April 2015

Teenage girl found child abuse images on second-hand computer

A teenage girl found indecent images of children on a second-hand laptop she had been given for her birthday.

Following the discovery, police launched an investigation which led them to the laptop’s former owner, James Dell.

Officers searched Dell’s Burbage home and found hundreds more indecent images of children, plus other extreme pornography, on his computer equipment.

Prosecutor Neil Bannister told Leicester Crown Court 60-year-old Dell traded in his laptop at a shop in Hinckley on January 16, 2010.

A week later, the computer was bought by a man for his daughter’s 16th birthday.

“To her distress, she uncovered some files which indicated there may be some disturbing images,” said Mr Bannister.

He said the girl’s 11-year-old sister had also used the computer, although she had not seen the images.

“The elder daughter informed her father and he was angry and distressed,” said Mr Bannister.

The father called the police, who retrieved the laptop, and subsequently searched Dell’s home, in Flamville Road.

Computers and memory sticks were seized and analysed, uncovering 717 indecent images – 283 at level one, the lowest category of seriousness, 55 at level two, 144 at level three, 224 at level four and 11 at level five, the most serious category.

Five examples of extreme pornography were also uncovered.

Dell pleaded guilty to 10 counts of making indecent images and two of possessing extreme pornography.

He was jailed for eight months, banned from working with children and placed on a sex offender register for 10 years.

Judge Simon Hammond said: “Any right-minded person would be utterly disgusted by some of the images I have had to see.

“How anyone could find them attractive I know not. The gravity of this offending is that young children somewhere in the world have been grossly sexually abused to create these images.

“Their lives have been ruined. These children in these images will never be the same again. Their innocence have been stolen.”

In mitigation, James Varley said many of the images were duplicates and that not all were accessible to people without specialist computer knowledge or software.

Mr Varley said Dell had discovered child pornography on a computer he bought at a car boot and had then sought out more.

“He accepts that he did find them gratifying,” said Mr Varley.

“He has family members in court who have to hear that and he finds that crippling.”

June 2011

Man jailed for sex attack

A man has been jailed for eight years and three months for a violent sex attack on a North Tyneside teenager.

Robert Lucas Fairley, 44, of Martin Road, Howdon was sentenced at Newcastle Crown Court on Monday, June 6, 2011 after earlier pleading guilty to a section 18 assault with the intention of committing a sexual offence.

Fairley attacked the 14-year-old girl in the Kensington Gardens area of Monkseaton on the morning of Saturday, October 23, last year. The girl was left shocked and severely distressed by the attack and needed hospital treatment for her injuries.

Superintendent Peter Farrell, of North Tyneside Area Command, said: “This was a violent sexual attack on a young girl which was extremely distressing for her.

“Fairley clearly poses a danger to young girls and I hope this substantial sentence will bring comfort to this teenager and her family and help her to begin to put this ordeal behind her. This sentence will also offer protection to the public as a violent offender has now been removed from our society.

“Incidents of this nature also cause great concern to the wider community and I would like to reassure people that these sorts of crime are unusual in our area.”

The Northumbria Police Crime Department mounted an extensive investigation into this attack. They worked closely with local neighbourhood officers who increased foot patrols in the Whitley Bay area while enquiries were underway to both reassure and protect the community.

Supt Farrell added: “I would like to thank officers involved in the investigation whose professionalism and skill led to Fairley being arrested on November 1. I would also like to thank the community for their valuable assistance. Many people came forward in response to officers appeals for information after we released CCTV images of potential witnesses, their contribution was of great value to the investigating team.”

April 2015

Irvine man who hoarded images of children being sexually abused is facing jail

Stuart Woodland, 35, was caught after his flatmate borrowed his computer to work on a joint history project about the town.

But the witness was shocked to find indecent pictures of young children stored on the hard drive.

Woodland admitted possessing the illegal material which he had amassed between September 2008 and March last year, when he was arrested.

Police found search terms and websites on his computer commonly shared by paedophiles.

Sentence was deferred until later this month at Kilmarnock Sheriff Court and Woodland was freed on bail.

In 2010, Woodland claimed he had arranged for The Scheme star Marvin Baird to star in a Christmas panto at Irvine’s Harbour Arts Centre. The event never materialised.

April 2015

Cleckheaton sex offender used a library computer to search for children online

A sex offender who used a library computer to make Internet searches on children was in breach of a court order.

Tony Spencer, of Westgate in Cleckheaton, was before Kirklees Magistrates’ Court today.

The court heard that the 37-year-old was subject to a Sexual Offences Prevention Order by a crown court judge in May 2011.

This banned him from accessing online sites relating to children aged under 16.

But he ignored the order while at a library in the town on September 23.

A librarian discovered that Spencer had carried out searches online using the word ‘children’.

District Judge Michael Fanning sentenced him to a 12-month community order with activities specified by probation staff.

April 2015

Married maths teacher faces jail for groping 15-year-old schoolgirl in his car

A married Maths teacher at Max Clifford’s old school is facing jail for groping a 15-year-old pupil in his car.

Paul Shorter had a series of liaisons with the schoolgirl, who he was giving one-to-one tuition in a ‘serious’ breach of his position of trust at Rydens School in Hersham, Surrey.

Guildford Crown Court heard the 31-year-old kissed the teenager after class and also groped her in his car. 

The father-of-one, of Addlestone, Surrey, looked shaken and spoke softly as he admitted two counts of sexual activity with a child and one count of sexual activity with a child by a person in a position of trust. 

The judge was told that the girl had not wanted a sexual relationship with Shorter and on one occasion had stormed out of a personal tuition session when he tried to grope her.

But that one the instances in question, which took place between December 13, 2013 and January 19 last year, there was ‘ostensible consent.’ 

Shorter’s pregnant wife Joanne, who is expecting his child in six weeks, and other members of his family watched from the public gallery as the charges against him were read out.

But Judge Noel Lucas ruled that Shorter could not be sentenced until a victim impact statement had been taken from the girl to find out how his crimes had affected her. 

The pair met because Shorter was her Maths teacher at the school, which counts convicted sex offender Max Clifford and Manchester United and England left back Luke Shaw among its former pupils.

Judge Lucas passed an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order banning Shorter from working with children or having unsupervised contact with anybody under the age of 18. 

The court heard the former teacher, who has been on bail for the past 15 months, had found ‘gainful employment’ in a trade that did not bring him into contact with minors. 

The judge was told he has also been paying to see a psychologist, in a bid to help him to fight depression.

Judge Lucas said: ‘I am of course sympathetic to the defendant’s wife and the situation but your client must be under no illusion that the sentence I pass is likely to be nothing less than an immediate custodial sentence.’  

Shorter was bailed to appear before the same court on May 8.

April 2015

Paedophile jailed for offences against child in the early Nineties

A PENZANCE man who subjected a young girl to “repulsive and iniquitous” sexual abuse in the 1990s has been jailed.

David Blewett went on trial at Truro Crown Court last week where the court heard he abused the girl, who cannot be named for legal reasons, when he was in his forties.

Now 68, Blewett, of Chyandour Coombe, pleaded not guilty to five counts of indecently assaulting the girl on dates between 1991 and 1993.

He was found guilty on all counts by a jury on Monday, jailed for three years and ordered to sign the sex offenders’ register.

Mary McCarthy, for the prosecution, said the offences took place in the Penzance area and involved Blewett touching the girl inappropriately on a number of occasions.

“He would say things like, ‘You’re enjoying it really’,” Ms McCarthy said.

The victim, now an adult, had first contacted the police in 2013 but had spoken to others prior to that about what happened. Ms McCarthy said the woman had told a close friend when she was younger.

The court heard that in a police interview Blewett denied that the offences had taken place.

Following the verdicts David Evans, for the defence, said Blewett had denied the offences and continued to do so.

The sexual abuse had never progressed to a more serious level, he said.

“The defendant was a hardworking man throughout his life and, other than these offences, a law-abiding man.”

Sentencing him, Mr Justice Blake said there was no doubt Blewett’s actions had a devastating effect on the life of his victim, describing one of the incidents as “particularly repulsive and iniquitous”.

July 2014

A PENZANCE man is set to stand trial accused of sexually assaulting two young girls over a 19-year period.

At Truro Crown Court on Friday, David Blewett, 67, of Chyandour Coombe, pleaded not guilty to five counts of indecently assaulting one girl, who cannot be named for legal reasons, when she was aged under 14, between 1991 and 1993.

He also denied two charges of sexual activity with a second child between 2007 and 2012.

The case was adjourned to March 2 for trial.

April 2015

Pervert caught with ‘simply horrific’ images of child abuse

PERVERT Gary Watwood was found with hundreds of ‘appalling’ images of children as young as two on his computer after a raid at his home.

Judge David Fletcher told the 27-year-old that the abuse of young children would continue “so long as there are people like you sitting on computers in dark rooms”.

Watwood, of Etruria Vale Road, Etruria, admitted 19 separate counts of making indecent images of children – by way of downloading and copying them onto his computer.

Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court, above, heard that police executing a warrant on his former home at Baddeley Green, found over 500 images of children as young as two-years-old.

Watwood has now been made subject to a sexual offences order which prevents him from deleting his internet history for five years.

He must also allow police to check any device, including mobile phone, capable of storing images, on request.

Prosecutor Fiona Cortese said: “At 8am on March 21 last year, officers searched his home address.

“Found were 54 still images at Category A, the most serious, 55 at Category B and 413 at Category C. There were also four movies at Category A, five at B and one at C.”

Mitigating, Kevin Mortlock said: “He has taken steps to address issues which have come to the surface since the time of his arrest.

“There are 532 photographs and videos in total, which may sound like a lot to some, but in cases like this it isn’t.

“He accepts he has searched for images of this nature and viewed them in what may be described as a rather dark period of his life. Since then he’s been receiving counselling.

“He is someone who has suffered depression since childhood.

Judge Fletcher told Watwood: “I have read the description of these images and quite frankly that’s enough for me, those were simply horrific.

“You tell me you’ve not been very well, you have been suffering from some depression – well the little children in the images you were watching were suffering too.”

Watwood was handed a three-year community order, during which he will attend an internet sex offender programme.

He was also placed on the sex offenders register for five years and ordered to pay £530 costs.

April 2015

Child abuser facing jail after 12 sex attacks in 2 months on different girls as young as 6

A Spalding man has admitted a dozen sexual offences including sexually assaulting young girls as young as six years old in six different counties of the UK

Robert Parrish (50) pleaded guilty to 12 separate attacks at a short hearing at Peterborough crown court

The travelling electrician, who works at holiday homes across the country had already admitted a number of offences against young girls in Hull

Judge Tina Landale told Parrish to expect a jail sentence when he is next in court in a week.

Parrish faced a total of 14 charges, relating to offences in Peterborough, Milton Keynes, Whittlesley, Sutton Bridge, Stevenage and West Runton

He pleaded guilty to:

• Four counts of exposure

• Six counts of sexual assault on a child aged under 13

• Two counts of Voyeurism

Three of the sexual assaults happened in Peterborough and two in Whittlesley.

The Peterborough assaults relate to girls aged 6, 7 and 10 years old

The Whittlesley assaults relate to girls aged 8 and 10

At Hull Crown Court in September he also admitted sexually assaulting two Hull girls aged 9 and 6 years old

January 2015

Man (50) accused of sex attacks on girls in Peterborough area

A man has appeared in court charged with exposing himself to young girls in Peterborough and other areas of the country.

Robert Parrish (50) appeared at Magistrates’ Court on Friday, 23 January

His address was listed as HMP Hull in Humberside.

Parrish, dressed in a navy sweater and blue jeans, spoke only to confirm his name and date of birth in the hearing.

He is charged with a total of 14 counts, including three counts of sexually assaulting a girl aged under 13 in Peterborough and two more in Whittlesey.

He also faces a number of counts of exposure and voyeurism.

All the alleged offences are said to have taken place between July and September 2014.

Parrish did not enter a plea to any of the charges in the short hearing, and he was remanded into custody.

September 2014

Travelling electrician admits sexually assaulting Hull girls

Electrician Robert Parrish has admitted sexually assaulting two young Hull girls as they played outside.

Parrish assaulted a nine-year-old girl as she played in the front garden of her home in the Boothferry Road area of west Hull, on Monday, September 1.

Just a few hours later, he attacked an eight-year-old girl in the Holderness Road area of east Hull.

At Hull Crown Court, it was also revealed three other police forces across England want to speak to Parrish, of Spalding in Lincolnshire, about similar offences.

The travelling electrician, who works at holiday homes across the country, is wanted for questioning by officers in Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire and Cornwall.

Electronic equipment belonging to Parrish is also being investigated, the Crown Prosecution Service revealed.

Parrish admitted sexually assaulting the nine-year-old in west Hull and exposing himself, and also sexually assaulting the eight-year-old in east Hull.

But he denied a charge of beating and biting the eight-year-old, which the prosecution said it would not pursue.

John Thackray, prosecuting, asked for sentencing to be adjourned for a pre-sentence report and for the other matters to be pursued.

He said: “Police services in other counties would like to speak to Mr Parrish.

“There is also an investigation into electronic equipment belonging to Mr Parrish.”

The assault on the nine-year-old girl took place just after 1pm on Monday, September 1.

The victim was playing in her front garden with a friend when Parrish approached her and began talking to her. He began inappropriately touching her and then exposed himself before leaving.

Just a few hours later, the second victim was playing with a six-year-old girl in the Holderness Road area when Parrish approached them.

Parrish pulled down the eight-year-old’s shorts.

Hearing the girls scream, a member of the public rushed to see what had happened and held Parrish until police arrived.

Shortly after the assault, residents living in the area expressed their concern at what happened.

A young mother from the Holderness Road area said: “Things like this really put me off letting my children play outside. It really does worry me. “I keep an eye on my kids all the time, but to think that there are people out there who want to do things to children really scares me.”

The attack happened in an area close to a number of primary schools.

A pre-sentence report will be prepared and Parrish will next appear at Hull Crown Court on October 31.

November 2009

Man admits abusing two young boys

A farm labourer who abused two boys has been jailed for three years.

Brian Dolman spanked the youngsters and indecently touched one of them for his own sexual gratification as they shared a bed.

Dolman, of Church Street, Market Harborough, was placed on the sex offender register for life.

Leicester Crown Court heard the 35-year-old groomed the boys, who were both under 12 when the abuse started.

Caroline Bradley, prosecuting, said he first targeted the elder of the two in the summer of 2007, “indulging his fantasies” by spanking him.

When the boy told his father, police searched Dolman’s home. They found pornography relating to spanking.

Miss Bradley said Dolman spanked the other boy, indecently touched him and got the child to perform a sex act on him.

James Varley, defending, said: “He has had to accept that what he did was deviant and abhorrent to normal people.”

Dolman admitted 13 counts of sexual assault by touching a child aged under 13 and one charge of causing or inciting a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity, in 2007 and 2008.

Judge Simon Hammond told him: “The effect this sort of behaviour can have on youngsters cannot be minimised.”

April 2015

A FORMER soldier who lied about his age on Facebook to groom schoolgirls for sex has been jailed for four and a half years.

Lee Halpin, 21, targeted two pupils at Longcroft School in Beverley after striking up online conversations with them.

Halpin told the girls he was 17 and applied emotional pressure on them by saying he had been abused by his parents and self-harmed.

He arranged to meet one girl and plied her with drink to the point where she “felt sick” before twice having unprotected sex with her.

Halpin later met the other girl and asked her for a kiss.

The girl told him she was under-age, but Halpin mentioned “having a threesome”, which she declined.

Judge Mark Bury, sitting at Hull Crown Court yesterday, told Halpin: “Your background has put you in a position where you are seeking young people, it does not excuse your behaviour, but it does have some bearing and presents you with some mitigation.

“You are not, however, a person that has a learning disability – you have an average intelligence.

“There are a number of aggravating features present and I have to bear in mind there is more than one offence.

“The sentence you must serve is a custodial one of some length.”

Halpin, of Heywood, Greater Manchester, had previously admitted four counts of sexual activity with a child and one of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.

In mitigation, John Thackray said his client had mental health difficulties that have been ongoing for a while, which affected his judgment and ability to make good decisions.

The court was told two psychiatric reports recommended Halpin be made subject to a hospital order.

But Dr Swinton, described as “the local bed gatekeeper”, disagreed, so he could not be admitted.

Halpin was also handed a sexual harm prevention order for ten years and prohibited from contacting his victims.

April 2015

Pervert who had sex with 14-year-old schoolgirl has been jailed

Barry Wood (24) from Millbank Square in Whitburn, was found guilty at the High Court in Edinburgh of having sex with an underage girl, and lewd and libidinous behaviour.

He was jailed for 12 months last Thursday and put on the sex offenders register for 10 years.

The girl’s mother, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said this week that her daughter was still traumatised by Wood’s crime, which happened in 2008.

She said the teenager took an overdose of pills on the night of the crime and is still afraid to be alone in her own home.

She said: “I just want people to know what he did, he told so many lies about my daughter to people and about why he was going to court.

“My daughter has been devastated and has needed counselling, we all have, but in the end she was just glad that she was believed by the jury and he was found guilty.”

The woman said that Wood had befriended her daughter, but as far as she was concerned he had “groomed” her for sex.

She continued: “While I feel sorry for his mother my primary concern is my daughter and I am glad about the sentence he got because he is not a nice person.

“My daughter went through turmoil and while him going to prison is never going to help, she is relieved that it’s all over.”

She went on to say she was incredibly proud of her daughter and the way she conducted herself during the trial.

“I’ve never been more proud of her,” she said. “She only broke down once during the trial, despite the questions and the way they were asked by his defence.

“The time really never fits the crime, it’s so hard to get a result in cases like these. I believe it’s only around five per cent, so we feel it’s almost an achievement in a way and a fantastic result.”

The woman said her daughter is now looking to the future and wants to follow a career in social work.

She added: “I still find little notes that’s she’s written about how she’s feeling and she still gets flashbacks, which aren’t going to stop for a long time, but we’ve got a little bit of closure and we can try and move on.”

April 2015

Pervert jailed for abusing young girl groomed with sweets and chocolates

A MAN who lived in a shed sexually assaulted a young girl on multiple occasions.

Paul Tock, 26, groomed his victim by offering her sweets and chocolates and in return he would sexually assault her.

The victim reported Tock to her mother earlier this year.

She immediately called the police and Tock was arrested.

Prosecuting at Hull Crown Court, Dale Brook said: “Tock told his victim to pull her pants down and tempted her with a chocolate bar.”

The court heard how Tock, who claimed he was a virgin, would also persuade the girl to take off her clothes by promising her sweets and the opportunity to play games.

Tock made a full admission to police after his arrest and gave officers a detailed account of all the offences he had subjected his victim to.

He pleaded guilty to one count of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity and four counts of sexual assault of a child under the age of 13.

In mitigation, Joanna Golding said it was an unusual case and stressed her client had made full and frank admissions.

“The defendant unburdened his soul to the police officers,” she said.

“His admissions went far beyond what his victim had said.

“He is now receiving the help that he so desperately needs.”

Tock was sentenced to 56 months in prison.

Judge Paul Watson said: “It almost defies belief that you behaved in this way towards a nine-year-old girl.

“There is also clear evidence of grooming, which is a further aggravating feature.”

Tock has also been placed on the sex offenders register for life.

February 2009

North Shields father jailed after assaulting baby

AN ABUSIVE young father who inflicted a catalogue of injuries on his baby son was today behind bars.

Michael Giles admitted fracturing tiny Joshua Giles’ forearm and both his ankles as well as causing cuts to his ear, nose and injuries to his toes.

He was arrested after his eleven-week-old son was taken in a distressed state to North Tyneside Hospital by the child’s mother Lynette Duddin in April last year.

Giles, of Weyhill Avenue, North Shields, pleaded guilty to two counts of inflicting grievous bodily harm and one count of assault between the time of his son’s birth and admission to hospital.

The 20-year-old was sentenced to four years in a young offenders’ institution with one year’s extended licence at Newcastle Crown Court.

Duddin, 20, formerly of Weyhill Avenue, was sentenced to 40 weeks in a Young Offenders Institution suspended two years with two years supervision after admitting child cruelty by wilful neglect.

The court heard Duddin told police she had never seen Giles assault Joshua but while he was alone with him in another room, she had heard the baby crying and screaming.

“When I asked him about it, he said the baby was hungry and wanted to be fed,” she said. “My suspicions were he was behaving inappropriately towards Joshua.

“I didn’t tell anyone about my suspicions. I failed to protect Joshua. That was wrong.”

Tony Hawks, defending, said Giles was being sentenced not for deliberately assaulting his son but for examples of “recklessness, grossly inappropriate behaviour” leading to the injuries.

He said Giles was a young man of effectively good character who was “thoroughly ashamed” of what he had done but at no stage had he intended or forseen serious injury would be caused.

“He is not a sadistic wicked young man,” Mr Hawks said. “He is only 20-years-old and the inappropriate age at which people are becoming parents is a matter of public debate.

“This is another example of someone discharging the role of father while because of his age and background, he simply lacked the maturity and experience required to look after the child in an appropriate way.”

Judge David Wood said he shared the view outlined in a probation report that Giles represented a “significant” risk of causing serious harm to the public in future.

He said over the time Giles was involved with Joshua, he was misusing drugs and alcohol, had a bad temper he found difficult to control and Duddin was clearly frightened of him.

“Any member of the public looking at these facts cannot be anything other than horrified at your injuring a tiny baby in this way,” he told him.

The judge, who lifted reporting restriction preventing the identification of the baby, said he accepted Duddin had been an inexperienced and overwhelmed by parenthood as well as fearful of Giles.

January 2009

North Shields man admits attacking baby

A MAN has admitted attacking a three-month-old baby. Michael Giles, 19, pleaded guilty to three charges of inflicting grievous bodily harm on the youngster and one of assault.

The baby, who cannot be named for legal reasons, suffered fractures to its arms and legs after Giles attacked it.

His former partner, Lynette Duddin, admitted child cruelty at the same hearing at Newcastle Crown court.

Their cases were adjourned for pre-sentence reports and both will be sentenced next month.

Judge John Evans told them: “Having pleaded guilty to this indictment in both your cases I am adjourning sentence for pre-sentence reports.

“These are serious matters and the fact I am adjourning matters must now be taken as an indication about what the sentence will be.”

Giles, of Weyhill Avenue, North Shields, admitted three counts of GBH and one of assault occasioning bodily harm between February 9 and April 26 last year.

Tim Parkin, prosecuting, said: “This involves a three-month-old baby and serious injuries caused to it.”

Dudin, previously of Weyhill Avenue, North Shields, admitted child cruelty by wilful neglect between February 9 and April 26.

Police inquiries began when officers were alerted to the baby’s injuries after a visit to hospital.

Doctors found fractures all over his body and officers from North Tyneside public protection unit were called in.

When he appeared in court yesterday Giles had a plaster on his foot and crutches.

He was given conditional bail until the week beginning February 16.

Dudin was given unconditional bail until the same date.

July 2003

A rapist who stalked a girl of 15 before dragging her into bushes was today behind bars

David Irving, 27, whose partner was pregnant at the time of the rape, was jailed for 10 years and put on the sex offender register for life following the terrifying attack.

His victim, described as a model schoolgirl, had been with her boyfriend but was alone as she headed down Station Road, Wallsend, North Tyneside, a jury at Newcastle Crown Court was told.

She heard footsteps behind her as she passed the town’s Buddle Arts Centre.

And moments later Irving struck as she moved onto a footpath behind Wallsend Ex-Servicemen’s Social Club.

The court heard how Irving, who had been on a five-hour booze binge, stifled the terrified girl’s screams with his hand and told her he had a knife.

He forced her sobbing onto the muddy ground and repeatedly raped and molested her. She was also ordered to perform a sex act.

Staff at the club called police after the traumatised girl, covered in mud, ran in to beg for help.

Police arrested Irving at his home in Woodside Avenue, Walker, Newcastle, just hours later.

Investigating officer Det Con Chris Forster today welcomed the sentence and said: “I’m pleased with the sentence. It’s totally justified by the nature of this attack.

“It was a prolonged attack of about 15 to 20 minutes.

“This girl is a model schoolgirl and she and her family have been absolutely traumatised.

“She has shown great courage, going on to sit her GCSEs.

“But she and her family are still having counselling. This incident has shocked the community.”

Irving had been rowing with his girlfriend, who was three months pregnant at the time.

He had been out drinking and smoking cannabis since about 1pm on the day of the attack.

Irving, who denied rape but was convicted by a majority jury vote, claimed he had bumped into the girl and that she had asked him for cannabis.

He had downed up to eight points of lager and said his victim agreed to go with him into bushes and had been a willing partner for sex.

But the evidence of a passing taxi driver nailed his lies.

The driver told the court how Irving ignored him when he tooted to offer him a lift and seemed to be in a world of his own.

Det Con Forster said: “It was mainly through the taxi driver that we were able to arrest Irving just two or three hours after the offence.

“It helped the case that so many people came forward and came forward quickly. That led to us tracking Irving down.”

Jailing him, Judge John Milford said the 10-year sentence was based on the facts that the girl had been just 15, that Irving had threatened violence and that he abducted her and had sex with her three times.

April 2015

Leading composer & teacher at boys school guilty of possession of indecent images of boys

A leading composer of church music who taught at private schools including one attended by Nigella Lawson and Kate Beckinsale has escaped prison after police found images of child abuse at his home.

April 2015

Paedophile jailed for 10 years for repeated rape of stepdaughter, telling her ‘this is what daddies do’

A man who subjected his own stepdaughter to years of rape and sexual abuse has been jailed for 10 years.

Self-confessed paedophile Noel Lowry (73) sat in the dock of Craigavon Crown Court with his head bowed as Judge Patrick Lynch QC told him it was clear he had been “manipulative, domineering and controlling” when subjected his stepdaughter to “sustained and cruel abuse…in order to satisfy your own sexual desires.”

Jailing Lowry, the judge declared: “The court must reflect the indignation of society that such child abuse should continue for such a sustained period and have such an adverse effect upon your victim.”

As well as the jail term, of which Lowry will serve half and then spend the rest on supervised licence conditions, the judge ordered him to sign the police sex offenders register for the rest of his life and imposed a ten-year Sexual Offences Prevention Order, barring Lowry from having unsupervised contact with children.

On the day his trial was due to begin last month Lowry, from Hilden Court in Lisburn was re-arraigned and pleaded guilty to a total of 17 offences, both specimen and specific charges, including seven of indecent assault, five of rape, two gross indecency with a child, two of attempted buggery and one of child cruelty, all committed on various dates between 3 July 1971 and 4 July 1985.

His victim has bravely waived her right to anonymity – though we are not naming her – so that the full story of the horrific ordeal she suffered at Lowry’s hands can be reported.

The court had previously heard how Lowry first began to abuse his stepdaughter when she was just seven or eight years old in 1971 and repeatedly raped her telling her “this is what daddies do” and that he was “preparing her for a man” in later life.

On Thursday, prosecuting QC Philip Mateer outlined how Lowry’s now 50-year-old victim remembered the first incident happened just before her First Communion when he took his trousers down before he “bounced her on his knee…and told her that all daddies do this.”

That abuse soon escalated to Lowry raping his stepdaughter “a couple of times a week” with the paedophile telling her he was “preparing her” for when she got married and that it was “our secret.”

As well as the multiple rapes, the victim was forced to perform sex acts on her stepfather and touch his private parts, said the lawyer.

Mr Mateer told the court: “From time to time she protested to him that she was his daughter, ‘stop doing these things’ but he told her that she wasn’t his daughter and he said to her that he was only taking a leaf out of her grandfathers book.”

The offence of child cruelty arose, said the lawyer when Lowry’s victim told her stepfather that her period was late so he “jumped up and down on her stomach.”

“One can only imagine what was going through his mind when he did that,” said Mr Mateer and on Monday Judge Lynch commented it is “not hard to visualise or imagine what the motivation was behind that given the circumstances.”

The victim’s ordeal only ended when she met a man, who would later become her husband, and she told him what had been happening and then went to live with him, leading Lowry to write her a letter “cutting her off from the family and told her effectively that he had no daughter.”

When arrested and interviewed, Lowry denied all the allegations, labelling his victim as a “liar” and it was only when he reached “the door of the court” that he finally admitted his guilt.

Mr Mateer revealed that even now, according to the probation report compiled on the pervert, “he doesn’t seem to have any clue that his actions” have caused such devastating consequences for his stepdaughter who will need intensive therapy to get over the torment she suffered at his hands.

The lawyer further revealed that Lowry, who has shown little empathy for his victim, has been assessed as posing a high risk to the public as he is highly likely to commit further offences.

Defence QC Gavan Duffy argued however that Lowry did not pose such a serious danger as he was an old man, had numerous health problems “and faces the very real prospect that he will die in jail.”

On Monday Judge Lynch said while it was open to him to pass a “longer then commensurate” sentence given the level of risk Lowry is believed to pose, he said he was satisfied that the extended period on licence along with the SOPO would suffice.

Turning to the mitigating and aggravating features of the case, the judge said it was clear Lowry’s deviant behaviour represented a gross breach of trust, had been perpetrated over an extended period and had caused significant and lasting damage to his victim while his “albeit late” admissions had saved her from the further trauma of having to give evidence and relive her ordeal.

Reading from the letter Lowry wrote to his stepdaughter when she managed to gather up the courage to leave her family home, Judge Lynch quoted: “I have cleaned away all your things – we don’t even want to have a picture of you about us. Do not call me daddy anymore, I have no daughter. She died on Friday 13th September 1985.”

The judge said of the letter it seemed more to have come from a “spurned lover rather than a father” and was evidence of Lowry’s “totally amoral and cruel attitude” towards his victim.

Speaking outside the court, Lowry’s victim said she was sure her “horrible…dangerous…predator” of a stepfather had other victims.

“I am just hoping that they will see what has happened today and come forward,” said the 50-year-old lady, who waived her right to anonymity so that Lowry can be named.

“My childhood was hell, life was hell. If you imagine lying in bed, you just had this feeling that something terrible was going to happen and it was,” she recounted but is thankful that her tormentor will be behind bars “until he is almost 80.”

“I could sit here and say I wanted 20 or 30 years but what good would it do? People will see what he had been doing and I’m just praying that other victims come forward.“

April 2015

Paedophile breached sexual prevention order

A paedophile breached an order preventing him from being in the same room as young boys.

Peter Jewitt, 43, was handed a sexual prevention order by Basildon Crown Court in 2006 after he was found guilty of causing or inciting a child under 16 to engage in sexual activity.

The order banned him from being in the company of boys under 16.

Hull Crown Court heard Jewitt, of Holderness Road, east Hull, breached the order in March this year when he was left in the company of children on three separate occasions.

Jewitt was handed a 12-month prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, at Hull Crown Court.

April 2015

Brierley Hill grandfather caught with thousands of indecent photographs of children avoids prison

A BRIERLEY Hill grandfather caught with thousands of sickening indecent photographs of children – some aged as young as one or two – has avoided a spell behind bars.

Recorder David Mason QC told Adrian Hall it was in the interests of the public for him to receive treatment for his “problem” rather than spend a short time in custody.

“You understand I hope just how disgusting this behaviour was,” he told the 53 year old.

“You know the material you were viewing and sharing could only come from situations where very young children were being abused.”

The recorder added: “There is every indication from what I have read that there seems to be genuine hope that this disgraceful behaviour can be treated.”

Hall admitted eight charges of making indecent images of children, four of distributing the images and another of possessing extreme pornography involving bestiality.

Alexander Barnfield prosecuting said Hall’s activities came to the notice of police through messages on his twitter account and inquiries lead officers to his home

They seized his mobile and two computers, discovering over three thousand indecent images of children including a number in the worst possible category, together with pornographic movies involving children.

Samantha Powis defending Hall, who lived in the Leys Road area before moving to Blackpool after his arrest, said his offending began out of curiosity.

Miss Powis said: “He accepts there was a sexual interest and he knows what he did was wrong.

“His shame is obvious. There is genuine remorse and a genuine acceptance that he has a problem.”

Mr Mason made Hall the subject of a three year community order coupled with three years supervision and a condition he attends the Sexual Offenders Treatment Programme.

He further made an unlimited sexual harm protection order against Hall and told him he must register as a sex offender for the next ten years.

“I have been watching you in the dock and I can see the effects your disgusting behaviour has had on you,” he told Hall. “I am certain that what the public will prefer is that you do not commit these sort of offences again.”

April 2015

Thug jailed for 15 months after assaults on children in Gillingham

A muscular brute who carried out assaults on four children on separate occasions has been jailed for 15 months.

Curtis Davies, 22, shouted at a young girl and shook and kicked her cot at a house in Gillingham, Maidstone Crown Court was told.

Prosecutor Anthony Prosser said Davies was play fighting with a boy but became aggressive and punched him back harder.

He sat on another boy’s head, put a pillow over it and kicked him while he was on the floor. He also punched his knees.

Davies got a third child to wrap material around his hands while he wore boxing gloves for a sparring session.

He told him to indicate if it got too much but carried on hitting when he did so.

In another incident he grabbed the boy by the back of the head and “bashed” it on a wall.

The boy grabbed a baseball bat from a friend’s home to exact revenge, said Mr Prosser.

But the pal stopped him from retaliating by telling him he should go to the police.

The boy still retained the bat in case he was attacked again.

Davies threatened a third boy with a screwdriver and a hammer.

He also left a scorch mark on a PVC door after holding a lighter to it.

Mr Prosser said Davies denied being violent when arrested at a house in Sturdee Avenue, Gillingham, in November last year.

But he admitted four offences of child cruelty and one of arson.

James Ross, defending, said Davies had been “something of a lost soul” and found pressures quite intense.

“With hindsight, he realised how inappropriate his behaviour was,” he added.

Judge Philip St John-Stevens said there was verbal and physical abuse and psychological harm to the victims.

“There must be a term of imprisonment to mark the seriousness of this offending,” he told Davies.

He was jailed for 15 months for the offences and three months consecutive for breaching a suspended sentence order for theft and making a false representation.

January 2015

A man who admitted possessing images of people having sex with animals has been sentenced to a community order.

Peter Clements, 62, from The Wharf in Braunston, Daventry, was given the three-year order at Northampton Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday.

He had pleaded guilty to two charges of possessing images of people having sex with a dog and a horse.

Clements will also be subject to a sexual offences prevention order for five years.

He had been charged with possessing an image of a person performing an act of intercourse with a horse, and with possessing an image of a person performing an act of intercourse with a dog.