Search results for Devon

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A former headteacher from Devon has been jailed for vile historic sex offences against children.

Robin Mellor, 74, of North Street in Braunton, was convicted of sexually abusing two children during the 1970s and 1980s.

He used to work at several primary schools in Kent and would commit his depraved acts when his pupils would visit his home address in the town of Ditton for private tutoring sessions.

One 11-year-old girl was targeted repeatedly over a year-and-a-half period, where Mellor would show her pornographic images and force her to copy what was shown in those images, reports Kent Live.

He then assaulted a second girl during another tutoring lesson at his house, this time attempting to engage her in sexual activity and committing an indecent act in front of her.

It was not until January of last year that Mellor was arrested and charged with five counts of indecent assault on a child and a charge of inciting a child to commit an act of gross indecency.

Upon arrest, he was also charged with making indecent images of a child after 20 illegal images were discovered when officers seized his computer.

He pleaded not guilty to the charges and put his brave victims through the ordeal of a trial at Maidstone Crown Court. However, on Thursday (March 7), Mellor was convicted of all counts and and was sentenced to six years in prison.

He was also made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order and was put on the sex offenders' register indefinitely.

Detective Sergeant Rob Grieve said: "Robin Mellor grossly abused his position of trust as a teacher and tutor, in order to sexually abuse children

"Today’s sentence will not take away the emotional and physical trauma his victims were made to endure as children, but it will hopefully bring some closure.

"Mellor was a teacher at several primary schools in west Kent, in areas which included Ditton and Larkfield and we can’t discount the possibility he may have committed further offences which may not yet have been reported.

"I would like to thank the two victims in this case for their bravery in coming forward and bringing Mellor to justice.

"I do hope their courage empowers any other victims of sexual abuse to have the confidence to contact police.

"We will always treat victims with dignity and sensitivity and thoroughly investigate any offences."

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A disgraced ex-headteacher, who was jailed for sexually assaulting a teenager, has had his sentence slashed by senior judges.

Alistair Perry was locked up for 28 months in July last year after jurors convicted him of two counts of indecent assault.

The 47-year-old, who was once the executive principal at Colston’s Girls’ School in Bristol, had denied twice preying on his victim when she was 16.

However, a jury found him guilty of the attacks, after hearing his victim describe how his "hands were everywhere.”

During Perry's trial, the court heard how the girl had gone to Perry's house in Weston-super-Mare days before her GCSEs for maths tuition.

The victim's parents had trusted their friend to help their daughter and they started revising in his mini office in his home.

However, while his wife and parents-in-law were downstairs, Perry moved the session to his bedroom where he sexually assaulted her.

The second attack happened when she returned to the teacher's home to babysit Perry's son.

On crutches at the time, she was sitting on the sofa watching TV when Perry came downstairs and lifted her onto his lap. Using one hand to hold onto her, he touched her under her bra and knickers, she told officers.

The victim later told her father about the abuse but he did not go to police because he was worried about "invasive questioning", Cardiff Crown Court heard.

The court was also told that leaders of the church both families attended, which cannot be named to protect the anonymity of the victim, had known about the abuse, but decided not to take it further because it was between “him and God”.

Governors of Colston’s Girls' School attended court last year to defend the ex-headteacher, having written character references for him which referred to him as an "honest" and "hardworking" man.

However, a former pupil of Perry's told the court he would often make "sexual jokes" and "looked down girls' tops".

Yesterday (January 29), London's Appeal Court was told that the victim reported her ordeal to the police years after it happened, following encouragement by a psychiatrist.

During the appeal hearing, lawyers for Perry, of Colaton Raleigh, east Devon, pointed to his “glowing references” and “model" behaviour in prison.

Mr Justice Sweeney told the court “his fall from grace has been considerable" but said "he has a capacity for rehabilitation".

He continued: "He has nobody to blame but himself for the fact that he committed these offences and the consequent ruin of his life."

Justice Sweeney described the case as a “tragedy” for all concerned but ruled that the 28-month term was excessive and reduced it to 20 months.

'Perry held a position of great trust and responsibility'

Commenting at the time of Perry's sentencing at Newport Crown Court, an NSPCC South West spokesman said: “Perry held a position of great trust and responsibility over children for many years but carried out an appalling attack on a child for his own sexual gratification.

“It is right that he has now faced justice for his disgraceful actions and this case should reassure victims that they will be listened to and believed if they come forward to report non-recent child sexual abuse.

“We hope the victim is now receiving support to recover from what happened to her.”

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The defendant initially denied doing anything wrong and the case was due to go to trial. But on the morning of the hearing the defendant admitted what he had done.

What you did has had a significant impact on the young girl, said the judge.

You damaged her carefree years.

He said the defendants previous conviction should have been seared in your brain as a deterrent and he still posed a threat to the public.

Kevin Hopper, in mitigation, said it was a completely irrational act but OConnor was the type of person who would benefit from a treatment programme.

Judge Evans said the defendant had previously be given the chance to complete a sex offender course but had left before it was finished.

He said OConnor had underlying perverted attitudes.

The defendant was made the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order banning him from contact with children under 18.

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A former car trader from Torquay has been jailed after being caught by vigilantes trying to meet a 'nine-year-old girl' for sex.

Richard Giles, 24, fell for an online sting by self-styled paedophile hunters, Exeter Crown Court was told.

The girl he thought he had groomed online was actually a decoy created by an adult on behalf of UK Database and did not exist.

Davis was confronted by members of the group after trying to lure the girl to his house.

He claimed he only wanted to play Monopoly with her.

Giles admitted that on December 23 last year he communicated on more than one occasion with who he believed to be a nine-year-old girl and attempted to meet her for sexual activity.

Prosecutor Gordon Richings said the defendant struck up a conversation online with the decoy who told him at the outset that she was just nine years old.

Within a day the conversations turned sexual said the prosecutor.

The defendant referred in explicit sexual terms to the girls body and sent her a photo of a BMW he said he owned.

The defendant suggested the girl meet him at his home address on December 23. He was confronted at the scene by members of the vigilante group.

The group filmed him making confessions and police arrived to arrest him, said the prosecutor.

Police said they found a pair of childs knickers at his address. Giles said they belonged to an adult ex-girlfriend. He said he was not sexually attracted to children and preferred older woman.

Mr Llewellyn Sellick, defending, said Giles had been married before to an older woman and divorced at the age of 19.

At the time of the offence he had been drinking heavily and looking after his blind father.

He had previously had a business trading in cars and had been studying in prison to get better qualifications.

Judge Geoffrey Mercer QC told him: You went to considerable lengths to engage in online conversation with a girl who you thought was nine years old. The conversation turned to a clear sexual element. You had a clear sexual interest in her, although you were told she was nine years old.

You arranged to meet her believing her to be a nine-year-old girl but you undoubtedly believed that she was. You went to meet her and your intentions in meeting her were clearly sexual. You were not concerned, as you suggested, to play Monopoly.

The judge said in some cases it was possible to suspend the sentence but not in this instance.

He was jailed for 18 months.

Giles was told to sign the Sex Offender Register and made the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for 10 years.

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A Devon man has been jailed for arranging to meet a 13-year-old girl at the train station but instead being confronted by a group of vigilante paedophile hunters.

Gary Parker, 43, was snared by UK Database who filmed his citizen’s arrest at St David’s Station in Exeter.

They told him the person he thought was a 13-year-old girl was really a fictitious online creation.

Parker, of Brays Close, Crediton, immediately admitted what he had done. In court he pleaded guilty to attempting to meet a girl under 16 for sexual activity; attempting to engage a child in sexual communication via Facebook Messenger; and attempting to arrange or facilitate a sexual offence with a girl.

He was jailed for 15 months.

It is the latest in an increasing number of cases involving paedophile hunters to come before the courts.The offences took place between December 4 and December 9.

Judge Graham Cottle said: “These offences arise out of short series of events involving a fictitious girl called Sammy.

“The prevalence of, and increase in, this type of offending is of great concern and sentencing must reflect the extent of that concern. The message has to be sent out and received that men like you, with or without previous convictions, who may engage in this sort of activity are committing a serious offence, which unless there are wholly exceptional circumstances, they will receive an immediate custodial sentence.

“However difficult you find it to accept what you’ve done it’s quite clear the plans you had for this fictitious girl involved sexual activity.”

The court was told that within minutes of befriending the ‘girl’ online he had initiated sexualised chat. UK Database published details of the conversations and the arrest of Parker on its Facebook site.

It was clear to Parker from the outset that the person he believed he was talking to was just 13, the court was told. But this did not stop him arranging to meet her for sex in Exeter.

Peter Seigne, mitigating, said Parker knew now he had been spending ‘way too much time’ on the internet.

He would spend up to six hours a day playing games and started to accepted friend requests in order to gain online coins to carry on playing.

He said the defendant found the citizen’s arrest ‘very frightening’ and wanted to get help from probation for his behaviour.

Following his release from prison Parker will be subject to licence and supervision conditions. He was given a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for 10 years and must sign the Sex Offender Register.

After the sentencing, an NSPCC spokesperson for South West England said: “Parker’s shocking behaviour highlights the dangers posed to youngsters by offenders online. He fully believed he was speaking to a 13-year-old girl via social media, but continued to groom her before attempting to meet her.

“This kind of predatory activity can ruin childhoods, with the devastating effects lasting into adulthood. While the victim in this case was fictitious, we know that ‘real’ children are being targeted by groomers every day in the UK.

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David Hack thought he was going to meet a girl called Felicity who he had chatted up online but instead he was confronted by members of a Plymouth based vigilante group.
 
The girl did not exist and he had been trapped by a female paedophile hunter from Wales who had passed on details of the rendezvous to the Plymouth group.
Hack, 34, met the fictitious girl on the Badoo and Hot or Not websites where she used the profile Felicity30 but told him she was 15.

He claimed he had been trying to give her sex education after he was trapped by the sting operation and interviewed by police.
During his web chats with Felicity he suggested she should touch herself sexually and he sent her an image which he said was of his penis.
He did not suggest they have full sex when they met and discussed waiting for her 16th birthday, Exeter Crown Court was told.
He made the online contact at a time when he was lonely and isolated because he lived in a small village in the South Hams where he was the full-time carer for his seriously ill grandmother.

David Hack, 34, from Churchstow, admitted attempting to meet a child following grooming and attempting to incite a girl to engage in sexual activity.
He was jailed for 16 months, suspended for two years and ordered to attend a sex offenders programme and do 10 days of rehabilitation activities by Judge Erik Salomonsen.
Hack was ordered to sign on the sex offenders’ register for 10 years and made subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order, which restricts his contact with children and allows the police to monitor his online activity.
The judge told him:"There came a time when you went to Morrisons in Kingsbridge intending to make contact and meet. The purpose for that in your mind was unclear and there is no specific indication of sexual activity when you arranged to meet.

"In fact Felicity did not exist and had been created by a member of a paedophile hunting group. You were set up and succumbed to what you saw online."
He said he was suspending the sentence so Hack could continue to care for his grandmother and could undergo a treatment programme that was only available in the community.
Caroline Bolt, prosecuting, said a paedophile hunter from Wales named Jackie Kempson had created the online profile of Felicity which had attracted the interest of Hack.
Chat logs showed their conversation became sexualised after initial contact on November 7 and led to him suggesting a meeting at Morrison’s in Kingsbridge on November 18.

He was intercepted by members of Plymouth Against Paedophiles, who had been alerted by Ms Kempson, and who detained him until police arrived.
James Taghdissian, defending, said Hack is the main carer for his frail 84-year-old grandmother, who could not cope on her own without him. His role meant he was lonely and socially isolated.
He said Hack initially thought Felicity was 30 because of her profile name but accepts he carried on the web chats after she said she was 15.
He said Hack had suggested waiting until she was 16 before they had sex and had told her he did not want to do anything too sexual when they met.

Mr Taghdissian said:"He was not searching for a young child but came across somebody who initially purported to be much older. He was also told she was shortly turning 16 and there was a discussion about what they may do on her birthday."

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Ralph Sutton, 56, from Combe Martin, thought the girls were aged 12 and 13, but they were fake profiles set up by a self-appointed paedophile hunter.

He admitted five charges, including attempting to incite a child to sexual activity, and was jailed for 30 months.

Judge Phillip Wassall said he was "trawling for young girls on the internet".

Sutton was a town councillor in Combe Martin, Devon, where he moved to start a new life after a previous conviction in London in 2010.

'Fuelling fantasies'

The convictions were for downloading indecent images and trying to contact a 14-year-old girl online.

As a result he was subject to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO), which banned any internet contact with children.

But he flouted the order by contacting the girls on WhatsApp and messaging service Link, Exeter Crown Court was told.

Sutton suggested meeting the 13-year-old to take her out on his motorcycle and take part in sexual acts.

He was caught by secret vigilante group The Midlands Hunters, who alerted the police.

Warren Robinson, defending, said the offences happened when Sutton was suffering from depression and ill health.

He was fantasising rather than actually trying to arrange face-to-face contact, Mr Robinson said.

Sutton admitted two counts of attempted sexual communication with a child, attempting to incite a child to sexual activity, and two breaches of the SHPO.

Judge Wassall said: "It seems to have been more a question of fuelling your fantasies rather than deliberately intending to exploit the girls directly.

"Nonetheless, this was serious. You gave the clear impression of wanting to meet."

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A man from Devon has been sentenced to a total of seven years imprisonment for sexual offences relating to child, that took place in Thame and High Wycombe, between 2004 and 2008.

Carl Crook, aged 45, of Pale Gate Close, Honiton, Devon, was sentenced to seven years imprisonment at Oxford Crown Court on Friday (12/12) for a number of sexual offences relating to a single child.

Following a five day trial, a jury found Cook guilty of three sexual assaults of a child under 13, five counts of sexual activity with a child, assault of a child under 13 by penetration, causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child and two charges of making indecent photographs of children.

Crook had previously pleaded guilty to four counts of taking indecent photographs of a child.

Investigating officer, Det Con Maria Morrisey of the Thames Valley Police Paedophile Online Investigation Team said: I am delighted with the sentence given to Crook, who has proved to be an extremely dangerous and predatory paedophile.

The jury saw through Crooks lies and concluded he groomed his victim before taking advantage of her for his own sexual gratification.

I praise the victim for showing the courage to give her testament first to police and then to the court. I also praise the jury who did their duty with diligence and had to listen in detail about Crooks depraved crimes. Finally, I praise all Thames Valley Police and Devon and Cornwall Police officers and staff who helped in this investigation, without them Crooks conviction would not have been possible.

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A predatory paedophile who groomed teenage girls for sex has been jailed for six years.

Duncan Alistair Morgan, 24, pressured two girls into having sex and abused two others after becoming an “attraction” to them, Newport Crown Court heard.

Prosecutor Jeremy Jenkins said the complaints against Morgan dated back to February 2011.

A police investigation, launched in June last year, uncovered evidence that Morgan was using his age to groom underage girls, he said.

“It became apparent from information that had been obtained that the defendant was associating with much younger children,” said Mr Jenkins. “It proved to be an attraction for these girls. He appeared laidback and cool, to use some of the expressions.”

Mr Jenkins said the first girl was at home when she was followed to an upstairs bedroom by Morgan who kissed her and put his hand down her trousers.

“He told her to forget about what happened and no-one else needed to know about it,” he said.

Mr Jenkins said Morgan targeted another underage girl by sending her flattering messages over Facebook.

“They were complimentary and designed to gain her attraction and her confidence,” he said.

He said Morgan, after convincing the girl to have sex with him over a car bonnet, sent a flurry of text messages offering to apologise.

A third victim, he said, was targeted for sex in a toilet.

The last victim had been drinking alcohol, but awoke to find Morgan with his hand down her trousers, he said.

“He took full advantage of his age and relative experience and independence to groom and attract these young girls,” said Mr Jenkins.

Morgan was arrested but denied all but one of his crimes to police, he told the court.

“He maintained that the girls were not telling the truth and denied, in some cases, that he knew of their ages.”

The case came to trial, but on the second day, Morgan, of Bridge Street, Abercarn, entered guilty pleas to the remaining charges.

Hugh Wallace, defending, said Morgan’s pleas had prevented the victims from having to give evidence.

Mr Wallace said Morgan, who pleaded guilty to five counts of sexual activity with a child, had penned a letter to Judge Daniel Williams outlining his difficult upbringing and expressing remorse.

“That must have been a difficult letter for him to write but he wrote it and it shows the life he’s had thus far has not been a pleasant experience.”

Jailing Morgan for a total of six years and three months, Judge Williams told him: “Your behaviour is properly described by the author of the pre-sentence report as predatory.

“Young girls have been put under pressure by you to have unwanted sex with you. They can never regain that which they have lost.”

Speaking after the hearing, Gwent Police Detective Sergeant Sarah Goodchild said: “We are pleased to see Duncan Morgan sentenced for the crimes he committed today.

“He consistently and deliberately befriended children then went on to sexually assault them. The impact of his crimes will undoubtedly have a long-lasting effect on the victims in this case, but it was their bravery in having the courage to come forward and give evidence that saw him brought to justice today.”

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A former PE teacher who used a social networking site to offer a 15-year-old pupil £200 for sex has been jailed for 21 months.

Andrew Delafield, of Fairfield Road, Newton Abbot, Devon, also asked the teenager and another 15-old-girl pupil to send him indecent images.

The 28-year-old called himself Lanky Monkey when he made contact via the Bebo website, Exeter Crown Court heard.

Delafield had earlier been convicted of making indecent images of a child.

He was eventually caught when a male school friend of one of the girls pretended to be her and persuaded Delafield to send a facial image of himself.

Delafield was found guilty of two offences of attempting to make indecent images of a child and 11 of making indecent images of a child.

Judge Jeremy Griggs said the defendant knew the girls, which "takes it out of the normal run of internet cases".

Prosecutor Malcolm Galloway told the court Delafield was a software sales manager at the time of the offences, having previously been a PE teacher at a community college, which he left in the summer of 2007.

Delafield admitted he was aged 27 and used to be a PE teacher at the college, where he knew the girl from gymnastics.

When he finally agreed to send a facial image, the girl's male friend told him he was "busted" and the police and college were informed.

The prosecutor said Delafield had 271 still and moving images of child abuse on his computer.

Mackenzie Robinson, defending, said Delafield believed the girls were aged 16 and what he had done was "reckless stupidity".

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PREP TEACHER TRIAL: DEPRAVED teacher Peter Hamilton-Leggett lured young schoolboys into his bedroom before carrying out brutal sex attacks on them, a court heard.

The retired biology and chemistry teacher, of Old Station Lane, Yelverton, Devon, admitted 54 charges of abuse on boys as young as eight.

On Tuesday, some of the 58-year-old's victims attended Swindon Crown Court and watched as he was sentenced to eight years in prison for the catalogue of sex offences.

It took more than an hour to read the charges, and, dressed in a suit, Hamilton-Leggett spoke only to confirm his name. His wife, Pauline, kept her eyes closed as the court heard details of each of his depraved acts. Thirteen former pupils of the Old Ride Preparatory School, Bradford on Avon, and six former pupils of Lambrook School in Bracknell, Berkshire, made complaints, dating back to a 15-year period between 1970 and 1985.

The paedophile investigation, headed by Det Sgt David Martin, is believed to be the biggest of its kind in the county.

It was the third investigation into the teacher's sick behaviour the other two failed because of a lack of evidence.

Don Tait, prosecuting, said Hamilton-Leggett's reign of terror began shortly after he started teaching at the Old Ride School, aged 26.

Preying on vulnerable, lonely pupils, he singled out his 'favourites' and would invite them back to his room offering them treats or telling them they could play on his computer. Once he had earned their trust he began systematically abusing them, playing what was described as a 'bravery test game', running his fingers down boys' bodies until they told him to stop.

Mr Tait said: "His fingers passed below the boy's throat and moved down his body, inviting the boy to say stop when his courage ran out."

Unless a pupil resisted, Hamilton-Leggett's behaviour would escalate, performing crude sex acts himself or he asked boys to gratify him.

Some victims were also pinned on the bed while the teacher seriously sexually assaulted them.

Mr Tait described one attack during a boy's last day at Old Ride School. "The experience was incredibly painful, he kept thinking he was going to die," he said. "Although he was crying the defendant carried on until he had his way.

"He then took him to meet his mother, wished him all the best for the future and nothing was said thereafter."

Mr Tait said other victims described how Hamilton-Leggett had made them feel special until they asked him to stop, and how the teacher was respected and trusted by pupils, parents and staff.

He asked his victims to keep quiet about their agonising abuse.

Sentencing Hamilton-Leggett Judge Thomas Longbotham spoke of the lives he had ruined and how he had denied the abuse during two earlier investigations.

He said: "It is not an attractive form of behaviour an aggravating feature in this case particularly because you picked on vulnerable boys in boarding school.

"You also abused a position of trust."

One victim, in a statement read to the court, told how he had turned to drink and even attempted suicide while trying to come to terms with his ordeal.

Others told police how the attacks had stopped them having normal relationships and how their experiences would stay with them for the rest of their lives.

Hamilton-Leggett was sentenced to eight years on each of seven counts of buggery and attempted buggery or assault and gross indecency.

All the sentences will run concurrently and he will be placed on the Sex Offenders' Register indefinitely.