Latest Offenders Lancashire

Description

A dad-of-three broke into the home of two unsuspecting women before performing a sex act.

The horrified women woke in the early hours of the morning to discover Michael Shaw crouched in the bathroom with his pants pulled down to his knees and genitals exposed.

The disturbing discovery was only made when one of the victims thought she could see her own reflection in the near darkness, only for the figure in the mirror to move.

Shaw, 30, of Railway Path, Ormskirk, is believed to have spent around 20 minutes in the house before he was discovered and then proceeded to perform a sex act on himself after being kicked out.

Prosecuting, Keith Sutton told Preston Crown Court the disturbing incident happened in February.

He said Shaw climbed through a bathroom window.

Mr Sutton said: At 1.20am the two females in the property were in bed.

One of them was awake watching a film, the other was asleep.

When one got up to go to the toilet, she realised she could hear some noise, it sounded like something on the roof or somewhere else in the house.

She went onto the landing and could hear something, she woke the other female who went downstairs.

The first woman saw a reflection in the bathroom mirror which she could see through the door.

She could see the reflection of something in the bathroom.

She wasnt sure what but then she saw that reflection moving as if someone was crouching down.

The second complainant came back up, there was a brief discussion about what had occurred and then the first female stepped into the bathroom and looked behind the door.

Her reaction was a scream, it was described by the second complainant as hysterical, and she stepped back.

The defendant was in the bathroom with his trousers down to his knees.

The second complainant shouted at him to ask what he was doing, how hed got in.

Shaw responded by saying he was sorry and picked up his shoes which he had taken off after entering the home.

He then sat down as if to use the toilet but was told to leave.

He sat down again on the stairs to put his shoes on and was again ordered to leave the house.

Mr Sutton said: One complainant went to call the police and the first complainant watched him exit and it was clear that he was carrying out a sex act outside the property.

Shaw left and returned to the temporary accommodation where he was then staying.

The women gave a description of him to the police, who visited him the following day and found clothes matching those seen that night.

Shaw was arrested and gave a confused account when interviewed.

In a victim statement summarised by Mr Sutton, one of the women said she had been left anxious and unable to sleep without prescribed medication.

She said she suffers from night terrors and no longer feels safe in her own home despite having an alarm and camera system installed.

She said it still plays on my mind knowing he was in my bathroom watching us for 20 minutes.

The woman also explained her fear of catching Covid-19 meant no-one else had entered the house for almost a year and that this safety was violated by Shaw and the officers who came to investigate.

The court heard Shaw has one previous conviction for possession of a knife which occurred around a month before this incident and resulted in a three-month suspended sentence in May.

At a hearing in April, he pleaded to two counts of exposure and one of trespassing with intent to commit a sexual offence.

Defending, Michael Hagarty said Shaw had suffered from childhood trauma which had been exacerbated by drug and alcohol use leading up to the day of the offences.

Mr Hagarty explained that in the months leading to the incident, Shaw had been forced to leave the Ormskirk home he shared with his mother as a result of flooding and had been staying alone in temporary accommodation.

He detailed a number of incidents in which Shaw had displayed erratic or concerning behaviour in the preceding months, two of which led to him being detained for his own wellbeing.

Psychological analysis identified issues of childhood trauma which were being amplified by use of alcohol, cannabis and cocaine.

A diagnosis of emotionally unstable personality disorder affecting his ability to control his actions was also made and Mr Hagarty said the issues relating to trauma had been made worse by Shaw being unable to see his own children.

Mr Hagarty said Shaw was confused by his actions and felt remorse for the impact on his victims

Sentencing, Recorder Ben Douglas-Jones QC described Shaws behaviour as frightening, disturbing and offensive.

Referring to the moment when one woman realised there was an intruder, he said: Just imagine how frightening that must have been.

Its like something from a horror movie.

Shaw was given a 30-month jail sentence, ordered to sign the sex offender register for life and made subject to a 10-year sexual harm prevention order.

Description

A pensioner who subjected a boy and girl to sexual abuse over a decade has been jailed for 11 years.

David Gardner, 65, of Alderley, Skelmersdale, molested a boy and girl between 2000 and 2010.

He was found guilty of sexual activity with a child and causing and inciting sexual activity with a child. He had pleaded guilty to possessing indecent images of children.

Gardner was jailed for 11 years during a hearing at Preston Crown Court on July 2.

Police have now revealed more disturbing details about the case.

A spokesman for the force said that Gardner made one of his victims watch videos of older men raping children.

Although the victims were too young to fully understand what the defendant was doing to them, one did question what he was doing. In response, Gardner said it was all just fun.

When Gardner was arrested, officers seized his electronic devices, they found thousands of images of indecent images of children, as well as extreme pornography.

DC Dawn Croucher, of West Lancs CID, said: First and foremost I want to praise the victims in this case for the bravery they have shown in coming forward and disclosing the horrendous offences Gardner committed against them.

Gardner is a despicable individual who abused children to satisfy his own perverted sexual interests. Although no sentence will ever reflect the damage a defendant has caused, I am pleased Gardner will now spend a considerable amount of time behind bars.

I would encourage anyone who has been the victim of sexual offending no matter how long ago it occurred to contact Lancashire Police. You will be listened to and we will do all we can to bring the perpetrator to justice.

Description

A pervert who travelled to Liverpool to meet a 14-year-old said he wanted to have sex with her in a McDonald's toilet.

In messages to the 'girl' Mark Needham said he wanted her to wear a short skirt for "easier access" to her underwear.

The 34-year-old sent pictures of his genitalia and pornographic videos of himself telling the girl he wanted to have sex with a "schoolgirl".

But he was really talking to a member of a paedophile hunter group, and was duped into meeting the 'girl' at Liverpool Lime Street Station where he was arrested.

Cheryl Mottram, prosecuting at Liverpool Crown Court, said a member of the 'paedophile hunter group' called "N-force for Justice" was posing as a 14-year-old girl called Darcy on an adult chat site called "Hi".

Needham began speaking to the 'girl', who told him she was 14 and "still at school".

Ms Mottram said the "chat continued and became increasingly sexual in nature".

Needham first sent a photo of himself and after receiving a picture of the fake girl he said "I love your t**s, your body is amazing" and told her "I want to f*** a schoolgirl".

He asked the 'girl' to perform a sex act on herself and when he was told she was with a friend suggested they had a "threesome".

Ms Mottram said Needham sent "pornographic videos of himself" and sent photos of his genitalia.

He arranged to meet her on October 8 but said he'd changed his mind "due to her age".

On December 12 the paedophile hunter group said the girl was "coming to Liverpool for the day".

Needham agreed to meet her and when asked what they would be doing he told the '14-year-old' "s****ing you in Maccies toilet LOL".

Members of the group travelled to Liverpool Lime Street Station and when one woman pretended to be 'Darcy' Needham gave her a hug before they detained him and called police.

He told the group he had "planned to talk to her and take her to a hotel room" and he had "asked her if she would wear a short dress as it would 'be easier to get access to her knickers'".

He also told the group "I have got no excuse for what I've done".

In a police interview he confirmed he used chatrooms to talk to women and "liked to talk dirty to them" and "liked uniforms".

He told police "it was the uniform that was the fantasy, not the age of the girl".

The offences took place between November 24, 2017 and December 11 of the same year, prompting Judge David Aubrey, QC, to question why it took so long to come to court when he admitted the offences in a police interview.

Ms Mottram said there were various "requests" from police but added "what has been requested has not perhaps been necessary".

Needham was charged with the offences in January this year.

The court heard Needham has previous convictions but "nothing of a sexual nature" and "nothing since 2013".

Helen Longworth, defending, urged the judge to suspend any custodial sentence.

She said: "He is very sorry for what he has done and is seeking to understand why he has done it."

Ms Longworth said: "The most significant feature really is the delay."

She said Needham has "lived with this issue hanging over him" for the three years and during that time has not committed further offences.

Needham, of Windrows, Skelmersdale, admitted attempting to incite a girl into sexual activity, attempting to meet a girl under 16 following grooming, attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child and attempting to cause a child to look at an image of sexual activity.

Judge Aubrey said the delay in the case was "unreasonable in the extreme" and "inexcusable" as Needham had admitted the offences in a police interview.

He took into account Needham had been in "no trouble whatsoever" since the offences had taken place.

Despite the mitigating features the judge said: "The appropriate punishment can only be achieved by a sentence of immediate custody."

Judge Aubrey explained the sentence would have been three years, which was reduced to two years to reflect his guilty plea and reduced again by another year to reflect the delay.

As a result, Needham was jailed for one year.

He was ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register for 10 years and adhere to a Sexual Harm Prevention order for the same period.

Following the sentence Judge Aubrey said the delay was "more than unsatisfactory, it was unnecessary" adding had it not been for the delay the sentence "would have been considerably longer".

Description

A man who sexually assaulted a 13-year-old boy in his own home on Christmas Day has been jailed for four years.

Kieran Seery , 31, of Dowry Street, Accrington, was sentenced today (June 8) at Burnley Crown Court. He was also given a Sexual Harm Prevention Order which lasts 15 years.

It follows a trial last month which found Seery guilty of sexual assault.

The incident occurred in the early hours of December 25 2019, after Seery had attended a Christmas Eve gathering at the victims address and was later told he could stay the night.

The boy was asleep when he was woken by Seery, who attacked him before fleeing the address at around 8am.

He was arrested two days later in the Greater Manchester area following a public appeal for help locating him.

Det Sgt Helen Mercer, of Blackburn Police, said: Seery carried out a horrific and predatory attack on a young boy, and he deserves nothing less than the sentence he has received today.

Since the incident he has shown a complete lack of remorse and has consistently denied his guilt, forcing the victim to go through the further ordeal of a trial.

I cannot overstate the impact this incident has had on the young victim. He went to bed excited about Christmas Day and was woken in the early hours of the morning being subjected to a horrendous sexual attack. No child should feel unsafe in their own home, and no doubt the boy will carry the mental scars from this for a very long time.

He must be commended for his bravery in reporting what happened to him and I hope todays verdict gives him a sense of closure and enables him to start moving forward with his life.

We also hope todays verdict shows that at Lancashire Police we take all reports of sexual offences extremely seriously. Anybody who has been victim of this type of crime is urged to report it to us as soon as possible, safe in the knowledge they will be treated sensitively and professionally.

Description

A teacher and university worker caught with sick videos of children was finally jailed five years after being arrested.

However, despite possessing videos which were in the most serious Category A and lasted up to forty minutes, German national Olaf Raetzel is likely to be released within a matter of weeks.

Preston Crown Court, sitting at Burnley Crown Court, heard that Raetzel, 51, was arrested in Ormskirk in 2015 but failed to turn up for a police appointment.

He started a new life in Dublin where, despite his perverted past, he was working as a content moderator for a social media company.

He was detained again in September last year on a European Arrest Warrant and brought before a special High Court session which granted his extradition.

More than five years on from a police raid at his home in West Lancashire, he pleaded guilty in December to three counts of possessing indecent images of children.

Prosecuting, Eleanor Gleeson said police seized a laptop, USB device and Samsung tablet in May 2015 and recovered 21 files containing the sick photographs and videos.

In total, there were seven videos classed as Category A, five videos in Category B and nine Category C photographs.

However, there were further inaccessible files whose names alluded to illicit content, while his browser history was also suggestive of illegal content.

The youngest children seen in the videos were estimated to be aged between five and eight, while the majority involved girls believed to be girls aged 9-15. The videos ranged between two to 39 minutes long.

Raetzel, now of no fixed address, gave no comment in interview and was released on bail, only to fail to turn up to an appointment at Ormskirk police station in November of that year.

Defending, Peter Holden said Raetzel came to the UK in the early 90s and had undertaken a degree in Theoretical Physics. He then started a PHD before moving into teaching and went on to a job as a learning technology development officer at Ormskirks Edge Hill University.

Mr Holden said: It was an unhappy time for him in Lancashire and he began to engage in the activities outlined in the pre-sentencing report.

Mr Holden admitted that the perverts refusal to attend a police appointment painted a picture of a man who panicked and fled justice.

But he said that Raetzel had no previous convictions in Europe or the UK and had committed no further offences in the Republic of Ireland.

His devices were searched upon his latest arrest and no further illegal images were found.

Sentencing, Judge Sara Dodd said that had Raetzel been brought before the court in 2015, he would likely have been handed a five-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

However, as that time has now passed and no further offences committed, this was no longer deemed necessary to protect the public.

She handed Raetzel a five month sentence, of which he will serve no more than half.

The two months already served in Preston since the hearing at the lower court count towards that time, meaning he is likely to be released within weeks.

Description

A fugitive Travelex manager has been jailed after stealing 70,000 from a Tesco bureau-de-change and fleeing to America while on bail for abusing a child.

David Aspden, 33, had been arrested in December 2018 for abusing a 12-year-old boy. But while on bail the former secretary at a junior football club managed to get a shift at the Travelex booth at Tesco in Middleton, near Rochdale on Christmas Eve.

After sending a colleague home early, Aspden, of Preston, Lancashire, filled up Tesco bags for life with cash, then vanished with the money on a flight out of Manchester on Boxing Day.

Aspden spent five months in the US where he squandered the stolen cash before returning to Britain on board a cruise ship. It is believed none of the money he took has been recovered.

At Minshull Street Crown Court, Manchester, Aspden, of Preston, Lancs was jailed for 14 months after he admitted theft by employee. The sentence will run consecutively to a five year stretch imposed in June last year after he admitted inciting a 12 year old boy to to engage in sexual activity with him.

Aspden who was secretary of a junior football club had originally been arrested in 2018 after the lad went to police and told how he had been asked to carry out a sex act on him during a caravan holiday in Cumbria.

He was bailed to face court but in December 2018 he used the opportunity of working alone on Christmas Eve at Travelex booth at Tesco in Middleton, near Rochdale to plot his escape.

Prosecutor Miss Lisa Boocock said: 'The defendant worked as a manager at a Travelex bureau-de-change inside a Tesco store in Middleton.

'He started training in December and took up the post on 7th December 2018, and had a week of training. He was a manager looking after cash in the stores safe. He then started work and indicated he wanted to work on Christmas Eve.

'He sent his co-worker home early and was working alone in the store. There is CCTV footage and the incident happened over a protracted period of time. Over about twenty minutes the defendant filled several bags for life with money from the shop.

'He also went shopping around the store, returned to pick the bags up and then left with them. Around 70,000 was in the bags. He went home and booked a flight for December 26. He flew to the United States and spent just over five months travelling around the country and using the money. The theft was not discovered until December 27 and colleagues asked questions.

'This caused anxiety among staff, which was perhaps exacerbated because it happened over Christmas when the store was closed. The defendant returned to the UK via cruise ship in May 31 2019 and was arrested by police.

'He accepted guilt and said he took the money. He said he had disposed of around 30,000 and spent the rest in the USA. He was in a position of trust and responsibility, and he breached that trust. He was working alone in possession of large amounts of money.'

In mitigation defence lawyer Lucy Wright said: 'The defendant accepts the high degree of trust that he breached but in light of the CCTV evidence, it was not a sophisticated offence. He has in effect videoed himself offending.

'In a sense, he was evading justice by going to the USA but he returned from America when he knew he would be arrested on arrival in the UK and this proves he is genuinely remorseful. If he had simply decided to stay in America, justice would have been delayed.

'He didnt come back because he ran out of money. He came back because he realised he needed to come back to own up and face justice. He was on bail for the other offence at the time of this matter. Since then he has been told he has a diagnosis of psychotic episodes, anxiety and depression- although no written evidence of this has been provided.

'He says the offence happened when he was feeling extremely low and struggling to keep on top of his mental health problems.

'Before his first offence, he was a man of good character who spent much of his time living purposefully and he struggles to reconcile how he has got himself into this position. His father is currently very unwell in hospital and the defendant thinks he may not see him again if he is given a custodial sentence. His mother needs assistance and is self-isolating, and he is unable to support her through this.'

Passing sentence, Judge Mark Savill told Aspden: 'You volunteered to work on Christmas Eve when there was lot of money in the safe. None of your co-workers were working at the time of the offence and you thought you could perhaps remain undetected.

'It was a brazen offence. You helped yourself and filled bags with 70,000 cash and foreign currency. You then left the store and left the country. You took some of that money with you and spent about five months travelling America then returned to the UK on a cruise ship.

'You upset your co-workers and some of them thought they would end up being blamed. But upon arrest, you were interviewed and accepted your guilt. You were subject to police inquiries when you committed this offence and you breached a high degree of trust and responsibility.

'You caused concern among your co-workers and went on the run before returning to the UK in some style. I am willing to accept that prison is unpleasant for you given the current public health crisis and the fact your parents are not in good health.

'However, there is no excuse for what you were doing at all. This is not a similar offence to when a single parent find themselves in in significant debt and steals from their employer to feed their family, This is not that at all. You stole a significant amount of money, went on the run and spent it.'

Description

A convicted sex offender has been jailed for failing to tell police he had an Amazon Fire TV Stick and a secret Barclays account.

Steven Woodcock also had 47 indecent child images on his laptop and installed special software to delete and 'scrub' the internet history, a court heard.

The 44-year-old, who was being managed in the community under a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO), was visited by police last year as part of a routine check.

The SHPO prohibited him from using any internet-capable device unless it had the capacity to display and retain the internet history and had to be made available on request for inspection by police.

Prosecutor Emma Kehoe told Preston Crown Court how Woodcock admitted visiting a library in Morecambe 'up to six times a week' to use the internet.

She said officers were 'concerned about their regular visits' and made enquiries with the library.

The National Crime Agency later confirmed that the defendant's email account had been used to upload two 'indicative images' of seven-year-old girls to Instagram, however the images were 'not in themselves unlawful'.

Police then executed a search warrant at Woodcock's home on Clarendon Road West, Morecambe, and asked him if he had any internet-capable devices.

Ms Kehoe said Woodcock had a Kindle in his bedroom and an Amazon Fire TV Stick in a drawer which breached the SHPO.

Officers also found a Halifax bank card and a Barclays savings account which he had never declared.

His laptop contained one category A indecent image of a child - the most serious - and 46 category C images.

Woodcock pleaded guilty to breaching the SHPO and possessing indecent images.

Defence barrister Chris Evans said there were a 'relatively low number of images' and his client had been 'candid in terms of what he has done'.

He told the court that Woodcock had 'engaged well with the probation service' following his last conviction in 2016, deserved credit for his early guilty plea and 'remains motivated to seek help'.

Judge Simon Medland QC said they were 'deliberate and persistent breaches' of the SHPO and jailed Woodcock for two years.

Sentencing, he said: "You have been dealt with on several previous occasions for the possession of unlawful indecent images of children.

"These are real images of real children who are really being abused and that abuse will almost inevitably stay with them for the rest of their lives.

"The internet being what it is, it's quite easy to imagine that those disgusting images will be more of less forever available to people who view them for satisfaction of a perverted sexual interest.

"You had also loaded a cleaning facility to scrub the internet history and confound any investigation.

"You have, over a significant period of time, quite deliberately breached these orders that were made to try to protect children from your predations.

"Even though there were no contact offences here, these were offences where you were looking at unlawful sexual images of children."

Description

A TEENAGE girl who was molested by a 31-year-old later found her schoolwork suffering as she struggled to sleep. Alexander Caple told the 14-year-old she should not tell anyone about her ordeal or they would put him in prison, Preston Crown Court was told. But within hours the youngster had informed a schoolfriend and told her mother what had happened. Police were alerted and Caple, of Helston Close, Burnley, was arrested and confessed to some sexual activity with her. Caple later admitted to two offences of sexual activity with a child. An indecent exposure offence, which he denied, was withdrawn after the prosecution offered no evidence. Judge Phillip Parry jailed him for four-and-a-half years and imposed a 12-year sexual harm prevention order. The court heard Caple groped the girl over her clothing before carrying out a more serious sexual attack. In a victim impact statement, she said she had been left struggling to sleep and her mother had reported she could be heard crying through the night. She was studying for her GCSE exams and had been sent from from school after falling asleep in her lessons. Her grades had also suffered.

Description

A SEX fiend who offered a seven-year-old boy 20p before dragging him into a supermarkets toilets and sexually assaulting him has been jailed for seven-and-a-half years. And after hearing the sickening details of how 39-year-old Dennis Walsh abused the boy in a cubicle at Sainsburys in Burnley last November, Judge Sara Dodd deemed him to be a dangerous offender. That means he will be subject to an extended licence of seven years once he is released from prison. Burnley Crown Court heard the boy, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, had gone to use the male toilet while his stepmother took his sister into the female toilets. The boys stepmother and sister came out a few minutes later and waited for him. After checking with the boys father to see if he was at the till with him, his stepmother opened the mens toilet door and shouted for him. Amanda Johnson, prosecuting, said the victims stepmother noticed one of the cubicles was occupied and the boy shouted he was inside. Roughly five minutes later he came out and the family left. Ms Johnson said: The boy was very quiet after that and reported he was nearly kidnapped. He said a man grabbed his arm and did not let go. The court heard the family took him to a police station to report the incident. Ms Johnson said on the way to the station he revealed Walsh had inappropriately touched him. She added: The man offered to give the boy 20p, took hold of his arm and pulled him into the cubicle where he then pulled his pants and underpants down. The boy asked the man if he could go and he said not yet. At that point was when the mens toilets was opened and his stepmother shouted through. The boy was instructed not to tell anyone. She said following the attack, the boy would not go to sleep and started wearing boxing gloves in bed. He also wore a family members motorcycle helmet and would only go to bed fully dressed. In the aftermath of the attack, police released an appeal, in a bid to identify the man responsible, and Walshs mother saw it. She confronted her son and told him to hand himself in. Walsh went to a police station the following day. In his police interview Walsh denied he had sexually assaulted the boy and said he went into the cubicle to change an incontinence pad. But Walshs DNA was found on the waistband of the boys underpants. Walsh, of Albert Street, Burnley, pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a child. The court heard by committing his latest offence Walsh had breached a a 16-month suspended sentence order he had received for sexually assaulting a child in February 2017. Nicholas Clarke, defending, said Walsh has learning difficulties and there was little in a pre-sentence report to indicate Walsh knew what he did was wrong. He said: There is no question this is a prison sentence and a prison sentence of some length. As part of his suspended sentence he successfully completed a sexual offender treatment programme. It is hoped on his behalf hes not going to trouble the courts in the future. If he commits further offences he will be ostracised by his family. Judge Dodd said the victim had changed and had anger in him since the incident. She said: Hes fallen behind at school. He refuses to get changed during a sporting activity and the pressure in doing so caused him to have a panic attack. He doesnt want to go to his fathers as he thinks it will happen again. I have no doubt there is possibly a significant risk you will commit further sexual offences and by doing so you will cause serious physical and psychological harm, in this case to children.

Description

AN 'OPPORTUNISTIC' pervert who inappropriately touched a woman without consent while she slept next to him on a bed, has been jailed.

Richard Major-Smith was sentenced at Preston Crown Court after pleading guilty to sexual assault.

The assault was witnessed by a male friend, who had also been asleep on the same bed.

The incident happened on the morning of August 3 and the court had heard that the night before, the victim, the defendant, the male witness and a female friend had been out drinking together.

They then returned to the victim's Blackburn home where they continued drinking and chatting on the bed.

When the victim fell asleep 28-year-old Major-Smith assaulted her by touching her private parts and lifting up her top before touching her breasts.

When the male witness later informed the victim as to what had happened, the court heard that she began to cry and felt violated.

Major-Smith, of Earl Street, Colne, had surrendered himself to the police before the offence had been reported to them and at a previous hearing, the court heard that the defendant was "deeply ashamed and remorseful and wanted to tell the truth about what had happened."

Defending, Philip Holden asked Judge Andrew Jefferies QC for leniency in light of his remorse, and to consider suspending any custodial sentence he may wish to pass.

Presiding over the case, Judge Jefferies said: "I have looked at the facts of this case and have considered whether to suspend the sentence.

"I have also looked at possibility of rehabilitation but believe that this is not something you would benefit from.

"My judgement with this case is that you took an opportunity to touch a vulnerable woman when she slept next to you and the only appropriate punishment is one of custody."

Major-Smith was jailed for eight months and was given a restraining order, meaning he cannot contact his victim for two years.

Description

Callum Smith, 22, of Ash Lea Grove, Stalmine, pleaded guilty to one count of sexual assault of a male and two counts of sexual activity in the presence of a child at Preston Crown Court last month.

He was sentenced yesterday to a total of 15 months in prison.

He was also subjected to a sexual harm prevention order, and must sign the sex offenders register for 10 years.

Description

A RAPIST who attacked a woman in a house has been jailed.

Preston Crown Court heard Adrian Love, 54, raped the woman, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, at a property in Rossendale in June 2017.

Love had always denied any wrongdoing but was unanimously found guilty by a jury following a two week trial.

Judge James Medland QC sentenced Love, of Hightown, Whitewell Bottom, to six and a half years in prison.

Love was also ordered to sign the sex offenders register for life and pay a £170 surcharge to fund victim services.

Judge Medland imposed an indefinite restraining order banning Love from contacting his victim directly or indirectly.

A police spokesman said: "We take investigations into rape and sexual assault very seriously.

Description

A VIOLENT thug has been jailed for eight years after raping and threatening to kill a woman.

Preston Crown Court heard how Vincent Grieve raped the woman, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, at a house in Blackburn.

Prosecuting Charles Brown said that following the sexual assault she managed to escape from the house, wearing just a pair of socks.

The woman had earlier tried to leave the house but 30-year-old Grieve, who had been drinking rum, hit her from behind as she tried to get to the front door.

The victim was made to lie down on the floor before she was strangled. Grieve then bombarded her with verbal abuse, punched her in the face and stamped on her torso.

The court was told Grieve, of Heaning Avenue, Blackburn, also threatened to kill her with a knife, cut off her head with an electric saw and hit her over the head with a bottle of Captain Morgan.

The woman was then whipped twice with Grieve’s belt and told she would spend a life in his servitude.

Grieve then raped her saying: “I have never touched a girl with head injuries before.”

The semi-naked victim ran out of the house and jumped into a neighbour’s garden before heading onto the street.

She had sustained serious injuries to her face and was missing a clump of hair.

Reading her victim personal statement in court, she said: “I find myself wondering what is the point of it all, carrying this pain almost every second of every day.

“The fact I still have my life where others do not should make me feel better but I’m using it as an excuse not to go to pieces.

“I dream it every night and it’s so vivid. I relive every punch, kick and blow. Living with this every day is suffocating.”

Grieve pleaded guilty to rape and assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

Bob Sastry, defending, described the incident as a grave and serious matter.

He said: “The defendant acknowledges that and wishes to express his remorse and apologise to the victim.”

Judge Simon Medland QC described the actions of Grieve as coercive and degrading.

He said: “You inflicted substantial damage and numerous injuries through beatings and slaps.“You treated her with utter contempt as if nothing more than a punch bag or possession of yours.”

Grieve was sentenced to eight years imprisonment and an indefinite restraining order was made.

Description

A MANIPULATIVE paedophile groomed a teenage girl by giving her cannabis before going on to have sex with her.

Preston Crown Court heard how Sean Devitt, of no fixed address but who formerly lived in Burnley and Blackburn, was already serving a six-year prison sentence for sexual offences involving another under-age girl when the latest charges came to light.

Prosecutor Lisa Worsley said the teenage victim, who was at that point in a relationship with Devitt, saw footage on his SD card of a child getting undressed and realised she was a victim of abuse herself.

Miss Worsley said the grooming started when Devitt, now 34, would give the victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, cannabis.

The court heard that on one occasion after they had both smoked cannabis the pair kissed.

The following week a full sexual relationship started despite Devitt being 26-years-old and knowing his victim was a lot younger.

Miss Worsley said Devitt would meet the girl after school and walk her to a furniture store where they would occasionally have sex upstairs.

The court heard the victims mother became suspicious of the relationship which resulted in constant arguments that eventually forced the victim to move out of her family home.

Miss Worsley said that on one occasion Devitt filmed himself having sex with the girl, with her consent, and that the relationship had briefly ended when she discovered he had a sexually transmitted disease.

The relationship did eventually come to an end when the victim found the video of the child.

Miss Worsley said at that point Devitt phoned his mother from prison and attempted to get her to threaten the victim if she didnt withdraw her complaints to the police.

In a victim impact statement read out by Miss Worsley the victim spoke of how Devitt had ruined her life.

Miss Worsley said: She says Sean Devitt controlled her. He cut her off from her family.

She regards him as clever and someone who manipulated what she did.

She finds it really difficult to trust people now, particularly men. She feels like theyre all paedophiles and is concerned she wont ever have a relationship.

Devitt pleaded guilty to 13 counts of engaging in sexual activity with a child and one of making phone call from prison with intent to pervert the course of justice.

Defending Simon Gurney said his client realised the impact his offending has had on his victim.

Describing Devitts offending as serious Judge Andrew Woolman imposed an indefinite sexual harm prevention order and banned him from contacting the victim.

He was jailed for five years at a hearing yesterday.

Description

Joe Shanks is an Irishman from Co. Westmeath, who moved to England. He is a member of the Mormon 

An Irish Mormon missionary who tried to have sex with three children he thought he had lured over the internet, was nabbed in a sting operation by UK police.

Pervert Joseph Shanks, originally from Co Westmeath, claimed he was doing “charity work” and would be rewarded by GOD.

But the twisted predator didn’t realise the children’s mother he met online in England was really an undercover officer and he was arrested before any abuse took place.

When the 63-year-old married father turned up to rape the ‘victims’ he thought were aged nine, six and three, he was arrested by officers.

Shanks, who lives in the Church of Latter Day Saints missionary home in Chorley, Lancashire, was jailed for seven years on Monday after admitting ten sex charges.

The former civil servant had turned up for the rendezvous carrying a USB stick with thousands of vile abuse images of children.

Canterbury Crown Court in England heard how a police officer posed as “Sarah”, a mother to three fictitious children, was contacted by Shanks - who used the name Andy Brown.

Prosecutor Daniel Stevenson said: “Following conversations between ‘Sarah’ and Shanks it was clear from their conversation that the meeting was to facilitate him engaging in sexual activity with all three children.”

Shanks claimed he was in the army and volunteered for the church.

He rang from a mobile number but when that didn’t work - he called from a landline registered to the Mormon Church’s missionary training centre in Preston.

In November last year, the missionary worker left his wife in Lancashire and drove in his Hyundai Tucson 260 miles to the M23 Pease Pottage services, Kent, when he was arrested.

Shanks told police he was a member of the Mormon faith living in a Mormon community since 2016 and claimed he was doing “charitable work of God who would reward him with blessings as he tried to bring light into the lives of the three children”.

But Judge Simon James told him all he was doing was to act out his twisted sexual fantasies.

He said: “She used the name Sarah and her children were said to be aged three, six and nine.

“The two youngest were girls and the nine year old a boy.

“During the course of online communications, ‘Sarah’ spoke with a man who used the name Andy Brown. Andy Brown was in fact the defendant.

“Following these conversations, Mr Shanks made arrangements to travel to meet her and on November 26 they were scheduled to meet at Pease Pottage Services on the M23.

“Upon arriving he was disappointed to be greeted by officers of Kent Police’s Paedophile Online Investigation Team, rather than the willing mother of three children.”

The prosecutor added that Sarah and Andy had been in contact from October 2016 after the undercover officer received contact from [email protected].

He said he had a sexual interest in children and stated he was 63 years old, he was called Joe and claimed to have come originally from Ireland but was now living in Preston.

He told her he wanted to meet her children and promised to bring KY jelly, some of which was later found in his car.

During sentencing on Monday, Judge Simon James told him: “It is clear that you are an individual who is sexually attracted to children.

“That’s abundantly clear by the large amount of images you had depicting sexual abuse which were found in your car, including images depicting the rape of children as young as two years old.

“It is clear that you made efforts to act out your fantasies, by arranging to meet a mother of three children with the intent of having sex with them.

“What is also clear is that you had no idea that the person you were talking with was an undercover officer.

“You intended to subject those children to a whole catalogue of abuse.”

Mr Stevenson, prosecuting, said that Shanks had contacted a covert investigator on line, who was posing as the mother of three fictitious children.