July 2013

Man caught with 30,000 child abuse images is jailed

An Ipswich man who downloaded nearly 30,000 child abuse images had been subjected to vigilante attacks including being spat at and having slogans daubed on his house, a court has heard.

Leslie Keitch, 51, of Shenstone Drive, Ipswich, admitted seven charges of making indecent images of children and one offence of possessing indecent images of children with a view to distributing them.

Jailing him for 32 months Ipswich Crown Court judge David Goodin said Keitch had a “most unhealthy interest” in images showing the sexual abuse of children for around 14 years.

He said some of the images were particularly “horrific and distressing” and showed children who were obviously in great distress or pain.

He condemned the vigilante actions taken against Keitch but said they were the result of public revulsion at the sort of images he had been viewing.

In addition to jailing Keitch Judge Goodin made him the subject of a sexual offences prevention order and ordered him to sign the sex offenders’ register indefinitely.

Frances Coles-Harrington, prosecuting, said police had seized computer equipment from Keitch’s home and found more than 29,000 indecent images and movies of children.

She said that on a scale of one to five with level five being the most serious more than 19,000 of the images were at level one while there were 121 indecent images and 79 movies at level five.

When Keitch was interviewed by police about the indecent images he said he had lived alone since 1996 when he was divorced and accepted the computer equipment found at his house belonged to him and was used by him.

Steven Dyble, for Keitch, said his client had been subjected to vigilante attacks including having slogans painted on his house and being spat at in the street.

He said Keitch had 16 unblemished years service in the army and had left after being made redundant. He had found work as a warehouse manager but faced losing that job as a result of the court proceedings.

He said Keitch had taken steps to make sure the images on his computer couldn’t inadvertantly be looked at by anyone but denied there was a degree of sophistication in what he was doing.

Mr Dyble said Keitch had used his own address on a website and this had resulted in the discovery of the images. He said many of the images were duplicates.

July 2013

Man jailed for grooming schoolgirl

A MAN from Merseyside has been jailed for two years for intimidating a teenage girl from Evesham into sending him indecent images of her via her mobile phone.

Adam Hayes, aged 22, of Oxton Road, Wallasey, was sentenced atWorcester Crown Court for two counts of an offender aged 18 or over causing or inciting a girl aged 13 to 15 to engage in sexual activity and one of making an indecent photograph of a child.

Last year, Hayes made contact with the 13-year-old girl from Evesham via BlackBerry Messenger but she initially refused any contact.

However, Hayes threatened her and demanded she respond and send him indecent photographs of herself.

He told her he was a police officer and would be able to trace her and cause her harm if she did not send photographs.

During September and October, the girl sent a number of images and videos.

She eventually confided in a friend and her mother, and West Mercia Police were called.

Detectives identified Hayes through his BlackBerry and subsequently traced him to Merseyside where he was arrested.

Twenty six images and videos were recovered from Hayes’s phone and he admitted the contact at an early stage but claimed he thought the girl was 15 years old and not 13.

He appeared at court yesterday to enter a plea and pleaded guilty to all three offences. He was sentenced to two years for both counts of sexual activity and four months for possessing images of children, all to be served concurrently.

A Sexual Offences Prevention Order was granted for five years, which prevents Hayes from contacting his victim or any female under 16 without supervision, and he has been ordered to sign the Sexual Offenders Register for 10 years.

Detective Inspector Andy Price of South Worcestershire CID said: “This is a classic example of an adult offender persuading and intimidating a young girl into sending him indecent images.

“The judge took into account the impact Hayes’s activity had on a young vulnerable victim who was particularly distressed by the threatening behaviour used to obtain the images.

“I want to praise the girl for having the courage to raise the alarm and contact the police; because of her we have been able to prosecute Hayes and protect her and other potential victims.

“However, by the time she came forward the damage was already done. “I want young people to know that if anyone contacts them via BBM or other social media and they are worried about who they are, they should speak straight away to an adult they trust, such as a teacher or relative, or contact the police on 101.”

July 2013

Teenager, 17, detained for raping 12-year-old girl

A teenager who admitted raping a 12-year-old girl at his father’s home in South Lanarkshire has been detained for 40 months.

Paul McNally, 17, admitted continuing to have sex with the girl, after she had told him to stop, at the house in Carnwath, on 4 February this year.

The girl’s father contacted police after he overheard her discuss the incident on the phone with her sister.

McNally’s name was also placed on the sex offenders register.

Sentencing him at the High Court in Edinburgh, judge Lord Pentland told McNally that, by law, the girl was too young to give her consent.

‘Significant risk’

“You were 16 and therefore much more mature than her and you were not in any form of relationship with her.”

Lord Pentland added: “She tried repeatedly to push you off but you carried on having sex with her.”

The judge said background reports showed McNally seemed to have little idea of the effect of what he had done on his victim and there was “a significant risk” he would offend again.

He also said the reports showed “a history of unruly and disruptive behaviour”.

Lord Pentland warned McNally that if he were in any more trouble during the four years after the end of his sentence he would be locked up again for breaching the conditions of his release.

An earlier hearing at the High Court in Glasgow was told that the 12-year-old girl and others had been at the home McNally shared with his father.

The schoolgirl, whom McNally knew to be under the age of consent, later agreed to have sex with him.

Victim ‘distant’

During intercourse, the girl told McNally to stop but he ignored her and continued to have sex with her.

The court heard that the girl eventually went home and her father noticed that she appeared “distant”.

The 12-year-old later called her sister and told her of her ordeal.

Her father overheard her saying “I can’t tell dad”, which led to police being called.

Officers detained McNally at his home and he told them he believed the girl was aged 14.

He claimed he knew it was “wrong” to have sex with an underage girl, but that he reckoned it was “OK if you did not get caught”.

July 2013

Dad, 52, had almost 140,000 indecent images of children

A 52-YEAR-OLD father who collected almost 140,000 indecent images of children was caught when he tried to delete some of them at work, a court heard.

Daniel Baylis had some of the images on his phone but had to delete them individually – so he decided to download them onto his work computer to so he could delete several at once, Gloucester Crown Court was told on Monday.

But bosses at the American-owned firm for whom he worked were alerted via their software and contacted police.

Baylis, of Cheapside, Stroud, admitted 16 specimen charges of making indecent photographs or pseudo-photographs of children.

Most of the 138,728 images and 381 videos he collected between January 2002 and September last year were of the lowest level of seriousness.

But prosecutor Julian Kesner said 14 were at level two, two were level three and three were rated as the most serious level five.

The vast majority showed children in states of undress but not being abused, said Mr Kesner .

Baylis was trying to block-delete images using his work computer in Cirencester when his employers were alerted, the court heard.

He was arrested on August 30 last year.

The court was told that his wife was standing by him and was present in court.

Judge Jamie Tabor QC said: “You are now in your 50s and hitherto you have led as far as I can see a blameless and industrious life. “You are a married man with a family and with certain skills which you have been using in your employment.

“But you have been harbouring a dark secret for many years.”

Jon Holmes, for the defence, said his client’s wife was standing by him and was in court – although she did not condone what he had done. Baylis was ‘very remorseful,’ he added.

“He has the support of his family and the support of his current employer – he is extraordinarily fortunate,” added Mr Holmes.

Baylis was sentenced to a three year community order with supervision and must attend a course for sex offenders. He must also pay £500 costs.

July 2013

Callington man admits making indecent images of children

A CALLINGTON man has admitted 25 counts of making and distributing indecent images of children and of possessing extreme pornographic images.

Michael Johns, 52, appeared at Truro Crown Court from custody this morning where the 25 charges were read out.

Johns, of St Germans Road, spoke to confirm his name and to plead guilty to each of the charges.

The charges consist of 15 counts of making images of children, some of them aged under 13 years, three counts of possessing prohibited images of children and four counts of distributing indecent images of children. He also admitted three counts of possessing extreme pornographic images showing a person performing a sex act or having intercourse with an animal.

In total the charges related to more than 10,000 images on dates between July 2009 and October 2012.

Judge John Neligan said: “You have pleaded guilty at the first available opportunity for the purposes of sentence but I am adjourning sentence … and ordering a psychiatric report and a pre-sentence report.”

Johns was remanded in custody and is due to be sentenced in October.

July 2013

Police hunt Hanley Park ‘flasher’ who targeted schoolgirls

POLICE are hunting a bald-headed pervert who flashed at two schoolgirls before disappearing into the bushes at Stoke-on-Trent’s biggest park.

An 11-year-old and her friend, aged 12, were approached by a man wearing an England shirt in Central Forest Park, Hanley, who then indecently exposed himself.

A passing cyclist saw what was happening and stopped, scaring the flasher away.

The flasher was white with a bald or shaved head and wearing glasses. He was wearing three-quarter length denim shorts and a blue England training shirt.

The terrified youngsters had been walking along the footpath towards the Union Street entrance when the incident happened at around 6.35pm on Monday.

Residents and park users today spoke of their shock after hearing how the schoolgirls had been targeted in an area popular with families.

Reg Shaw, aged 79, of Forest Court, said: “Hearing that some poor girls had to experience such a thing is so dreadful I could weep.

“Previously extra cameras were installed and the trees were cut back to make it safer because there were quite a few incidents where kids were having their phones pinched.

“To be honest, the park is so widely used by cyclists and skateboarders that it is normally full of people.

“But unfortunately there are no wardens patrolling the park permanently. It’s a shame because it’s such a lovely place and if it gets a bad reputation people won’t take their kids there. Someone needs to monitor it to protect the kids.”

Paul Breeze, chairman of the Friends of Central Forest Park, said: “I am shocked someone would expose themselves like that but you get the odd nutcase every so often.

“It must have been frightening for the young girls but it is a blessing that they were together.

“Incidents at the park are relatively few and far between. Generally speaking it is a great place and it’s a shame that these odd incidents occur. It is a big open public park and the only thing we can hope for is to find out who it is.

“Hopefully it won’t put people off going to the park because the busier it is, the safer it will be.”

A Staffordshire Police spokesman said: “A male passerby on a push bike intervened and the offender walked off into bushes heading towards the direction of The Bulls Head or Vale Place. The passerby then alerted police officers on patrol in Hanley to the incident.

View from the Bulls head pub

“An investigation into the incident is now underway. Police are particularly keen to trace the passerby on the push bike who raised the alarm.”

Anyone with information is asked to contact PC Craig Dutton on 101 quoting incident number 665 of July 22, or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

July 2013

Girl aged under 13 targeted by internet sex pest from South Norwood

A paedophile has been jailed for 30 months after admitting to grooming a young girl online.

Ajay Mitra, of Clifford Road, South Norwood, pleaded guilty to attempting to meet a girl under 16, following sexual grooming.

Surrey Police launched an investigation in May after learning Mitra was messaging a girl online and by text message, with a view to arrange sexual activity with a child under the age of 13.

Specially trained officers carried out an investigation into the communications and the 32-year-old was arrested outside a McDonalds in Redhill on May 15.

He had travelled to the area with the intention of meeting the victim and was later charged with several sexual offences.

Detective Inspector Paul Gordon of Surrey Police’s Paedophile Online Investigation Team, said: “I welcome the custodial sentence for Mitra which represents the culmination of a complex investigation.

“Mitra’s behaviour in persistently targeting such a young victim over a number of weeks was clearly concerning.

“Surrey Police takes all online-offences extremely seriously and we will continue to use all available resources to bring those who prey on young and vulnerable people online to justice.”

July 2013

Dover sex attacker jailed for 17 years after repeatedly raping female

A woman who was raped repeatedly has been praised by police for her courage in coming forward as her attacker was jailed for 17 years.

Peter Breeden, of Harold Street, Dover, was found guilty of several offences of rape and indecent assault dating back to the 1990s and when the victim was a child.

Now the 68-year-old has been sentenced at Canterbury Crown Court.

During police interview, Breeden denied rape and said it was a consensual sexual affair that only began when the girl reached 16.

The woman finally felt able to report the assaults in 2011 and the officer who led the investigation praised her courage in coming forward.

The officer also hailed her bravery during the investigation and the resulting court case

July 2013

Child abuse images pensioner sent to prison

A PERVERTED Greenock pensioner caught with over 3700 indecent images of children and animals found the banned pictures while searching for incest pornography

Buchan was jailed and put on the sex offenders register

July 2013

Paedophile pensioner abused Edinburgh church home children

A paedophile pensioner who preyed on vulnerable children in care at a church-run home faces a lengthy jail sentence.

Ian Samson, 72, serially abused young people and raped one girl at the premises where he lived in while his wife worked there as the matron.

Even after he severed links with the home, Samson continued to abuse children.

He wore a cross round his neck at his trial at the High Court in Edinburgh.

A string of victims relived their ordeals from the witness box and one woman, now aged 48, told the court: “I just thought it happened because I was in a children’s home.”

Previous convictions

The jury found him guilty of 22 charges including rape, indecency and assault involving 12 different victims.

Eight of the crimes took place at the former children’s home in Edinburgh between 1975 and 1981.

Samson, a prisoner in Glenochil jail, is a registered sex offender who has previously been jailed and has previous convictions for indecent exposure.

Judge Lady Scott told him: “You have been convicted of extremely serious charges. This was a course of conduct of serious sexual abuse and rape of children over a period spanning 30 years.”

She warned Samson he faces “a serious and substantial” jail term when sentence is passed next month.

Jurors, who had to listen to “sordid and distressing events”, were discharged from any further service in criminal trials by the judge.

The rape victim’s younger brother – one of four siblings taken into care after they were abandoned – said he used to sleep in a dog’s basket in a bid to escape the unwanted attention of Samson who had molested him in his bed.

The rape victim told police she had been assaulted from the age of 12 and said: “I remember him saying I was special to him and it was our little secret.”

She became pregnant by Samson, but had a termination.

She said: “I just thought it was normal. I was young.”

The woman’s younger brother, now aged 45, said: “He basically said if I said anything I won’t see my family again.”

The court heard children saw him viewing pornographic films at his former home in Coalgate Avenue, in Tranent, and abuse also occurred there.

Samson, a former ice cream van operator, later went on to run a shop in Goosegreen Road, Musselburgh, East Lothian, and continued to perpetrate abuse.

January 2009

Social worker downloaded child abuse images

A SOCIAL worker who fronted a youth activities project has been spared jail after he admitted downloading abuse images.

Grandfather Ian Sampson, 55, was banned from ever working with children again after Ipswich Crown Court heard he had collected indecent images and videos of children under the age of 10.

The 57 images were found on Sampson’s hard drive by a friend last September. The Suffolk County Council employee was dismissed from his job after he admitted the offence.

Sampson, of Pakefield Street, Lowestoft, was given a 26-week suspended sentence prison sentence when he appeared at court yesterday.

He had previously admitted downloading the material through a file-sharing software programme from his home.

The court heard how the former social worker had asked a friend to build a new computer for him after his previous desktop stopped working.

The workshop manager was directed to a skip by Sampson, who had dumped his old computer, and told to help himself to spare parts.

When asked by Sampson’s wife to recover photos she had stored on the hard drive, he discovered the child pornography and felt it necessary to report it to the police.

Michael Crimp, prosecuting, said officers found five images and 52 videos of an indecent nature involving young children, which Sampson used “focused” search terms to find.

Andrew Thompson, representing Sampson, told how his client had been dismissed from work in October, shortly after being charged with the offences.

As a result of his prosecution he was also prevented from making contact with his grandchildren unless supervised.

Mr Thompson said: “For someone of his character, age, and personal qualities, Mr Sampson has fallen a long way in virtue of these matters. His prospects of future employment are very gloomy.

“When first brought to light, he immediately told officers what was on the computer. He maintained a frank approach to what was on the computer with his family.

“These images were downloaded over a relatively short period of time. It coincided with him being depressed and unhappy with work and to some extent bored. The images were not paid for and were found on a computer that was broken and ready for disposal.”

Sampson was also ordered to attend a programme to address his sexual offending, and told to surrender the hard drive hard drive on which the material was found.

He was also disqualified from working with children for life and ordered to pay all court costs by Judge John Devaux, who described Sampson as “a family man with a good work record and no previous convictions”.

Suffolk County Council said Sampson had worked for the authority for a number of years in various roles but at the time of his arrest he was fronting the Positive Futures Project, which is spearheaded by the Suffolk Youth Offending team.

The national social inclusion programme aims to encourage young people to take part sporting projects instead of hanging around on the streets and works to reduce levels of crime, anti-social behaviour and drug misuse carried out by youngsters.

During his time on the project Sampson was working with children in local communities between the ages of 10 and 16 in Ipswich, Waveney and Haverhill. As manager of the project he was a direct point of contact for people with enquiries about the scheme.

A county council spokesperson said: “When the allegations came to light the appropriate action was taken to ensure Mr Sampson had no access to children and young people. We followed the usual procedures while the matter was being investigated.”

July 2013

Three Manchester men guilty of grooming and exploiting two vulnerable teenage girls

Three men have been found guilty of sexually exploiting two vulnerable teenage girls.

A jury was told the girls were passed around and raped while they were overwhelmed by the effects of drink and drugs.

It was claimed the girls, aged 14 and 15, were taken to houses and hotels and attacked while they were so intoxicated that they were falling over and feeling sick.

Manchester Crown Court was told one of the girls was so distressed that she wrote desperate messages all over the walls of her bedroom.

The offences took place between 2009 and 2011.

Three brothers, Shamin Uddin, Giash Uddin and Shahab Uddin, from Chorlton -on-Medlock, and two other brothers, Robert Jackson and Scott Jackson, were on trial over the allegations.

Shamin Uddin, 26, was found guilty of two counts of rape, two counts of attempted rape and one count of sexual activity with a child. He was also found not guilty of two counts of rape.

Giash Uddin, 27, was found guilty of one count of sexual activity with a child.

The jury did not reach a verdict on two other charges -  one count of rape and one count of trafficking for sexual exploitation – he faced and they are not being proceeded with. The judge has ordered that they lie on file.

Robert Jackson, 23, of Bramwell Drive, Chorlton-on-Medlock, was found guilty of one count of rape.

Scott Jackson, 20, of the same address, and Shahab Uddin were each found not guilty of one count of rape.

Nazir Afzal, Chief Crown Prosecutor for North West England, said: “These men have been found guilty of serious sexual offences against vulnerable and impressionable young victims.

“The two girls were initially flattered by the attentions of the adult men in this case. They were groomed, and plied with drugs and large amounts of alcohol and then manipulated so that they felt obliged to repay their abusers in the form of sexual favours.

“This often took place when the victims were so intoxicated that they were in no position to freely consent to the sexual acts. Nevertheless, the men used them for their own gratification and cruelly exploited them.

“The victims have shown enormous courage in coming to court and giving evidence. As a result of their bravery, we have been able to bring these defendants to justice for their abhorrent crimes.

“This outcome demonstrates the commitment of the CPS and Greater Manchester Police to supporting victims of child sexual abuse, and tackling offenders through the courts. It is a top priority for us.

“I would urge any victims of sexual offences to come forward and report the abuse to the authorities.”

July 2013

Jail for man who abused girl for a number of years

A BURNTWOOD man who sexually abused a young girl has been jailed for 32 months.

Ex-serviceman William Turner started indecently touching the girl when she was only seven years old and continued the abuse for a number of years.

Miss Laura Hobson, prosecuting, said that on one occasion Turner gave her a bottle of wine to drink and she was sick.

The victim did tell her parents about the abuse when she was in her teens, although nothing came of it, but it was not until December last year that, as an adult woman, she went to the police.

When confronted, Turner confessed immediately.

Turner, now aged 60, of Bridge Cross Road in Burntwood, admitted seven specimen charges of indecent assault.

Judge Stuart Rafferty QC told him: “You, in drink, with her at your flat, did things to her that you should not.

“What you did had an element of sexual gratification.

“[You were] a man who was lonely and in drink sought comfort with that child. You took away her innocence.

“You have sunk low – you should be ashamed and I hope you are.”

Miss Wendy Miller, defending, said Turner committed the offences when he was a much younger man.

“He was unusually honest and frank with the police.”

July 2013

Pervert locked up after horrific daylight sex attack on boy

A pervert has been locked up indefinitely after grabbing a young boy in the street and subjecting him to a horrific daylight sex attack.

Peterlee man John Andrew Malcolm, 25, will not be released until health officials are satisfied he is not a danger to children.

The family of the youngster say they have had a “horrendous” time since the incident happened and are glad Malcolm is now off the streets.

But they have urged East Durham parents to keep a close eye on their children.

Durham Crown Court was told the young victim was making his way home on his bike in Peterlee when he was approached by Malcolm who took hold of the youngster’s bike before carrying him to a wooded area nearby.

The boy was then sexually assaulted and Malcolm tried to rape the youngster, but, a passer-by shouted for help, and Malcolm then fled.

Psychiatrist reports were ordered during Malcolm’s court hearing, and after admitting sexual assault and attempted rape, he was sentenced to a hospital order under section 37 of the Mental Health Act and a restriction order under Section 41 of the act.

Malcolm, formerly of Fulwell Road, Peterlee, will not be released until a mental health tribunal concludes he is no longer a danger to children.

The grandmother of the boy, who cannot be named, said: “I know you can’t watch kids 24/7, but I want to warn other parents to be more vigilant.”

July 2013

Jail term for child sex offender

A Broughton man has been sentenced to six years and nine months in prison for a string of child sex offences, Grimsby Crown Court heard.

July 2013

School sports coach from Burnley faces jail for sex with 13-year-old girl

A SPORTS coach used the school where he worked to groom and have sex with a young girl.

Glyn Thompson, 31, faces jail after pleading guilty to nine counts of sexual activity with a child at Burnley Crown Court yesterday.

The offences, which included intercourse and oral sex with the same girl, all took place between 2011 and 2012 while the defendant worked at Stoneyholme Primary School in Burnley.

He admitted having sex with the girl once at the school, once in his car, and once at his home.

Thompson, who was unshaven and wore a grey T-shirt, hung his head in the dock throughout the hearing, speaking only to enter his guilty pleas.

Thompson, of Padiham Road in Burnley, asked to be sentenced yesterday, but Judge Jonathan Gibson said another hearing would be held on August 23.

He said: “It’s going to be a custodial sentence.”

He remanded Thompson into custody and said he would be liable to the terms of the sex offenders’ register.

After the hearing, it was confirmed that Thompson remained suspended by the school, pending disciplinary proceedings.

At an earlier hearing at Blackburn Magistrates’ Court, the court was told Thompson befriended the girl, who he had known for a number of years, and began to email her.

The emails between Thompson and the girl progressed from conversation, to flirting, to more intimate content with the pair exchanging photographs.

After a few months, the relationship became sexual after she and Thompson found themselves alone together.

At the earlier hearing, Thompson’s encounter with the girl was described as ‘not just a one-off’, but a sustained period of grooming that led to a ‘full blown sexual relationship’.

Thompson, who was in a relationship at the time, was caught when an anonymous letter was sent to the school.

The defendant, who has a young son, was asked speak to police voluntarily about the letter, and initially made no comment.

But he arranged to return to the police station the next day, and made a full confession, volunteering to show officers the e-mails that had been exchanged.

The magistrates’ court heard that Thompson, who had no previous convictions, could face 14 years in jail.

He was warned because of the period over which the offences took place, and because of the position of trust he was in, he should expect to serve six years.

Det Insp Paul Broxson, of Burnley CID, said he was pleased the girl would not need to give court evidence.

He said: “We will continue to work with the victim, with the support of other agencies, to offer all of the help and support we can.

“Thompson groomed her and took advantage of her. We take offences of this nature very seriously and will work hard to bring offenders like this to justice.”

July 2013

Freckleton fire: Dyson Allen guilty of sibling deaths

A teenager has been found guilty of manslaughter after starting a fire that killed four siblings in Freckleton, Lancashire.

Four-year-old twins Holly and Ella Smith and brothers Jordan, two, and Reece, 19, died of smoke inhalation on 7 January 2012. Dyson Allen, 19, had denied starting the fire in a bedroom wardrobe in the dormer bungalow.

• Fire in Freckleton, Lancashire, killed four-year-old twins Holly and Ella Smith and brothers Jordan, two, and Reece, 19, who tried to save them

• Dyson Allen, 19, was found guilty of manslaughter at Preston Crown Court

• But teenager, who started fire in January last year, was cleared of murder

This blackened wardrobe was set ablaze by a drunk and stoned teenager at a chaotic drug-fuelled birthday party, leading to the death of three young children and their older brother.

Pyromaniac Dyson Allen, 19, had been drinking vodka since lunchtime after joining Michelle Smith’s family and friends at her 36th birthday celebrations.

He was preparing to light a cannabis pipe or ‘bong’ when he started the fatal fire in a bedroom.

Miss Smith’s 19-year-old son Reece tried to rescue his siblings – four-year old-twins Holly and Ella and two-year-old brother Jordan, who were upstairs asleep – but all four were overcome by smoke.

Yesterday Allen was cleared of murder but convicted of four counts of manslaughter and told he faced ‘a substantial prison sentence’.

As the verdicts were read out, members of Miss Smith’s family shouted ‘Yes!’, but a woman believed to be Allen’s mother called out: ‘It’s all her fault. If she had not had that party, none of this would have happened.’

Miss Smith has given birth to her ninth child since the tragedy, and the four children who died had three different fathers.

She had been celebrating her birthday at her home in Freckleton, Lancashire, in January last year, Allen’s trial was told.

Members of the group spent the afternoon drinking and smoking cannabis, Neil Flewitt QC told Preston Crown Court. ‘As a result, the recollection of most of the witnesses is affected, by some extent, by drink and in some cases by drugs in the form of cannabis,’ he said.

Allen, a mechanic, was a friend of the family and kept some belongings in the younger children’s room after staying at the house.

Miss Smith allowed teenagers to smoke cannabis in an outside building known as ‘the chamber’, the court heard.

Allen had been ‘drunk or stoned’ and later in the evening had been preparing ‘a mix’ for a bong marked ‘killer’ in which to smoke cannabis.

Miss Smith was alerted by Allen running downstairs shouting ‘Fire!’, at which Reece went to try to rescue his siblings. Smoke alarms had been fitted on the stairs, but Reece had taken them down in the days before the fire because one or both ‘kept making beeping noises’.

Allen denied starting the fire, saying he was looking for a friend upstairs when he noticed an ‘orange glow’ under the door.

But police were immediately suspicious, knowing he had been the only adult upstairs at the time.

An expert told the trial the fire had probably been started by clothes in the wardrobe being set alight.

It emerged that Allen had set fires as a schoolboy and was known to police. A friend told the trial how the pair would regularly start fires.

Trial judge Mr Justice Males remanded Allen in custody, telling him that a ‘substantial prison sentence is inevitable’.

After the verdicts, Miss Smith, now 37, and Reece’s father, Martin Goulding, said in a statement: ‘We’ll never know the reason our children were taken away from us.

‘We would like to pay tribute to Reece, who paid the ultimate price for trying to rescue his brothers and sisters and for that we will be eternally grateful and proud.’

Allen, of no fixed address, will be sentenced in September.

July 2013

Pervert pensioner snared by paedophile sting

A PERVERTED pensioner from Sutton Coldfield turned up at a park expecting to meet a 15-year-old girl to take part in sex act with him – only to be confronted by two men with a video camera, a court has heard.

Sixty-six-year-old Maurice Ingram fled from the scene in his car, but was traced by the police and pleaded guilty to a charge of attempted sexual grooming.

But after hearing that Ingram is due to undergo cancer treatment, a judge at Warwick Crown Court said that to jail him immediately ‘might be sentencing him to death.’

So Judge Alan Parker adjourned the case until after Ingram, of Harman Road, Sutton Coldfield, has undergone the potentially life-saving treatment, and granted him bail.

Prosecutor Charles Gardner said: “This is a slightly unusual case in that it arises out of what might colloquially be called a sting.

“There is a private individual, Stinson Hunter who made a statement to the police. He is carrying out something of a campaign against sexual predators preying on young children.

“What he has done, with the assistance of a friend, is to log on to a chat site where they create profiles and see what comes up. It was a site the defendant had logged on to before.

“Mr Hunter created a bogus profile of an 18-year-old calling herself Jodie who lived in the Nuneaton area, and with a photo of a compliant 18-plus.”

Jodie’s profile was set up on February 15, and just two days later Ingram went onto the site and came across it and got into a messaging conversation with Jodie.

Very early on ‘Jodie’ indicated she was in fact 15, and at that point no offence would have been committed if Ingram had signed off, pointed out Mr Gardner.

“However, he continued. It is quite apparent in the early stages that what the defendant wants, and what she appears to be encouraging, is some oral sex.

“Not much more than an hour later they arrange that he is going to come to a car park in the Nuneaton area and meet Jodie. He drove to the car park and pulled up and got out, and he is then confronted by Mr Hunter and another man.

“They accosted the defendant and put it to him that he had come there to have sex with a 15-year-old girl; and a video camera is produced.”

Ingram, who had no previous convictions of any kind, went back to his car, pursued by the two men recording him, and drove off, added Mr Gardner.

Laura Cully, defending, who handed in documents from Ingram’s GP and from University Hospital Birmingham, conceded the offence ‘normally attracts an immediate custodial sentence.’

Judge Parker remarked: “How can I avoid that? But if he is at liberty he will embark on a course of potentially life-saving treatment.”

Asking the judge to take ‘an exceptional course,’ Miss Cully said: “This is one of the shortest pieces of grooming you can imagine. He was lured into this by vigilantes.

“This was a complete moment of weakness and madness. Even on his way to the meeting he began to regret his actions.

“He describes it in his own words as something he is thoroughly and deeply ashamed of, and something which will live with him for the rest of his life, however long that may be.”

During the police investigation Ingram, who suffered the ‘deep public humiliation’ of the video attracting 60,000 YouTube ‘hits,’ was diagnosed with an acute form of cancer.

Miss Cully added that Ingram is due to have a scan next month to identify the exact area of the cancer, followed by daily sessions of radiotherapy for seven-and-a-half weeks.

Judge Parker said: “It is the course of treatment which is about to commence which gives me the greatest anxiety.

“If I send him to prison today, I might be sentencing him to death. But that is not a reason, necessarily, not to pass the proper sentence.

“If he had not got that condition I would not hesitate to send him to prison; but if the reality is that would prevent him having the treatment, that would be an inhumane sentence.”

Adjourning the case until at least mid-October, and granting him bail, Judge Parker told Ingram: “You have got to be punished; but only the most callous person would say that should prevent you receiving the treatment you need.

“I regard this matter as so serious and of such public concern that the likely outcome is a sentence of imprisonment forthwith; but I’m going to do nothing to stand in the way of the proper investigation of your condition and its treatment.”

July 2013

Gareth Oliver, 21, who groomed boys was a convicted paedophile

A young paedophile with convictions for sex offences groomed two boys before travelling more than 300 miles to meet them, a court heard.

Gareth Oliver paid £52 for a coach trip from his home in Newcastle-upon-Tyne to Medway, taking with him his BMX bike and trunks so he could take the boys swimming.

But his plan to sleep rough with the youngsters was thwarted after their parents became suspicious and he was arrested.

Now, 21-year-old Oliver, who suffers from Asperger’s syndrome, is facing a “substantial” jail sentence after he was convicted of two offences of meeting a child following grooming with intent to commit a sexual offence.

Maidstone Crown Court heard he was on licence and under the supervision of the probation service at the time

March 2004

Paedophile jailed for multiple sexual charges against a 11 year old girl

Carroll was jailed for nine years in March 2004, when he was 33, for a string of serious sexual offences against an 11-year-old girl.

Carroll was put on trial in March 2004 at Lincoln Crown Court and was convicted of six charges of unlawful sexual intercourse and five of indecent assault, between June 2001 and May 2003.

All the offences related to the same victim.

The court heard that Carroll gave the girl alcohol, cannabis and cash after pressuring her to have sex with him.

Lincoln Crown Court was told that Carroll abused the girl for more than two years before she finally revealed her ordeal after being picked up by police in Leicester city centre.

Jailing him for nine years, Judge John Milmo QC told Carroll: “Your conduct was closely akin to rape. You only obtained her consent by threats and gifts of money, drink and cannabis.”

Carl Gaskell, defending Carroll, told the court his client remained insistent that he was innocent and regarded the verdicts as a grave miscarriage of justice.