Latest Offenders Kent

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A pervert who made sex abuse of a young girl seem like a secret game has been jailed for three years and four months.

Jack Gillett, 27, was aged 16 or 17 when he molested the victim, Maidstone Crown Court heard. She kept it a secret for many years and only reported it to the police last year.

Gillett, of Northview, Swanley, admitted one offence of oral rape of a girl under the age of 13 and four of sexual activity with a child.

Prosecutor Timothy Forster said the offences happened on four separate occasions.

He made the touching sound like a game and told her to keep it a secret, he said. At her age, she didnt understand and went along with his suggestions.

Mr Forster said when the victim said she did not like a particular act, Gillett told her she did not have to do it. The final assault happened in a closet.

When the girl finally revealed what had happened, Gillett was confronted and admitted everything, said Mr Forster. He denied attempting to stop her reporting the abuse.

A victim impact statement by the girl revealed the severe psychological harm suffered, including suicide attempts, depression and the need for counselling.

"They are abhorrent offences - that goes without saying," - Orla Daly, defending

Orla Daly, defending, said Gillett had been diagnosed with autism.

They are abhorrent offences - that goes without saying, Miss Daly told the court. The offences were committed against a child, but they are committed by a child.

He has done his best to minimise the impact on the complainant. He faces sentence for something that happened a decade ago.

Miss Daly added: It would be a lenient course not to impose an immediate custodial sentence but it is an approach recommended by the probation service and justifiable given the gap since the offending occurred, his age at the time and his autism.

He is devastated and extremely upset about his behaviour.

Judge Julian Smith said Gilletts culpability was reduced because of his age at the time of the offences. Custody would present a great challenge to him.

I accept your remorse expressed is genuine, he said. I must also have regard to the impact of your behaviour on the victim, who has suffered greatly as a result of this.

The judge said he could not accede to the submission that the sentence could be suspended, but added it could be reduced by the maximum available to me.

Gilletts name will appear indefinitely on the sex offenders register and he will be barred from working with children and vulnerable adults.

NSPCC spokesman Hayley Pierre said: This survivor of child sexual abuse has suffered immeasurably at Gillets hands and it has clearly taken a great deal of courage to come forward and recount her ordeal.

Thanks to her, justice has been served. And its important to stress that victims of this awful crime will always be listened to, no matter how long ago the abuse was carried out.

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Danny Tiplady has been jailed for sharing the sexual images of children with people all over the world A Maidstone man has been jailed for sharing extreme videos of sexual abuse, violence and torture. Daniel Tiplady, 31, of Kent Avenue, admitted possessing more than 150 extreme images and sharing them with people all over the world through chat groups. Maidstone Crown Court heard Tiplady's behaviour was uncovered when he shared explicit images of a woman on Facebook. Police were called and later found 15 indecent images of videos of children and 145 videos of extreme pornography. Further storage devices found at his home contained more indecent images of children, along with numerous videos showing extreme violence. Many of these images were shared by Tiplady over a mobile messaging application which had recipients all over the world sharing the content. Tiplady pleaded guilty to six counts of making an indecent photograph of a child, three counts of possessing extreme pornographic images and one count of disclosing private sexual photographs with intent to cause distress. At Maidstone Crown Court yesterday (July 9), he was sentenced to 20 months behind bars. Police Constable Edward Stenzil, the investigating officer for this case, told Kent Live: "Tipladys electronic devices were filled with depraved videos and images of the most extreme kinds of violence, which included real life torture and sexual abuse. "He actively distributed these images and shared them with people around the world. "He has proven that he has a disturbed mind which presents a very real danger to the wider public and the sentence he has received is entirely justified." 'Awful material is not unique' An NSPCC spokesperson said: "Sadly the type of child abuse images possessed by Tiplady and the methods used to share this awful material to a wider audience are not unique. "That's why it's imperative that social media companies and the government continue to work together to rid the internet of these vile crimes against children."

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A school teacher who downloaded hundreds of "horrible" child sex abuse images has been spared jail after a judge decided there was "a realistic prospect of rehabilitation". Thomas Caudell, who also downloaded an "extreme" image of a woman having sex with an animal, was said to have an "addiction" that caused a spectacular fall from grace. The 46-year-old former technology teacher at a Tunbridge Wells school admitted three offences of making indecent photos of a child, one of possessing images and one of possessing extreme pornography. He was sentenced to 12 months imprisonment suspended for two years and ordered to complete 180 hours unpaid work. Maidstone Crown court heard police discovered Caudell, of Little Footway, Langton Green, had 59 images in the highest category of seriousness, 45 in the next highest and 686 in the least serious category. David Burgess, defending, said Caudell had family photos and school work projects he wanted to retrieve from his seized computer equipment. He has arrived at the age of 46 with an unblemished character hardworking, family man loved and respected by one and all, as seen from character references and now has a criminal record and, worse still, as a sex offender, said Mr Burgess. His fall from grace is from a very high order indeed. It has had a very profound effect on him and his wife, who sits in court, and other members of his family. Caudell, who now works as a machine operator, had sought help from the Lucy Faithfull Foundation child protection charity and completed courses. It goes a long way to say he sought to address the addiction for that is what it has become and ensure that with the help available this fall never happens again, said Mr Burgess. That is very much to his credit. The effect on him has been very severe indeed. There was a time when he contemplated taking his own life. He has pulled back from that brink. Passing sentence, Judge Philip Statman said: At the heart of this offending conduct are children, each of whom becomes a victim of the criminality you have performed. Anyone who has to read, as I do all too often, a description of the images concerned in cases such as this is appalled by the description given. In your case, young children - girls, pre-pubescent in a situation where they are performing under the direction of adults, and where the acts of which they are party to are gross and disgusting. You sat in the comfort of your home and you downloaded these images for your own sexual gratification. "Your conduct took place over a substantial period of time. No doubt, as you sat there in your home you never thought the time would come when there would be a knock on the door and you would be arrested for these crimes. But the judge said he had to take one step back and take a cool and measured look at what Caudell had done. Nonetheless, you will appreciate these offences well and truly pass the custody threshold, he continued. References showed he had always been decent and honourable. His wife of 20 years had written to the court on his behalf. If I may say so, no one could ask for a better wife than the one you have, said the judge. Your conduct has resulted in life-changing circumstances for the whole of your family. "No doubt, as you sat there in your home you never thought the time would come when there would be a knock on the door and you would be arrested" - judge Philip Statman" There would be those who would sink under the weight of what you have done. Not so your wife who has encouraged you to attend the Lucy Faithfull Foundation to complete a 10-session course with them. "You have been able to come to terms with the fact you have a very real psycho-sexual problem and need to address the issues arising there from. You are perfectly capable of restoring your life and, hopefully, return to a situation in the community where you can continue to contribute as a decent member of society. I also hope you wont ever again go back to downloading these horrible images of children. Judge Statman added: Sentences of imprisonment are appropriate, but I draw back from sending you to prison immediately. There is in my judgement a realistic prospect that exists for your rehabilitation. I am persuaded there is strong personalised and individualised mitigation. I am clear this is a case where I should take an exceptional course by suspending the sentence. Caudells name will appear on the sex offenders register for five years and a sexual harm prevention order was made for the same period to give the community extra protection from you. He will be barred from working with children and vulnerable adults.

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A young man from Dover who avoided jail for possessing indecent images has admitted to breaching a sexual offences order.

Kyle Brown, of Farthingloe Cottages in Folkestone Road, received a 16 month jail sentence, suspended for 12 months, for distributing and possessing indecent images.

The 24-year-old appeared at Folkestone Magistrates’ Court today (May 30) and pleaded guilty to breaching a sexual offences prevention order placed on him at Canterbury Crown Court on January 31.

The offence involved Brown failing to let police look at two mobile phones capable of connecting to the internet on April 10.

Brown was released on unconditional bail and will appear at Canterbury Crown Court at a later date for sentencing.

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Released from prison. A man with a 'Peter Pan Complex' seduced a schoolgirl and then blocked her on social media after sex. Jordon Randall, now 26, also talked another girl into exchange lewd photographs before blocking her as well. He has now been jailed for five years after admitting having sex with a 13-year-old and encouraging another victim to swap images. Judge Heather Norton told him that under new laws had the victim been a "just a few months older", the sentence would have been "in double figures". Randall, of Charles Drive, wept throughout the hour-long hearing at Canterbury Crown Court - watched by one of his victims. She told the judge, in her impact statement, she had been a virgin at the time and was so traumatised she contemplated suicide. Judge Norton heard the victim had later gone missing and was found standing on Rochester Bridge wanting the pain to end. She said: The past two years has been an horrific journey...because the events of May 2016 play in my head day in and day out. I (later) began to self-harm, struggling to keep my pain under the surface." Canterbury Crown Court heard Randall sent messages to the 13-year-old via Snapchat within days agreed to meet. The two met in a carpark in Gillingham when Randall drove the child to a secluded wood where they had protected sex. Prosecutor Tim Forster said after dropping off his victim, he then blocked her on social media. He added Randall was arrested after police received an anonymous tip-off and discovered that around the same time, he was grooming another 14-year-old schoolgirl. "I began to self-harm, struggling to keep my pain under the surface" - one of Randall's 13-year-old victims". After receiving a topless photograph of her he again blocked her on social media, he added. Detectives examined messages between Randall and his victims in which he admitted he was facing prison if he was caught and swore one of the girls to secrecy. Daniel Stephenson, defending, said Randall was very immature and had a 'Peter Pan Complex' preferring to be around young people. Judge Norton, in sending him to prison, said it had been "systematic grooming" of children "designed to improve your own self-worth" at the expense of the feelings of his victims. She also criticised the fact it had taken two years for the case to get to court which was both unacceptable and cruel to the victims and the defendant. Acting detective sergeant, Paul Edwards, said: "Randall has proven himself to be a manipulative predator, deliberately engaging with children and using their vulnerability to fulfil his sexual gratification. "He presents a very real danger to children and I welcome the sentence he has received. "This behaviour is not acceptable and I would like to commend the victims who helped the investigation and pursue justice." An NSPCC spokesman added: "Randell clearly poses a serious threat to children, systematically abusing his victims despite knowing their ages. "It is right that he has now faced justice and we hope both children are receiving the support they need to recover from their horrific ordeals. "This case demonstrates the risks associated with social media. "Our #WildWestWeb campaign is calling on the Culture Secretary to force social media companies to use technology to flag up grooming behaviour to moderators and warn children before they are at risk of being abused."

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A Margate man who raped a woman on a Ramsgate beach has been jailed for eight years following an investigation by the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate.

Oliver Cooper, 20 and of St Michaels Avenue, committed the offence in August 2016 and was found guilty following a trial in December 2017.

He was sentenced at Canterbury Crown Court today (February 2) and, further to his custodial sentence, will appear on the sex offenders register indefinitely.

The court had previously heard that Cooper was known to his victim and they had agreed to meet.

During this meeting however, in the early hours of 7 August, he grabbed hold of her throat and raped her on the beach.

Investigating officer Detective Constable Tania Pickering of the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate said: Cooper is a predatory sex offender who has failed to acknowledge the impact his behaviour has had on his victim.

After first putting her through a harrowing and demeaning ordeal, he then made her face the anguish of going through a criminal trial.

Her courage and bravery has been exemplary and, while the sentence cannot undo the damage Cooper has done, I hope the victim can take comfort from the fact justice has been served.

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A former foster carer from Ramsgate who sexually abused and raped five children over an 11 year period has been jailed for 22-and-a-half years. Gary Teague, 58, was sentenced at Canterbury Crown Court yesterday (18 December). Teague had been charged with a total of 14 offences which spanned 11 years. They included six counts of rape, three counts of gross indecency, two counts of indecent assault, one count of inciting a girl to engage in sexual activity, one sexual assault and one count of administering a substance to stupefy/overpower to allow sexual activity. Guilty He denied all 14 charges, but a jury found him guilty of all but the charge of administering a substance to stupefy/overpower to allow sexual activity. This will lie on file. Sentencing him, Judge Heather Norton told Teague he must serve two-thirds of his sentence and on release would be on licence for four-and-a-half years.He was given an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order and a restraining order not to contact his victims either directly or indirectly, also to run indefinitely. Callous Investigating officer Detective Constable Jenny Brightman said: These offences all occurred while Gary Teague was alone with the children. He callously told his victims that they wouldnt be believed and that they would be in trouble if they told anyone what had happened. Throughout this investigation he denied any wrong-doing, claiming the children had made up the allegations, even though their stories were consistent. Tremendous courage Detective Constable Brightman paid tribute to Teagues victims: They will undoubtedly carry the emotional scars of his abuse for the rest of their lives, yet they showed tremendous courage in giving evidence against him. Kent Police takes all allegations of sexual abuse extremely seriously, no matter how long ago they took place. We have teams of specialist officers who work tirelessly to ensure that offenders do not evade justice. I hope other victims of this type of abuse will have the confidence to come forward, safe in the knowledge that they will be treated with the utmost care and understanding. I also hope that this substantial sentence shows offenders just how seriously the courts take sexual offences against children. Previous Teague was previously found guilty of offences against two children and sentenced at Canterbury Crown Court in September 2016. He had earlier pleaded guilty to two counts of making an indecent photo of a child. He had pleaded not guilty to two counts of abusing a position of trust by causing or inciting a child to engage in a sexual activity and two counts of recording another person doing a private act for his own sexual gratification. He was convicted of all six offences following a trial at Canterbury Crown Court in June 2016 and jailed for two years and three months.

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Timothy Smith was carrying a dark secret a sickening lust for children so strong it took him to the other side of the world By day this familiar face in the community stood guard at one of Tunbridge Wells busiest supermarkets. By night he spent time in cemeteries as the self-styled leader of a ghost hunting group. But Timothy Smith was carrying an even darker secret a sickening lust for children so strong it took him to the other side of the world. It was, he chillingly told police during an interview, his thing. In November 2017, the 42-year-old pervert from Burslem Road on the Sherwood estate, admitted to 16 child sex offences. He was jailed at Maidstone Crown Court one month later for 14 years with a minimum term of 10 He admitted them all - telling police he was a paedophile. The charges against him included the possession of 37,000 images of child abuse and almost two-and-a-half days worth of video footage. He also admitted sexually assaulting a child under the age of five while in the Philippines in 2015. Former colleagues at Tesco on Grosvenor Road where Smith worked as a security guard had little time for the man they called The Fat Nonce With The Mail Order Bride. One said he was very touchy-feely and made her skin crawl although she wasnt aware of any complaints of impropriety being made to Tesco management. Another said: He'd always talk to small children in pushchairs and pick up kids who were crying. He was very hands on. And one Tesco shopper expressed her horror at learning the truth about a man who had picked up and cuddled her children on a number of occasions. 'I don't believe in hell' Outside work Smith ran Tunbridge Wells-based ghost-hunting group Supernatural and Paranormal Investigation Team - or Spit for short. During an interview in 2014 he told Kent Live's sister newspaper the Kent and Sussex Courier: I dont believe in heaven and hell, but I do think we all have electromagnetic energy flowing through us which stays in the atmosphere after we die - call it the spirit if you like - which some people can tune into more easily than others. But you have to make up your own mind, not take anyones elses word for it. Thats why I started SPIT, to satisfy my own curiosity and offer free help to anyone else seeking the answer to strange happenings. Smith claims to have seen ghosts on several occasions and offered free paranormal investigations to anyone issuing frequent social media posts offering his services. The group distanced itself from its former leader. A statement posted on its Facebook page said: We are sorry to do this but we feel in the paranormal that you should know about what we seen in the paper about Tim "We are in shock and sick what he has done so it up to you if you want to take yourself of (sic) his group. Detective Constable Mark Bennett of Kent Polices Paedophile Online investigation Team said: The conviction of Timothy Smith is another important step towards making Kent a safer place. The offences Smith committed are a stark reminder that behind every image is a real tale of abuse and suffering. I am glad he has at least owned up to his crimes and will now face the consequences for his deplorable actions. He was put on the sex offenders' register for life.

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A pervert who was arrested after he was caught out in a sting by an anti-paedophile group has been jailed for four years.

The encounter outside Maidstone East station was live-streamed on Facebook on January 14 this year.

Members of vigilante group The Hunted One confronted 43-year-old Mark Stopher, from Sittingbourne, in Station Road.

He had been in contact with a person he believed to be a young girl and arranged to meet for sex.

The hour-long incident ended when police officers arrived. Stopher, now of Victoria Road, Chatham, was then arrested.

He admitted arranging and facilitating the commission of a child sex offence and was sentenced at Maidstone Crown Court on Wednesday by Judge Adele Williams.

His name will appear on the sex offenders’ register and a sexual harm prevention order was made, both indefinitely.

He will be barred from working with children and vulnerable adults.

Previously police have warned people not to take the law into their own hands to try in such sting traps.

DI Robert Chitham, of the paedophile online investigation team at Kent Police, said: “I would discourage people from taking the law into their own hands to avoid them being put in any possible danger.

“Revealing the identity of suspected paedophiles, often on the basis of little information, could lead to suspects being threatened.

“This can divert significant police resources into protecting suspects, which would be better invested in investigating and, where there is evidence, prosecuting them.”

DI Chitham added: “I would like to reassure the public that we proactively target this type of offence and work hard to gather evidence in a lawful manner and that will stand up in court.

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A teenager will spend Christmas in custody after being locked up for groping two girls on separate occasions.

William Dowsett had denied two offences of sexual assault but was convicted by a jury.

Judge Jeremy Carey told the 19-year-old that if he had been sentencing him purely in his interests he would have let him walk free.

“I have no doubt you are now leading a law-abiding and responsible life,” he said.

“You are having a relationship with someone who trusts you.

“You have good prospects work-wise and a supporting family.”

But the judge said it was only one side of the picture.

The other side was he had to be punished to reinforce the message that those who committed sexual offences would go to prison.

Prosecutor Allister Walker said Dowsett picked up one of the girls from Strood station after she and her friend had problems catching a train.

They went to Rochester High Street, where there was a festival, and he grabbed her bottom.

Later, he told her he needed “a sex marathon”.

Judge Carey said branded the offences “predatory sexual behaviour” against the will of both victims.

Sentencing Dowsett, of Hinde Close, Sittingbourne, to 18 months’ youth custody, he added: “This was serious sexual offences and you must now take the consequences.”

Dowsett’s name will appear on the sex offenders’ register for 10 years.

He will be barred from working with children under 16 or vulnerable adults.

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Socially isolated Oliver Horwood of Sinclair Way, Darenth, jailed after threatening young girls in perverted chats.

A socially isolated teenager persuaded young girls to send him indecent images of themselves and threatened to post them on the internet, a court heard.

Overweight Oliver Horwood used a false identity while having perverted online chats with 10 victims, aged between 13 and 15.

Then aged 17, he talked about threesomes and encouraged the girls to take intimate photos. He asked one to send him an image of her performing a sex act.

Maidstone Crown Court was told Horwood, now 20, of Sinclair Way, Darenth, threatened to expose two of the girls on the web if they did not do as he asked.

He admitted two offences of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity and three of inciting child prostitution or pornography between February and May 2014.

He also admitted making indecent images of children between July 2012 and September 2014. Police found 19 still photographs and two movie clips on his computer after his arrest last year.

Andrew Hope, defending, said none of the images were ever published or distributed and five of the 10 girls refused his demands.

Horwood, who had since lost six stone, had stopped the chats before his arrest.

He went from being an overweight, socially-isolated young boy to someone who had started to turn his life around, said Mr Hope.

He clearly needs to be punished for what are deeply unpleasant offences, but in many senses his life has moved on quite dramatically since then.

He has matured as an individual and is now leading a very productive life.

Sentencing Horwood to 16 months youth custody, Judge Charles Macdonald QC said: The offences arose out of a particular period in your life when you had a poor self image and poor family support, he said.

Things have changed impressively. But Im dealing with an anxious case - a youth of 17 engaging in extremely unpleasant activity using a false identity to trick girls.

The law is there to protect people from this behaviour and it must be discouraged and deterred.

Horwood's and his name will appear on the sex offenders register a sexual harm prevention order was made, both for 10 years.

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A 20-year-old rapist has been convicted of sexually abusing two girls, starting when he was just 10.

David Murphy was "aggressive and violent" when assaulting one of the victims.

He eventually raped her, a jury at Maidstone Crown Court heard.

Prosecutor Danny Moore said Murphy, of Le Temple Road, Paddock Wood, would take every opportunity to sexually assault the girls and rape one of them.

His actions demonstrated that he had issues concerning his sexual behaviour.

Murphy threatened one of the girls that if she told anybody about the abuse, the same would happen to one of her relatives.

"He was violent on occasion, unpredictable and seemingly a powerful influence on her," said Mr Moore.

"She was a child and didn't know what to do. She didnt know what to say or how to react" - Prosecutor Danny Moore

Murphy would force her to perform a sex act on him and was "really violent and aggressive".

He would pinch her, leaving marks.

"She was a child and didnt know what to do," said Mr Moore.

"She didnt know what to say or how to react."

After raping her, he made more threats about what would happen if she reported it.

He would strike her chest and bite her lips.

Feeling trapped and isolated, it led to the girl self-harming and even considering suicide.

The girl tried to stop Murphy raping her by saying she was too young for sex, but he still continued.

"She said she would never forget what happened because she was in so much pain and in such a dark place," said Mr Moore.

Murphy also touched the other girl inappropriately.

It was systematic and happened many times.

One of the girls revealed the abuse after a sex education class at school which covered rape.

"It resonated with her," said Mr Moore.

Murphy was convicted of four charges of rape, five of sexual assault and two of assault by penetration.

He was acquitted of one charge of rape and one of sexual assault. He denied all of those charges but admitted one charge of rape and one of sexual assault.

Murphy was granted bail until sentence on August 22.

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Briton, 30, will serve at least 25 years after admitting 71 offences against children aged between six months and 12 years One of Britains worst predatory paedophiles, who targeted, groomed and abused up to 200 Malaysian babies and children and shared images of his horrific crimes on the dark web, has been handed 22 life sentences. Richard Huckle, 30, a photographer from Ashford in Kent, who posed as an English teacher and philanthropist in poor Christian communities in Kuala Lumpur, admitted an unprecedented 71 offences, including rapes, against young children aged between six months and 12 years between 2006 and 2014. Some of the 23 children identified in the charges were abused for years, including one from the age of three until 10. The number of his victims was believed to be much higher investigators found a ledger and scorecard on his computer in which he awarded himself marks for different kinds of abuse of 191 girls and boys. Judge Peter Rook QC on Monday ordered Huckle to serve a minimum term of 25 years to reflect the public abhorrence for a campaign of rape that spanned nine years. He told him it was very rare indeed that a judge had to sentence sexual offending by one person on such a scale. Rook told Huckle: Your offending behaviour became entrenched in your everyday life. Your life revolved around your sexual activities with young children. Your distorted beliefs in respect of children are deep-seated. Your self-delusion knows no bounds. Based on Huckles chilling experiences and observations he once boasted it was easier to abuse children from poor communities than middle-class western children the 30-year-old had drafted a truly evil manual for other paedophiles that promoted child sexual abuse tourism, the judge said. He had even sought to profit from his crimes by attempting to sell footage to other abusers, he added. It appears that your conduct was escalating, Rook said. It is also clear that, had you not been arrested, you planned to continue the same lifestyle using the expertise that you were keen to show off to and share with other abusers so as to continue your sexual exploitation of the children of such communities. Images and videos of Huckles rapes and assaults on very young children were shared with paedophiles around the world via the dark web. Rook told him: Relentlessly, you preyed upon the very young pre-pubescent vulnerable children from a minority ethnic community into which you ingratiated yourself. This was a prolonged campaign of rape of the children from a small community. While presenting himself to his victims families as a respectable English teacher and philanthropist who could help them, Huckle was systematically abusing the children you claimed to care about. This was one of the most aggravating features of the case, the judge said. Huckle, wearing a grey sweatshirt, his long, unkempt black hair scraped back in a ponytail, stood impassive with his palms clasped together, as if in prayer, as he was sentenced. As he was taken down to the cells, a member of the public shouted from the gallery: A thousand deaths is too good for you, I know one of those families. Rook said Huckle had almost certainly blighted the lives of his victims and caused them severe psychological harm. A letter which Huckle submitted to the court on Monday, which contained apologies to his victims families and the Malaysian government, was an attempt to justify the unjustifiable, Rook said. However, in light of Huckles refusal to hand over encrypted passwords to hidden files on his computer, the judge added: In my view, you may well harbour feelings of regret but there is no feeling of genuine remorse in this case. Huckle first visited Malaysia on a teaching gap year when he was 19, and went on to groom more children after posing as a Christian English teacher and philanthropist. Five of the children were living in a childrens home and on one occasion he took a girl out to celebrate her fifth birthday and molested her at his house in Kuala Lumpur. His arrest came after Austrialian investigators tracking the activities of a now convicted paedophile who ran a child abuse site on the dark web noticed Huckle was a prolific user of the website. The National Crime Agency, which was criticised by Malaysian authorities for failing to alert them early enough of Huckles crimes, admitted it was first told about his offending in August 2014 but did not have enough evidence to present to Malaysian police for another three months. Speaking outside the Old Bailey, Andrew Brennan, the NCAs deputy director, said it was first contacted by Australian authorities in August 2014. But he said the NCA had to then identify where and who Huckle was before providing the Malaysian police with all of the intelligence in November 2014. They didnt have sufficient evidence to arrest him, we made a decision we would arrest him in December 2014, said Brennan. Im very confident we worked very, very closely with the Malaysian authorities and an NGO based in Malaysia. He also insisted there was absolutely no evidence or intelligence of Huckle offending in the UK. The NCA arrested Huckle as he arrived at Gatwick airport on a trip home to spend Christmas with his parents in December 2014. Officers seized Huckles encrypted laptop and managed to uncover more than 20,000 indecent pictures and videos, although there were other files they were unable to retrieve. When Huckle confessed his crimes to his parents, after his arrest, they begged police to take him away and made statements supporting his prosecution. Ahead of his sentencing, Huckle claimed to a psychiatrist that he wanted to put his madness behind him and settle down with a woman from south India. But the court was shown a posting from 2013 in which he outlined his plan to marry one of his victims in order to help him abuse more children. The judge concluded that Huckle posed a substantial risk for an indefinite period. James Traynor, from the NCAs child exploitation and online protection command, said: Richard Huckle spent several years integrating himself into the community in which he lived, making himself a trusted figure. But he abused that trust in the worst possible way. He deliberately travelled to a part of the world where he thought he could abuse vulnerable children without being caught. Traynor said the NCA had tracked down Huckle and used legislation that allows UK nationals to be prosecuted in the UK for offences committed overseas. He said: Borders are no barrier we are determined that those who go abroad to abuse children will be held to account. Anthony Hill, the international justice and organised crime prosecutor at the CPS, said: It is hard to put into words the sheer depravity of this case. For almost nine years, Richard Huckle subjected at least 23 children, some of them very young, to the most horrifying abuse imaginable. He deliberately targeted and groomed vulnerable communities abroad to gain their trust. Borders are not a barrier to justice and the CPS worked with the NCA to painstakingly review all of the evidence from the internet, his computers and cameras. The strength of our evidence led to him pleading guilty to 71 charges. Huckles crimes were so serious that prosecutors planned three separate Old Bailey trials as they felt one jury could not cope with viewing all the videos and photographs of abuse. In January, Huckle pleaded not guilty to all 91 charges, but ahead of his trial in April, he gradually admitted 71 of the offences over the course of five more hearings. He has already spent 488 days in jail, so faces more than 23 years in prison before a parole board can consider his release. The NSPCC said Huckle was a frighteningly depraved paedophile who had bragged about raping babies and delighted in abusing infants who trusted him and who had left a trail of devastation. In a statement, the NSPCC added: It is horrifying that Huckle was able to profit from this appalling abuse by using the web to sell images and even films to other paedophiles; emphasising the importance, yet again, of the need for a cohesive, global effort from both the authorities and internet services providers to combat this vile trade.

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A registered sex offender and former Met Police officer from Greenhithe, who is a danger to children, has been jailed for more than four years after admitting to grooming and sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl. Gary Cawthorne promised the vulnerable young Londoner an admin job in a fictional property business and took the opportunity to assault his victim during their so-called business meetings. As soon as they were alone he offered her 300 to get into her knickers, the Daily Star reports. On another occasion he groped her breast at a car wash in Ebbsfleet. The 53-year-old used the alias of Lee Mason and his crimes only came to light with the schoolgirls suspicious friend contacted Cawthorne, who used to live in Plumstead, to inquire about a job. The sex pest asked for several photos and the girl sent a head shot but declined requests to send further images of her body. The teenager told her parents about the messages and they contacted her school. Both girls were spoken to by officers from the Sexual Offences Exploitation and Child Abuse Command on Tuesday, March 1. Cawthorne was soon identified of the sender of the messages, and arrested the next day. He was charged on March 5. The paedophile pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual assault on a child under the age of 16, one count of sexual grooming, and breach of a Sexual Offences Prevention Order at Southwark Crown Court on May 3. He was jailed for four years and five months at the same court yesterday (May 31). Southwark heard that Cawthorne was already a registered sex offender having been convicted of assaulting a 16-year-old girl on October 24, 2012. Three years ago, Judge Loraine-Smith expressed fury that Cawthorne had escaped with a caution for molesting a 20-year-old cleaner in his home, whilst on bail for attacking the young victim. Cawthorne told the teenager he worked for top agencies including Select Model Management and ordered her to strip so he could measure her before cupping her breasts, Southwark heard. He advertised himself on Gumtree and Judge Loraine-Smith described Kent Polices decision to caution Cawthorne as extraordinary, Mail Online reported at the time. Detective Constable Tony Foran from the Met's Sexual Offences, Exploitation and Child Abuse Command said: Cawthorne is a known sex offender and is a danger to children - he has now been jailed for his offences. He pursued the 14-year-old girl by phone and in person. Then he sexually assaulted her. The victim's friend became suspicious of his contact and thanks to her brave actions she was able to flag up his activities to her parents who then alerted the authorities. The paedophile got two years in jail for sexual grooming, a further two years for breaching a Sexual Harm Prevention Order, and five months for two counts of sexual assault on a child under the age of 16 to run consecutively.

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A manipulative teacher branded arrogant by a judge has been jailed for abusing young girls.

Predatory Robert Appleby, who taught at Herne Bay High School, committed sex offences against two teenagers.

The 42-year-old, who had been investigated three times and suspended once, has now been sentenced to seven years and nine months behind bars.

Appleby, of Stablegate Mews, Canterbury, groomed one victim and persuaded another to lie to police about sex images he encouraged her to send.

Jailing him, Judge James OMahony said: You are a highly intelligent , talented artist, who is charismatic.

You are also arrogant.

A jury at Canterbury Crown Court heard how an anonymous letter to the head of the school led to Appleby being arrested.

He denied a relationship with the author of the letter but the investigation revealed he had a relationship with another girl, naked pictures of whom were found on his computer.

Appleby had denied sexually abusing a second girl but the jury rejected his accounts and found him guilty.

He had earlier admitted sex offences involving a second victim.

During the trial, prosecutor John OHiggins told how Appleby was a charming, manipulative predatory abuser who had targeted one of his victims.

But it was revealed how he had been investigated three times and suspended on one occasion but no charges were brought.

Mr OHiggins added that Appleby had even been caught by a caretaker with a young girl and reported to the authorities.

The judge told Appleby that his actions had had a devastating effect on his victims both of whom had contemplated suicide.

He told the ex-teacher: You have by your own actions destroyed your career and your vocation.