July 2015

Child rapist jailed for 22 years

A CHILD rapist has been jailed for 22 years after he was found guilty of a number of historic sexual offences involving kids in Amesbury.

Christopher Hendy, 49, formerly of Devereux Road, was arrested in 2013 and charged with a total of 21 offences, including 12 counts of rape involving children.

Hendy, who denied all the allegations, was sentenced on June 26 at Winchester Crown Court to 22 years in prison. In addition to this, he was also put on the Sex Offenders Register indefinitely and a Sexual Harm Prevention Order was granted.

A Wiltshire Police spokesperson said: “We are pleased with the sentence given out to Hendy for the despicable crimes he committed over a number of years on several young children. His actions will no doubt have a devastating effect on his victims for the rest of their lives.

“I would like to take this opportunity to praise the bravery of the victims who have shown an enormous amount of strength in coming forward and reporting these incidents. Hendy has not once shown any remorse for his actions and denied all the allegations against him. This meant his victims then had to relive their horrific ordeals once again in court.

July 2015

Paige Chivers murder: Man guilty of killing missing Blackpool schoolgirl

Robert Ewing (left) murdered Paige and Gareth Dewhurst was found guilty of helping to dispose of her body

A man has been found guilty of murdering missing Blackpool schoolgirl Paige Chivers.

The body of the 15-year-old, who was reported missing in August 2007, has never been found.

Robert Ewing, 60, denied murder but was convicted of killing her by a jury at Preston Crown Court.

He had an “inappropriate sexual interest” in the teenager and took advantage of her chaotic upbringing, the court was told.

Co-defendant Gareth Dewhurst, 46, of Duncan Avenue, Bispham was cleared of a serious sexual offence but convicted of helping dispose of Paige’s body.

Ewing, of Kincraig Place, Bispham, was also found guilty of perverting the course of justice by intimidating witnesses and laying false trails.

This included an anonymous phone call to police about a “problem child” he said had turned up on his doorstep.

Vital days were lost in the search for Paige due to her age being wrongly logged by police as 45 instead of 15.

They did not investigate for 12 days as they had recorded her year of birth as 1962.

Her age was not corrected until 7 September 2007 when police started their inquiries into her disappearance.

Lancashire Police accepted the error and voluntarily referred itself to the Independent Police Complaints Commission.

Blood spots matching Paige’s DNA were found at the flat Ewing lived at the time, in All Hallows Road, Bispham in Blackpool.

Ewing claimed they came from a cut on Paige’s arm which he had treated.

However, no other blood was found at the flat and a piece of carpet had been removed shortly after the teenager’s disappearance.

Ewing claimed he replaced it because his cat had urinated on it.

Ewing also made entries in his diary which the prosecution said related to sexual acts with Paige.

After the verdicts were returned, her brother said in a statement:

“Paige was a fun loving kid, she was bright and funny.

“She was only a child when our mum passed away in 2007. It was so hard on us all at the time and I would go as far as to say it broke us.”

He described Paige as “bonny” and “outgoing” and said they thought she was “just out with mates” when she disappeared.

But “days turned into weeks, weeks into months and months into years.”

“We used to go out in the car looking for Paige and sometimes do a ‘double take’ when we saw some girls and anyone similar to her. We would drive around the block and check again, raising our hopes only to be let down again, you never stop looking,” he said.

“I’m concerned that I will never know what her last words were, if she was in any pain or even if I will find out what actually went on the days she went missing.

“I hope and pray that the people responsible tell us where she is so we can lay her to rest. This will at least give us some closure and maybe stop any nightmares, images and worry about where she is.”

Paige was reported missing by her father Frank Chivers on 26 August 2007.

She had left home three days earlier with two carrier bags of her belongings after her brother said their father threatened to “kill her” when he got home from work over stealing money from him.

Although her body has never been found there is no evidence that Paige is alive despite numerous appeals, including a £30,000 reward to help solve her disappearance.

She had been in line to inherit a “significant amount of money” on her 18th birthday following her mother’s death in February 2007.
‘Complex case’

The prosecution believe Ewing murdered her between 23-27 August.

Det Supt Andy Webster, who led the investigation, said it had been a “challenging and complex case”.

He said Paige’s family, and particularly her brother, had shown “tremendous bravery”.

“It is nearly eight years since Paige disappeared. She has never been found. To this end, we remain committed to finding Paige and I would appeal for Ewing and Dewhurst to now tell us where she is so that she can be laid to rest with dignity.”

The pair will be sentenced on 28 July.

Paige’s father was murdered in 2013, aged 49, in an unrelated incident. He was found with a head injury at his home in Layton, Blackpool.

Sean Conlon, 44, of no fixed address, was convicted of his murder and jailed for a minimum of 15 years at Preston Crown Court in January of last year.

July 2015

Man kidnapped, raped and battered 15-year-old girl in two-day ordeal

A man kidnapped a 15-year-old girl as she walked home from netball practice and repeatedly raped and battered her during a 32-hour attack.

Mark Armstrong told the girl he had a flick knife and would use it if she tried to run away or scream.

The 26-year-old raped her in the grounds of a derelict cottage in Dunfermline, Fife before leading her back to his home and continuing to rape her.

The victim later said it happened “over and over again”.

On Friday, Armstrong, from Dunfermline, admitted abducting, assaulting and raping the girl between March 12 and 14 this year.

He also pled guilty to a string of assault and robbery offences committed against women in the days leading up to the attack on the teenager.

Advocate depute Jane Farquharson told the High Court in Edinburgh: “The accused only spoke to tell her what to do, to shut up or stop shivering.”

“The victim describes feeling scared and increasingly angry and that she just wanted to go home.”

Armstrong put on surgical gloves to wash the girl’s private parts and scrubbed her with a kitchen sponge.

He took her back to the derelict cottage after saying she could go home, before taking her back to his house to rape her again.

The girl’s mother reported her missing and police searched the cottage at Kingseat Road. They found her T-shirt, bra and broken glasses.

Ms Farquharson said: “At this stage or course, the complainer’s whereabouts were still unknown.”

Only hours later did Armstrong finally free the girl and return her phone.

The girl later told police: “I just wanted to call my mum.”

She told her mother where she was by describing a wheel at the entrance to Lochore Meadows country park and her mother went to pick her up.

Police who arrived at the scene described seeing the mother hugging the girl who was “shaking, crying and occasionally howling”.

She had injuries to her face that left her unrecognisable.

The court heard the girl only had a cup of tea during the 32 hours and was dehydrated.

Ms Farquharson said the teenager led police to Armstrong’s house and identified him from images.

The Crown will be applying for an order for lifelong restriction on Armstrong.

A judge told Armstrong: “You have pled guilty to an appalling course of criminal conduct culminating in violent and sexual offences of the utmost depravity against a young girl then aged 15.”

Armstrong has been placed on the sex offender register until he is sentenced.

July 2015

Wirral man, 74, given 15-year sentence for raping young girl

A 74-year-old Wirral man who repeatedly raped and sexually abused a young girl has received a 15-year prison sentence.

Peter Watson was given a 11-year term behind bars with an extended licence of four years by Judge Denis Watson, QC, who described him as a dangerous offender.

The offences spanned 12 months when the victim was about 11 years old and Liverpool Crown Court heard that she had been left severely psychologically damaged.

Judge Watson told the defendant, a former RAF police dog handler, “You believed you were in a girlfriend-boyfriend relationship which gives me great concern,” said Judge Watson.

The girl read her own moving victim personal statement to the court and the judge said that for her the consequences of the offending, “are truly life changing.”

He said that the case involved “repeated and relentless sex abuse” and gave the little girl cigarettes to make her feel more grown up. “You corrupted her, there were elements of grooming and planning.”

Watson, of Upland Road, Upton, had pleaded guilty to ten offences involving rape, attempted rape, sexual assaults and inciting her to engage in sexual activity and watch a sexual act. 

He will have to serve two thirds of the custodial term before he can apply for parole.

The judge ordered him to sign the Sex Offenders Register for life and he also imposed an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

Liverpool Crown Court heard the offences, which happened when Watson was in his 60s, came to light in February this year after the victim told her mum that had happened and the police were called.

John Ballam, defending, said that Watson “wants her to know he sincerely apologises for his disgraceful behaviour. He is disgusted by his behaviour and ashamed. She should not feel guilty, he is the guilty person, she was totally innocent.”

He said that Watson, who worked for a considerable time in a local factory, had been frank with police.

After attempting suicide he was referred to a psychiatrist and had since been remanded in custody.

July 2015

Lancing man convicted of rape for second time

A 32-year-old man from Lancing has been convicted of rape for the second time.

Philip Olliver followed a 19-year-old woman who was alone after a company Christmas night out and then attacked and raped her, a police statement said.

Olliver had been jailed for a similar offence on May 19, 1999, when he attacked a 16-year-old girl who was walking through Buckingham Park in Shoreham, pulled her into an overgrown area and raped her.

In the early hours of Monday, January 5, Olliver drove to Brighton and parked his car in St James’s Street.

He spotted his victim, who was drunk and walking home after a night out, and befriended her at about 2am.

They walked together for a short distance before Olliver attacked her outside Ardingly Court and then fled, police said.

Police were able to link DNA left on the victim to Olliver’s DNA profile on the national database from his previous rape conviction.

Olliver had pleaded guilty to that offence, when he was 16, and was sentenced to five years in a young offender institution.

But he denied being responsible for the offence in January, admitting that he had sex with the 19-year-old woman but claiming it was consensual.

He pleaded not guilty to two counts of rape, sexual assault by penetration and sexual assault by touching when he appeared at Lewes Crown Court but a jury took less than 90 minutes to find him guilty of all the charges.

Olliver, of West Lane, Lancing, was remanded in custody to be sentenced at Lewes Crown Court on August 6.

He was warned he would be jailed.

Detective Sergeant Dee Wells said: “Olliver poses a huge risk to the public, especially young women. He has twice attacked women on their own.

“Olliver arrived in Brighton with one thing in mind and took advantage of the drunkenness of the 19-year-old who crossed his path.

“He has shown no remorse for the terrifying ordeal he put his victim through but his conviction will mean women in Sussex will be safer when they go out.”

July 2015

Pervert found with ‘repulsive’ child abuse images which ‘included images of babies’

David Player, from Hogshill Lane, appeared at Guildford Crown Court on Wednesday (July 8) having previously pleaded guilty to eight counts of possessing indecent images of children.

The court heard the 45-year-old mainly kept images of young girls aged between eight and 14 but some included “images of babies”.

Judge Noel Lucas said the defendant was “lucky today” as he sentenced him to a 20 month prison sentence – suspended for two years.

The judge also ordered Player to complete 250 hours of unpaid work and made him subject of a 24-month supervision order.

Susannah Bramley, prosecuting, told the court that following a police investigation into file sharing and indecent images Player’s activities were identified by his internet provider address.

On May 7 last year, the defendant was arrested when police visited his house and found a number of indecent movies and images on his computer and a USB stick, Miss Bramley told the court.

Among movies recovered were three in category A – the most serious, involving penetration.

The court heard that in total 187 still images were found, 36 in category A, 49 in B, and 102 in C.

“In the main they were images of eight to 14-year-old girls, but there are images of six-month-old babies,” Miss Bramley said.

“The moving images make it more serious.”

Jennifer Dannhauser, defending, said Player found himself bored, lonely, and “not engaged in mainstream society”.

She said: “Mr Player does fall into the category of a loner – he didn’t have relationships or friends that he engaged with, and the internet provided contact or engagement.

“He takes full responsibility and shows a level of empathy for the victims.”

Judge Lucas listed details of some of the more serious images, or “pretty repulsive pornography”.

He said: “The age and vulnerability of the girls is a significant factor – by people like Player accessing and viewing these images it provides fuel to the fire of those who physically abuse children.

“The court takes a serious view of this sort of offending.”

Judge Lucas gave him a suspended 20 month term for the category A offences, four months each for the category B – to run concurrently – and one month each for the category C images, also to run concurrently.

“Please regard this as a very last chance,” Judge Lucas said.

“You have been lucky today, if there is any breach you will go straight to prison.”

July 2015

Bury councillor admits making indecent images of children

A councillor has admitted to making indecent images of children.

Simon Carter, who sits on the Ramsbottom, Tottington and North Manor township forum on Bury council, pleaded guilty to 16 counts of making indecent images of children at Bolton Crown Court.

It is understood that the charges cover a period of time between January 1, 2011 and April this year.

The charges were brought against Coun Carter, who sits on Bury council’s standards and overview and scrutiny committee, following an investigation by Greater Manchester Police’s Child Abuse Investigation Team in Bury.

Carter is due to be sentenced on September 4.

July 2015

Former teacher admits indecent offences against children

A former Gloucestershire teacher has admitted a number of indecent offences against children and sexual offences against a man with a mental disorder.

Thomas Boothe, 58, who taught at Newent Community School, pleaded guilty to 20 charges at Gloucester Crown Court.

The charges include seven of taking indecent images of boys in a public changing room.

Police said the offences took place between 1990 and 2014 and none related to anyone at the school.

Boothe, from Hucclecote, also admitted four counts of indecent assault and four of sexual activity on a person with a mental disorder, in relation to a man with a mental ages of 10 or 11, the court heard.

He pleaded guilty to two charges of outraging public decency after he committed acts in a public toilet, and to three counts of possession of indecent videos.

One other charge, to which he pleaded not guilty, will remain on file.

Boothe, who taught at Newent Community School until last year, is due to be sentenced in September after a pre-sentence report has been prepared.

July 2015

Vile child abuser who forced young boy to drink vomit and faeces is caged

A vile child abuser who forced a young boy to drink his own vomit and faeces has been jailed.

Cruel Ben Stevens admitted a shocking range of crimes on a seven-year-old boy that left the youngster needing hospital treatment.

The twisted beast was ordered to be locked up after admitting offences of child cruelty and wounding with intent.

During his reign of torture Stevens scalded the boy’s hand so badly he needed morphine to deal with the pain and was kept in hospital for four days.

The boy needed plastic surgery to repair skin on his hand that had been forced under a tap running at 82 degrees.

Speaking at the sentencing of 34-year-old Stevens, Judge Kristina Montgomery said what he had done was “an act of unimaginable cruelty towards a child…this once happy child was now profoundly disturbed.”

She added that the defendant had ruined the boy’s childhood and in adulthood he would bear the scars.”

The court heard that Stevens had used the boy’s nasal septum to drag him around for five months, destroying it completely.

He also had skin damage in the groin area from being used as a human punch bag by his torturer.

The cruel abuser was sentenced to nine years for the charge of wounding with intent and two years for the charge of cruelty to a child.

The jail time will be served consecutively, putting Stevens behind bars for a total of 11 years.

Stevens, who had no fixed address, was deemed by the judge sitting at Aylesbury Crown Court to be a dangerous offender and had his 11-year sentence extended for a further three years to be served on an extended licence.

In mitigation defence counsel stated: “There was little he (Stevens) can say to mitigate circumstances. He feels extremely sorry and if he could turn back the clock he would…the only thing he could offer was his early guilty pleas.”

A spokesman for Thames Valley Police Child Abuse Investigation Unit said: “This was a sustained and systematic torture of a vulnerable child, which resulted in some of the worst injuries I have seen on a child in my career.

“Stevens is deemed to be a dangerous individual and I hope the lengthy time that he will have to spend in prison and on licence will give him a chance to reflect on what he has done and the repercussions that will continue in that child’s life.

“The victim is now being supported and it is hoped that with the right help he can put those months of cruelty behind him and get on with his life.”

Stevens stood before Aylesbury Crown Court to be sentenced for the acts of torture that dated back to 2013.

January 2015

Former teacher avoids jail for child and bestiality images

An appeal is being considered after the former head of computing at Arbroath Academy avoided jail for possession of tens of thousands of indecent images.

Roger Moult walked free from Dundee Sheriff Court on Friday after Sheriff Alastair Brown judged the 22,492 indecent images of children and images involving adults and animals were not severe enough to warrant a custodial term.

The sheriff noted that “only a tiny proportion made it beyond level one” and found that Moult, 64, of High Street, Montrose, had separated his offending from his work life and that there was nothing to suggest he had ever abused the trust placed in him as a teacher.

A Crown Office spokesman confirmed that an appeal was being considered.

He said “We note the decision of the court. The Crown will consider whether there are any grounds for lodging an appeal against this sentence, on the basis that it may be unduly lenient.”

Moult received a three-year community payback order under supervision, subject to him attending the Tay Project and placed him on the sex offenders register for three years.

The former churches group secretary admitted that between January 8 2005 and March 5 2014 he possessed indecent photographs or pseudo-photographs of children at his home address or elsewhere unknown.

He also admitted that between January 24 2012 and March 5 this year he possessed extreme pornographic images depicting adult females engaged in sexual activities with animals.

Depute fiscal Kirsten Johnson told the court police raided Moult’s rubbish-strewn home after information came to light he had made purchases through a Canadian “naturist” website.

There, they found “an extremely large amount of pornographic material, including magazines, VHS videos and DVDs in every room.

“Ultimately, due to the state of the property, a specialist search team had to be deployed and a large number of electronic equipment was seized,” she said.

Of the 22,492 indecent images of children recovered, 22,450 were at level one (erotic posing with no sexual activity), 18 were at level 2, 16 were at level 3, four at level 4 and four at level 5 (the most extreme level).

A total of 54 indecent videos of children were also recovered, 50 of them at level 1, three at level 2 and one image at level 3.

Solicitor Nick Markowski, for Moult, said his client had 39 years’ service and had retired in 2012, before the offences came to light.

“He kept separate his public life from his activities,” he said. “He is aware of the difficulties these offences have given him and he is as prepared as anyone can be for a custodial sentence.

“He apologises publicly for his offending — he knows it was wrong. It is clear from the reports that he accepts he has an illness and an addiction to pornography and accepts it is his responsibility.

“He wants to understand his problems and address them.”

Mr Markowski said Moult had been assessed as being at a low to moderate risk of reoffending and asked the sheriff to impose a non-custodial sentence.

Sheriff Brown told Moult he accepted he did not distribute any material and the overwhelming majority of the images were at a low level.

“At first sight, it is a considerable amount of images but only a tiny proportion made it beyond level one,” he said.

He added that although much of his offending had taken place while he was a teacher and he had easy access to children, he had “put boundaries in place”.

“You appear to have ring-fenced your activities and until the police attended, you had kept your offending within your own home.”

Angus Council confirmed the former department head had not worked for the local authority since March 2012.

July 2015

Paedophile’s drunken confession in 999 call

PERVERT Andrew Newbold confessed to paramedics he was a paedophile after a heavy night of drinking.

The 34-year-old was being investigated by police after more than 80 indecent images of young boys were found on his computer.

But he told officers his wi-fi account had been hacked and that the pictures had not been downloaded by him.

But months after he was arrested, Newbold, of Greenside, Yarnfield, was in a distressed state when he called 999 and when paramedics arrived he told them he was a paedophile.

Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court heard how the defendant told paramedics: “I like small boys, I can’t help myself. The younger the better. I’m a nonce, aren’t I?”

Prosecutor Neil Ahuja said: “Examination of his computers in April found still and moving images of concern. These were children of relatively young ages, between eight and 12, being sexually abused. There was also naked posing.

“The search history of the defendant’s computer revealed terms including ‘boy’, ‘lover’ and ‘naked’. There was also a naked photo of the defendant.

“In his first police interview he told officers he allowed friends to use his computer but denied searching for indecent images of children.

“In September, ambulance staff were called to his address when the defendant was in a distressed state. He made some admissions.

“He was re-interviewed and said he would search for indecent images of children when he was drunk and would delete them the next day when he was sober.”

A total of 87 still and moving images – 19 of which were the most serious category A – were recovered from Newbold’s computer and mobile phone.

He pleaded guilty to seven counts of making indecent photographs of children and three of possessing indecent photographs of children between 2010 and 2014.

Hamish Noble, mitigating, said: “He’s a man who has done wrong and has recognises that. When accessing these images he put to the back of his mind the harm they were actually portraying. He lives an isolated existence in a small flat in a small village with no contact with his family. At the time of the offences he had a drink problem he also had anxiety and depression.”

Sentencing Newbold, Judge Robin Onions said: “It’s important that you realise that this is in no sense a victimless crime. These boys are victims of abuse, they are not willing participants. In a way you played a part in the abuse.”

Newbold was sentenced to a three-month community order with supervision.

He must also take the community sex offender work programme and substance misuse programme.

He is also subject to a sexual harm prevention order and must sign the sex offender register for five years.

July 2015

Priest convicted again in church child sex abuse scandal shame

CHURCH leaders have apologised for putting children at risk of child abuse by not sacking a paedophile priest.

It comes as Terry Knight, who in 1996 admitting abusing boys, has for a second time been convicted of abuse in the 1980s at St Saviour’s Church in Stamshaw, Portsmouth.

During a trial over historic abuse claims Knight, now 76, revealed to jurors how the church asked him to promise to ‘control his behaviour’ after mothers of child victims confronted him in 1985.

Claims of a cover-up have been repeatedly denied by the Church of England in Portsmouth.

But now the Diocese of Portsmouth admitted the church put other children at risk by leaving Knight in post between 1985 and 1995 – when he was arrested.

A former bishop continues to deny a cover-up but the church admitted a former Archdeacon of Portsmouth was told by Knight about ‘inappropriate behaviour’.

Former Bishop of Portsmouth Timothy Bavin, who was asked to speak to Knight, apologised for not reporting Knight’s confession to police and treating it as a ‘pastoral’ issue rather than criminal.

Mr Bavin has previously allowed a clergy member convicted of child abuse back into the church in 1990. He later apologised.

In a statement to The News he said: ‘I do offer a sincere apology, on behalf of myself and the church, to all who were abused by Terry Knight. They were badly let down.

‘Some time in 1985, Terry Knight was sent to see me by the then Archdeacon of Portsmouth, after he received a complaint from a parent.’

Mr Bavin, now living a monastic life at Alton Abbey, added: ‘Terry confessed some inappropriate behaviour with boys to me, but did not admit any actual physical contact.’

Knight told him he had apologised to the parents and said it would not be repeated. He added: ‘I was wrong to have accepted his word.’

A Diocese of Portsmouth spokesman added: ‘We apologise unreservedly that the reaction of the church in 1985 was not more robust, and that these actions may have put others at risk.’

Knight was jailed for three-and-a-half years in 1996 at Winchester Crown Court after admitting abusing seven boys aged between 11 and 14 between 1975 and 1985.

There are no post-1985 allegations.

Mr Bavin’s apology and the church’s admission come after a survivor reported abuse by Knight to Hampshire police last year.

Knight, a former member of the General Synod – the church’s ruling body – was then put on trial accused of four indecent assaults.

Jurors last month heard he asked boys, including the victim who was aged 12 or 13 during the abuse in the 1980s, to put on leather lederhosen.

The court heard Knight would dress in a black cassock and sit on the bath next to the boy before rubbing his back.

Assaults would then take place in a bedroom in the vicarage – Knight would then take Communion the next day.

A jury found Knight, of Kingfishers, Shipton Bellinger, Tidworth, guilty of three out of four indecent assault charges but acquitted him of one.

The victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, told jurors: ‘I remember the first time it happened I lay in bed crying.’

Detective Constable Amanda Waite said: ‘It’s affected his whole life, from how he deals with day-to-day events, relationships.

‘It’s shaped the person he is today having had something happen to him in his vulnerable years.

‘Knight was in a position of trust and a lot of the community at the time respected him – he took his position and used it to his own ends.

‘If there’s anyone else that has been a victim of sexual abuse by him or anyone else, then it’s something that we take seriously.

‘It’s the most revolting type of crime.

‘There’s no time limit – providing the offender’s still alive we can do something about it.’

She added: ‘Hopefully the three counts he has been found guilty of go some way towards the victim’s healing.’

In court, Knight could not remember if he abused the boy as he abused several.

Summing up evidence, Judge Ian Pearson said Knight had said: ‘I had to give an undertaking to control my behaviour’.

He served 21 months of his jail sentence and was taken off the sex offenders’ register in 2013.

Knight, who attended treatment at the Lucy Faithfull Foundation, which 
works with sex abusers, will be sentenced later this month.

July 2015

IT expert guilty of having indecent images of children

An IT expert found with indecent images on several computers seized by police from his home claimed he must have been hacked.

Richard Yates, 34, whose work for a global communications firm included contracts for the Government, said he was shocked when told what was on his computers after a police raid.

Yates, of Elgin Drive, Glenrothes, denied that between June 16 2008 and December 20 2012 at his home he downloaded indecent photographs of children.

He also denied being in possession of indecent images of children and a third charge that on December 20 2012 he was in possession of extreme pornographic images depicting in a realistic way an act involving sexual activity between a person and animals.

However, he was found guilty by a unanimous verdict on all three charges.

On the final day of a sheriff and jury trial at Dunfermline Sheriff Court, Yates, a systems/network engineer, said he had worked in IT since he was 16.

Asked by his solicitor Christine Hagan what his reaction had been when police arrived at his door early in the morning, Yates said: “I thought it was a wind-up, a joke, for a few seconds.”

He said he knew nothing about the indecent images of children on his computers and had never viewed any of them.

However, depute fiscal Ronald Hay accused Yates of being a liar and said his admission he had an internet account in a false name was evidence of that.

Yates was put on the sex offenders register.

He will be sentenced on September 2.

July 2015

Bristol man exchanged naked photos with an 11-year-old girl

A man who exchanged naked photos with an 11-year-old girl and possessed child abuse images has been jailed for three years.

Stephen Wilks, 28, of Long Ashton, Bristol, met the child and chatted to her online.

Wilks, of Fishers Mead, pleaded guilty to inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, causing a child to watch sexual activity and possessing indecent photographs of children.

Judge Michael Longman handed Wilks an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order designed to stop him re-offending and is registered as a sex offender indefinitely.

July 2015

Illustrator of children’s books jailed for sexually abusing two young girls

An illustrator of children’s books who indecently assaulted two young girls in the 1970s has been jailed.

Henry Christopher Mendes, 65, of Park An Pyth, Penzance, had previously pleaded guilty to two counts of indecent assault on 13 May.

He had earlier pleaded guilty to seven counts of making indecent photographs of a child, and one count of possession of extreme pornographic images.

He was sentenced at Blackfriars Crown Court on Friday, 10 July, to three years and nine months imprisonment.

After the sentencing, one of the victims also praised the professionalism of Met police officers who investigated the case.

Mendes was known to the families of both victims who were under the age of 10 at the time of the assaults.

The first incident occurred in August 1977, when he was visiting the victim’s parents in north London. He asked the victim to walk with him to the local off-licence, offering her an ice cream as an incentive.

As they were walking home, Mendes went into a pub and asked the victim to wait outside. As she was scared of walking home alone in the dark, she waited. When he reappeared they began walking home through an estate. Whilst in the Lismore Circus children’s play area in Camden, Mendes forced her to perform a sex act.

On returning home they were met by the victim’s worried mother, as her daughter had been gone a long time. The victim did not disclose to anyone what had happened to her, until much later.

The second offence happened between 1976 and 1978 in north London. One night the victim was in bed, when she became aware of a man standing next to her, breathing in a heavy and laboured way. She heard him say “you’re so beautiful” and she recognised the voice as that of Mendes.

She stayed still, hoping he would go away, but he attempted to sexually assault her. He stopped because another man called out for him from outside the bedroom.

In 2013, the victims reported the incidents to police. Mendes was identified, arrested and interviewed. He denied any assault on either child but was subsequently charged with two counts of indecent assault.

During the course of the investigation, his computer was found to contain nearly 400 indecent images of children. He was further arrested, interviewed and charged with seven counts of making indecent photographs or pseudo-photographs of a child and one count of possession of extreme pornographic images.

Officer in the case, Detective Constable Jo Dell of the Sexual Offences, Exploitation and Child Abuse Command, said: “I would like to thank both victims for their bravery in reporting these incidents to police and their ongoing support throughout the investigation. They have shown resilience which enabled the case to proceed to this successful conclusion. Mendes is a serial offender who has abused the trust of his friends and targeted vulnerable young girls.”

Detective Inspector Neil Smithson of the Sexual Offences, Exploitation and Child Abuse Command, said: “I would appeal to any other victims of Mendes to come forward – the Metropolitan Police will fully support you and seek to bring offenders to justice, no matter when the offences were committed.”

One of the victim’s in this case, whilst wishing to retain her anonymity, was keen to speak out about her experience. She said: “One of the things I would like to add is how well treated I have been by the Met Police.

“It has taken a long time to feel brave enough to come to the police with this, not only confronting what happened within myself but also having to tell a total stranger. I would have no hesitation in recommending that anyone who has experienced any type of abuse report it, in fact I would urge them to. It might be scary at first but personally speaking it was a cathartic experience that has really helped me to process what happened to me. I have no idea how they do such a difficult job and do it so well, pure professionalism.”

February 2013

Offender pestered under-age girls

A FREED rapist has been given a suspended sentence for groping a 15-year-old after sending her suggestive texts. 

April 2007

Schoolgirl raped during long weekend away

A schoolgirl told a court how she hated the man she accused of raping her because he had ruined her life.

The girl was 13 when she was attacked while away with family friends for a long weekend.

She kept her ordeal to herself until she confided in a relative in 2005 and the police arrested the man on suspicion of rape.

On Wednesday, William Kendall, 56, of Canterbury Road, Herne Bay, was convicted of rape and remanded in custody for reports until the end of the month.

The probation service who will be preparing a report were asked by Judge Michael O’Sullivan to consider Kendall’s level of dangerousness to the public.

Eleanor Laws, prosecuting, said Kendall arranged the long weekend in the summer of 2002. He was with his wife, but one night he engineered it so he was alone with the girl in her hotel room and got into bed with her and raped her.

A jury at Canterbury Crown Court first listened to the girl’s interview with police after she made her allegation then heard her cross-examined by defence counsel via the court’s video link.

Asked by Miss Laws what she thought of Kendall she replied: “I hate him.” Asked why, she said: “Because he ruined my life.”

The victim claimed Kendall would buy her alcopops and treat her as far more grown up than she was. Kendall in evidence denied giving alcohol.

At the hotel, the Kendalls’ room was downstairs from the girl’s room and the victim said that prior to the rape, Kendall had sent her back to her room to get more drink from the mini bar, followed her up and tried to kiss her, forcing his tongue into her mouth. He complimented her on her shorts and kept touching them, said Miss Laws.

They went out to a restaurant then later that night Kendall knocked on her door. He told her the following day, she had wanted it to happen as much as he did and he bought presents.

Kendall admitted he had convictions dating back to the 1960s and had been sentenced to 10 years in 1999 for conspiracy to evade duty. He had also served a sentence for drug smuggling.

Kendall denied following the victim back to her room and kissing her and denied engineering to be alone with her later the same evening.

May 2008

School worker sent naked photos to pupil

A SCHOOL worker has been spared immediate jail after he was found to have sent naked images of himself to a schoolgirl

Karl Pennington was sentenced to a 25 week custodial sentence, suspended for two years at Ipswich Crown Court yesterday after what a judge described as “pestering” a Suffolk pupil into sexual activity with him.

Pennington, 25, of Brettenham Road, Buxhall, near Stowmarket pleaded guilty at an earlier appearance to inciting a girl into sexual activity between December 2006 and March 2007. He also admitted 15 charges of making indecent photographs of a child and to possessing 65 indecent images of a child on March 7 last year.

Nicola May, prosecuting, said Pennington worked as an IT technician at the school, which cannot be named for legal reasons.

She said the victim, who also cannot be named, had sent him an email “as a joke” implying she had an interest in him which began a succession of correspondence between the two resulting in photo messages of genitalia being exchanged.

Judge John Holt, sentencing Pennington, said: “You were in a position of trust.

“She gave you her mobile phone number which you accepted and you then used it, initially for general chatter, but then matters took a very different course.

“You began to pester her for naked photographs…and your pestering was successful. She sent you three separate photographs of herself naked and you in exchange sent her two of yourself naked. She subsequently refused to take the relationship further and you agreed.”

He said 65 indecent photographs were also found on his computer, which may have included repetitions, only after police officers had used specialist equipment to retrieve the deleted files.

A pre-sentence report, which recommended his perceived level of threat could be treated whilst still in the community, was “well argued” he said and approved by him.

He ordered a 25 week custodial sentence for inciting sexual activity and a further 25 week sentence for the photographs to run concurrently, suspended for two years.

Pennington was also made to sign on the sexual offenders register for 10 years and disqualified from working with children for the same period.

Matthew McNiff, for the defence said: “He crossed the line, he will pay the penalty and he is the first to recognise that.”

July 2015

Unrepentant paedophile (58) who abused girl (13) jailed for just 18 months

A Co Antrim man who sexually assaulted a schoolgirl as they watched the aftermath of the 7/7 London bombings on television was jailed for 18 months yesterday.

Hugh Morrow (58), of Maralin Gardens, Lisburn, was told he will spend a further two years on probation following his release.

He was found guilty by a jury at Belfast Crown Court in February this year of indecently assaulting the 13-year-old girl and also committing an act of gross indecency with the victim.

Prosecution lawyer Tessa Kitson told the court that the offences took place on July 7, 2005, at a house in Lisburn.

She said that Morrow was sitting watching television about the 7/7 bombings in London when the girl came in and “he asked her to sit down beside him on the sofa”.

Ms Kitson said that while they were watching the television Morrow sexually assaulted her for several minutes.

The prosecutor said there were a number of aggravating factors including the victim’s age at the time, and “there was a certain degree of planning” to the offences.

She added that despite being found guilty by the jury, Morrow “still denies the offences”.

Defence QC Eilis McDermott said father-of-three Morrow suffered from a number of medical and mental conditions including heart problems and was taking 28 tablets a day, and “he would find prison a struggle”.

Ms McDermott said Morrow was not assessed as posing a serious risk of serious harm to the public and was regarded as a medium risk of reoffending.

Passing sentence, Judge Gordon Kerr QC said one of the main aggravating factors was the age difference of 35 years between the victim and the defendant.

Morrow was placed on the sex offenders register for a period of 10 years, but was not placed on the barred list for young people and vulnerable adults.