Robert Butler, 44, of College Piece, Mortimer, and Lesley Butler, 42, of Anson Crescent, Whitley Wood, both admitted one count of cruelty to a child under 16 between August 2007 and July 2009.

A jury at Reading Crown Court had heard in February that the couple had locked a child in a darkened room in bloodstained pyjamas and with dirty bedding.

They appeared before Judge Richard Parkes for sentencing at Oxford Crown Court on Monday.

July 2013

Bracknell man jailed for 22 months for ‘frenzied’ attack on toddler

A father-to-be who rained down punches on a toddler in a “frenzied” attack has been jailed.

Luke Reeves left the three-year-old with two black eyes, a judge heard.

The 21-year-old, charged alongside his pregnant girlfriend Karlie, who is due to give birth on August 27, was told by Judge Ian Grainger: “This was a shocking attack on a wholly defenceless young boy who deserved better at your hands.”

The pair, of Jennett’s Park, appeared together in the dock on Friday, June 28, having both admitted a single count of child cruelty.

Abigail Husbands, prosecuting, told Reading Crown Court there was an “incident in November which gave Yellowlees, 25, reason for concern”.

On New Year’s Day this year, the court heard, Reeves rang his sister and said the boy hit his head on the door or 
bed frame.

An ambulance took the child to hospital where he had “severe bruising to his face and head on both sides” as well as “two black eyes, a traumatic injury to the right ear and the inside of the boy’s mouth,” according to Ms Husbands.

When staff raised concerns about the injuries the couple claimed it was an accident.

During police interviews the couple span a web of lies, the court heard.

A consultant paediatrician said the boy’s injuries were inflicted by a “series of repeated blows by hard punching” in what must have been a “frenzied attack”.

The court heard police also obtained school reports made by another boy about a separate attack in which he said “Luke had kicked him in the balls”.

Jennifer Edwards, defending Reeves, said: “He’s the first to say he doesn’t control his emotions especially well and over-reacts.”

She added he “hotly denied” an attack on the boy and was “popular” according to his siblings and wider family.

Reeves also admitted a racially-aggravated common assault and a public order offence following an unprovoked attack on December 30 last year when he shoved and racially abused a 16-year-old boy.

Reeves was arrested and was freed from custody just hours before he battered the child.

Judge Grainger sentenced Yellowlees to a four-month jail term suspended for two years, placing her under supervision for the same period and ordering her to take part in a women’s programme.

Reeves was jailed for one year and 10 months, plus two two-month jail terms for the racially-aggravated assault and public order offences to run concurrently to  one another but consecutively to the child cruelty  sentence.

Judge Grainger said: “Instead of looking after him as you should have you subjected him to this shocking attack.”

August 2013

Exeter youth worker had images of child abuse and women having sex with animals

A youth worker was found with child abuse images on his computer after contacting a 14-year-old girl on the internet.

Steven Griffin, aged 41, was tracked down by police after the teenager sent him a naked picture of herself and officers then found the vile images and movies.

He has been banned from working with children after telling a probation officer he had a sexual interest in girls aged 12 to 16.

Griffin, of Windermere Close, Exeter, pleaded guilty to seven charges of making or possessing indecent images of children and one of having 71 extreme images which showed adult women having sex with animals.

He was jailed for six months, suspended for two years and ordered to attend a sex offenders’ course as a part of a two year supervision order by Judge Erik Salomonsen at Exeter Crown Court.

The judge also imposed a Sexual Offences Prevention Order which restricts his contact with children and will prevent him working with them in the future. He has already lost his job in the care sector.

The Judge told him:” As a result of what was thought to be inappropriate behaviour involving a child the police came to your home and seized your computer equipment and found these images.

“You admitted to the police and probation officers you had an interest in children and say you have set about obtaining treatment.

“It is inevitable you will be barred from working with children and you will also be required to sign on the sex offenders’ register.”

Mr Gordon Richings, prosecuting, said police examined his computers after a complaint about his online contact with a 14-year-old girl who allegedly sent him a naked photo of herself.

The original inquiry did not result in any charges but police experts found 21 images or movies of children of which 13 showed adults having sex with girls.

He said:”He told the writer of the pre sentence report he had an interest in female children aged 12 to 16 and was sexually aroused by images of them.

“He also said he had started receiving counselling from a psychotherapist in Paignton. He was originally interviewed by the police in relation to his contacting a 14-year-old female on the internet.

“He accepted he had been sent a naked photograph by her but said it was not sexual. He denied searching the internet for child abuse images and at that stage denied any sexual interest in children.”

Mr Nick Bradley, defending, said Griffin recognises he needs help for his problems and has already sought it voluntarily and is said by his counsellor to be making progress.

He said:”At the time the employment he had involved helping young people and there is no suggestion he acted inappropriately in relation to these duties.

“The police visited him because there was some suggestion there was something inappropriate going on with his contact with a girl on the internet but it has not resulted in any charges.”

Update: September 2013: O’Rourke will be released on tag within the next few weeks

November 2012

Crying baby left with terrible injuries after carer ‘lost it’

A seven-week old baby girl was left with life threatening inuries after a man shook her when she continued to cry.

Lincoln Crown Court heard how Nicholas O’Rourke had been allowed to look after the child on his own at his flat in the city.

But Katya Saudek, prosecuting, said that when O’Rourke returned the baby to her mother the child was screaming and in distress.

O’Rourke had earlier told the mum that the baby had rolled out of bed and suffered a cut to her eye.

Miss Saudek said: “When the baby was returned, her mother immediately noticed bruising to her face and that one of the baby’s eyes was closed.

“It was immediately apparent to her it had not been caused by rolling out of bed. The mother tried to feed the baby but the baby vomited.

“She saw there was something clearly wrong and knew she had to get the baby straight to hospital.”

An ambulance was called and the baby was taken to Lincoln County Hospital where she was found to have extensive bruising to her face, head, chest and abdomen.

Miss Saudek said: “The baby was unwell and initially doctors described her as having possible life-threatening injuries.”

A scan revealed the child had suffered bleeding within the brain. Other injuries included suffered bruising to her face, abdomen and around her eyes, a fractured skull, a punctured lung, broken ribs and a possible fracture to a bone at the back of the head. The baby girl also now suffers from epilepsy due to the attack

The court was told the baby was ultimately found not to have suffered severe brain damage. However, her injuries may leave her with learning difficulties and other issues although the long-term prognosis is not clear.

O’Rourke was later arrested and, after initially continuing to claim the baby rolled off the bed, later changed his story.

He admitted he “lost it” with the child because she would not stop crying. He said he shook the child three or four times but she then slipped from his grasp and fell onto the concrete floor.

Earlier in 2012 O’Rourke, 20, of Cotman Road, Lincoln, admitted inflicting grievous bodily harm as a result of the incident on 23 August 2012. He was sent to a young offenders’ institution for 20 months.

Recorder Sam Mainds told him: “You shook the child and dropped her on the floor, all of which is horrendous and disgraceful conduct.

“Many of us who have had the position of bringing up our own children know we rely on our own background and our own upbringing. This defendant had none of that. His mother died when he was 10. He had a totally disjointed and fractured childhood.”

The Recorder said the baby’s mother could not be criticised for allowing the child to stay with O’Rourke as the baby had stayed with him on previous occasions and returned safely.

Jonathan Straw, defending, said the injuries had been caused as a result of a single episode which occurred when O’Rourke lost control.

He said O’Rourke had a difficult upbringing having lost his mother at a young age.

“It is my submission that this offence was brought on not by malice but by inadequacy. He has led a troubled life.”

May 2013

Lee Tandy, 35, convicted of causing GBH to baby

This is Lee Tandy who caused such severe injuries to a baby he suffered bleeding on the brain, bruising and a fractured rib.

Tandy, 35, has now been jailed for five-and-a half years after being found guilty of causing grievous bodily harm and child cruelty against a three month-old boy in Worthing.

For legal reasons the child involved cannot be named.

Tandy, a financial services employee, of Mardale Road, Worthing, was charged with two offences of GBH and child cruelty against the baby in April and May 2011.

He was sentenced at Chichester Crown Court following a four-day trial in April where the jury found him guilty of all three charges.

The court heard that the baby was admitted to hospital with bleeding on the brain, bruised legs and a fractured rib on 29 May, 2011. The baby had also been admitted to hospital twice before. These injuries were found to be non-accidental.

The baby survived but spent time recovering in hospital.

After the case, Detective Constable Keith Fifield said: “This was a good result after what has been a long and complex investigation. Tandy inflicted grievous injuries on the baby, who was just a few months old at the time.”

Detective Sergeant Dave Hirst, of the Child Protection Team, added: “It is just under two years since the actual incident and within that time DC Keith Fifield and his colleagues conducted a thorough and complex investigation culminating in an excellent result today.

“As always I am in complete awe at the work detectives carry out in the Child Protection Team, which seeks to prosecute and safeguard children, the most vulnerable element of our society which in many cases, including this, has no voice.”

June 2013

Chester father jailed for leaving son with permanent brain damage

A CHESTER father has been jailed for shaking his baby son and causing him to be permanently brain damaged.

Richard Lovell, 25, a former chef, of Treborth Road, Blacon, “lost control” and shook his four-month-old son, R-Jay Lovell, leaving him with bleeds to the brain and extensive haemorrhages in both eyes, Chester Crown Court heard yesterday.

Lovell, who took the unresponsive child to hospital after the incident on February 6, 2012, had initially claimed to have dropped his son but later told police he panicked after he had shaken the child to stop him from crying.

Lovell had called the child’s mother, his former fiancee Leanne Bullock, in a hysterical state after the incident in Chapel Lane, Boughton, where Miss Bullock lived with her son.

Some time after the event Lovell sent a text to Miss Bullock telling her: “I am sorry. I did not mean to hurt our son.”

Such was the extent of his injuries, which included a fractured forearm, the child, now 18 months old, was left severely visually impaired, unable to talk and suffers daily seizures, requiring him to have 24 hour care for the rest of his life.

Lovell, who has children from a previous relationship, pleaded guilty to inflicting grievous bodily harm.

Patrick Thompson, defending, said Lovell had not intended to harm his son and said the former chef had been working long hours. He was a hands on father, was extremely tired and had failed to cope with his son.

Mr Thompson added: “I don’t say this to excuse what happened but these are circumstances which led to this man’s loss of control. This is a man who never set out to harm his child.”

Jailing Lovell for two and a half years, the Recorder of Chester Judge Elgan Edwards, said his sentence was nothing compared to the sentence to which he had condemned his son.

“What you did was evil and wrong. If ever a child or victim was more vulnerable it was your son that day. You ruined that boy’s life, he will never be the same, he will have to be looked after for the rest of his life. The damages you inflicted are appalling and people should know the consequences of shaking a baby or child,” he said.

Mr Thompson added “Nothing that I can say is meant to underestimate the dreadful consequences for this child and his mother. Both of their lives have been ruined.

This is a man who was a hard working young man who lost control and as you have heard when dealing with a child that can have disastrous consequences. He is the father of this child and he has got to live with what he has done for the rest of his life that is a burden which weighs heavy on his shoulders.”

May 2013

Darran Brown jailed for baby boy GBH in Leatherhead

A 32-year-old man who seriously assaulted and neglected a four-month-old baby boy has been jailed for eight years.

Darran Brown, of Long Lane, Grays, Essex, was found guilty following a trial at Guildford Crown Court.

He was charged with child neglect and grievous bodily harm towards the child at a property in Leatherhead, Surrey.

Det Con James Chapman, from Surrey Police, said Brown committed a “cruel and violent act on an innocent child”.

Hospital staff contacted police after the boy was admitted in a critical condition with serious head and facial injuries in April 2011.

Police said the injuries he suffered mean he will never live an independent life.

Det Con Chapman said: “This was a cruel and violent act on an innocent child who was unable to defend himself against a grown man and although this sentence will never undo the damage caused by this man it will make sure people are protected from him for some time.

“Crimes against our most vulnerable members of society are inexcusable.”

September 2013

Paedophile who groomed girl on social networking site is jailed

A PAEDOPHILE who abused a 14-year-old Gwent girl after creating a false profile on a social network site has been jailed for almost four years.

Richard Foote, 25, claimed to be 16 on the site, before assaulting the teen in a cinema.

Foote also kept 97 indecent images of children on his computer, including a “sadist” level 5 video of a restrained girl aged three or four being raped.

He gained the sympathy of the girl and her mother by pretending to have heart problems. The girl became besotted with him and complied with his sexual demands on the phone and when she met him in person, Cardiff Crown Court was told.

Jailing him for three years and 10 months, Judge Tom Crowther told him: “It has poisoned her emotional awakening and her sexual awakening, which will forever be associated with fraud.”

Police found many profiles of teenage girls who used the site on his computer, said crown prosecutor Ruth Smith. Detectives found he had already made contact with two girls aged 14 and 15 on the social networking site.

Foote, of Carrholm Drive, Leeds, pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual grooming and two counts of sexual activity with a child. He also admitted 16 counts of making indecent images of a child.

Defence barrister Brian Kennedy said Foote had “dwelt in a very dark place” but understood the wrong he had done and had vowed to try to turn his life around.

Judge Crowther jailed Foote for 16 months for each count of grooming, two and half years for one charge of sexual activity with a child and 40 months for the second, to run concurrently.

He received six months for each of the 16 charges of making indecent images, to run concurrently. The 40-month sentence will run consecutively, making 46 months. He will serve half before being released on licence. Judge Crowther also imposed an order, stopping him from having unsupervised contact with under-16s for the rest of his life

July 1999

Year’s jail for childminder who left shaken baby brain-damaged

A registered childminder who shook a five-month-old baby girl so violently she was left brain-damaged was yesterday jailed for 12 months.

Shirley Clemons, 48, shook the child with the force of a high speed car crash causing her brain to be “knocked against the sides of her skull like a jelly”, Coventry crown court was told.

The baby, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was left close to death and with a brain injury which will severely retard her development following the attack last year.

After an eight day trial, Clemons was found guilty of inflicting grievous bodily harm on the girl.

Judge Kenneth Wilson-Mel lor QC, told Clemons that she had left the victim, now 21 months old, with epilepsy and speech and vision problems.

He said: “You treated that baby with great violence. She came very close to death.”

The judge added that Clemons’s defence that she had shaken the child in an attempt to revive her was “entirely spurious”.

Clemons, of Styvechale, Coventry, denied the charge but was found guilty by a majority 10-2 verdict.

The jury of seven women and five men cleared her of an alternative charge of causing grievous bodily harm with intent.

After she was jailed family members wept in the public gallery, and the baby’s parents, a car company executive and an architectural technician from Warwickshire, said: “Our daughter has been left a shadow of the girl she was and will suffer for the rest of her life as a result of her injuries. Our lives will never be the way they were to be.

“But we are grateful beyond words that we still have her and love her immensely. She has shown more strength than any of us in recent months and we are determined to do everything we can to give her back as much as possible.”

They called on local and national government to introduce tighter controls on childminders and bring in a national childminder register.

Clemons faced a trial earlier this year in which the jury failed to agree. Yesterday’s hearing was a retrial.

September 2013

Paedophile teacher in chat room grooming shame

A PAEDOPHILE teacher was caught by an undercover detective posing as an 11-year-old girl on an internet chat room. Adam Ford, a maths lecturer at Hull College, sent explicit messages to the girl in a series of online conversations and performed a sex act while he was on webcam.

When police raided his house, they found hundreds of indecent images and films of children on his computer. Ford, 39, wept and mouthed, “I’m sorry”, as he was jailed for two years at Hull Crown Court.

Prosecutor Jharna Jobes said: “An undercover operation was set up involving an officer pretending to be an 11-year-old girl. They went on the internet and entered a teen chat site, where they received a private message from this defendant. He was asking where she lived and how old she was. She told him she was 11.”

The court heard that although Ford had sought treatment for being a paedophile in 2003, he had never received any complaints about his conduct as a lecturer at the college or as a private tutor.

At first, Ford claimed to be 28 and told the girl his profile picture of a “muscular black male” was him. He later confessed it wasn’t and switched on his webcam. She could see him performing a sex act, but could not see his face.

Mrs Jobes said: “He was naked and reclined on a leather chair. He said he didn’t like to show himself properly because he liked young girls.”

Ford then asked the girl to switch on her webcam and send him pictures of herself during the conversation. Over the next week, he spoke to the girl four more times in the chat room and on the webcam in conversations lasting up to three- and-a-half hours. On each occasion, he was performing a sex act, while on the webcam.

Mrs Jobes said: “In one conversation, he said he would like to be her boyfriend, but said they would have to keep it secret. In another, he said he was sorry because she was so young.”

Ford admitted five charges of attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity, attempting to engage in sexual activity in the presence of a child and six charges of possessing indecent images and films. The conversations took place between April 24 and May 2 last year.

He was arrested at his home in Spring Bank, Hull, on May 22. Police seized two laptop computers, where they found 737 indecent images of children and 33 films.

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September 2013

Child sex abuse victim: ‘I’ll never trust men again’

A WOMAN says the trauma of being sexually abused by a social worker at the age of 14 has left her unable to trust any man around her children – including their father.

The mum, who was abused at Moorfield Children’s Home in Sinfin, said she even refused to let her husband bath their baby daughter.

She said her insecurities – born out of her harrowing ordeal – led to her marriage breaking down.

On Friday, it was revealed the woman, who cannot be identified, had agreed a £15,000 compensation package from Derbyshire County Council, which ran the children’s home when the abuse took place.

The woman – known as “M” – revealed how the attack had affected her life since.

She said: “I’ve been very over-protective of my children. My first child was a daughter and I never allowed her father to bath her or change her nappy.

“That’s a normal thing for a father to do but I would not allow him to. It drove quite a big wedge between us. We’ve since split up.

“I’ve told my children what they should do if anyone touches them. I’ve said to them, ‘you scream, you shout, you kick and keep doing it until someone hears you’. “They wondered why I was telling them this so I told them what happened to me.

“The abuse I suffered has had a huge effect on me. I still need counselling because of it.”

M had been watching television on Christmas Day when the social worker, Richard Carey, sat beside her and carried out the abuse.

He was jailed about a decade later for eight years after being convicted of a series of sexual offences – including against M, whose allegation was not believed at first.

The trial heard he placed a blanket over himself and M to conceal what was happening.

M – who is now living in Birmingham – said the months that followed the abuse were “hell”.

She said: “He had worked there for a long time and his wife was one of the people in charge there, so no-one would believe me.

“There was a cover-up. It was allowed to be swept under the carpet.

“I did not have anyone alongside me, like a family member, when I spoke about what had happened. It was just me – there was no-one there to stop the cover-up.

“My advice to anyone making a complaint is to make sure they are represented by someone they trust.”

Asked about how she felt at not being believed, M said: “It was horrible. I was treated like a leper. None of the male staff wanted me around them because they were afraid I would accuse them of something. I lost out on a lot of trips – even the simple things like going off to the shop I could not go on.

“I left around three months after it happened because I didn’t feel I could stay there any more. Everything had changed.”

M had sought compensation after Carey was convicted. However, the law at that time imposed a strict time limit for bringing cases – and hers was considered to be out of time.

Since then, the law has changed so that historical cases can still be brought.

M revealed she did not have to fight the council to receive her £15,000 settlement.

She said: “The council were quite willing to pay. At first they offered me £5,000, which was declined. Straight away they offered £15,000, which was accepted. They were very apologetic about what had happened.

“The settlement will now help me move on to the next stage of my life and will mean I can get further specialist help and advice on issues that just wouldn’t be affecting me if it wasn’t for the abuse.

“It has been a weight around my shoulders for so long and I have battled to make a success of my life.

“I’m incredibly inspired by people who have the courage to speak up about abuse they have suffered and hope that letting people know what happened to me might inspire others to help come to terms with what has happened to them.

“I am lucky to now have the support of my children and they have been a great help in dealing with everything over the past few years.”

Following the £15,000 settlement, a county council spokesman said: “This should never have happened and we’ve met with this lady to apologise to her personally and see what we can do to help her face the future.

“The safety and welfare of children in our care is our priority and we’ve reassured this lady that the way children in care are looked after and protected has changed and improved dramatically since the 1980s – both locally and nationally.

“The criminal actions of this individual employee were totally unacceptable and do not reflect the usual high professional standards and care of our social workers, past or present.

“We hope this brave woman can rebuild her life and we will continue to offer her any support we can.”