Latest Offenders New Forest

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A COMMUNITY psychiatric nurse, who had sex with a woman suffering from a mental disorder, was jailed for two years at Southampton Crown Court. John Bennett, who was employed by Hampshire NHS Foundation Trust, was arrested after the woman in her late 40s made a disclosure to her doctor that they had sex in her home. Judge Derwin Hope told the 44-year-old, who had been a qualified care worker from 2001 until June 2010 when the allegations came to light, it represented a breach of trust. The judge said he accepted that at heart he was a caring person and had suffered difficulties of his own. He added: But you took advantage of her difficulties for your own benefit in a serious way. You are someone with a low risk of committing further offences and you have been relieved of your professional duties but I have no doubt, taking everything into consideration, this matter is so serious that only an immediate period of custody can be justified. Defending, Christopher Baur said there had been no wickedness in Bennetts intentions and he was still receiving treatment for his own mental health problems. Bennett had been off work for depression and went back too early because he feared for his job. He and the woman had considerable feelings for each other and if he had been in a better frame of mind he would not have slipped into this situation. Bennett, of Wood Road, Ashurst, was convicted of having sexual activity with a person with a mental disorder as a care worker.

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A FORMER village bobby has been found guilty of sexually abusing two teenage boys while working for Hamp-shire police.

Gordon Hunter showed no emotion as jurors convicted him on all 14 charges he faced, which included gross indecency with a child and attempted buggery.

As the guilty verdicts were read out, one woman in the public gallery, believed to be a member of one of the victims’ families, said: “Yes.”

The court heard that Hunter and his wife, Gill, had tried to commit suicide just days ago.

Winchester Crown Court was told that the couple, who had been married for 40 years, made the attempt at their home in Dene Way, Ashurst, on Thursday. It is understood paramedics took the couple to hospital with undisclosed injuries.

Hunter was absent from court on Friday and Monday but was in court yesterday to hear the unanimous guilty verdicts read out after the jury had deliberated for six-and-a-half hours.

Judge Andrew Barnett lifted a court order banning publication of the joint suicide bid following the verdict.

Hunter’s son, brother-in-law and friends were in the public gallery to hear the verdicts read out. Mrs Hunter, who had been present during the trial, was absent for the sentencing but has since been released from hospital.

Judge Andrew Barnett remanded Hunter in custody for his own safety until he is sentenced next month.

He told him: “You have been convicted by the jury of 14 extremely serious offences against young teenage boys.

“Be under no illusion that the inevitable sentence is one of imprisonment and you must prepare yourself for that.

“Bearing in mind your safety after you and your wife were involved in a suicide attempt I have to consider your well-being and I have to remand you in custody.”

During the five-day trial the court heard how Hunter had abused the boys in separate areas of the county between 1987 and 1998.

It was while working as a village policeman that Hunter abused the first boy, inviting him into his home to take part in a variety of sex acts.

The offences began with a boy, who was 11 at the time and cannot be named for legal reasons, when Hunter was the village policeman in Whitchurch in the north of the county between 1983 and 1992.

The court heard how many of the offences took place at Hunter’s family home, some in his marital bed.

Jurors were told that Hunter then moved to Ashurst in the New Forest in 1992 and in 1995 began to target another boy, who also cannot be named for legal reasons.

Hunter retired from Hampshire police as a police constable in 2002 but continued in a variety of support staff roles including a detention officer in Eastleigh.

He retired from a support staff role at Lyndhurst at the beginning of October 2009 before being arrested later that month. The investigation has been led by officers from Hampshire Constabulary’s professional standards department.

Hunter, who had denied all the charges, was put on the sex offender’s register.

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HE BUILT up his reputation as a photographer by working with some of the most famous names in the world.

Erik Russell started taking pictures as a child and his career ranged from taking shoots for global magazines to snapping Olympic sailing medallist Ben Ainslie as he met local schoolchildren.

But beneath this guise is one of the countys most vile paedophiles who enjoys watching youngsters subjected to torture and horrific sexual abuse.

Today, as he prepares to be jailed for the sickening crimes, which he has managed to keep a secret in the town where he lives, the Daily Echo can reveal the true horror of what he did.

Russell, who lives with his partner in Lymington, was uncovered by detectives from Hampshire polices Child Abuse Investigation Unit.

He was arrested in his home by officers who swooped and seized his computers and photographic equipment during an undercover operation on October 19, 2006.

His computer records showed he had paid to access a number of websites which contained graphic images and videos of children mainly girls from toddlers to teens.

It took detectives weeks to plough through the thousands of horrific images and videos.

Eventually detectives concluded that he was responsible for making and possessing a staggering 32,832 photos. Also found were 1,699 videos of the same horrific abuse.

Police used new guidelines to rank the scale of the abuse with one being the weakest and five the most sickening and Russells disgusting catalogue included the very worst kind.

A further 42,122 pictures were found on his computer that could not be categorised. Likewise, 512 videos were not given a ranking because officers could not be sure they showed children.

Russell was eventually charged with 20 specimen counts of making indecent images and videos (downloading and saving). He was also charged with two further offences of possessing indecent images of a child.

Denying the charges, he stood trial for five days at Portsmouth Crown Court, where a jury took just 50 minutes to unanimously find him guilty.

Following conviction, Russell was released on conditional bail to be sentenced today.

Until now he has managed to keep his depraved behaviour a secret in the tight-knit community of Lymington, where he moved in 2005 following the acrimonious breakdown of his marriage.