Latest Offenders Birmingham

Description

A Birmingham paedophile has been jailed for a total of more than 17 years for child sex offences.

James Shand, 57, was sentenced at Birmingham Crown Court on Monday, June 2.

He was convicted on 12 counts but pleaded guilty to only five.

The counts were as follows:

• Count 1: Sexual assault on a female
• Count 2: Engage in sexual activity in the presence of a child 13 to 15 - offender 18 or over (seven months imprisonment)
• Count 3: Sexual assault on a female (seven months imprisonment)
• Count 4: Sexual assault on a female (15 months imprisonment, consecutive)
• Count 5: Cause/Incite a girl under 13 to engage in sexual activity - no penetration (five years and three months imprisonment)
• Count 6: Cause/incite a girl under 13 to engage in sexual activity - no penetration (16 years comprising of 12 years imprisonment extended by 4 years licence extension)
• Count 7: Cause / incite a girl under 13 to engage in sexual activity – no Penetration (four years and six months imprisonment)
• Count 8: Sexual assault on a female (two years and six months)
• Count 9: Cause/incite a girl under 13 to engage in sexual activity - no penetration (five years imprisonment)
• Count 10: Engage in sexual activity in presence of a child 13 to 15 - offender 18 or over (17 months imprisonment)
• Count 11: Assault a girl under 13 by touching - SOA 2003
• Count 12 - Engage in sexual activity in presence of a child 13 to 15 – offender 18 or over (17 months imprisonment)

Shand, of Woodgate Lane, Birmingham, was sentenced to a total of 17 years and three months - 16 years and a consecutive sentence of 15 months, both for causing/inciting a girl under 13 to engage in sexual activity.

He will be entered on the Sexual Offender Register for life and "may be barred from working with children and vulnerable adults", according to the court.

Description

Khan, aged 31, of Sommerville Road, Birmingham, was due to stand trial, but on the first day of the case he changed his pleas to guilty.

He admitted five charges, including sexual activity with the three girls and engaging in sexual communications with one of the girls when she was aged 13.

He admitted the fifth charge - perverting the course of justice – after using a phone while in prison to try to get the girls to drop their allegations against him.

Khan’s sentencing was the culmination of more than two years of work, with officers from our Public Protection Unit (PPU) working tirelessly to gather evidence and statements from the girls Khan abused, and support them through the criminal justice system.

Det Insp Joe Davenport, who oversaw the investigation, said: “It’s a credit to the bravery of the girls that Khan abused that they were willing to make their voices heard and to face him in court.

“He is a predatory sexual offender, who sought out vulnerable children, and sexually exploited them for his own gratification. He acted brazenly and believed he was above the law, and that the girls would not be believed.

"Investigations into child sexual explitation are particularly complex and difficult, and the officers involved worked tirelessly to get the best evidence. Their dedication and support of the victims through the criminal justice process ensured that these young women saw their abuser brought to justice.

"We, the Crown Prosecution Service and courts take child sexual exploitation seriously, and I hope that this encourages other people who have been abused in this way to tell us what has happened so we can break the cycle of abuse and bring other perpetrators to justice."

Khan was classed as a dangerous offender by a judge and given a 13-year prison sentence, and ordered to spend an extra five years on licence when he is released. He was also placed on the sex offenders register, given a sexual harm prevention order, and restraining orders against the three girls he physically abused.

Description

A ‘dangerous and predatory sex offender’ has been jailed for ten years for sexually assaulting two teenage boys, following a British Transport Police (BTP) investigation.

Damien Gloster, 40, and of no fixed address, was sentenced at Birmingham Crown Court yesterday (7 May) to seven years in prison, extended by a further three years. Gloster was found guilty by a jury of two counts of sexual assault on a male, at Birmingham Crown Court on Wednesday 19 February 2025.

In addition to this he will have a life-long signature on the Sex Offenders Register.

The court heard how, on two separate occasions last year Gloster sexually assaulted two teenage boys.

On the evening of Saturday 11 May, a 15-year-old boy was sexually assaulted by Gloster on board a train between Barnt Green and Selly Oak.

The second incident involved a 16-year-old boy who was targeted by Gloster while trainspotting at Northfield station on the evening of Tuesday 16 July. Gloster enticed him into a woodland area where he sexually assaulted him.

In court the Judge described Gloster as a dangerous and predatory sex offender.BTP Detective Constable Karl Byrne said: “Gloster is a callous predator who deliberately targeted and exploited young boys for his own sexual gratification.

Description

A predator who raped a vulnerable underage girl has been jailed for ten-and-a-half-years.

Toray Douglas, who goes by the nickname 'Shotty', picked up the 15-year-old as she walked alone in Birmingham city centre on June 20 last year.

He bought her something to eat and they exchanged messages to meet at his bedsit the same night.

Birmingham Crown Court heard she was in the care of Birmingham City Council and had run away from a centre on the night of the attack.

Staff alerted police who tracked her phone to Douglas' HMO bedsit where they were found in bed.

When the victim was returned to her care home by police, she confided in a support worker that she had been raped.

Following an earlier trial Douglas, of Blakeland Street, Bordesley Green, was found guilty of one charge of rape and one of assault by penetration.

At his sentencing hearing, Stefan Kolodynsky, prosecuting, said the victim told Douglas "no" when he said they were going to have sex.

Mr Kolodynsky said: "He then proceeded to have sex with her, at the time he knew she was 15. He knew she was vulnerable."

Neil Baki, defending, said: "He's now 38, he's been in some trouble in the past but nothing like this.

"He's going to find his time in custody difficult because of this."

Sentencing Douglas, Judge Sarah Buckingham said the victim "has been left feeling anxious, cautious and scared in the company of men".

Douglas, who has a string of previous convictions, was also ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register for the rest of his life.

Description

A man from Birmingham has been jailed for 26 years for several serious offences against two children, including rape and sexual assault.

We were contacted in August 2024 about a girl being sexually abused.

Our officers carried out immediate enquiries, and Mohammed Mire was arrested later that day.

Following a thorough investigation, officers discovered Mire was responsible for a catalogue of abuse against two young people dating back several years.

The 35-year-old, of Moat House Road, was subsequently charged with raping a child under 13, three counts of raping a teenage girl, assault by penetration, threats to kill, and actual bodily harm.

Mire denied all of the charges but was found guilty following a trial.

On Tuesday (22 April) he was sentenced at Birmingham Crown Court to 26 years in prison. 

He is also subject to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order, a restraining order, and a notification order under the Sexual Offences Act.

Description

This is the face of a paedophile pensioner every parent should know as he is now a free man. Brian Topliss has been released from prison after serving half of his decade-long sentence.

The now 81-year-old was jailed for ten years in November 2019 after a series of sickening child sex offences. The sex offender befriended his victims, luring them into his Alum Rock home to play computer games.

Topliss, who was sentenced when he was 76, also offered to take the children to 'parks or swimming'. Instead, he repeatedly abused one boy and regularly invited others into his home.

In November last year, he was released from prison having served five of the ten years. Now it's thought he's living in Walsall following his release. The Ministry of Justice stressed he - as well as any prisoner released on license - would be subject to strict conditions. This would range from curfews to exclusion zones and include the threat of being returned to prison if breached.

"Anyone released from prison faces strict conditions while on licence, such as curfews and exclusion zones, and can be returned to custody if they breach them," a Prison Service spokesperson said.

Topliss was freed on November 18 last year, five years on from his sentence at Birmingham Crown Court - where his offending was branded a "gross abuse and a breach of trust." Judge Sarah Buckingham said at the time: "You are a man who, for many years, has had and acted upon a sexual interest in children."

The pensioner groomed boys and filmed them performing sexual acts at his home. His offending only ended when one victim told a social worker and nurse of their abuse and police became involved.

As police raided his home, officers found Topliss had also stored and catalogued around 15,000 indecent images for his own sexual gratification. One of his victims, a man now in his 30's, was "befriended" by Topliss when he gave him swimming and diving lessons.

"He groomed him and treated him as his favourite," prosecutor Steven Bailey had told Birmingham Crown Court. He then went on to abuse the boy repeatedly and "went further" when he realised he could get away with it.

The sex offender also invited a number of other boys to his home on a regular basis. There. he would show them pornography, give them drugs, sweets and get them to perform sexual acts, the court heard. Topliss recorded what went on and police later recovered 173 still images and three videos.

Mr Bailey went on: "Over a period of about 13 years he took, made and consumed images. He only stopped when the police became involved. They show a household where there were no sexual boundaries. 'It is my house and my rules' seem to have been his thought process."

He said Topliss had also tried to conceal what he had done by "burying" indecent images in a video which was ostensibly holiday footage. Included in the images that Topliss had downloaded were four extreme pictures of extreme pornography involving animals.

Topliss, who lived in Maitland Road before his prison term, had admitted four charges of gross indecency with a child, seven of taking indecent images of a child, three counts of possessing indecent photographs of a child and one count of possessing extreme pornography.

"Topliss befriended his victims by offering his home as a place to play computer games, or by taking them to parks or swimming. But he had a hidden agenda and abused those who trusted him in the most deviant way," Det Con Julia Griffin, from the West Midlands Police public protection unit, said after the case.

"No one can underestimate the effect sexual abuse can have on a child as they grow into adulthood and I can only praise the bravery of those who relived their experiences by coming forward. I am pleased that Topliss pleaded guilty and spared his victims the ordeal of a trial. I hope the sentence gives them some comfort."

Description

Christopher Cooper, 36, of Portland Road, Birmingham (previously of Leamington) has been jailed after he exchanged sexually explicit communications with a teenage girl while he was subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO).

Cooper was arrested by officers from Warwickshire Police Sex Offender Management Unit (SOMU) on the day he was released from prison where he was serving time for breaching the SHPO which was put in place when he was previously convicted of child sex offences. The SHPO prohibited him from making contact with anyone he believed to be under the age of 16.

While he was in prison detectives found evidence that he had exchanged the messages with the girl in 2022. Cooper claimed to be 18 while the victim had made clear early on in the exchanges that she was only 14.

Cooper was jailed for three years and four months at Warwick Crown Court last week having pleaded guilty to four counts of breaching a SHPO and one count of inciting a girl aged 13-15 to engage in sexual activity. He will serve a further six years on licence. If he breaches the terms of this licence he can be returned to prison.

Detective Constable Matt Collins from the SOMU said: “The sentence reflects the danger Cooper poses to children. It also demonstrates the power of the SHPOs in allowing us to monitor the behaviour of sex offenders and shows how seriously the courts treat offenders who breach them.

“This case also shows the dangers of social media and how it is important for parents to be aware of what their child is doing online.

Description

A dangerous offender has been jailed for four years after a string of sexual offences against women in a Warwickshire town. Paul Sanders was convicted of a series of sexual offences against women in Leamington Spa in the space of 24 hours.

Police described Sanders, 36, as a "very dangerous man" after he was sentenced. He was convicted on September 23 at Warwick Crown Court of the offences, which he carried out on April 6.

Warwickshire Police said Sanders in just 24 hours sexually assaulted a woman, attempted to sexually assault a woman and tried to force entry to a house with the intent to commit a sexual offence. The force praised the courage of the victims in the case that helped secure a conviction.

A Warwickshire Police spokesperson said: "A dangerous offender has been jailed after being convicted of a series of sexual offences against women in Leamington. On April 6 2024, Paul Sanders sexually assaulted a woman, attempted to sexually assault a woman and attempted to force entry to a house with the intent to commit a sexual offence.

"The 36-year-old was jailed for four years last week. He will serve another three years on licence following his release. He was also ordered to sign the sex offender’s register for life.

"At Warwick Crown Court last week Sanders, of no fixed abode, was jailed after pleading guilty to sexual assault, attempted sexual assault and knowingly trespassing on premises with intent to commit a relevant sexual offence."

Det Sgt James Stone-Fewings, a sexual offence investigator from Warwickshire Police, said: “The courage shown by all the victims in this case must be commended. Thanks to their continued support we have been able to ensure a very dangerous man is no longer on the streets.”

Description

A 'predatory' Birmingham school worker sexually abused a pupil in his office, upskirted girls and secretly recorded women.

Steven Hanna was the pastoral lead with responsibility for safeguarding children but committed the 'grossest breach of trust' over a four-year period until his arrest in 2023.

The 41-year-old groomed students with chocolates and filmed them under the table with his phone. He also covertly filmed one girl whose bra was visible after her shirt became wet.

After being arrested police recovered disturbing images on his phone which showed children as young as seven being abused. Hanna, of Glascote Grove, Shard End, admitted a string of offences and was sentenced to seven years at Birmingham Crown Court this morning, Wednesday, September 18.

A 'predatory' Birmingham school worker sexually abused a pupil in his office, upskirted girls and secretly recorded women. Steven Hanna was the pastoral lead with responsibility for safeguarding children but committed the 'grossest breach of trust' over a four-year period until his arrest in 2023.

The 41-year-old groomed students with chocolates and filmed them under the table with his phone. He also covertly filmed one girl whose bra was visible after her shirt became wet.

After being arrested police recovered disturbing images on his phone which showed children as young as seven being abused. Hanna, of Glascote Grove, Shard End, admitted a string of offences and was sentenced to seven years at Birmingham Crown Court this morning, Wednesday, September 18.

Appearing on a video link from HMP Birmingham he sat with his head in his hands as his punishment was delivered. After the case was opened earlier this week he told the court: "I just want to apologise. I'm very remorseful. I can't put into great words..."

In a statement the headteacher of the academy, which cannot be identified for legal reasons, said the whole school community would be reeling from the impact of Hanna's betrayal for a long time to come. The most serious incident occurred when Hanna invited a 12-year-old girl into his office on the pretext of signing her leavers shirt.

He pressed his penis up against her back causing the girl to demand he unlock the door otherwise she would scream. Hanna let her go but later told her not to tell anyone about the incident.

The victim reported the attack to the police and Hanna was suspended but a decision was taken that there was 'no reasonable prospect of conviction' at the time, and he was allowed to return to work. Meanwhile the girl was accused of being a liar and bullied by fellow pupils.

In a statement she said she felt 'scared, alone' and 'angry'. She added: "People liked Mr Hanna and didn't want to believe me. Before it happened I liked him.

"There was no result from reporting to the police. I felt they had all been proved right. It was easier for everyone to think I lied."

But the case was re-visited when a further accusation was made against Hanna in 2023. At that stage his phone was seized and found to contain upskirting videos as well as further indecent images of children.

Prosecutor Antonie Muller said: "It was children in school uniforms. He was filming them under the table in their skirt. The defendant was the pastoral manager.

"This meant having regular meetings with children. One part of his role, deeply ironically, was safeguarding those children."

Some of the upskirting victims recalled that Hanna offered them chocolates in his office. One victim said it was 'weird' that he would speak to her 'all day' while other teachers encouraged her to return to class.

She also described an incident where Hanna made a sexual remark about a McDonald's milkshake she was drinking. There were also three adult victims of his perverted actions.

One woman had shown him nude photos of herself on her phone, not realising Hanna was recording her at the time. Another woman, who had previously turned his advances down, was filmed under the table while a third female admitted exposing her breasts to Hanna but did not know he was recording on his phone.

She said: "I feel violated that he recorded me. It's an outrageous betrayal of trust. It has completely blown me away he has been so predatory and been convicted of such serious offences given how he presented and engaged with people."

The school headteacher stated the impact of Hanna's actions 'can't be overstated' and that the 'sense of betrayal in the school was palpable'. He revealed that it had a knock-on effect on pupil attendance and some struggled to gain qualifications while many required counselling.

The head also described how students became suspicious of other male staff and that numerous meetings and assemblies had to be held over the allegations surrounding Hanna. He stated the school's reputation had been 'severely damaged' and rebuilding it was an 'exhausting process'.

The headteacher added: "The ripples of betrayal and distrust have been far-reaching, influencing not only the school but families connected to it. The harm caused has reverberated through the lives of countless people leaving a lasting impact that will continue to be felt for years to come."

Hanna pleaded guilty to a total of 17 charges relating to voyeurism, attempted voyeurism, inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, possession of indecent images and possession of extreme pornography.

Jas Mann, defending, said: "This case is extremely sad. He worked hard to achieve his status and led a thoroughly decent and positive life until he started to engage in this criminality. It is truly a fall from grace as far as he is concerned."

He stated Hanna's time in custody on remand had been 'painful'. Mr Mann continued: "He's genuinely remorseful. He is truthful (in the pre-sentence report) when he described the guilt and embarrassment of being in prison and feeling like a failure. He has been reflective and introspective."

The barrister concluded that Hanna was 'thoroughly ashamed', adding that his best mitigation was that he had the 'courage and good sense' to plead guilty. The defendant was made the subject of an indefinite sexual harm prevention order, restraining order and sex offender notification requirements.

Judge Heidi Kubik KC told him: "The particular factors that give rise for concern are of course the grossest breach of trust. There was evidence of some grooming and manipulation of some of the children. The sheer number of separate victims, both children and adults and the period over which your offending had clearly become an established pattern of behaviour."

Description

A man from Birmingham has been jailed for 21 years for rapes against a woman and historic rape and sexual abuse of two children.

Marcus Newton’s vile offending came to light after his three brave victims came forward.

The 27-year-old, from Aston, was jailed at Wolverhampton Crown Court on July 26 following a trial.

As well as being jailed for 21 years he was placed on the sex offenders register for life.

He was found guilty of two charges of raping a child under 13, one charge of sexually assaulting a child under 13 and three charges of rape.

Newton’s sexual offending was brought to light when one of his brave victims contacted us to say that he had been raped by Newton.

He told us how Newton’s actions had a massive impact on his mental health and he was having suicidal thoughts. He told us the offending took place when he was a young boy.

As a result of the first victim contacting us two more victims also came forward. One was a woman who said she had been raped by Newton back in 2018 and 2019.

Another woman also came forward to say she had been raped by him over a period of four years while she was still a child. We analysed footage on her phone which included messages and pictures sent by him to corroborate her story.

Description

A man has been jailed for sexually assaulting a teenager and woman in the Aston and Perry Barr area of Birmingham this year.

Irtiza Abbas of Lozells Road, Birmingham pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a schoolgirl and a university student after compelling CCTV evidence showed him selecting and following his victims.

Both victims have bravely allowed us to tell their story and show CCTV in the hope that anyone else who feels they've been a victim and hasn’t come forward to do so.

On the afternoon of Tuesday 16 January, the 25-year-old hung around the area near to Aston University and followed a woman who was walking on her own.

He followed the 22-year-old along Dartmouth Middleway for a while to make sure she was definitely on her own and that there was no other person in the street and then grabbed her and assaulted her.

And on Tuesday 16 April he followed a 15-year-old schoolgirl as she walked home in the Perry Barr area.

CCTV shows him following her closely along a street and looking around to make sure he was alone.

Only when he was sure that there was no-one else around, he grabbed the girl and assaulted her.

The 15-year-old bravely rang her father who was luckily driving nearby. They drove around the area and spotted Abbas, but following a tussle, Abbas escaped and fled the scene.

Officers painstakingly pieced CCTV together linking the assaults and a suspect was identified.

Abbas was arrested from his address in Lozells on 22 April and clothing matching the description in the

CCTV was recovered. Although he didn't admit his guilt in interview, he knew the evidence against him was so compelling that he pleaded guilty at court. 

He was sentenced at Birmingham Crown Court to two years in jail.

The investigating officer, Detective Inspector Joe Davenport, said: "We strongly believe due to the nature of the offences that Abbas may have committed more offences.

"CCTV has shown him lingering on the streets and carefully selecting his victims. He would follow them to make sure they were on their own before he struck.

"Although he's pleaded guilty to two offences there's a real time line gap and we have really strong suspicions that he may have offended again and again.

"Thanks to the support of the victims and their bravery and our teams’ efforts in tracing every single piece of CCTV that we could, we've managed to take a serial offender and a potentially dangerous man, whose offences were deliberate, methodical and repeated, off the streets of Birmingham.

"If anyone feels that something similar has happened to them and that they've not come forward before, we'd ask them to reconsider. Please contact me or one of my team and we promise that we will take your account seriously."

We are committed to identifying individuals who pose the highest risk of harm to women and girls, and actively managing them to prevent or reduce offending.

We are encouraging any more victims to come forward by contacting us by calling 101 or visiting our Live Chat function on our website and quoting crime number 20/412643/24.

Victims of sexual assault receive life-time anonymity.

Description

A child sex offender who groomed a schoolgirl has been jailed. Police were so worried about Ray Trewern that officers launched an investigation without the victim making a formal complaint.

He met the 12-year-old victim online but the 35-year-old quickly arranged to see her in person. Trewern, of Park Corner, Birmingham, bought the girl gifts and took her shopping.

During one meeting, he sexually assaulted her by kissing her. West Mercia Police said "such was the concern about Trewern", that an investigation was progressed on an evidence-led basis, without the victim providing a formal complaint. He was jailed for two years and three months at Worcester Crown Court on May 16.

Trewern pleaded guilty to sexual communications with a child, meeting a female child under the age of 16 following sexual grooming, sexual assault of a female child under 13 and possession of indecent photographs of a child. He was also made the subject of a ten-year sexual harm prevention order and handed an indefinite restraining order.

Trewyn groomed the girl between October and December 2021. Following the sentencing, Det Const Tarryn Schimmel said: "Trewern’s grooming was such that his victim genuinely believed he had her best intentions at heart when in fact his deception was for his own perverse gain.

"The victim and her family have had to wait a long time to see justice being done and I commend them for their patience and dignity in waiting for this matter to finally be resolved. I hope the sentence helps put some closure on this awful time for them.”

Description

This is the face of a paedophile who preyed on a schoolgirl in a vile attempt to sexually abuse her as she walked to school. Predator Daniel Ralph grabbed the youngster as she made her way to school through an alleyway.

She was on her own when the 'dangerous' sex offender, 31, pounced on her from behind. He then put her in a 'chokehold' as she battled to get free.

The young girl bit Ralph's hand, forcing him to loosen his grip and run away. A court heard how the pervert even 'went equipped', wearing a jacket with unused condoms in his pocket.

Ralph has since been locked up for his terrifying ambush. Wolverhampton Crown Court heard how the girl was walking through the alleyway just before 7.30am on February 16 last year.

CCTV footage recorded Ralph leaving his home at 7.29am and reaching the nearby alleyway a minute later. He was donning a face covering and gloves as he walked past the girl in the opposite direction

But he then turned and grabbed her from behind. Prosecutor Dylan Wagg said the defendant 'gripped tightly' as he put one hand around the victim's neck and another around her mouth.

The girl screamed and bit his hand, with Ralph rushing home. He changed his clothes and was seen leaving his home again at 7.52am.

Ralph walked in a different direction to the alleyway, the court heard. A concerned passer-by noticed the 'distressed' schoolgirl - who had a cut lip - and called police.

The girl later told officers she had spotted Ralph 'loitering' in the alleyway as she walked to school just days before his cruel attack on her. The convict was arrested at home a few hours later.

Officers seized a number of pairs of gloves and balaclavas, a Rambo knife, a zombie knife and a black quilted jacket with unused condoms in the pocket. The court heard how Ralph previously sexually assaulted a schoolgirl in 'strikingly similar' circumstances.

He also sneaked into a woman's bedroom naked, leaving her fearing she would be raped. Stephen Hamblett, defending, said 'remorseful' Ralph had a 'number of difficulties' when he was younger - including being the victim of a sexual assault.

Sentencing, Judge John Butterfield KC described Ralph as a dangerous offender posing a 'significant risk of causing serious harm' to the public. Ralph admitted assault by beating, committing an offence with intent to commit a sexual offence and breach of sexual harm prevention order.

He was handed an extended sentence of nine years and 10 months. It means he must serve two-thirds of his jail term of five years and 10 months before being released and will be subject to an extended licence period of four years.

Description

A sex offender has been jailed for 14 years for abusing two girls and a woman.

Nicholas Lumsden, of Birmingham, was found guilty of committing numerous offences in Kent, including indecent assault, sexual assault and sexual activity with a child.

Police say evidence the 40-year-old had carried out historic attacks on children in Ashford surfaced while investigating allegations he sexually assaulted a woman in Dover in 2019.

Lumsden, of Selcroft Avenue, denied the charges but, following a recent trial at Maidstone Crown Court, was convicted of a string of offences, including indecent assault, sexual assault of a child and sexual activity with a child.

He was brought back before the same court on Wednesday April 17 and jailed for 14 years.

He was ordered to serve an extra five years on licence following that term and made the subject of a 25-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

Description

An online predator who pretended to be a 12-year-old girl to encourage other young people to share indecent images has been jailed.

We discovered Dominic Woodcock had used a fake profile on various social media channels to befriend young girls between 2021 and 2023.

He claimed to be involved in a gymnastics club and encouraged girls - mainly aged between 10 and 12 - to pursue such a career.

However, once a rapport was established Woodcock would request indecent images of the girls and threatened to expose them on social media if they refused.

After being alerted to his depraved behaviour we quickly identified and arrested Woodcock from Erdington.  We seized his phone and found concerning images and messages.

The 20-year-old pleaded guilty to possession of indecent images and engaging children into sexual activity.

He was jailed for four years and eight months at Birmingham Crown Court last Wednesday (3 April) and put on the sex offenders register for life.