Latest Offenders Gloucester

Description

A 60-year-old man from Tewkesbury has been sentenced to eight years in prison for raping a woman multiple times.

Vernon Steele, who is from the Northway area, had previously denied four counts of rape, but following a trial at Gloucester Crown Court, a jury unanimously found him guilty of all charges.

It took the jury just 34 minutes to reach their verdicts on Monday 16 June.

The court heard how in June 2023, Steele had befriended the woman, who had significant learning difficulties. 

Steele began to visit the woman regularly and told her neighbours that he was helping her with household chores and keeping her company.

The following month Steele showed her a video of him masturbating and pornography on his phone. The woman did not like this and told Steele to stop.

A few days later Steele raped the woman in her bedroom.

Steele then raped the woman in her home on three more occasions over the next ten days.

His crimes were reported to the police after a neighbour found the woman distressed and crying in her flat. She disclosed that Steele had raped her on four occasions and that she had said no each time.

Officers attended and spoke with the woman and Steele was arrested on suspicion of rape.

When Steele was interviewed by officers, he denied having engaged in any sexual activity with the woman and he was released on police bail to allow for further enquiries to take place.

Steele was re-interviewed by officers in December 2023 following an investigation by Gloucestershire Constabulary's Criminal Investigation Department. He was shown forensic evidence which supported the woman's report that he had raped her.

Following this disclosure, Steele changed his account of events and said that he had consensual sexual intercourse with the woman on one occasion. 

Following a police investigation, the Crown Prosecution Service authorised charges for four counts of rape. After he appeared at court, the court released him on bail.

Steele failed to appear at Gloucester Crown Court on 22 November 2024 and a judge issued a warrant for his arrest.

Gloucestershire Police then published a wanted appeal on their social media channels and he was located in the Newent area following sightings from members of the public.

Steele was re-arrested on 20 December 2024 and remanded in custody to await trial.

As well as being sentenced to eight years in jail, Steele will be placed on the Sex Offenders' Register for life.

Sentencing Steele, Judge Rupert Lowe said:

"You conceived that this vulnerable woman might be an outlet for your sexual frustrations. You showed her sexual video material on your phone but she didn't want to see it. 

"You were not to be deterred by her lack of enthusiasm for this and you got her into her own bedroom and removed her lower clothing and had sexual intercourse without her consent which is an offence of rape."

Investigating officer Detective Constable Jon Furse said:

"Steele raped the woman multiple times. He knew she was extremely vulnerable, and she had repeatedly told him no, but he ignored her and raped her. He subjected her to horrific crimes that will impact her for the rest of her life.

"Even though he denied the multiple charges of rape, the wealth of evidence we presented to the court meant his lies were uncovered with the jury returning a guilty verdict for all four counts in just 34 minutes.

"I would like to commend the victim in this case for her bravery and I would encourage anyone who has been raped to report it to us. Our specially-trained officers will listen and you will be believed and supported every step of the way." 

Description

A 33-year-old man who raped and sexually assaulted a woman has been jailed for five years.

Segun ‘Michael’ Ogundipe, of Tuffley Lane in Gloucester, denied the offences, but following a trial in May a jury found him guilty of rape, two counts of sexual assault and assault by penetration.

The court heard that in 2022 Ogundipe met the woman at her place of work and during their first meeting he asked her to go out for a drink with him.

She agreed and arranged to meet him after work the next day; texting him beforehand to make it clear that she was just getting to know him.

The following evening, Ogundipe picked the woman up in his car and they went to a bar. Throughout the course of the night Ogundipe began to sexualise the conversation, which made her feel uncomfortable.

Ogundipe then suggested he drive them to a different location to continue their evening. On the way there, he stopped at his house, saying he needed to get something from inside.

The victim needed to use the toilet and after she left the bathroom, Ogundipe sexually assaulted her and raped her.

He then drove her to an address in Cheltenham.

Even as he was driving, Ogundipe continued to try and touch the victim, who repeatedly told him to stop.

Due to the nature of his driving, Ogundipe was stopped by Gloucestershire Police officers who were on routine patrol. When the vehicle was stationary at the roadside, the victim took the opportunity to leave his car; initially telling officers that she wanted to go to a nearby family address and did not want to deal with what had happened to her. She then walked away.

Noticing how distressed and upset she was, an officer caught up with the victim who then disclosed that Ogundipe had raped her. 

Ogundipe was arrested on suspicion of rape and taken into custody where he was subsequently charged with two counts of sexual assault, assault by penetration and rape. 

The court was told that Ogundipe denied raping the victim and instead he claimed that she had initiated sexual activity and she had fully consented to having sexual intercourse with him.

The jury did not agree with his version of events and found him guilty.

In mitigation, the court heard that Ogundipe was of previous good character. His Honour Judge Lowe also took his positive character references into account before sentencing him at Gloucester Crown Court on Monday 21 July.

As well as being jailed for five years, Nigerian-born Ogundipe, who came to the UK to study in 2021, will be subject to deportation as a result of committing a serious offence here.

In a statement read out in court, the victim described to Ogundipe how being raped by him has impacted her life.

She said:

"It is still crazy to me to think how your words and your actions have made me question my worth entirely. Some days what you did to me plays over and over in my head. What you did was vile and one of the worst things you could do to someone. 

"I spent so long believing that I must have deserved what you did to me but I know now that you had no right to the rights of my body. Every single part of my life paused. I had to leave my job, a job that I loved deeply because I couldn't cope.

"I became scared to meet new people, to even smile at someone out of fear that it would be taken the wrong way. I lost my spark and even now I'm still only starting to heal."

Following Ogundipe's sentencing the victim said:

"I would encourage anyone who has experienced something similar to what I did to report it to the police. It doesn't matter if you feel ashamed or if you feel you are somehow to blame. You will be believed and supported."

Investigating officer Detective Constable Jon Furse said:

"Ogundipe's actions that night have caused serious harm and will have a lasting impact for the victim. I would like to commend her for the courage she has shown throughout this investigation.

"We are dedicated to ensuring sexual offenders are held accountable for their horrific crimes and I would encourage anyone who has been a victim of rape or other sexual assaults to please come forward and speak to police."

Description

A man who attacked and raped a woman in Bristol more than 23 years ago has been jailed for ten-and-a-half years.

Inderjit Singh Bains, 46, of Heneage Lane, Falfield, committed the attack on a woman after picking her up in his van.

The victim, now in her fifties, reported the incident to the police in January 2022 and had crucially memorised the offender’s number plate, which helped lead to his identification and arrest.

A jury unanimously found Bains guilty of rape and actual bodily harm following a trial at Bristol Crown Court in March.

At the sentencing hearing held earlier today (Friday 25 April) in Bains’ absence, Judge James Patrick said the offence involved “a degree of abduction” and the attack was “prolonged and persistent”, which had a “long-standing emotional effect” on the victim.

Bains picked up the victim, who was in the street sex trade, in his white panel van in the St Werburghs area of the city at around 1am on 10 January, 2002. The van had been circling the area and eventually stopped outside a pub, where Bains beckoned to the victim to go over.

After agreeing a fee, Bains drove towards Eastgate, where the victim had asked to go. But he didn’t turn off and headed up the M32 towards Frenchay, where he stopped in a secluded area off Stoke Lane.

The victim asked for payment first, which Bains pretended to reach for in his jacket pocket before punching her repeatedly to the face and body, causing her to lose and swallow a tooth.

He then raped her, without using a condom, before telling her to get dressed and driving her back into the city.

To protect others, the victim made a report to the One25 Project, which supports women in the street sex trade, soon after the attack. This report included a detailed description of the offender as well as his number plate

In an impact statement read to the court, the victim said: “The immediate impact of this crime on me was so traumatic that I used heroin to suppress any emotional impact, the physical impacts of the attack healed after time, but the emotional impact will stay with me forever.

“The flashbacks, panic attacks and nightmares I have continue to this day. I truly thought I was going to die that night, that kind of trauma is not easily fixed.

“There is still so much judgement and stigma around women who are trapped in the lifestyle I was, that it’s easier to let people think I’m crazy, as how do I explain what happened to me?

“For me to come forward again all these years later was the hardest decision I had to make, as I didn’t trust the police or the justice system to take me or the crime against me seriously…I didn’t realise how much emotional trauma I’d locked away about the attack.

“If it wasn’t for the empathetic, non-judgemental nature of my investigating officer, I would never have put myself through the retraumatising effects of a trial, but I am told this is also part of my healing process.

“Going to court was terrifying, especially having to face him, but I’m so glad I did as I see him not as a monster, but as a coward who preys on the most vulnerable people in society.”

Speaking afterwards, the victim added she also wanted to thank the jury for believing her and delivering a guilty verdict in this case.

Description

Following a Thames Valley Police investigation, a man has been sentenced to prison for a series of sex offences in Banbury.

Robert Coleman, aged 42, of Swan Road, Gloucester, was sentenced to a total of 15 years in prison following a hearing at Oxford Crown Court on Friday 28 March.

Coleman has also been placed on the sex offenders register for life, the sexual harm prevention order for life and given restraining order for life on each of the victims.

Coleman pleaded guilty to one count each of assault of a female aged 13 and over by penetration with part of body/thing, take an indecent photograph/pseudo photograph of a child and distribute an indecent photograph/pseudo photograph of a child. Coleman also pleaded guilty to five counts of sexual assault in the same hearing.

In May 2021, Coleman used a social media account to upload indecent images of a child. Further intelligence obtained by the Online Child Abuse Investigation Team, tracked these images to an address in Banbury, and officers executed a warrant and arrested Coleman on suspicion of voyeurism.

During police interviews, Coleman denied taking indecent images of a child, but admitted to uploading these images and videos to the social media platform.

After seizing Coleman’s mobile phone, officers discovered 279 indecent images and videos of children and women on his device. During police interviews, Coleman answered with ‘no comment’ to all questions.

Coleman was arrested on 8 July 2021 and charged on 8 November 2024.

Description

Andrew Shore (05/09/1987) of Croome Gardens, Bourton On The Water, Gloucestershire, was sentenced to seven years and three months at Manchester Crown Square Court today (Wednesday 26 March 2025).

On Thursday 27 February 2025, Shore was found guilty by a unanimous verdict of raping a female aged under 13 and indecent assault at the same court.

The offences took place in Rochdale in the early 2000s when the victim was only 11 years old and Shore was in a position of trust. Shore was 16 years old at the time of his offending.

He was also given a restraining order against the victim and lifelong sex offender requirements.

Description

An "opportunistic sexual predator" has been jailed for four years after sexually assaulting and attempting to rape a woman.

Mohammed Sanana denied approaching two women in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, before sexually assaulting and attempting to rape one of them on the steps near the library on Clarence Street.

The victim repeatedly told Sanana "no", told him to go away and pushed him, when the incident occurred on a night out in March at about 20:30 GMT.

Sanana, formerly of Ambrose Street in Cheltenham, was convicted by a jury following a week-long trial at Gloucester Crown Court.

During the trial, the 22-year-old claimed he knew the victim and said his actions were consensual.

However, the jury unanimously found him guilty on 11 November.

As well as the prison sentence, Sanana will be placed on the Sex Offenders' Register for life.

He was sentenced on 6 December.

'Unforgivable attack'

In a statement provided by the woman, she said the court process was "very daunting", despite having support from a Sexual Violence Advisor.

"This entire court process did not need to happen and could have all been avoided if he had just admitted to what he had done instead of fabricating a whole story about meeting me before.

"I hope that he is able to learn from this process and will think twice about his actions in the future.

"I hope that him being convicted of this offence will help to prevent something like this from ever happening again to someone else in order to protect other people in the future," she said.

Det Ch Insp Dave Shore-Nye, of Gloucestershire Police, said:

"Sanana is an opportunistic sexual predator who is now rightly behind bars.

"He subjected a woman to a terrifying and unforgivable attack which has impacted her life significantly, and I hope his prosecution and conviction will bring her some sense of justice."

Description

A “lonely” young man working in the North East, well away from home, sought companionship via a social media dating and friends site for adults, a court heard.

But when Jarrod Hofmann’s post on Wink was responded to by someone claiming to be a 14-year-old girl, he made the misguided error of continuing the conversation, soon moving on to sexual matters.

Durham Crown Court was told Hofmann was unaware, however, that the person purporting to be 14-year-old “Mollie” was, in fact, a decoy profile put up by the paedophile-hunting Child Online Safety Team (COST).

Elisha Marsay, prosecuting, told the court that Hoffman, aged 21 at the time, soon suggested switching the conversation onto WhatsApp.

Over the course of the following 18 days, in March last year, he repeatedly tried to persuade ‘Mollie’ to send him intimate images of herself and told her he would instruct her how to perform a sex act upon herself.

Miss Marsay said the defendant also discussed meeting ‘Mollie’, making travel arrangements so she could spend a night with him.

Members of COST confronted Hoffman at his home, at the time, in Annfield Plain, near Stanley, on March 26, 2023, and police were summoned to the address to arrest the defendant, who was found sitting on the stairs while the paedophile hunters waited at the door.

Following his arrest, Hofmann made no comment in police interviews in March and August last year.

But, by the time the case came before magistrates in Newton Aycliffe, on September 3 this year, the 23-year-old defendant, now living back with his family in Brockworth, Gloucestershire, pleaded guilty to all four charges put to him.

He admitted attempting to incite a girl aged 13 to 15 to engage in sexual activity, attempting to possess an indecent image of a child, attempted sexual communication with a child and attempting to meet a girl under 16 following grooming.

The offences were all classed as “attempts” as no actual child was involved, unknown to Hofmann.

Stephen Ferns, in mitigation, said the defendant, who has no previous convictions, was, at the time of the offences, working for National Express based in the North East and felt, “lonely and isolated”.

Mr Ferns said Hofmann was not “actively seeking” a relationship with an underage girl, and accessed an adult site, "seeking a relationship with an adult".

He said the opportunity of it being a child then, “presented itself”.

“He fully accepts knowing the age and continuing the conversation on WhatsApp.

“He was isolated and lonely and had recently moved to a new area and had not had a relationship for four years.

“He had not set out looking for a relationship with a child, but he fully accepts he pursued it when it was presented to him.

“He told the Probation Service he has no sexual interest in children, but it was the case that he became interested in this female when the situation presented itself and he did then have a sexual interest in this child.

“What he told the probation report author was said out of fear, shame and confusion.”

Mr Ferns said the defendant now accepts he needs to address his unhealthy interest.

The lawyer said, following his arrest, Hofmann lost his employment with National Express and moved back to his family home in Gloucestershire.

He has since found new employment, working initially in the haulage industry as a driver.

Mr Ferns said if the defendant was given the opportunity of a non-custodial sentence, he could work with the Probation Service to continue his rehabilitation.

Judge Nathan Adams said, having, “carefully considered” the sentence he should pass, that he was just persuaded to step back from passing an immediate prison sentence.

The judge said, however, that imposing restrictions on the defendant to prevent a repeat of his behaviour were, “entirely necessary” in this case.

Imposing a three-year community order, as a direct alternative to prison, Judge Adams said the defendant must complete 150-hours’ unpaid work, and attend 40 rehabilitation activity days, plus 40 sessions of an accredited programme, both overseen by the Probation Service.

He was also made subject of both a Sexual Harm Prevention Order, including a prohibition on any unsupervised contact with children aged under 18, and the requirement to register as a sex offender, each to run for the next ten years.

Judge Adams told Hoffman he was “making it plain” he must comply with the orders in full and commit no further offences, or risk receiving a first term of imprisonment.

Description

A man from Stroud has been jailed after pleading guilty to four charges relating to online sexual offences against children.

Taran Jay Woodward, aged 24, appeared at Gloucester Crown Court yesterday (Tuesday 3 December) and was sentenced to five years and four months in prison.

He had previously pleaded guilty to attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child, intentionally causing a female under 13 to engage in sexual activity and two counts of breaching a Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

The charges relate to offences committed against two girls on the social media app Snapchat and online game Roblox in May 2022.

Woodward had been arrested and charged as part of an investigation by Gloucestershire Constabulary's Child Exploitation Team.

His offending was identified after the parents of the children he targeted discovered the offences and reported what happened to their local police forces. 

Intelligence checks were made and Woodward was identified and arrested. He answered no comment in interview.

Description

A Gloucester man has been jailed after pleading guilty to making thousands of indecent images of children.

Philip Wood, aged 71 and of Westgate Street, was sentenced at Gloucester Crown Court last Wednesday (23 October).

He had been charged with eight counts of making indecent images of children and nine counts of breaching a Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

Wood is a registered sexual offender and was sentenced at Gloucester Crown Court in 2020 in relation to a number of sexual offences. He was handed a Sexual Harm Prevention Order at the time, which expires on 1 December 2027.

As part of the order, Wood was not allowed to own any electronic devices, such as mobile phones or laptops, without declaring them to the police and offering them to police for inspection.

He received unannounced home visits from Gloucestershire Constabulary's Management of Sexual Offenders and Violent Offenders (MOSOVO) team.

Officers visited Wood on a number of occasions between August 2023 and May 2024. During each visit, they found that Wood had electronic devices that he had not declared or made available for inspection, these contained indecent images of children. He was also using a pseudonym for online accounts, which he was banned from having under the order.

After suspicions were raised on the first visit around the breaches, Wood’s devices were seized and examined. He was arrested in November and bailed while a case was built against him, before being rearrested and remanded in May this year.

Across the various devices, officers found in excess of 134,172 indecent images of children as well as more than 150 hours of video footage.

Wood pleaded guilty to the offences at a hearing on 7 August. In mitigation, he told the court that he had a thrill of the forbidden and that he had attended previous rehabilitation courses which had not had the desired effect.

He was sentenced to three years in prison for each of the nine breaches of his Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

In addition, he received three years for making Category A indecent images of children, two years for making Category B images and 12 months for making Category C images.

All sentences are to run concurrently. He was also put on the Sex Offenders' Register for life.

Description

A taxi driver from Gloucester has avoid jailed for sexually assaulting woman while he was at work. The 49-year-old was found guilty of three counts of sexual assault at Gloucester Crown Court on July 30.

Taranjit Singh, known as Tony, has been banned from driving a taxi for ten years following the sentencing. The court heard that the victim used Singh's taxi service several times before the attack and he had given her his personal mobile number.

In November 2021, despite being off duty, Singh agreed to pick up the woman from Gloucester and take her to Tewkesbury, breaching his licence conditions. The woman, in her 20s, fell asleep during the journey. Singh then drove to an industrial estate, and the victim awoke to find Singh digitally penetrating her vagina and touching her breast.

She asked Singh to stop and tried to push his arm away, but he continued to sexually assault her, telling her that she was enjoying it.

The court was shown footage that the victim had secretly recorded on her mobile during previous rides in Singh's taxi. In one clip, Singh is heard propositioning the woman for sexual favours, to which she firmly declines.

Singh, from Estcourt Close in Gloucester, denied sexually assaulting the woman and claimed he may have accidentally touched the woman's breast while assisting with her seatbelt. He further claimed the woman guided his hand into her trousers.

On October 18, Singh received a 24-month suspended sentence at Gloucester Crown Court. Additionally, he must register as a sex offender for ten years and is banned from working as a taxi driver or in any paid driving capacity involving passengers for the same duration due to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

The judge ordered Singh to complete 200 hours of unpaid work, participate in a rehabilitation programme for up to 30 days, and pay £4,380 towards prosecution costs.

Post-sentencing, the victim said: "While this incident only lasted a short time that night, it has had a major long-term effect on me mentally.

"I would urge anyone who has been through similar to contact the police. I felt heard, seen and believed, and I had great support throughout the process. I'm so glad I reported to hopefully help stop the same happening to others."

Detective Constable Annabel Brittain has praised a victim's courage after reporting a distressing incident, saying: "The victim is to be commended for reporting this distressing incident as, by having the strength to support the investigation, she has helped keep others safe while achieving justice for herself.

"As she read out her victim impact statement to the court, it was clear how much she has been affected by what happened, and I am extremely glad she says she has felt well supported by police throughout.

"I hope this conviction is reassurance to others that when such concerning incidents are reported, we will be as thorough and relentless as possible in securing all available evidence to bring offenders to justice."

Description

A 50 year old Winchcombe man who took a woman's mobile phone from her and refused to give it back until she gave him oral sex was jailed for eight and a half years today (May 21).

Neil Roberts, of Godwin Road, Winchcombe, denied raping the woman and assaulting her causing actual bodily harm but a jury found him guilty at the end of his trial earlier this year.

Today he was sentenced at Gloucester Crown Court by Recorder Jaron Crooknorth who told him he still showed no sign of remorse for his abuse of the woman.

Before passing sentence of eight and a half years jail for the rape and two years nine months concurrently for the assault, the Recorder heard a victim impact statement from the woman, who said Roberts had treated her 'like a piece of meat' on that night.

She stated "I was humiliated. I felt worthless. He made me blame myself. He left me feeling like it was all my fault.

"Now, after two years of fighting for him to be held accountable, I can admit to myself that I have been raped and that it isn't my fault. Only now do I feel I can truly start to live my life again and enjoy it.

"I am glad he has finally been held accountable for who he truly is and I hope that one day he will be able to admit it to himself.  When the jury found him guilty I was overcome with emotion."

During the trial at Cirencester Courthouse in March the court heard that on Oct 10th 2021 the woman agreed to spend the evening with Roberts drinking and listening to music at his home.

Roberts began questioning her about whether she was seeing any other men and he demanded to see her phone

She refused but he took the phone from her and would not give it back, accusing her of having an 'affair'.

The woman told jurors he could not initially look at the phone because it was locked and needed facial recognition or her PIN number. He kept waving it at her face in an effort to open it but she continually moved her head to prevent him.

However, eventually she gave up and gave him the unlock code. He then looked through the phone. After about an hour she asked to have it back but he did not hand it over and was mocking her, calling her a slut and a cheat.

She pushed Roberts and slapped him in the face in her efforts to retrieve the phone and he then punched her in the face.

Roberts told her that if she wanted her phone back she would have to give him oral sex. 

She told him 'I don't want to do this, just give me the phone back.'

But Roberts insisted he would not return it till she gave him oral sex so she did.

"He then gave me the phone back.  I got off the bed and sat on the floor with my belongings," the woman told the jury.

"He then said that he thought we were just doing role play and that he thought I was enjoying it. "

Roberts, in evidence, said that after drinking San Miguel beer with the woman for 4-5 hours that night they went into his bedroom at about 1am and she instigated the oral sex as a 'form of apology' for an argument they'd had earlier.

There had been no violence from him and he had not demanded to see her phone at any stage, he said.

He alleged afterwards she became very angry and pulled on his penis, causing a bruise.

"I told her to get off and she started to punch me in the head.  She hit me 10-20 times," he alleged.

Roberts was unanimously convicted of both charges and has been in custody on remand since then. Today he appeared via video link from Bristol Prison for his sentencing.

His solicitor, Sarah Jenkins, told the court he had no past history of sexual offending and his only conviction had been for an offence of violence in 2006. This had been his first experience of prison, she said.

It would not be just him who paid the price of his offending because his father, who is in poor health, and his young daughter in Thailand, who also has an illness, would suffer without his care and financial support, she said.

"The child will not be able to come to the UK while he is in custody," she said. "His incarceration will have a very significant impact on both of these individuals."

At the time of Roberts' offences against the woman he had a drink problem and that had got worse due to the stress of awaiting trial - but he had now undergone detox in prison and had signed up for education courses in languages and cycle maintenance in jail, she said.

She also referred the court to character references provided to the court by friends and colleagues of Roberts.

"They show a side of his character which was not shown during the evidence of the victim.  He has provided emotional support and friendship to these individuals in difficult times and circumstances and it is something they value him for."

Passing sentence Recorder Crooknorth told Roberts "You showed no remorse - not even for the injuries she had sustained.  She had a bruised and swollen face, bruising across her chest, scratching and bruising on her arms.  She felt humiliated, overpowered and abused by someone she thought she could trust.

"At this late stage you still show no remorse. "

He said he found that Roberts represents a danger to the public. He told Roberts he will have to serve two-thirds of his eight-and-a-half year sentence before he is eligible for parole.

The judge also reminded Roberts that he will be on the sex offender register indefinitely and will have to keep police informed of any changes of his address or his name.

Description

A man has been jailed after being caught with almost 400 illegal images of children on a mobile phone.

Carl Webb, formerly of Gloucester Road in Cheltenham, admitted making 240 Category C indecent images of children, 144 prohibited images, and breaching a sexual harm prevention order.

He also admitted failing to report to a police station and being in breach of a suspended prison sentence.

The 37-year-old was jailed for three years and three months on 14 March.

Webb, who has a history of child sex offences dating back more than two decades, was sentenced at Gloucester Crown Court.

He was convicted of indecently assaulting a child in 2002 and was jailed for sexual activity with a child in 2009.

Prosecutor Alec Small said that on 28 September 2022 police visited Webb at his home to check he was complying with his sexual harm prevention order.

He volunteered that he had a borrowed phone that he had not previously declared.

The phone was seized by officers and was found to contain indecent images of children.

Mr Small added that Webb had failed to attend a police station to sign the sex offender register on 1 March 2023.

Webb is currently serving a three-year jail term imposed on him in October 2023 after he breached a community order he had received at an earlier hearing.

Defending, Catherine Spedding, said Webb is "keen to look at the root cause of his offending" by taking part in a sex offender programme.

She added: "Once he is sentenced, he hopes to be moved to a prison where he can undertake that positive and useful course. "He is looking forward to that because he wants to cease this sort of offending." Webb was also given a new sexual harm prevention order.

Description

A man has been sentenced to three years and three months imprisonment after sending graphic sexual images and attempting to meet what he thought to be a teenage girl.

Nathan Graham, 29, of Matson Avenue, Gloucester, appeared at Swindon Crown Court today (22/02) after pleading guilty to:

• Attempting to engage in sexual communications with a child
• Attempting to cause a child to watch sexual activity
• Arranging/facilitating the commission of penetrative sexual activity with a child
• Possession of bladed articles in a public place.

The offences took place on December 5 and 6 last year, when Graham engaged with what he thought to be a 13-year-old girl via a social media platform.

The communication was graphic and sexual, with Graham sending graphic images of himself for the girl to view.

He lied about his age, pretending to be 18, and sent maps marking out the bus stops and routes for the child as part of his planning and preparation.

Graham was detained on December 7 in Bloomsbury Park, Freshbrook, Swindon, as he was walking to meet the girl at a bus stop on Gainsborough Way.

He was arrested and subsequently charged for the offences and remanded into custody.

Today, he was jailed for the offences. He will also be on the sex offenders register indefinitely and the subject of a sexual harm prevention order for 15 years.

The sentence follows a joint investigation between Wiltshire Police and the South West Regional Organised Crime Unit (SWROCU).

Det Con Sarah Greenman of the Child Internet Exploitation Team (CIET) said: There can be no place for Grahams abhorrent behaviour in Wiltshire, let alone society.

Graham was fully aware that he was talking to a girl purported to be just 13, and yet he sent her incredibly graphic images and videos of himself, before attempting to meet her for his own sexual gratification.

CIET exists within Wiltshire Police to safeguard children, and we will continue to work alongside the SWROCU, where we are totally committed to ensuring dangerous individuals such as Graham are identified and brought to justice in order to protect the public.

DI David Wells from SWROCUs Online Investigations Team, said: Graham is a harmful sexual predator that has rightly today been handed a significant jail sentence for his crimes.

We are committed to supporting UK police forces in protecting children from harm, reducing risk in our communities and ensuring dangerous individuals like Graham are identified and brought to justice.

Description

A scrap metal dealer from Wales who sexually abused a teenage girl in Rustington has been jailed.

Mark Rumbol, 58, of Hewelsfield in Wales, sexually assaulted a girl under the age of 15 repeatedly between 2020 and 2021.

The abuse was reported to police in March, 2021 and Rumbol was arrested while his victim was supported by specialist officers.

He was subsequently charged with rape, two counts of sexual assault, two counts of assault by penetration and one count of inciting a girl to engage in sexual activity (no penetration).

At Lewes Crown Court on 18 December, he was found guilty of all charges except rape, of which he was found not guilty.

At the same court on Friday, 26 January, Rumbol was jailed for 11 years, ordered to sign the Sex Offenders’ Register for life, and given a restraining order and an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order significantly reducing his ability to offend.

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A man from Churchdown has been jailed after pleading guilty to sexually assaulting a woman and secretly filming two others.

Alex Russ, aged 34 and of Craven Drive, was sentenced to six years and five months in prison when he appeared at Gloucester Crown Court last week.

He had previously pleaded guilty to three counts of sexual assault against one woman and two counts of voyeurism against two further women.

The court heard that, the day before the first incident, Russ had used his tablet device to search for sleep disorders involving sexual behaviour.

In 2015, while staying at the home of a woman, she had started to go sleep when Russ pulled her pyjama bottoms down and sexually assaulted her. She was able to stop him and challenge his behaviour.

On another two occasions Russ got into bed with her while she again tried to sleep and he sexually assaulted her.

Russ also admitted secretly filming women without their knowledge or consent. One incident saw him set up a camera phone in a washbag and leave it in a bathroom, where he was able to film a woman before and after she showered. 

The other incident involved a camera hidden in an alarm clock which he set up in a room being used by a different woman.

Although he initially denied the offences, Russ pleaded guilty at the first day of trial in October 2023.

As well as being jailed, Russ has been put on the Sex Offenders Register for life and restraining orders have been put in place to protect the women.