June 2015

Man jailed for sexual assault on 4 year old girl in Bury St Edmunds

A man who sexually abused a young girl in Bury St Edmunds has been jailed for four years.

Remi Barban, 35, twice sexually assaulted the four-year-old at an address in the town.

Today, Thursday, at Ipswich Crown Court, Barban was jailed after being found guilty following a trial in November.

He had pleaded not guilty to two charges of sexually assaulting a child aged under 13 but was convicted by a jury.

Barban, now living in Wolsey Grove, Edgware, still maintains he is innocent, the court heard.

Sentencing Barban, Judge David Goodin told him: “It was a gross abuse of trust.”

Judge Goodin said Barban’s offending had been ‘striking’ and involved a vulnerable victim who had been too young to fully understand what was taking place.

Barban’s defence during his trial had been ‘wholly implausible’ as had his denials that his actions had been sexually motivated.

Judge Goodin imposed a Sexual Harm Prevention Order which prohibits Barban from being in the presence of any girl aged under 16 without supervision or sleeping or living in a property where a girl aged under 16 also lives.

June 2015

Felixstowe man found with 20,000 indecent images of children

By Colin Adwent

A 58-year-old man who downloaded 20,000 indecent images of children was caught after a house clearance worker he employed found printouts of some of them.

Peter Ellis, of Rowan Crescent, Felixstowe, pleaded guilty to three charges of making indecent images of a child when he appeared before South East Suffolk Magistrates Court.

Nearly 1,800 of the images were categorised as Level A, the most serious grading for child pornography.

All the charges related to the period December 31, 2001 to September 26, 2014.

The first offence contained 17,921 images and movies, the second 1,404 images and movies, while the third involved 783 images printed on A4 paper.

Ellis will now be sentenced next month after his case was committed to Ipswich Crown Court.

For more on this case click this link

June 2015

Jail for takeaway owner who lured schoolgirls into car

A TAKEAWAY owner who lured young girls into his car and gave them cannabis has been jailed.

Lukman Miah, who runs the Curry House in Halliwell Road, was found to have three girls aged 12, 14 and 15 in his car for about three hours in the early hours of the morning.

The girls were said to have been in his car on a number of occasions over a period of more than two months.

Their parents had tried to protest and made efforts to tell him not to contact them again, but he continued.

Miah, aged 29, of Begonia Avenue, Farnworth, said he had no sexual motive for having the girls in his car, and claimed he knew one of them because their parents ordered from his takeaway.

He was jailed for two years at Bolton Crown Court today, with the offence also breaching a bail condition over a “similar” alleged offence.

The court heard that Miah gave the girls money, chocolate and sweets, as well as cannabis.

He claimed that one girl had asked him for a lift, and that she then asked if he could give two friends a lift.

Miah had parked on the driveway of a farmer in Egerton after buying himself and the girls a takeaway meal.

Graeme Wilson, the man who owns the farm in Cox Green Lane, had noticed piles of rubbish outside his land and caught the culprits at about 3.45am on November 30 last year.

When he confronted Miah, he was shocked to see three young girls in the car, which was said to “reek” of cannabis.

Police were called, and the girls were said to be “in a state” and “did not make any sense” because of the drugs.

Miah, who pleaded guilty to four counts of child abduction, claimed he and the three girls were “chilling” and listening to music in the car.

Addressing Miah, Judge Timothy Clayson said: “You knew it was completely wrong to have these girls in your car, A, because it is blindingly obvious, and B, because of your bail condition.

“This offence happened over a period of some hours, which would have been extremely worrying to parents who were already anxious and had tried to put a stop to this.”

After the hearing, Det Sgt Pete Astbury, of Bolton police, said: “Miah had targeted the girls, knowing how young they were, and bought them chocolate and gave them money.

“Thankfully, Miah has been caught and will face the consequences of his actions.”

His brother, Mizan Ali, was also in court for sentencing after he tried to make one of the girls pick out the wrong person in an identity parade, and for interfering with a witness.

Ali, aged 25, also of Begonia Avenue, Farnworth, was given a 10-month sentence, suspended for 12 months, after admitting perverting the course of justice.

Addressing Ali, Judge Clayson said: “You behaved in a very misguided and illegal way after this incident.”

June 2015

Brave woman abused by stepdad as a child speaks out – Guilty

A BRAVE mum who suffered years of sickening sexual abuse at the hands of her stepfather has spoken of her ordeal in a bid to help other victims.

Sara has waived her right to anonymity and has told of her defiant plea to victims of sexual assault to alert police and stop criminals “getting away with it”.

The 24-year-old still doesn’t feel like justice has been served since Gordon Heaton, 73, of Crawford Close, Aspull, pleaded guilty to indecent assault on a female at Liverpool Crown Court.

He was due to be sentenced later this week.

Sara’s life began to self-destruct aged just 10 years old when Heaton began his abuse.

She said: “He first came into my life when I was just five years old when he started to go out with my mum.

“He was really nice at first; he used to take me and my brother and sister to a farm in Beech Hill so we could see the animals, we liked him.

“But it was when we grew up a bit and my sister got a job and my brother began hanging around with his friends, he changed.

“He took me to the farm on my own when I was 10 years old, it was then when it started.

“He had never been like that before, he just used to say, ‘Come on, we will go and see the sheep’.”

Sara said Heaton abused her and then told her she would be taken into care if she told anyone what was going on.

To the outside world, it was a very happy family, but to her it was just a ticking timebomb.

Sara added: “I never told anyone, he told me that if I did they wouldn’t believe me and I would be taken away.

“This is when I turned to drink and drugs. I wanted to block out the pain, I just didn’t want to visualise what had happened anymore.”

Sara began to self-harm, her life went into a downward spiral and she found herself on anti-depressants at the age of just 14.

She said: “My mum just thought I was going down the wrong path and that I was a wild child.

“But she didn’t know the truth. And I couldn’t tell her.

“I didn’t know at the time but it was a cry for help.

“It’s hard to live with that, you know? I was just a mess throughout the whole of high school.

“He took away my childhood.”

Heaton and her mum split six years ago after having a child together, but Sara only plucked up the courage to report the crime recently.

She said: “The experience has made me mentally, emotionally and physically ill, it’s only my boyfriend and my two children who are pulling me through and I’ve only just started to rebuild my life with the help of family, friends and counselling.

“I just don’t want to see anybody else go through the same thing.

“It’s affected every single part of my life and I would really urge anybody in a similar situation to please come forward and to report it.

“I hope that by telling my story I give those people some confidence.

“When I look at him now I feel totally disgusted at what he’s done because he totally ruined my life.”

June 2015

Vicar who touched genitals of five children at Plymouth school is banned for life

A Plymouth vicar who three and a half years ago was cleared at Plymouth Crown Court of abusing children has now been found guilty by a teachers disciplinary panel of inappropriately touching five pupils while he was working as a teacher in Plymouth and has been banned from the country’s classrooms for the rest of his life.

A jury at the Crown Court in September 2010 took seven hours to clear Reverend Canon James Andrew Christopher Wilson, 67, of 16 charges allegedly committed between 1974 and 1980 when he was teaching at Pennycross School in Plymouth before he was ordained.

However, the National Council of Teaching and Leadership (NCTL) panel which heard the case in Coventry imposed the ban after deciding that “on the balance of probabilities” he was guilty of inappropriately touching five pupils at the school. Canon Wilson, who at the time of his trial was Vicar of Calstock did not attend the hearing and was not represented.

The findings say the panel was satisfied that he was guilty of unacceptable professional conduct in respect of the pupils identified as Pupils A, B, C, D and E and that his behaviour was “sexually motivated.”

The pupils, three girls and two boys, who are now all adults, told the hearing that Canon Wilson had touched their private parts. He was said to have “fondled” the genitals of the boys and “digitally penetrated” one of the girls.

The findings say : “The panel was mindful of the fact that Mr Wilson had been tried of the matters forming the subject matter of the current charges against him and he was found not guilty.

“However, the panel noted that the criminal trial was decided on the basis of a standard of proof of beyond reasonable doubt, whereas the current proceedings required findings on the balance of probabilities.”

And, after examining the evidence of the five pupils concerned they continue : “The panel found the allegations in respect of each pupil proven, and also considered that the evidence of all five pupils collectively demonstrated significant consistency in their accounts of the events, particularly the similarities in the descriptions and circumstances of the touching.

“Taken together, these are mutually supportive and add significant weight to the panel’s findings that Mr Wilson did touch pupils in an inappropriate way.”

Imposing the ban on behalf of Education Secretary Nicky Morgan, NCTL deputy director, Alan Meyrick, said the allegations were “very serious” and the findings of the NCTL panel, which recommended a life time teaching ban, were clear.

“In this case it is very clear that the serious and repeated nature of Mr Wilson’s conduct against very young children amounted to misconduct of a serious nature, falling significantly short of the standard of behaviour expected of a teacher,” he said.

“In addition, the panel has found that behaviours associated with offences relating to sexual activity were involved. This case therefore involves a significant breach of trust by Mr Wilson and a very serious abuse of his position as a teacher.

“The pupils were particularly vulnerable by virtue of their young age, and would have been less able to understand and articulate the significance of the events.”

He said he supported the NCTL panel recommendation that Canon Wilson should be banned from teaching with no opportunity at a later stage for him to have the ban lifted.

Canon Wilson can appeal to the High Court against the ruling

August 2011

Child abuse images addict imprisoned

A MAN obsessed with extreme and child abuse images has been jailed.

Paul Cornelius Jones, 43, of Merthyr Road, Hirwaun, admitted a string of offences before magistrates at Merthyr Tydfil, who committed him to the town’s crown court for sentence.

He admitted three counts of possessing extreme porn, 10 of making indecent photographs of children, one of possessing indecent photographs of children and two of distributing indecent photographs of children.

Jones, who has a history of a similar offences and already signs as a sex offender, had images of children at every level from levels one to five, with five being the most extreme.

Claire Fear, prosecuting, said the offences came to light on July 20 this year when police officers raided his home.

He made full admissions when interviewed and said that he had been showing and sharing photographs with “like minded” individuals.

Ms Fear told the court that Jones was ordered to sign the sex offenders’ register for seven years in 2009 until 2016 after being sentenced at Cardiff Crown Court for a similar offence.

Timothy Evans, in mitigation, said Jones’ wife, who was the only one who could control his addiction after presenting him with an ultimatum, was in Thailand and was not allowed to come to the UK.

In addition, Jones was deemed undesirable by the Thai government and is not allowed to return to Thailand.

Mr Evans told the court that Jones was an “intelligent and educated” man who swapped images from time to time with like minded people with the same addiction and obsession.

“He is incredibly embarrassed and ashamed,” said Mr Evans.

“He is on the hospital wing and is on suicide watch.

“He knows that something has to be done to get this addiction and obsession out of his head.”

Judge John Curran jailed Jones for two years and made a sexual offences prevention order prescribing the limits of his use of devices to use the internet and for them to be readily available for inspection by police.

Jones will also have to sign as a sex offender for 10 years.

December 2007

Thai warrant for indecent images of children charge man

A teacher accused of distributing child abuse images over the internet has had an arrest warrant issued against him after he failed to turn up at a Thai court.

Paul Cornelius Jones, 39, originally from Cardiff, was due at court accused of distributing obscene materials.

Somjet Chaichalermpricha, the public prosecutor in Bangkok, confirmed the photos included pictures of naked children and teenagers.

If Mr Jones is found guilty he faces three years in jail or a fine.

“There were pictures of children, teenagers and adults.” Mr Somjet said.

“Mr Jones is accused of distributing these images over the internet.

Mr Jones was released on bail in October pending his trial but had been due to appear in court earlier on Wednesday.

He failed to attend and judges issued an arrest warrant for him.

“The court has issued a warrant for Mr Jones’ arrest as he has displayed the behaviour of a person wanting to escape justice,” a court official said.

Police said they were unsure of his current whereabouts while court officials said they were also unsure whether Jones still had his passport.

Mr Jones was arrested in Bangkok in October after police raided his apartment as part of an investigation which began in Britain in 2003 after he breached the terms of the sex offenders’ register, which required him to keep in contact with police.

Thai police said they found obscene materials on his computer and added there was evidence he had sold the pictures.

He was later released on 200,000 baht (£3,245) bail and told to return to the court at a later date.

At the hearing on Friday, bail officers asked for the trial against Mr Jones to be postponed as they couldn’t locate him.

However, the presiding judge turned down a postponement and issued a new arrest warrant for Mr Jones because he had broken bail conditions.

Head of Thailand’s liaison office with Interpol, Pol Col Apichart Suribunya said the case had now been handed over to local police and his office was no longer involved in the case.

However, local officers in charge of compiling the charges against Mr Jones said they had not been in contact with the suspect for some time and it could be difficult to track him down.

Mr Jones has been living in Thailand for seven years where is it thought he had been working as a teacher in a Bangkok private school.

December 2011

Man had 3,500 sexual images of children

A MAN addicted to sexual images of children has been spared jail and sent on a specialised sex offender programme.

Steven Winstone, 54, was caught after he accessed a website allowing access to pictures and enabled sharing.

He admitted nine counts of making and two of possessing indecent images of children, and two counts of extreme pornography.

Magistrates at Pontypridd committed him to Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court after hearing that his haul included 3,500 images from level one to five, with five being the most serious.

Winstone, of Ross Close, Penycoedcae, Pontypridd, told officers his addiction snowballed when pop-ups of children came up on adult sites.

“He said he did not get any sexual gratification from viewing the images,” said Jane Rowley, prosecuting.

Heath Edwards, in mitigation, said Winstone, who lives with his wife, said he had to give up his job over the stress of the case.

“He acknowledges his problem and is desperate to tackle it. He is so ashamed.”

Judge John Curran imposed a 36-month community order with 36 months’ supervision to allow Winstone to complete the sex offender group programme.

Winstone will have to sign as a sex offender for five years.

January 2014

Grandfather admits indecent images

A GRANDAD was given a suspended jail sentence after admitting having indecent images of children.

Allan Charlton, 62, of Llandraw Road, Maes-y-Coed, Pontypridd, admitted 11 counts of making and one of possessing indecent images of children.

Heath Edwards, prosecuting at Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court, said police visited Charlton on April 19 last year and removed computers.

On one they found 571 static images of levels one to five, with five being the most serious, and three movies of level three. The second computer contained 119 static images abuse of levels one to four.

“The police are often able to search for the [internet] search topics put into the computer and they found the defendant made searches for ‘young porn’ and ‘young girls’,” said Mr Edwards.

During interview he told officers he was only interested in adult porn and when pop ups came up on screen he would delete them.

But Mr Edwards said that was categorically rejected by the police expert because Charlton had actively searched for specific topics. Lucy Crowther, defending Charlton, said he was naive when it came to computers, so much so that he had not bothered to delete images.

Judge Patrick Curran QC jailed Charlton for eight months, suspended for two years with supervision, and made a Sexual Offences Prevention Order regularising his use of the internet and contact with children.

He will also have to register as a sex offender.

June 2015

Paedophile found guilty of 23 sexual offences against his two daughters

A paedophile is today facing a long time behind bars after being found guilty of the systematic sexual abuse of his two biological daughters.

James Holbrook, 65 of Great Ancoats, Manchester was today found guilty in Chester Crown Court of 23 counts of sexual abuse including child endangerment against two young girls in Stockport, Warrington & South Africa

The abuse was over 14-year period beginning when the sisters were aged just four-years-old and lasting until they reached 16

Holbrook was originally a bus driver in Warrington but worked at McVities in Manchester prior to his retirement

The survivors have waived their right to anonymity

One sister said: ” We are relieved that after living with the guilt of abuse, having many problems in our everyday life from depression and eating disorders, we feel we are now free to move forward and start to rebuild our lives. We have had fabulous advice and support from the NSPCC, police, witness team and other members of Chester Crown court during this difficult time. We are hoping that he will receive the appropriate sentence on 8th July in Warrington court.”

June 2015

‘My pervert cousin subjected me to years of sexual abuse – now I am publicly shaming him’

A brave survivor of horrific abuse has publicly shamed the pervert cousin who subjected her to years of sexual depravity.

Pervert Michael Fitzgerald, 31, left court a free man on Wednesday after pleading guilty to two counts of sex with a child.

Until today, he could not be named for his sickening crimes.

But his victim Liz says she wants him publicly shamed for what he did to her, and she has waived her anonymity to do so.

Liz, who is originally from York in the UK, but now lives in Ireland, would travel across the Irish Sea to see her family on holidays.

But what her parents and extended family didn’t know was a predator was groomingher for sex from a young age.

Liz described how the fiend, who lives outside Gorey, told her what they were doing was normal and how she felt unable to escape his clutches.

She revealed the relationship turned sexual when she was just 14 and he was 21.

Liz said: “At the time he kept saying everything was normal and everybody was doing what we were doing.

“I was only a child. I didn’t know it wasn’t right. He manipulated me for so many years.

“He would never tell me to shut my mouth and not tell anyone but he would keep reminding me he was doing nothing wrong.

“That’s how he kept control of me. He made me feel helpless.”

Fitzgerald pleaded guilty to two sample charges of defilement of a child and was placed on the sex offenders’ register.

The 24-year-old, who is now a mother and a wife, first came to Michael’s attention when she was just nine.

The pervert was 16 at the time but shamelessly began kissing her as she holidayed in Wexford.

The charges relate to incidents at a GAA club grounds in North Wexford between June 2006 and August 2007.

He was found not guilty of another charge of sexual assault and walked from Wexford Circuit Court on Wednesday.

Fitzgerald is now on probation and must check in with counsellors for 18 months and continues to work in a fruit and vegetable shop.

Liz said: “I just don’t understand how the judge didn’t give him prison time.

“He got an 18-month suspended sentence for what he did to me. It’s just not right.

“I couldn’t get my justice in the courts but I’ll get in the newspapers.

“I want this whole country to know what he did to me. I want people to know he could do this again and I want them to know what kind of man he is.”

The mother described how she was placed under severe stress during the trial.

She felt like it was her on trial and not the pervert.

Fitzgerald’s defence team claimed Liz had made everything up and she was jealous Michael was married.

But Liz claimed otherwise. She said: “I have my own family. Why would I care about his?

“It was only when I had my first child that I went to the guards in 2012.

“It took years to go through the courts but I’m glad I have done it.

“His manipulation robbed me of my childhood. I lost my innocence.”

Wiping away tears, Liz explained how her once close-knit family had been torn apart by the pervert’s actions.

She said that is one of the worst consequences of his sickening deeds.

Liz added: “We would go across for holidays all the time and now all that closeness is gone.

“His actions didn’t just affect me, it affected our whole family.”

She told how she constantly has flashbacks about his actions and is attending counselling on a regular basis.

In her victim impact statement, she told how he can’t get her depraved cousin out of her head at night.

It read: “Since reporting the crime to the guards, the trauma of what happened has came flooding back. Most nights when I close my eyes, I see his face and feel him dominating me.

“I am taken back to the moment when I lay there motionless, feeling I did not have the right to say no.

“I felt it was my duty to have sexual intercourse with him. I felt that was what I was there for.”

Liz said she used to blame herself for his sickening actions and it had stunted her growth as a young woman supposed to be looking forward to her life.

She added: “I believed what had happened to my family was my fault.

“If speaking out stops him from hurting another child then maybe the turmoil of losing our family will not have been for nothing.”

June 2015

Pervert had almost 65,000 child abuse images on his home computer – Jailed

A pervert who downloaded an “astonishing” number of extreme sexually abusive images of children on computers at his home in Leeds has been jailed.

A part-time judge told Michael Sutcliffe that members of the public would be appalled if he was not sent straight to prison after a court heard of the graphic nature of the images he had accessed over a five-year period.

Some of the sexually abusive images depicted children and animals.

West Yorkshire Police officers seized computers and equipment from Sutcliffe’s home in East End Park on June 4 last year.

Almost 64,000 illegal images and movies were found. Some 506 images and 27 movies were at category A – the most serious level of offending.

Leeds Crown Court heard Sutcliffe immediately showed the officers where they could find the illegal material and co-operated with the investigation.

He pleaded guilty to six offences of making and one of possessing indecent images of children. He was jailed for 22 months.

Stuart Field, mitigating, described Sutcliffe as a “solitary” man who had developed an obsession with the images and struggled to fight his compulsion to view them. Mr Field said his client had felt a sense of relief when officers arrested him.

Recorder Charles Ekins said: “I accept that from the moment that the police attended at your property, you acknowledged in effect what you had done.

“But I wonder, over the four or five year period that you downloaded these images…what remorse you felt for these very young children who were the victims of many cases of the most extreme forms of sexual abuse imaginable. The profligacy of which you downloaded the images is astonishing.”

June 2015

Benwell child rapist jailed for 14 years for attacks on young girls

A pervert who repeatedly raped young girls has been jailed for 14 years.

Paul Johnson subjected two youngsters to years of abuse from the age of six or seven, a court heard.

Newcastle Crown Court heard both youngsters were too scared to tell anyone what had happened to them until they got older.

Now the 28-year-old, of Ellesmere Road, Benwell, Newcastle, has been jailed after he was convicted of six counts of rape, two of gross indecency and two of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.

Locking him up for 14 years, Judge Paul Sloan QC told Johnson: “It’s clear your offending has had a very significant and marked psychological effect on the complainants.

“This was extremely serious offending.”

The court heard Johnson was himself a child when the offending against both victims began.

He had no previous convictions and has been in no further trouble since.

Johnson had denied the allegations but was found guilty after a trial.

As well as the prison sentence, he must sign the sex offender register indefinitely.

January 2015

Paedophile shopped to police by partner over images of child abuse

A SOUTHAMPTON man’s partner shopped him to police after discovering that he had been looking at degrading images of children.

The woman made the discovery after viewing the Internet browsing history on their computer, the city crown court heard.

Martin Bailey had been looking at more than 200 images – nine of them of the worst category – featuring children aged 12-16, said prosecutor Daniel Sawyer.

When questioned, Bailey denied downloading or viewing the images, claiming that others in the house had used the computer, but there was no suspicion that they had been involved, Mr Sawyer added.

Bailey, of Anson Drive, Sholing, admitted four charges of making indecent images.

Giving him a nine months suspended sentence coupled with two years’ supervision, Judge Nicholas Rowland described the images as “abhorrent and they led to the proliferation of abuse of children around the world”.

The judge also ordered Bailey to attend the Internet sex offenders treatment programme and made him the subject of a ten-year sex offenders prevention order.

He also placed him on the sex offenders’ register.

In mitigation, Gary Venturi said that Bailey had made no effort to keep or categorise the images. He urged the court not to jail him but to put him on the treatment programme.

June 2015

Prison for paedophile Koran teacher

An Islamic scholar who sexually abusing a 12-year-old girl while tutoring her in the Koran has been jailed for three years.

Fazul-Ur Rehman, 44, told the child she was ‘a good girl’ as he touched her to try and stop her from telling anyone.

He had been hired by the girl’s parents to teach her at their address in Ilford and was often home alone with her.

He sexually touched the youngster in early November 2014 leaving her confused and terrified of her weekly lessons.

She eventually told her parents what had been happening after he tried to touch her twice on 13 December.

Rehman denied three counts of sexual activity with a child, but was convicted after a four-day trial at Snaresbrook Crown Court.

His victim, still only 12, was forced to come to court and gave evidence from behind a screen.

Jailing Rehman for three years, Judge Martyn Zeidman described his actions as ‘a momentous breach of trust’.

‘She was an innocent 12-year-old, she looked up to you as an Islamic scholar. She explained that god wanted her to study the Koran, she was a sincere and hardworking pupil.’   

He continued: ‘In advance of the trial you heard her pre-recorded interview, you knew what she was saying was the truth.

‘But instead of pleading guilty you decided to bluff it out – it was your right to do so, but it knocks out what would have been useful mitigation.

‘It would have avoided her having to come to court to be cross examined.

‘Inevitably the process causes suffering and you had the power to prevent that but chose not to do so.’

‘As a result of your conviction you have lost your reputation and will never be employed by any respectable institution to teach children.’

Rehman was also banned indefinitely from having unsupervised contact with girls under 16 by a sexual harm prevention order. 

To the victim and her family, Judge Zeidman said: ‘Before parting from this case I would like to pay tribute to the complainant for her bravery in pursuing the case.

‘It is not easy when the culprit is meant to be your religious mentor.

‘She was an impeccable witness of truth and I would like her to know that she commands the respect of all who heard her in court.’

Rehman, of Spencer Road, Seven Kings, Ilford, showed no trace of emotion as the sentence was announced.

1996

Pervert given reprieve for sex assaults on schoolgirls

A former school bus driver who pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting two schoolgirls has been given a chance to reform his ways despite a damning report of the risk he poses of re-offending.

Christopher Phillipson behaved in a ‘disgusting and indefensible’ way towards two 15-year-old schoolgirls but tried to hide it from himself behind a ‘veil of distortion and denial’

The 42-year-old, formerly of Modbury but now living in a mobile home in South Brent had admitted two charges of indecent assault. The second was a specimen charge covering a total of three offences.

At an earlier hearing, Judge Graham Cottle was told that the assaults took place at Phillipson’s home last November on girls he met through local clubs and societies 

A report by a probation officer said the divorcee was ‘primed to carry out further acts of abuse and must be considered a risk’

He told the court that the majority of sex offenders tried to defend their actions and had a highly distorted view of the moral and legal consequences

Judge Cottle told Phillipson: “Your behaviour towards these girls was disgusting and indefensible. There is a small reservoir of cases where it is proper for the court to think in terms of trying to treat someone who has your distortion as a simple alternative to being locked up”

Putting him on two years probation on the condition he is treated at the David Hewlings Centre, he added: “I am a long way from being convinced that yours is such a case but I am prepared to take the risk”

1996 

School bus driver guilty of sexually assaulting two schoolgirls

A school bus driver indecently assaulted two teenage girls after inviting them into his home, Plymouth Crown Court was told yesterday.

Divorced father-of three Christopher Phillipson, who gave his address as Manor Coach house, Back Street, Modbury pleaded guilty to two counts of indecently assaulting two girls under the age of 16 between November 1995 and January of this year.

42-year-old Phillipson invited one 15-year-old girl into his house last November.

He took her upstairs and undressed her before an indecent assault took place.

On January 11, the girl was walking with a friend in Modbury when he invited them into his house. He kissed one girl and placed his hand up the other girl’s skirt.

The second girl fled the house and reported the incident to her teacher.

Judge Graham Cottle adjourned sentencing until June 14

June 2015

Solihull pervert chef jailed after grooming girl, 13, for sex

A sordid Solihull chef – said to be obsessed with child sex – groomed girls with online flirting and then started a sexual relationship with a schoolgirl.

Paedophile John Dodd, 27, of Longmore Road, Solihull, began using file-sharing chatroom Bearshare in 2007 when he was 21 to lure children into sexually-explicit conversations.

He convinced a 13-year-old girl to exchange e-mail addresses and phone numbers before inviting the youngster, from Derby, to stay overnight at the home he shared with his mother and sister.

It sparked a two-year relationship, which became sexual when she turned 14, that he maintained by tricking his family into believing she was over the age of consent.

Dodd was eventually arrested in December 2013 when the girl, now in her early 20s, disclosed the relationship during counselling sessions.

And when officers from the West Midlands Police’s Public Protection Unit examined his laptop they discovered a horrifying string of seedy social media conversations, with various degrees of sexual incitement, and indecent images of children.

It is understood that Dodd groomed several other girls but West Midlands Police detectives were unable to identify them.

But they did manage to trace another schoolgirl who, in response to one of Dodd’s online advances, said: “I’m not doing that. I’m 12 for God’s sake”.

He admitted 19 offences, including sexual activity with a child, possessing indecent images of children and inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.

Dodd was jailed for 11 years at Birmingham Crown Court and banned indefinitely from living with girls under 16 and from communicating with under-18s on the internet.

DC Jon Barker, of West Midlands Police, said: “Dodd knew exactly what he was doing – grooming young girls into online chats that began playfully but soon developed into explicit sexual questioning.

“We know he tried it on with many young girls and managed to strike up a relationship with one 13-year-old girl. They met up every month or so in Solihull.

“The realisation that she had been groomed and used by Dodd was clearly weighing heavily on this girl’s mind and, during one therapy session in 2013, she disclosed the offences to a support agency and they reported it to us.

“I hope the fact that Dodd has now been punished for his offences will help the victim move on with her life.”

June 2015

Registered sex offender admits abusing vulnerable teenage boy

A registered sex offender has admitted abusing a vulnerable 17-year-old boy while working with him as a conservation volunteer.

Graham Staples did not tell the organisers of the project that he was banned from working with young people and assaulted the boy when they were alone together.

Staples is a registered sex offender who was subject to a Sexual Offences Prevention Order as a result of being jailed for four years in 2002 for offences against a young boy.

He was working with a charity when he met the 17-year-old boy who has learning difficulties and was said to be vulnerable.

Staples, aged 54, of Exeter Road, Teignmouth, admitted sexual assault and Assistant Judge Advocate General Alan Large adjourned the case for an updated pre sentence report.

Miss Emily Pitts, prosecuting, said the 17-year-old was particularly vulnerable because of his personal difficulties and at the project on work experience when he was befriended by Staples. 

The boy told his parents and the police he was working in September when Staples put his hand inside his trousers and touched him.

Miss Pitts said:”The victim said he felt as if he was going to break apart. He said he froze and wanted to kill himself. The defendant told him not to tell anyone and pretended everything was okay.”

Staples denied any contact but police discovered he had given the boy his mobile number and he admitted the offences when they asked to see his phone.

Miss Pitts said the assault had a serious effect on the victim’s mental health and led to him being sectioned for a short time.

Miss Ann Bellchambers, defending, said Staples had not tried to hide his work on the project and had told his police offender manager about it.

She said Staples has learning difficulties of his own and hopes to provide more details from his doctors at the next hearing.

Judge Large told Staples he is likely to receive a prison sentence when he returns to court

June 2015

Ex-army officer who preyed on young girls jailed

An ex-army officer who preyed on young girls has been jailed for 10 years for international sex crimes.

Jason Swift (45) previously of Glenfields, Whittlesey, but who has since moved to Charlock Drive in Stamford. was arrested on October 23, 2013 after police received information of him possessing indecent images of children and inciting children to engage in sexual activity.

Police seized a number of devices from Swift’s home and, after examination, they discovered almost 3,000 indecent images of children on them.

Very quickly it became apparent to officers that between September 2012 and October 2013 Swift had had contact with hundreds of children, many outside of the UK.

Police have managed to identify 65 children, however the charges against Swift only relate to eight of them, all of who were girls under 16-years-old.

Four of them were aged 13 at the time of the offences, two were aged 14, one was 15-years-old and the last just 10-years-old at the time of the offences.

On December 4 last year, Swift was charged with

1. Seven counts of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity

2. Three counts of causing a child to watch images of sexual activity

3. Five counts of engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child

4. One count of facilitating the commission of a child sex offence

5. Eight counts of making indecent images of a child

6. One count of possessing indecent images of a child

7. One count of taking indecent images of a child

He pleaded guilty to the charges at Peterborough Crown Court on April 17 and was sentenced to 10 years in prison at Huntingdon Crown Court today (Friday, June 12).

Detective Constable Nicola Perry, from the Paedophile Online Investigation Team (POLIT), said: “The true scale of Swift’s offending is not truly known, but what is known is that he was a dangerous, predatory man who preyed on the vulnerable for his own sexual gratification.

“He would use the internet to identify, groom and sexually exploit hundreds of children and encouraged them, by the use of trickery, persuasion, threats and blackmail, to commit sexual acts on themselves and others via webcam and the internet.

“Our job is to protect those who will be hurt, or hurt again, if we don’t take action. Swift is now behind bars where he cannot bring anymore hurt to children, not only in the UK, but across the world.”

June 2015

Young abuse victim described Peterhead teen as ‘the bad boy’

A teenager who abused a young boy for three years “never thought of the consequences” of what he was doing.

Jordan Kemlo began preying on the young primary school child shortly after meeting him for the first time in August 2011.

The attacks were carried out at addresses in Peterhead.

Kemlo was arrested last year after a police probe into the 18 year-old’s behaviour.

He had latterly been living in the USA.

His young victim had described his attacker as the “bad boy”.

Kemlo confessed to what happened and admitted the abuse occurred on several occasions.

he told police: “I never thought of consequences. I was shocked, confused why it happened.”

The teenager claimed he had previously backed out of handing himself in adding he was “ashamed”.

At the High Court in Glasgow yesterday Kemlo admitted abusing the child between August 2011 and January 2014.

Judge Lord Burns remanded him in custody and deferred sentence until July 9 at the High Court in Edinburgh.

Kemlo was also placed on the sex offenders register.

June 2015

Southport man who abused girls aged 5 and 9 fails to clear his name

A Southport man who molested two young girls when he was a teenager has failed in a bid to clear his name.

Barry John Pierce was aged about 15 when he committed the offences, which only came to light when they were reported years later.

His victims were aged just five and nine when they were targeted in the 1990s.

Now 33, he was jailed for 12 months at Liverpool Crown Court in March 2013, after being found guilty of three counts of indecent assault and three of indecency with a child

Pierce, of Cypress Road, yesterday challenged his convictions at London’s Criminal Appeal Court, arguing he did not receive a fair trial.

He said the trial judge spent more time summarising the prosecution case than his defence, and claimed he had received death threats from relatives of one of his victims.

But, dismissing his appeal, Lord Justice Davis said there was no reason to doubt the safety of the jury’s verdicts.

Sitting with Mr Justice Spencer and Judge Nicholas Cooke, he added: “Ultimately, as we see it, there is no substance in this proposed appeal.”