Latest Offenders Suffolk

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A fleeing sex offender's attempts to escape justice have been branded "pathetic" by police after he failed to return to court to hear the jury's verdict.

Paul Ashworth, 71, was sentenced to nine years in prison and an additional year on licence at Ipswich Crown Court on Friday.

He had previously left the court when the jury retired to consider its verdicts on 7 February and failed to return in the afternoon when the verdicts were to be delivered.

Ashworth, of Wannock Close in Carlton Colville, was found guilty in his absence of three counts of indecent assault on a girl under 14 years old, relating to three separate victims aged between the ages of four and 11 which occurred between the early 1980s and early 2000s.

The court issued a warrant for his arrest and Suffolk Police traced him to Portsmouth after identifying his bank card was being used there.

Officers made inquiries with hotels in the area and found Ashworth had booked into one under an alias after getting a bus to Portsmouth city centre.

He was arrested at the hotel on 26 February and remanded in prison before his sentencing hearing on Monday.

Ashworth had pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent photographs of children and to absconding from court while on bail.

Det Sgt Kate Bond from the East Public Protection Unit said: "Paul Ashworth's pathetic attempt to evade justice by leaving the court when the jury went out was a final act of utter contempt on his part towards the victims.

"The crimes he committed were unspeakably abhorrent and robbed the victims of their childhoods."

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A "dangerous" paedophile who befriended young families to sexually abuse children has been jailed for 22 years.

Martin Woods, formerly of Hadleigh in Suffolk, was sentenced to the prison term and and given an extended licence period of six years that would follow his release.

The 46-year-old had abused an underage girl more than 10 years ago and has been found guilty of six offences.

Woods will serve his sentence at the same time as he serves an existing sentence he was handed in 2021 after he admitted sexually assaulting a different child.

He will remain on the sex offenders for life and is also the subject of an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

Det Con Kate Hutson, from Suffolk Police, said: "Woods is a dangerous offender who has shown a pattern of behaviour in befriending young families in order to sexually abuse children."

Before his trial in December, Woods had been charged with

• three counts of attempted assault on a girl under 13 by penetration
• two counts of rape of a girl under 13
• one count of assault of a girl under 13 by touching

He was told he would not be eligible to be considered for release by the parole board until he had served 14 years and six months in prison.

'Great courage'

Det Con Hutson praised the "bravery" and "resilience" of Woods' victim.

"In a statement to the court, she described how difficult it was to talk about what had happened to her saying that the words were pushed in so far that she didn't know how to get them out," she added.

"She has shown great courage to report the crimes against her and in supporting the investigation throughout, culminating in her giving evidence at the trial.

"I hope that knowing Woods will serve at least 14 years and eight months before being eligible for parole will bring her some measure of closure."

Before his recent conviction, Woods was jailed in 2021 for rape and sexual assault of a child under 13 and five counts of taking or making indecent images of children.

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A man from Stowmarket has been jailed for more than two years for a rape he committed as a teenager.

Alex Welham appeared in the dock at Ipswich Crown Court on Friday.

He had pleaded guilty to a charge of rape of a girl under 13, and a charge of multiple incidents of sexual assault of a girl under 13, which the court heard took place on at least 10 occasions.

The offences were committed between 2014 and 2016. Welham was 13 when the abuse began, and 15 when it ended. The victim was several years younger than he was.

The abuse was reported to the police in 2023.

A statement was read to the court by Matthew McNiff, prosecuting, on behalf of the victim. In it, she described the profound impact Welhams abuse had had on her life.

Addressing Welham, now 24, who she described as the monster that ruined my childhood, she said: You killed the child in me, forcing me into a world I neither understood or was ready for.

She continued: You took my smile away. The abuse was, she said, disgusting and unforgivable.

The victim said that she felt pride that she had managed to come forward and report the abuse. She spoke of her determination to use my voice to help other victims of child abuse.

Joanne Eley, representing Welham, told the court that he had described being sexually curious having been exposed to pornography. He also described being bullied throughout high school, and has since been diagnosed with depression and anxiety, Miss Eley told the court.

Judge David Wilson said that these offences were committed when Welham was a child, which would need to be reflected in his sentence.

Cases of this nature provide notorious difficulties for sentencing court, he said.

He also acknowledged that the impact of Welhams abuse continues to be felt by the victim.

This was not simply experimentation as a teen boy this was targeted planned behaviour over a period of time, he said, adding that the abuse was accompanied by warnings that the victim should keep quiet.

For the rape, he sentenced Welham to two years and eight months in prison. For the sexual assaults, he sentenced Welham to nine months, which he will serve concurrently.

Both these sentences were reduced in light of Welhams age at the time of offending, and his guilty pleas.

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A sex offender from Felixstowe who was in a relationship with a teenage girl has been sent to prison.

Matthew Redstall, 50, of High Road, was jailed for two years at Ipswich Crown Court on Friday

He pleaded guilty to seven counts of causing a child to engage in sexual activity and three counts of possession of an indecent image of a child.

In 2019, Redstall entered into a relationship with a 17-year-old girl which eventually became sexual.

Redstall was first arrested in 2021 and charged in 2023.

In addition to two years in prison, the judge ordered Redstall to sign the sex offenders’ register and handed him a sexual harm prevention order for 10 years.

Det Con Laura Frelford, from Suffolk Police’s Safeguarding Investigation Unit, said: “I hope the outcome of this case reassures members of the public that we take such allegations of predatory behaviour extremely seriously and we work to safeguard victims as quickly as possible.

“We will do everything in our power to bring offenders to justice.”

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A man from Icklingham has been jailed for 20 years for a series of sexual crimes against children.

56 year old Richard Taylor (above) of West Street in Icklingham was jailed at Ipswich Crown Court on Friday 20 September.

He was sentenced to 20 years in jail and two years on extended licence after he was found guilty during a trial.

He was charged with a total of 17 offences of sexual activity against children and was found guilty of one count of rape, six offences of indecent assault of a male, and nine counts of gross indecency with a child. The offences all took place between 1999 and 2003.

Investigating officer DC Jen Botting said: “I’d like to pay tribute to the immense bravery and courage of both victims and their families. This was a highly complex and difficult case to investigate and without their evidence, it would have been extremely hard to secure this conviction and sentence against Taylor.

“As a consequence of Taylor’s not guilty plea, the victims had to endure revisiting their horrific and distressing experiences as part of the evidence heard during the nine day trial.  I hope the sentence passed provides some level of closure and allows them to move forward with their lives.

“I also hope this case demonstrates just how Suffolk police is committed to fully investigating any allegation of sexual assault, be it recent or non-recent as was the case here and will provide the highest level of support and care to any victim whilst a thorough investigation is carried out.”

Child abuse is often a hidden crime, and we work to ensure that the voice of the child is heard and concerns of abuse or neglect are reported and investigated. The Suffolk Multi Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH), which involves police, county council, education and health, among others works to address issues of risk of harm, abuse and neglect.

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A Lowestoft man has been jailed after a series of ‘traumatic and distressing’ sexual offences involving a child.

Timothy Neale, 55, of Montgomery Avenue, was sentenced to 19 years’ imprisonment at Norwich Crown Court on Wednesday.

In the lead up to his two-week trial in April, Neale pleaded not guilty to five counts of rape, two counts of causing a child to watch a sexual act, plus one count of engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child and one count of sexual assault on a child.

Neale was originally charged with the above offences in May 2020.

For two counts of rape, Neale was jailed for 19 years each.

In addition, he was handed 12 years each for a further three counts of rape, 12 months and nine months, respectively, for the two counts of causing a child to watch a sexual act.

Neale was also jailed for 30 months for one count of engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child plus three years for one count of sexual assault of a child.

The sentences will run concurrently.

DC Williams of the Internet Child Abuse Investigations Team at Suffolk Police, commended the victim for their bravery.

“It has been a long journey to reach this stage for the victim and their family to endure,” DC Williams said.

“They have also shown incredible bravery in terms of reporting it to police and also providing evidence during the investigation, court hearings and trial which again shows their courage in securing this conviction.”

DC Williams added: “This case demonstrates we are absolutely committed to pursuing perpetrators of non-recent incidents and supporting victims.

“We urge victims of any serious violent or sexual offence to come forward to the police, seek support from the agencies available and we remain committed to supporting all victims who report sexual offences.”

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A 43-year-old man from Suffolk has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for sexual offences against children.

Paul English, of no fixed abode but from the Lowestoft area, was convicted of 11 offences today at Ipswich Crown Court.

These includes eight charges of sexual assault of a child under 13 and three charges of sexual activity with a child under 16.

English's crimes spanned several years and involved two victims, with the earliest offence dating back to 2012.

He was arrested on January 27, 2022.

Detective Constable Kim Shrubshall said: “The strength and bravery of both victims to work with us during this two-and-a-half year investigation is nothing short of admirable.

“I know no sentence will ever take away the trauma the victims suffered and the distressing experience to endure a trial and listen to evidence, but I hope today’s sentencing can serve as the first step towards the closure they deserve.”

Following an eight-day trail, English was sentenced to 15 years in prison and he was also handed a sexual harm prevention order.

DC Shrubshall added: “I would urge victims of any serious violent or sexual offence to come forward to the police.

“We are absolutely committed to protecting children from sexual abuse and bring those who seek to do them harm to justice.

“We take all such reports extremely seriously and if you can find courage to come forward and speak with us, we have specially trained officers who will treat you will sensitivity and compassion.”

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A convicted sex offender who did gardening work at a north Suffolk school as a volunteer in breach of a court order has been jailed for 16 months.

Kevin Corrick visited the school to deliver gardening products and to cut grass over a period of 10 months without telling anyone he was banned from going to schools under a sexual harm prevention order, Ipswich Crown Court heard.

Corrick, 63, of Nightingale Court in Blyburgate, Beccles, admitted four breaches of a sexual harm prevention order made in 2012 after he was jailed for 15 years for raping and sexually assaulting a schoolgirl and making indecent images of children.

The breaches related to him entering an educational establishment between March and December 2023 and working in a youth organisation when he was banned from doing so under the terms of the order.

He also admitted failing to notify the authorities that he had an Amazon tablet and a new bank card.

Jailing him for 16 months, Judge Emma Peters said sexual harm prevention orders had an important use in ensuring that people convicted of sex offences were regulated in the way they lived their lives when they were released from prison.

The court heard that Corrick had attended a school over a period of 10 months as a volunteer supplying items to the school and providing gardening services through the Man Shed community project.

Asked by police why he didn’t tell anyone he was the subject of a sexual harm prevention order, he said he didn’t want to lose his role.

He denied visiting the school to get access to children but admitted being sexually attracted to children.

He told police: “I can’t help what’s in my head.”

Claire Matthews, for Corrick, said her client had not had any unsupervised contact with children and his role had been limited to delivering gardening products and lawn strimming at the school through Man Shed.

She said Corrick had been released from prison in 2019 and had not reoffended since his release.

She said he realised he had done wrong and was remorseful.

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A National Crime Agency investigation found that Samuel Ward, 27, from Newmarket, Suffolk, approached victims on social media and offered to send large amounts of money in exchange for explicit images.

The investigation began with a report from a 17-year-old girl in Florida to U.S. law enforcement, who passed information onto the NCA.

She was contacted by two Instagram accounts in May 2020, offering a “weekly allowance” of $500 for sexual images and videos of her.

An additional message from one of the accounts said “well just to prove I have the funds”, and was accompanied by a doctored image of a bank account showing a balance of £98,606.80.

It then directed her to send increasingly explicit photos, but the user never revealed their true identity nor transferred any money to her.

NCA investigators identified Ward as the person controlling the two Instagram accounts, and discovered that he had proposed online ‘sugar daddy’ arrangements to a further 40 women and girls – 33 of whom were in the UK, with six in the U.S. and one in Ireland.

Many rejected the proposal, however officers identified 18 victims of his scam in total, including four aged under 18.

He approached multiple victims at a time on platforms including Instagram, Snapchat and Tinder from 2019 to 2021, employing the same method of offering money for explicit images and often sending them the same fake image of his account balance.

One 23-year-old victim was offered £3,000 by Ward in return for what he described as “non-explicit” images.

He mocked up an image of a transaction receipt showing £3,000 sent from his account to hers, and she began sending Ward the images and videos he requested.

However, upon checking her bank statement it displayed a payment for £3 sent by Ward. When she queried him on it, he replied, “3? I didn’t send 3, I sent £3,000”.

Another victim, aged 17 and known to Ward, reported to police that he had coerced and pressured her into sending a total of 57 indecent images between November 2019 and March 2020.

Chat logs on iMessage obtained by investigators revealed her nervousness to send the images, to which Ward responded with statements including, “I have needs” and “if u loved me u would have made some kind of effort”.

To counter her reluctance he offered £10,000 for ten photos. After sending him the images he demanded, she asked for the money and he sent her £1 to prove he would pay her, but never paid the full amount.

Following his arrest, NCA investigators reviewed Ward’s bank statements which showed he was in his overdraft for the entirety of his two-year offending period, and confirmed he had made the £3 and £1 payments.

Ward pleaded guilty to 19 charges in April 2023, including fraud, possession of an article for use in fraud, making indecent images of children and malicious communication.

He appeared at Peterborough Crown Court today [13 November] and a judge sentenced him to 30 months in prison and handed him a five-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO).

Adam Priestley, NCA senior investigating officer, said: “Ward relentlessly targeted teenage girls and young women online with promises of payments he never intended on sending, nor had the means to do so.

“I would like to commend the victims who assisted our enquiries, including the 17-year-old from the U.S. who first reported Ward’s offending to the police. Her brave actions led to an international investigation that has seen Ward brought to justice, and identified many more victims of his abuse.

“At the NCA we are committed to catching offenders who pose a threat to vulnerable people in the UK, and this investigation shows how we work with partners around the world to tackle serious online criminality.

“We urge anyone who has been pressured or deceived into sending sexual images online to report it to the police. You are not alone, and there is always help available.”

The NCA’s CEOP Education programme supports parents, carers, children and professionals to ensure young people have safe and positive experiences online.

Anyone being pressured or threatened into sending sexual images or videos online should remove themselves immediately from the conversation, not respond further to any contact, and report the matter to police or a trusted adult.

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A ‘pupil’ of one of the most dangerous internet sexual predators ever investigated by the National Crime Agency (NCA) has admitted a raft of blackmail and online sex offences.

Anthony ‘Danny’ Burns, originally from Lowestoft, worked with notorious online child sex offender Adbul Elahi, who was jailed for 32 years in December 2021 after targeting 2,000 people globally to commit sadistic online abuse.

Between May 2018 and March 2021, Burns, 39, used ‘sugar daddy’ websites to trap dozens of unsuspecting females into performing sexual and degrading acts under the threat of blackmail.

One of his 39 victims was an eight-year-old girl in the United States who was abused by her mother following sustained coercion by Burns.

Burns, of no fixed adobe, attempted to contact approximately 600 people around the world with the intention of sexually exploiting them and work is ongoing by international partners to identify any further victims.

Elahi ‘tutored’ Burns on the psychology of blackmail, including techniques such as scripted wording to help gain the trust of victims, and provided instruction on how they would respond to threats and what to say to them.

Burns used multiple online personas to ensnare his victims, including posing as the head of a model agency searching for clients. He also pretended to be an NCA officer on one occasion.

Once Burns had gained the trust of his victims, he moved them to WhatsApp which is protected by end to end encryption. Once his messages had been read, Burns was able to delete them from his and his victims’ phones, thereby removing visible evidence.

All the victims were ordered to film themselves carrying out sexual acts in the belief they would be paid £600, but the money was never transferred to them.

When he had received enough explicit material, Burns threatened to expose the pictures to the victims’ families and friends unless they sent more increasingly depraved photographs and videos.

The severity and nature of the demands became more degrading at the point that Burns had entrapped the victims through the threat of exposure.

NCA officers arrested Burns in February 2019. His mobile phone and computers were seized and forensically examined.

NCA Operations Manager Robert Slater said: “Anthony Burns showed remorseless cruelty in controlling and coercing his victims, including very young children, into acts which have left them severely traumatised.

“The NCA is determined to identify and pursue the most harmful child sexual offenders, including those who exploit technology to hide their activities and target large numbers of victims, no matter where they are.

“Anyone being pressured or threatened into sending sexual images or videos online, should remove themselves immediately from the conversation, not respond further to any contact, and report the matter to police.

“You are not alone, you are not to blame and there is always help available.”

The FBI provided assistance to the investigation and helped locate victims in the United States.

Most of Burns’ other victims lived in England but there were also people in the Channel Islands and Australia.

Burns used a New Zealand-based cloud storage facility to retain all of the illegally gained material so that it would never be found on his phone.

However, incriminating evidence uncovered by NCA investigators from his phone highlighted the scale and propensity of his offending, and that he was blackmailing several victims simultaneously.

The NCA liaised with New Zealand authorities and evidence was recovered which proved Burns had the depraved material he demanded from his victims.

Burns was charged with 46 counts including blackmail, attempted blackmail, causing a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity, arranging the commission of a child sex offence; making and distributing indecent images of children (IIOC), possessing extreme pornography, malicious communications offences and failure to comply with notification requirements.

He admitted 39 counts and was found guilty of a further two today, following a two-day trial at Birmingham Crown Court. He is due to be sentenced at the same court on 18 January 2024.

The remaining five charges will lie on file.

All 39 of Burns’ victims on the indictment, aged between eight and 54, have been safeguarded.

Burns was previously jailed for 16 months in 2010 for meeting or communicating with a child under 16 following sexual grooming; causing / inciting a girl under 16 to engage in sexual acts, IIOC offences and possession of extreme pornography.

In December 2013, he was convicted of breaching his Sexual Offences Order, and served a further two years imprisonment.

Bethany Raine, Specialist Prosecutor for the CPS, said: “Anthony Burns had an obsessive interest in controlling women and children into performing increasingly degrading sexual acts online for his own gratification. Burns also had a perverse desire to see others engage in sexual activity with children and animals.

“Burns belittled and humiliated victims. They became trapped in a web of fear where their own images became tools of manipulation and extortion, leaving them vulnerable to his depraved demands.

“This conviction sends a clear message that the CPS is committed in bringing offenders like Burns, who sexually abuse and exploit victims, to justice, wherever that abuse takes place.”

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A former Metropolitan Police officer who abused his position to prey on women and girls has been jailed for 16 years for a series of rapes spanning eight years.

Ex-Pc Adam Provan's predatory behaviour dated back to the 1990s and went unchecked until one of his victims came forward, Wood Green Crown Court heard.

Between 2003 and 2005, he also repeatedly raped a female police officer and terrorised her so she feared for her life, the court was told.

Prosecutors said Provan was obsessed with young women, had viewed teenage pornography and collected more than 700 female contacts on his mobile phone.

Another female officer complained in 2005 that Provan sent her "nuisance" messages but nothing was done and the issue was dealt with "informally", the court was told.

He also allegedly contacted a 16-year-old girl after she gave her details as a witness in 2003.

Two other women made allegations but a rape case was not proceeded with and a sexual assault case ended in acquittal.

In 2016, Lauren Taylor came forward to say Provan raped her on a blind date when she was 16 in 2010.

Ms Taylor, now 29, had agreed to go to the cinema with Provan after he lied about his age, saying he was 22, and said he was a police officer.

Instead, Provan, then 31, took her to woods, where he had sex with her even though she repeatedly told him no.

Speaking of her ordeal in an interview with the PA news agency after waiving her right to anonymity, she said: "Basically he raped me. I remember holding on to the tree. I was kind of hugging the tree like emotional support, pretended I was anywhere else in the world but back there. I remember it can't have been long, but it felt like a long time."

Afterwards, he acted as if nothing had happened and took Ms Taylor to a McDonald's for a milkshake before forcing her to engage in a sex act in a children's playground.

Ms Taylor said: "I remember in the far distance there was a crowd of people. I was just praying that maybe someone would see me, someone would see what was going on."

Provan even discussed what films he might claim they went to see before taking her home.

Sentencing him, Judge Noel Lucas KC said the particularly “troubling” aspect was that he was a police officer and “someone members of the public have an entitlement to feel was someone of the highest trustworthiness”.

He told Provan: “By your actions, you brought disgrace on the police force,” adding he had displayed a “cold-blooded entitlement to sex” then immediately behaved as if everything was “completely normal”.

The judge said he was troubled by the way the Met handled the female police officer’s initial complaints against Provan’s behaviour in 2005.

He said those who dealt with them at the Met “were more concerned with looking after one of their own than taking her seriously” and had an investigation been taken forward, the 16-year-old victim may have been spared.

The judge paid tribute to both victims, saying they had been “extremely courageous” in reading out their impact statements in court.

All the offences were committed while Provan was a serving officer in the Met's East Area Command Unit.

Police said they were working to identify if there may be further victims and “would encourage anyone with information to come forward.”

A spokesperson said: “We are also reviewing Provan’s full history in the Met, and before he joined, to identify any concerns and whether we could have taken action against him sooner.”

His first trial for double rape ended in a hung jury but he was convicted in 2018 and jailed for nine years. The next year, he was dismissed from the Metropolitan Police.

He served three years and three months in prison - only to be released on bail after the Court of Appeal ordered a retrial.

At the fresh trial, Ms Taylor gave evidence for a third time and six more charges of rape, relating to Provan's earlier attacks on the female officer, were added.

In June, Provan, now 44 and from Newmarket in Suffolk, was found guilty of a total of eight rapes against the two women.

In a victim impact statement, Ms Taylor said: "No amount of justice will make me forget the date from hell.

"Even though I tried my best to block it out I will never forget how scared I was when the assault took place and 13 years later reliving my worst nightmare."

She told of being "triggered" by discussion around the murder of Sarah Everard by a Met police officer, saying she already knew about "bad cops".

The second victim, who has not waived her lifelong right to anonymity, told the court Provan regarded himself as "untouchable" and bragged about being a "trained killer".

She told the court she feared he would kill her and accused the Met of failing to protect her and deal with him after she complained about stalking and harassment behaviour in 2005.

The court was told Provan was given words of warning but the victim did not wish to make a statement at the time and came forward to report the rapes in 2019.

Judge Lucas told her the treatment she received from the Met was "abysmal", adding: "I hope it never happens again. More than abysmal, it's shocking."

Provan was sentenced at Wood Green Crown Court on Tuesday to 16 years in prison with a further eight years on extended licence.

In her interview, Ms Taylor told PA: "I don't feel like I've done anything amazing. I just feel like I've done what I needed to do for me."

On Provan, she said: "I'm angry at what he's done to me. I'm angry about who he was. He was a police officer, and we go to them to be protected, and I wasn't protected.

"And I'm angry for the lack of remorse that he's shown throughout this whole process.

"I've been to court three times. He's still fully denied what he's done and even after being in prison for a certain amount of years, he's not had time to reflect and he's not changed, he's still who he is.

"The reason why I did the last retrial was because I wanted to make sure that he didn't go out and harm anyone else."

On her advice to others, she said: "Never be ashamed of what happened to you, because what happened to you is not your fault.

"When you're ready, talk to someone. It doesn't have to be a police officer, it can be a family member, it can be a friend, it can be a helpline."

Ms Taylor added: "You can't do anything until you're ready to face it. You might never be ready to face it. That's OK too.

"For me, I couldn't rest until I'd come forward and spoken about it."

Assistant Commissioner Louisa Rolfe, of the Metropolitan Police, said: “I am sure the public will be as shocked and revolted at Provan’s offences as we are here in the Met. He abused his position as a police officer to win the trust of both these women. His actions are utterly deplorable.

“Both women have been enormously strong and courageous in giving evidence to the court – incredibly three times for one of the women - and ensuring Provan is now behind bars. I am so sorry for the pain and suffering he has caused them.

“The court heard that Provan had many women’s names on his phone - detectives are working through this list to understand how they may be linked to Provan and whether there are more offences we are unaware of. We are keen to hear from anyone who can help with any information, no matter how small. Provan is a dangerous offender and we are pursuing all lines of enquiry.

“We are examining Provan’s criminal and conduct history in the Met so we can fully understand whether we could have acted sooner to bring him before the courts, or have stopped him joining the police.

"This work is ongoing but we can already see there were key moments where we let women down and did not do all we could to support them. We have told the Independent Office for Police Conduct we are carrying out a review and advised them that we will make appropriate referrals.

“We heard in evidence that when one victim, a serving Met officer, reported allegations against Provan in 2005 these were not taken seriously. She therefore did not have the confidence to report she had been raped by him.

“We are sincerely sorry this was her experience and that she was let down by a system she trusted and was serving.

“The Met is transforming and I hope I can say with confidence her concerns would not be dismissed today. While we do not underestimate the impact of cases like this on the trust and confidence of women and girls that we are working so hard to earn, we would encourage anyone in a similar situation to report allegations. In the last year we have grown our professional standards teams to ensure we are robust in investigating matters at the earliest opportunity to rid the Met of those who very clearly should not be a part of policing.”

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A man who committed a "terrible" early hours sexual assault on a young woman in a Suffolk town has been jailed. Constantin Tulba, aged 34, of Edgecomb Road, Stowmarket, carried out the attack at approximately 1.15am on Sunday, June 4 earlier this year.

The victim, a woman aged in her early 20s, had been walking away from Stowmarket town centre towards Combs Ford. She was on Ipswich Road, when she became aware of a man walking close behind her.

The man grabbed hold of her, before sexually assaulting her. The woman resisted and escaped to an approaching car and the suspect ran away.

The male who was driving the car that disturbed Tulba then drove the victim to a nearby police vehicle that was on patrol. Officers conducted enquiries and the following day Tulba was arrested and subsequently charged. Tulba appeared before Ipswich Crown Court on Monday (August 21), where he was sentenced to 30 months’ imprisonment.

He had previously pleaded guilty to a charge of sexual assault at a previous hearing on 5 July. The incident took place at approximately 1.15am on Sunday, June 4.

The court heard how police enquiries at Tulba’s property found the clothing which matched the description that he was wearing on the evening of the assault, and forensics linked him to the assault. Detective Sergeant Naomi Harger said: "This would have been an extremely concerning and frightening assault for the victim and I praise her for the courage and strength she has shown.

"I am extremely pleased to see Tulba behind bars after being handed this sentence, and hope this reassures the local community. However, it will be of little comfort I am sure for the victim who showed immense courage in speaking to police about the terrible ordeal she experienced. No prison term will ever make up for the trauma she suffered.

"I’d also like to thank the members of public who came forward as witnesses and who provided CCTV or dash cam footage for the case. This evidence is always really valuable in securing convictions.

"Anyone who is a victim of any sexual offence can be reassured that they can and should come forward and contact us. All complaints are taken seriously and we continue to work with partner agencies to provide victims with appropriate support whilst conducting a robust and thorough investigation."

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A US airman has been jailed for raping a 12-year-old autistic girl he met on Snapchat while stationed in the UK.

Despite knowing the victim's age, Dennis Rocha, 18, turned their conversation sexual and arranged to pick her up the following day. He drove 140 miles from his base at RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk to meet the victim in Wiltshire in April this year.

Rocha of Beck Row, Mildenhall, Suffolk, collected the girl from her home address and took her to a secluded spot, where the pair had intercourse in his car.

At the time, the girl told police she regretted it and felt angry with herself. Her mother said her daughter was diagnosed with autism when she was just four years old - and to this day struggles to cope.

She said her daughter has difficulties with communication, won't speak to strangers, can't make eye contact, doesn't socialise with friends and can't deal with mainstream education.

The girl told police she was sorry this had affected others including her mother, who she said wanted her to be older and in love when she lost her virginity.

Rocha was jailed for six years and eight months - and imposed a one-year licence extension period, for two counts of rape of a child aged under 13.

Chris Smyth, prosecuting, said that during the encounter, which lasted approximately one hour, the pair had intercourse numerous times. On one of the occasions, the condom slipped off.

Sentencing Judge James Townsend said: 'You had ample opportunity to think twice about what you were doing but you persisted.

'You knew that she was far younger than you and obviously vulnerable.

The defendant was handed an indefinite sexual harm prevention order and must sign the sex offenders' register on release. He was also placed on the DBS barred list.

Investigating officer DC Amanda Lord, of the Child Abuse Investigation Team, said: 'Rocha instigated this encounter with the victim despite knowing she was underage.

'He knew what he was doing was illegal and had ample opportunity to cease contact with the victim, but continued and took advantage of her for his own gain.

Description

A man has been jailed for over three years for a string of offences relating to possession of indecent photos and other related crimes.

30 year old Richard Smith of the High Street in Lowestoft was jailed at Ipswich Crown Court on Friday 24 March after he pleaded guilty to possession of indecent photographs, namely 25 category A images and/or movies of children, 68 category B images and/or movies, of children and 64 category C images and/or movies, of children. He also pleaded guilty to making indecent photographs and possession of an extreme pornographic image and breach of SHPO (Sexual Harm Prevention Order)

Smith, was a known registered sex offender who was serving a suspended sentence following previous convictions for making indecent images of children. Officers became aware of a referral in October 2022 indicating his use of a Snapchat account with an indecent video of a child uploaded to the internet. Following further enquires made by officers, police attended his home address on 29 November 2022 and executed a warrant. He was arrested and subsequently charged. He also pleaded guilty to breach of SHPO (Secxual Harm Prevention Order)

For all of the offences he received a total custodial sentence of 42 months.

PC Nicola Flack from the Internet Child Abuse Investigation Team said: This was clear and blatant disregard by Smith with regards to his Sexual Harm Prevention Order. This order was put in place by the judicial system to protect the public from predators like Smith. We are very satisfied with this sentence which I hope goes some way to reassure the public of the police stance when it comes to subjects of such orders.

Internet crimes such as these are far from victimless and every image depicts the very real abuse a young child has suffered. We will do everything within our power to protect victims who are subjected to these potentially life changing acts of indecency purely for the gratification of others.

• Category A Images involving penetrative sexual activity, sexual activity with an animal or sadism.
• Category B Images involving non-penetrative sexual activity.
• Category C Indecent images not falling in categories A or B.

Description

A rape victim has been praised by police for their "strength and courage" after her attacker was jailed for nine years.

James MacKenzie, 32, has been locked up after he raped a woman and took naked pictures of her after she had been on a night out in Ipswich.

Mackenzie, of Kelsale, was found guilty of rape in the early hours of December 2 2018, Ipswich Crown Court heard.

The court was also told there was argument during which MacKenzie verbally abused the victim and struck her.

Suffolk police has now praised the victim, who cannot be named, for speaking out and helping put Mackenzie behind bars.

Investigating officer DC Kerry Bradley, of Suffolk police, said: "I’d like to pay tribute to the complainant’s strength and courage over a four-year period – she remained engaged during the whole investigative and judicial process.

"Whilst this was not easy, her evidence undoubtedly helped secure this conviction."

“It is important to point out that the victim was supported the whole time by an Independent Sexual Violence Advisor (ISVA) to ensure justice was done despite the passage of time.”

James Mackenzie was jailed at Ipswich Crown Court. Picture: Suffolk police (Image: Suffolk police)

Sentencing Mackenzie, Judge Emma Peters said that in addition to raping the victim he had punched her, thrown her off the bed and threatened to kill her.

Giving evidence, Mackenzie claimed the woman had touched him sexually and denied that she had said “no” and “stop it” when he had oral sex with her.

He accepted taking naked pictures of her but denied that she’d been trying to go to sleep at the time.

Mackenzie had denied orally raping the woman but was found guilty by a jury by a 10-2 majority verdict after a trial at Ipswich Crown Court last month.

As well as being jailed, Mackenzie was banned from contacting the victim indefinitely and ordered to sign the sex offenders' register for life.