Latest Offenders Lancashire

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A football lout described as being an ‘out-of-control sex pest’ groped a teenage girl and assaulted another woman after watching an England match.

Jordan Wilkinson, 31, later also allowed street dealers to use his home to store more than £35,000 worth of Class A drugs. The dad-of-one has been jailed and placed on the sex offenders register after making the ‘very bad choices’.

Preston Crown Court heard how Wilkinson, of Whitegate Drive, Blackpool, had joined friends at Central Pier to watch the Euro 2020 England vs Croatia match on June 13, 2021.

After downing numerous pints of lager, Wilkinson grabbed a 16-year-old girl by the crotch and groped another woman's bottom, reports Lancs Live.

When questioned about the offences, Wilkinson claimed he did not remember doing it but was appalled at his loutish behaviour.

The court also heard how in February last year, officers discovered heroin and crack in a box in his home. Julie Taylor, defending, said at the time he was struggling after a relationship break-up had left him in sole charge of his son.

Wilkinson’s defence said he had to give up work and had fallen into debt with cannabis dealers, so agreed to look after the box for £200 a week. He claimed he never looked inside and did not know what was in it, however he knew drugs were illegal.

Following his arrest, Wilkinson had worked with social services to try and turn his life around.

However, Judge Guy Mathieson, sentencing, said: "A lot of life is about choices, good and bad. It is a good idea to go out and watch the England game with your mates and have a few beers.

"It is a bad choice to get so out of it that you thought being an out-of-control sex pest was hilarious. The problem with bad choices is that they catch up with you eventually.

"There are two victims and there is some real impact, certainly with the younger girl, as to how she now deals with people. That seems to me to make it cross the custody threshold. So that is one choice. Then, things go badly wrong in 2021/22. I'm afraid I have heard this story so many times it is like a broken record. Things get difficult in lockdown, problems occur, so you take the choice to continue to use cannabis, which you know is illegal.

"What a surprise that when your drug dealer mates, who supply you with the cannabis, when you can't pay for it they aren't your mates at all? And what a surprise that they use you to store a really significant amount of drugs? A large amount - worth £37,000 on the street, spreading misery. And you get what for it? £200? £300?

"You said, 'it was a choice to get back on my feet'. Bad choice. They catch up with you.

"Drug dealers need people like you because they don't want to get caught with drugs on them. People like you who think, 'this is easy money because let's face it, the chances of getting caught are slim, so let's take the choice'. With your young son in the house."

The judge accepted Wilkinson had taken steps to change his life, but said: "You have still made these choices, and they have caught up with you today. This combination of offences, particularly the drug dealing, is so serious it has to be an immediate prison sentence."

He jailed Wilkinson, of Whitegate Drive, for 18 months for two counts of possession of class A drugs with a six month and three month sentence to run concurrently for each count of sexual assault. He also made him the subject of notification requirements (the sex offenders register) for seven years.

"You can't be seen to get away with it", he said. "That is why you have to go to prison."

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A convicted paedophile who was found with more than 250 indecent images of children, with a judge describing them as some of “the most disgusting images” he’s ever had the misfortune of viewing, has been jailed.

Phillip Belcher pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children, but only after initially taking the case to court when he was found with the photographs on his devices back in 2019, rendering him in breach of a suspended sentence and sexual harm prevention order.

He was jailed for the breaches but fell to be sentenced for the images after he tried to blame everyone else but himself for his actions.

Prosecuting at Preston Crown Court, Adam Lodge said Belcher, 33, had been convicted in Reading in July 2019 of making indecent images of children and had been made subject to a 10-year sexual harm prevention order and suspended sentence.

However, in August 2019, during a routine check at his home in Church Meadows, Colne, police found Belcher to have devices which he had not informed the police about, including a Sony tablet and phone, which placed him in breach of his order, as well as an SD memory card.

On it, police found disturbing images of children only a few months old, as well as one of necrophilia.

Belcher tried to blame his partner and another member of his family for the images, saying they might have been the ones who viewed them.

His suspended sentence was activated, and he was jailed for 15 months.

Following his release in June 2020, Belcher was visited at home once again and a mobile phone was found which had been used to search for child sexual abuse on Google.

Judge Guy Mathieson said: “It was entirely your choice to span out these proceedings from 2021 until last year until you admitted your guilt before trial.

“At one stage you even blamed your partner.

“At 33, you might want to start to take some responsibility for your actions.

“The type of images you take some sexual gratification from are abhorrent. You are taking sexual delight in the abuse and torture of tiny children, babies in some cases.

“When it comes to your pre-sentence report you are blaming everyone else. You even say you may have come across the images by accident.

“You are a wholly unrepentant paedophile and you are not someone who wants to change or embrace change. You are quite happy with who you are.

“The images you have downloaded contain some of the most disgusting images I have ever had the misfortune to come across.”

Belcher, who has 15 convictions for 19 offences was jailed for two years, and told to sign the sex offender’s register for 10 years.

No variation was made to his sexual harm prevention order which will be in place for another six years.

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A police force has found a convicted sex offender who failed to turn up to court to be sentenced.

James Atkinson, of St George's Road, St Annes, near Blackpool, was convicted of rape, indecent assault and sexual assault.

Lancashire Police said the 57-year-old was found on Friday in Cumbria.

He had been due to be sentenced at York Crown Court earlier this month, but did not appear.

Lancashire Police thanked the public for sharing an appeal to locate him.

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A man who believed he was sending sexually explicit messages to a 13-year-old girl has been jailed after an undercover police investigation.

Bartosz Zaczek sent the "distressing and disturbing" messages before trying to meet the recipient, who was actually an undercover police officer.

He arrived to be met by officers, who promptly arrested him last May.

The 23-year-old, of St Annes, Lancashire, has been jailed for four years and two months.

Zacek sent messages and photographs over a month and also encouraged his supposed target to get her "12-year-old cousin" to meet him, Preston Crown Court heard.

In June, he told his boss he was running an errand but instead travelled to meet the recipient in Blackburn, where officers were waiting for him.

Det Con Nicola Long, of Lancashire Police, said: "The chat transcript makes for some distressing and disturbing reading so I am satisfied with the sentence Zaczek has been given, which reflects the danger he presents to teenage girls."

Zaczek pleaded guilty to a range of offences including attempting to arrange the commission of a child sex offence and attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity.

He was also handed a 10-year sexual harm prevention order and ordered to sign the sex offenders register.

An order has also made for his phone to be destroyed and he will be monitored by authorities after his jail term.

Det Con Long said: "The public may not see the undercover work that goes on, but it is always going on.

"If anybody has concerns about an individual, I would always encourage them to contact the police in the first instance."

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An A&E nurse has been struck off after being convicted of groping the breasts of his female co-workers.

Adam Soothill began working in the emergency department at Royal Preston Hospital in 2011, but in March 2019, allegations were made against him by several members of staff.

These included inappropriate sexual behaviour, which involved touching, the flicking or touching of breasts, grabbing breasts, seven touching of naked breasts, and placing his hands between legs.

The assaults took place between 2017 and 2019 and as a result of the allegations, Soothill was suspended from work pending a police investigation.

Initially, he denied any wrongdoing but was charged with sexual assault on July 12 2021. Following this he was dismissed by the hospitals trust.

Soothill appeared at Preston Magistrates’ Court on August 15 2019, with his case being referred to the crown court where he entered not guilty pleas and was sent to trial.

On October 27 2021, Soothill was convicted of 24 counts of sexual assault and was sentenced to 30 months in prison, told to sign the Sex Offender Register indefinitely, and pay a surcharge of £170.

Following a hearing by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) last month, it was agreed that Soothill be struck-off the nurses register.

A report from the NMC read: “Adam Soothill's criminal offending has so seriously undermined public trust and confidence in the profession.

“The criminal offending and subsequent sentence is fundamentally incompatible with being a registered professional nurse.

“Only a striking off order is sufficient to protect patients, maintain public confidence in the profession and maintain professional standards.”

The NMC report also provided some of the judges sentencing remarks, which included the following relevant comments: "You undoubtedly preyed on these women so often and in such a manner that you made their lives uncomfortable, miserable within the workplace, in several instances it got to a stage where some did not wish to come to work.

“In relation to one victim, you had only worked with her once and that was the occasion you sexually assaulted her.

“In relation to another, she was so distressed by what you had done, that she went to the sluice room and cried.

“You took advantage of the workplace situation...you had relied on the fact that these women would not want to complain or felt uneasy about complaining.

“The touching you indulged in was not only unwanted, but sexual. It was also harassment and bullying behaviour which is not acceptable in any workplace.

“You tried to pull the wool over the jury’s eyes hiding behind a jovial workplace exterior.

“In relation to the seven women who alleged incidents, which you absolutely denied, there was no room for mistake, they were not exaggerating, and they were not liars.

“As prosecution counsel pointed out, it is noteworthy that you only denied the more serious matters and it is noteworthy that your defence, in relation to two or three of your victims, changed as the evidence came out.”

An interim suspension order was handed to Soothill to give him time to appeal the sanction. Should no appeal be made, he will be struck-off with immediate effect.

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A "dangerous" sex offender from Darwen who was found with two teenage girls in his hotel room has been jailed.

Colin Smith, of Everton Street, was arrested in 2020 when he returned to a hotel room in Bury.

Smith was putting up two teenage girls who had been reported missing at the time, and on his return to the hotel, found Greater Manchester Police (GMP) officers waiting for him. 

Appearing at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court on Tuesday, Smith, 59, was jailed for 12 years after pleading guilty to 11 charges against five victims.

These including offences of meeting a child following sexual grooming, making and distributing indecent images of children, and sexual activity with a child.

Among the offences, police said Smith "plied victims with alcohol in order to commit abhorrent and depraved offences".

Described as a "calculated individual", he created multiple social media accounts and aliases, identifying as a teenager, to lure his victims into trusting him. 

Following his arrest, numerous devices belonging to Smith were seized which uncovered further victims of grooming, evidence of possession and distribution of indecent images of children, and extreme pornography.

Detective Chief Inspector Ian Partington, from Greater Manchester Police, said: “Firstly, I would like to publicly recognise the courage of the two young girls who were staying in the hotel room – they made contact with someone they could trust, which enabled us to safeguard them and, ultimately, secure this prosecution.

“Smith’s behaviour towards the victims was nothing short of sickening – in some cases, he plied them with alcohol in order to commit abhorrent and depraved offences.

"His prosecution and imprisonment should reassure our communities about our commitment to fighting this type of crime and keeping vulnerable people safe.”

Constable Carly Baines, of GMP's Sexual Crime Unit, added: “This sentencing is the result of a long, meticulous investigation by our complex safeguarding hub.

"Smith’s behaviour is deplorable and completely unacceptable, and I hope this result sends a stark warning to offenders that these behaviours will not be tolerated by GMP.

“I would like to thank the victims for their resilience and bravery in reporting this incident to the police and giving us the opportunity to put a dangerous and depraved man in prison, and I hope this sentencing will now allow the victims to be able to move forward with their lives.”

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 A PERVERTED pensioner who sexually abused a schoolboy during a weekend go karting trip to west Cumbria has been jailed.

Raymond Monks, 78, had pleaded not guilty to allegations of showing the boy a pornographic film before sexually abusing him in his motorhome during a trip to the Rowrah race track near Frizington more than a decade ago.

But after a trial at Carlisle Crown Court, Monks was convicted of both charges on evidence which a judge said was 'compelling'.

The jury heard that the youngster, aged under 13 when the abuse happened, was at the race track for a weekend trip organised by 58-year-old Andrew Fairley, who was recently jailed for systematically grooming and abusing the same boy.

Prosecuting barrister Rob Wyn Jones said that Monks, a married father, took advantage of the schoolboy because he knew that Fairley had already groomed him and he thought it was unlikely he would tell anybody.

In evidence, the now adult victim recalled how a group of boys had taken him to see Monks at his motorhome, where the defendant put on a pornographic video. He then sent the other boys away, closed the curtains and locked the door.

It was at this point that the abuse happened.

In his evidence, Monks accepted that he had been watching pornography when the victim and two other boys were in his motor home. Asked if it was appropriate to have watched pornography with schoolboys, he said: “Lads are lads.”

He added: “At their age, they’ve most likely seen it before."

Mr Wyn Jones suggested that he had a reputation among the boys at the racetrack for showing children pornographic videos. Monks denied being sexually aroused by the pornography or using it to facilitate the abuse.

Keith Harrison, defending, said what happened had been an isolated offence and was obviously far less serious that the prolonged and systematic abuse perpetrated by Fairley over a lengthy period.

In an impact statement, the victim described how the abuse – that perpetrated by both Fairley and by Monks – had left him suffering panic attacks, depression and paranoia, all of which he attributes to what happened.

He was haunted by memories of the abuse and found it difficult working with older men. “Raymond Monks did not groom me in the same way Andrew Fairley did - but he also took advantage, predated on me and abused me,” said the victim.

“He then threw me to one side and didn’t care that I was a child; he used me to satisfy his own sexual fantasies. He will never know how much pain and suffering he has caused me.”

Judge Richard Archer told the defendant: “You have been convicted by a jury on compelling evidence of the sexual abuse of [the boy].” The judge said he was satisfied that showing the boy a pornographic film was an intention precursor to the abuse, intended to help him achieve his goal.

“You used him for your sexual gain,” said the judge. “You used him for that short period of time and then discarded him.”

Monks had shown no remorse. The judge jailed him for six years and put him on the Sex Offender Register indefinitely. The judge also imposed a sexual harm prevention order, which will bar Monks from ever staying at a property where there a child, unless there is written permission from Social Services.

His use of the internet must also be subject to strict police monitoring. As the sentence was passed, Monks, of Greens Lane, Rossendale, Lancashire, showed no emotion.

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A convicted sex offender has been jailed again after dressing up as a schoolgirl and asking female pupils: "Do you like my tie?"

Mark Nicholson, 55, sat outside Blessed Trinity school in Burnley, Lancashire, dressed in a white tie, blazer and skirt.

A court heard that he tried to engage in conversation with three girls, aged between 10 and 15, by asking if they liked his tie last November.

Preston Crown Court was also told that in May this year, he met two runaways teenage boys who had been reported missing from their care home.

He took them back to his house where they smoked cigarettes and he gave them a cup of cider.

Kathryn Johnson, prosecuting, told the court: “The police received a call from the safeguarding lead at Blessed Trinity to say that three female children from the school, aged between 10 and 15, had seen a male sat outside on Queen Victoria Road dressed in a school uniform that matched theirs.

“He was wearing a white shirt, a tie, blazer, and a skirt, and had tried to engage in conversation with the girls, saying ‘Do you like my tie?’.

“He was arrested the following day at his home address and the school uniform was recovered by officers from his bedroom.

“The defendant was interviewed the same day and told police he didn’t speak to the girls but accepted that he had been wearing the uniform, saying that he wears it for comfort.

"On May 15, the police were contacted by an engage worker who reported that two children were missing from a residential care home in Blackburn.

“When the children returned, they said they had boarded a hospital shuttle bus and had gone from Blackburn to Burnley. They had met the defendant and asked if they could go back to his home, and he took them.

“While there they smoked cigarettes, and the defendant gave them a cup of cider. They stayed around an hour and then left and returned to Blackburn.”

Defending Nicholson, Anna Chestnutt said his behaviour "had no place" and he would "not be repeating it".

In respect of the offences in May, Ms Chestnutt said her client encountered the boys on a bus and it was them who spoke to him first.

She said: “Nothing sexual took place in the hour they spent at his home address.”

Nicholson has 22 convictions for 60 offences and was previously jailed for 18 months for child sex offences in 2019.

He was jailed for 16 months for two breaches of his sexual harm prevention order.

Judge Stephen Unsworth KC said: “This is a worrying picture that’s presented to the court and is extremely worrying for the parents and carers of these children.

“If there’s any repeat of this behaviour you can expect lengthier periods in prison – you must stay away from young people and must stop this behaviour.”

The judge banned Nicholson from wearing items of clothing relating to a girl’s school uniform and ordered him to sign the sex offenders register indefinitely.

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Benjamin Cain said he did not know the youngster had a crush on him - but struck up a relationship as she left the care home he worked at.
 
A care worker at a Fylde children's home struck up a relationship with a teenager before going on to rape her at her supported accommodation.

Benjamin Cain, 42, was working at a care home when he met the youngster. During a trial at Preston Crown Court, the girl said she became besotted with Cain and fell in love with him while she was in Local Authority care at the home.

Cain, who was more than twice the girl's age, claimed to have been oblivious to her 'schoolgirl crush.' But when it was time to move to her own flat, she said Cain hugged her and kissed her full on the lips, describing it as 'a snog'. "She was absolutely delighted", Judge Philip Parry, sentencing, said.

The following morning Cain promised to visit the youngster at her new home when he returned from his holiday two weeks later From that point Cain and the teen had a sexual relationship which lasted for around 14 months.

"You maintained the power dynamic between you", Judge Parry said. The girl described how Cain had a temper and would arrogantly tell her, "you're my girlfriend - I can have sex with you whenever I want."

On one occasion, she said something changed while they were having sex and she told Cain to stop. He carried on and became violent, pushing her against a wall and pushing her face into a pillow as she 'screamed the flat down'. As soon as the ordeal was over the young woman accused her boyfriend of rape, but she told the court he laughed in her face.

The girl ended the relationship but told the jury that in the month that followed she would see Cain hanging around close to her work. A year after the relationship ended he contacted her by text, saying he wanted to smooth things over.

Judge Parry said: "Her responses were absolutely spot on. She said you were only contacting her to ease your guilty conscience. You knew that a little less than a year earlier you had committed the offence of rape and you wanted her to not say anything. That backfired spectacularly."

The woman told her partner and later the manager of the children's home where she and Cain had met. Cain was arrested and denied any wrongdoing, but was dismissed from his position as a care worker.

However following a week long trial he was convicted of rape and sexual activity with a child by a person in a position of trust. Handing down a sentence of five years and nine months in prison, Judge Parry told him: "You were trained in relation to how you should behave around vulnerable children including how to avoid situations where a vulnerable child could be exploited.

"You knew the rules and the reasons why you should not behave inappropriately with children in your care. You were trained in the way you should act." The judge accepted Cain has no previous convictions but said it was this previous good character which unlocked the defendant's access to vulnerable girls.

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A pervert who had a sexual relationship with a 15-year-old girl, knowing she was underage, and sent a naked image of her to a friend has been jailed.

Joshua Denson, who also uses the name Jay Carter, groomed his East Lancashire victim by buying her designer gifts and getting her addicted to cocaine. He then used his control over the victim to get her to sell cocaine and launder counterfeit money on his behalf.

We launched an investigation into the sordid activities of 28-year-old Denson in March 2020 after the victim’s mother raised concerns that her daughter was in a relationship with an older man.

The victim had returned home with a small amount of cocaine in her bag and when her mother examined her phone she found photographs of her daughter in bed with an older man. A text message exchange revealed the victim had been in a relationship with the man since she was 15.

An examination of Facebook Messenger exchanges revealed the victim had sold cocaine on Denson’s behalf and that she had made small purchases in local shops using counterfeit notes in order to get change in real money.

When the victim was spoken to by police for a second time she said the relationship had started when she was 15, her believing that Denson was 28, and that the relationship had become sexual before she had turned 16.

She also said that Denson would tell his friends she was 17 and his mum that she was 18.

Denson was arrested and from his iPhone, we recovered 105 indecent images of a child – the victim – with some being videos and others being photographs.

We also found evidence that Denson had sent one of the images to a contact in his phone.

There was also evidence that Denson tried to organise a threesome involving the victim and a second 15-year-old girl. In a message he wrote: “Yeah, I feel bad enough I’m having sex with one girl underage but (it doesn’t matter) I guess,”

While under investigation for this case, Denson fled the country to Malta the day after being arrested for assaulting another woman.

We brought Denson back to the UK under a Trade and Co-operation Agreement (TaCA) Warrant and put him before the courts.

Denson, formerly of Lancaster Gate, Nelson, but now of no fixed address pleaded guilty to sexual activity with a child x 3, making indecent images of children x 3 and distributing an indecent image.

Earlier this week he was sentenced at Burnley Crown Court to five years and three months imprisonment, given a life-time Sexual Harm Prevention Order and order to sign the Sex Offenders Register for life.

In her impact statement to court, the victim said: “What I have been through has impacted on my relationships. I am currently in a relationship, it has been a lot for my partner to take on. I feel when I have bad days from everything I have been through, I then put this on to my boyfriend. I now feel like I have to be more wary in my relationship, I don't always feel that I can truly be myself and have a laugh and a joke with my boyfriend. I believe the reason I feel like this way is because when Jay was in my life I felt like I had to put on a front, Jay would always tell me to tell people I was older than I was, act older than I was. I started to do things at 15 years old like going out drinking in clubs, I feel like I grew up before I needed to and this was down to Jay's influence.

“Every couple of days I experience flash backs of negative experiences I had with Jay. One of the frequent flash backs I have is when one of Jay's friends got stabbed I was helping his friend, there was a lot of blood and it was traumatic, Jay sat there eating a sandwich doing nothing.”

She added: “Jay introduced me to cocaine from the age of 15 years old. This had a massive impact on me, I've gone through rehabilitation from taking drugs, at one point I heavily relied on taking cocaine, at its worst I was taking it a couple of times a day. I feel like I have to remove myself from any situations where drugs are mentioned and I feel like the temptation will always be there now I have experimented with drugs from a young age. I have never been the type of person to take drugs, before meeting Jay I had never taken cocaine and wouldn't even consider taking it. It was down to Jay's influence that I started to take cocaine. Jay got me involved in things that I would never consider doing, I was doing things completely out of character for me. I have never been in trouble with the police or done anything criminal until meeting Jay and I feel like he dragged me down to his level.

“If I could sum up how this crime has affected me, it’s made me feel very depressed. This has impacted my confidence and I constantly feel drained. When I look back now I feel like I've been groomed. Jay was buying me expensive gifts, introducing me to drugs, this now makes me question why was he ever interested in a 15-year-old girl? I feel like my teenage years have been robbed from me because of Jay.”

PC Beth Turner, of East CID, said: “Denson is a wicked and manipulative individual who preyed upon and groomed the victim for his own perverted and sordid sexual interests.

“Reading her harrowing victim impact statement, you can see the impact Denson’s abhorrent behaviour had and continued to have on her. I would like to praise the victim and her family for the bravery they have shown, standing up against this controlling and nasty individual.

“I hope the outcome of this case and the sentence handed down to Denson will encourage other victims to come forward, knowing they will be listened to and believed, and we will do everything in our power to put their abuser before the courts.”

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Steven Collins (26/06/1999), of Pink Street in Burnley, targeted four females, all under the age of 16, on public transport and at a supermarket in Ashton-under-Lyne.

He inappropriately touched, threatened and stalked the females, causing untold distress. Two of them managed to take photographs of Collins on their mobile phones, which led the police direct to him.

Appearing at Manchester Crown Court on Wednesday 19 October 2022, Collins was sentenced for three sexual assaults – offences he had pleaded guilty to at an earlier hearing.

He received seven years, six months imprisonment as well as a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) for 10 years and he is on the Sex Offender’s Register for life.

Detective Constable Victoria Eronini, of the Child Protection Investigation Unit based in Ashton, said: “This is a good sentencing result for all involved. What this man put these young females through is absolutely horrendous.

“I would like to commend the bravery and strength of the victims coming forward to report the sexual assaults. We know this can’t have been easy and we are grateful for all of their assistance throughout the investigation.

“Without their help, a very dangerous man would still be preying on young females on the streets of Greater Manchester.”

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 A SUSPENDED jail sentence has been handed to a train passenger who exposed himself to two 17-year-old students.

Carlisle’s Rickergate court heard a disturbing account of the journey during which 33-year-old Liam Cairns behaved appallingly while drunk as he travelled on the Carlisle-bound Northern Rail train from Newcastle.

It happened on February 18.

Cairns pleaded guilty to exposure, being drunk and disorderly, and four counts of assault, including two against police officers.

The court heard that two students – a male and a female – first became aware of Cairns shortly after the train left Newcastle because he was sitting in the seat immediately behind them.

The defendant was being verbally abusive towards a group of men who were sitting opposite him, shouting and swearing at them. They eventually moved away to another seat.

A short time later, Cairns moved to the seat opposite the two students, who heard him say that he would kill 'him', though it was unclear whom this was reference to. Cairns then touched the male student’s stomach.

The female student immediately protested about this and Cairns responded by 'lightly' slapping her face with the back of his hand. Shouting and slurring his speech, Cairns then exposed himself.

He was arrested when the train arrived at Carlisle’s Citadel Railway Station, and this was when he assaulted two police officers. Cairns told police he had no recollection of the events due to being drunk.

But he did apologise for his behaviour.

He blamed his drinking that day on the anniversary of a child’s death. The court heard that Cairns, of Bairstow Street, Blackpool, had 40 offences on his criminal record, including a previous exposure.

Magistrates imposed a 12-week jail term, suspended for a year.

They said the sentence was justified because the offending was drink-fuelled, there was a similar past offence on Cairns’ record, and his teenage victims had been “physically trapped” when the defendant exposed himself.

The sentence includes up to 25 days of rehabilitation and 150 hours of unpaid work. Magistrates also ruled that Cairns will be on the Sex Offender Register for the next seven years.

He must pay £200 compensation to the female student and to one of the two police officers he assaulted. 

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A “depraved” sexual predator from Chorley who abused two young children under the age of ten has been jailed.

Damon Townsend, 35, raped his first victim when she was under the age of 10.

That victim said she is now scared to be around boys and men.

Townsend sexually assaulted his second victim when she was also under the age of 10 and told her to keep what he had done a secret.

While those offences were being investigated information came to light that Townsend might have pornographic images on his phone.

Townsend’s phone was seized and an examination discovered the device contained a number of indecent images of children and other prohibited images.

He was subsequently charged with a number of sexual offences and remanded into custody.

Townsend, now of no fixed address but formerly of Cornflower Close, Chorley, pleaded guilty to possessing indecent images of children, however denied any offences relating to the victims of his sexual abuse.

Following a trial at Preston Crown Court, Townsend was found guilty of raping a child under 13 and indecently assaulting a child under 13.

He was deemed to be a dangerous offender and given an immediate custodial sentence of 16 years with a further four years extended licence.

Townsend will have to go before the Parole Board who will assess whether he remains a risk to the public. It will only be after that assessment that Townsend could be released.

He was also ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register for life and was made subject of an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

DC Louise Dutton, of South CID, said: “Townsend is a manipulative individual with an abhorrent and warped sexual interest in children.

“Not only did he target his victims because of their vulnerability, he also forced them to relive their harrowing ordeals by taking the case to trial.

She added: “I am glad this dangerous sexual predator has now been given a substantial custodial sentence. The associated court orders will also mean Townsend will be monitored by the authorities once he is eventually released from the custodial element of his sentence.

“I want to place on record my admiration at the bravery displayed by both victims during the criminal justice process and beyond.

“I know these offences have understandably had a significant and ongoing impact on them and I hope they can take some comfort in knowing that their abuser will be behind bars for some time.

“I hope the outcome of this case will encourage other victims of sexual abuse to come forward, knowing that they will be believed and we will do everything in our power to put the perpetrators before the courts.”

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A dangerous sex offender who had indecent images of children on multiple electronic devices has been jailed for five years. In December officers from the East MOSOVO (Management of Sexual or Violent Offenders) Team carried out a compliance visit at the home of Martin Blake after concerns were raised that he was not complying with the requirements of his Sexual Harm Prevention Order. Blake, 58, who had previously been convicted for child prostitution and numerous fraud offences, was already required to adhere to the notification requirements and a court order restricting his access and usage of the internet. During the visit carious electronic devices were seized, including an iPhone, USB sticks and a PC. After an extensive investigation, a mixture of Category A, B ad C indecent images were found on the PC, iPhone and five USB sticks. It was also found that Blake had committed a significant number of other breaches, including using numerous unregistered names and bank accounts, as well as failing to provide further devices identified in the investigation. Blake, of Redwood Drive, Longridge, pleaded guilty to possession of indecent images of children, as well as breaching his Sex Offender Notification Requirements and his SHPO. At Preston Crown Court earlier this week he was given the custodial sentence, a revised 10-year SHPO and ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register for life.

Description

A vile pervert has been caged after his victim bravely set up a camera to catch him in the act of abusing her.

Michael Halliday, of Chorley, started his sickening campaign of abuse before his victim had reached the age of 12. The 67-year-old groped and kissed her on numerous occasions, Preston Crown Court heard.

Despite living in fear of Halliday, the victim bravely set up a secret camera to catch him in the act of abusing her. She then informed school, who reported the matter to police.

An investigation was then launched an investigation into Halliday. He was subsequently convicted of two counts of sexual assault of a child under 13 and two counts of sexual activity with a child under 16.

He has now been jailed for 30 months.

At Preston Crown Court earlier this month, Halliday, of Springwood Drive, Chorley, was also ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register for life. He was also made subject of indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order conditions for when he is released from custody.

DS Samantha Bartley, of the South Exploitation Team, said: First and foremost I want to praise the victim for the incredible bravery she has shown throughout this process. I know Hallidays offending has had a profound impact on her and I hope the fact he has been convicted for what he did to her will be of some comfort.

Halliday is an opportunistic sexual predator who targeted his victim for his perverted sexual interests.

I hope this case clearly demonstrates that the Preston Child Exploitation Team takes all reports of sexual assaults, grooming and similar offences against children extremely seriously and will act upon any information we receive.