Latest Offenders

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A prison officer who demanded sexual favours from female inmates in return for privileges has been jailed for six years and nine months.

David Whitfield took advantage of 12 women over a five year period at HMP Low Newton, in Durham, BBC reports.

The jail is the North East's only all women prison.

Following a three-week trial at Teesside Crown Court, the 36-year-old, of Colman Avenue in South Shields, was found guilty of misconduct in a public office.

Whitfield was cleared of a charge of sexual assault on a prisoner.

Prosecutor Anne Richardson said Whitfield would enter one prisoner's cell while she was naked and brush up against her, the BBC reports.

The jury was also told the pair regularly engaged in sexual acts - although it did not progress to intercourse - and in return the prisoner would be given advanced warning of cell searches and confiscated items would be given back to her.

The trial heard Whitfield, who no longer works for the prison service, would also watch inmates through their cell hatch and indicate he wanted them to undress.

Many of the inmates were described as vulnerable having previously suffered abuse.

Recorder David Gordon sentenced him to six years and nine months in jail.

A Prison Service spokesperson said: “The vast majority of our staff carry out their duties to the highest standard and we will not hesitate to punish any individual that breaks the rules.”

Description

John Humphreys, 59, was found guilty by a jury earlier this week and has today been jailed to 21 years imprisonment for historic sexual offences against two boys who were aged between 12 and 15.

Humphreys, the former Mayor of Exmouth from 2010 and 2012, sexually assaulted one boy aged 12 to 13 between 1990 and 1991, and a separate victim in the late 1990s who was aged 14 to 15. Both victims reported the incidents separately almost a decade apart.

Humphreys first met the younger victim at a public toilet in Exmouth, before abusing him at addresses in the town and in a shelter near Woodbury Common. The second victim was abused whilst he was on work experience at Humphreys home address.

Jill Macnamara of CPS said: This case demonstrates we do not hesitate to prosecute perpetrators of sexual abuse where there is sufficient evidence regardless of how long ago the crimes were committed.

It takes courage to come forward as an adult to report what happened to you as child especially where the offender has held a position of power within the local community.

The victims have shown a great deal of strength and bravery to step forward to report the incident and support the prosecution and I would like to thank them for their resilience.

Police Sergeant Angela Galasso of Devon and Cornwall Police said: This has been a long and protracted investigation involving historic sexual offences that occurred more 25 years ago during the early and late 1990s.

The sentencing today shows that nobody is above the law, regardless of their standing in the community.

I can only thank the complainants in this case for their tenacity, patience and the trust that they have continued to place in myself and colleagues investigating these matters.

Both victims have voiced separately that they feared they would never be believed or that their complaints would be taken seriously.

I sincerely hope that this guilty verdict will now provide this validation and allow them to feel that they can move on with their lives.

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A MAN from Ellesmere Port found with hundreds of indecent images of children has been jailed for 14 months. Jamie Carter, 22, of Shetland Drive, appeared at Chester Crown Court on Wednesday, August 18 for sentencing, having previously pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity to all charges. Police found Carter had stored 357 indecent images of children between September 19, 2019 and December 5, 2020. Of those, 103 were assessed at 'Category A', the most serious type of indecent image, with 84 assessed at Category B and 170 assessed as Category C. Carter also pleaded guilty to possessing 11 prohibited images of children, and possessing 10 images of extreme pornography involving animals. As a result of the offences, Judge Simon Berkson sentenced the defendant to 14 months in prison. Carter was also made the subject of a 10-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order. As part of that order, Carter is prevented from working with children or vulnerable adults, and is prohibited from using any internet-enabled device unless he has notified police beforehand, does not make any attempt to disguise or delete his internet history, and makes it available for inspection by a police officer. Carter must also sign the sex offenders register. He must also pay a 149 surcharge. An iPhone 11 which was used by Carter to obtain the indecent images was to be forfeited and destroyed.

Description

Brett Foster was handed a suspended jail sentence and told to complete unpaid work for his crimes.

Foster, of Shaw Road, Monkmoor, Shrewsbury, was sentenced at Shrewsbury Crown Court for three counts of sexual activity with a child.

The 46-year-old was given six months imprisonment, suspended for 24 months.

He was also ordered to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work and pay 2,800 in prosecution costs.

Description

A 'dangerous' paedophile claimed his images of children being raped were collected by one of his twisted alter egos.

Matthew Prescott told a psychiatrist his latest stash of sickening pictures and video was not his responsibility, but that of 'Alex'.

Alex is one of five personalities the 27-year-old said took over him, claiming: "Alex was just there for himself. I've tried to get rid of him so many times."

Prescott was today jailed after Liverpool Crown Court heard he not only downloaded almost 2,000 videos and pictures, but also shared some of them.

Chris Taylor, prosecuting, said Merseyside Police raided Prescott's St Helens home in June of last year, seizing laptops and mobile phones.

A total of 1,829 indecent videos and images were recovered.

The haul consisted of 240 Category A files - the most serious category showing child rape. Among them was one image involving a newborn baby.

There were 259 Category B images, of boys as young as five to seven, and 1,330 Category C files, of boys as young as three to five.

On a Samsung mobile phone, police discovered the social media app Whisper, which Prescott had used to share around two dozen Category C images.

While under investigation for those offences, officers raided his Cotham Street home again on April 15.

A laptop containing 26 Category C images was seized.

After two no comment interviews he later admitted four counts of downloading, two counts of possessing and one count of distributing indecent images of children.

The offences follow a conviction for three counts of downloading and one count of possessing indecent images of children in 2016.

Then aged 21, he was handed a three-year community order and told to comply with a five-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

That collection amounted to more than 4,000 images.

At a previous hearing the court was told the defendant claimed his latest crimes were the work of one of his multiple personalities.

That session heard that forensic psychiatrist Dr Lucy Bacon had diagnosed Prescott with emotionally unstable personality disorder (EUPD).

Michael Hagerty, defending, accepted this was not a defence to the charges he had admitted.

He said of his client: "There were significant problems he had as a child, particularly with his father, though that relationship is now good, and there were confusing issues with regard to his relationship with his mother."

Mr Hagerty said Prescott set out claims about having "multiple personalities", but Dr Bacon said this "disassociation" was a common symptom of EUPD.

He said: "Mr Prescott does not look for sympathy in relation to his actions but now he has a diagnosis, rather hopes he will be able to obtain help for his condition, either in a custodial setting, or once he's released."

Sentencing Prescott today the judge, Recorder Ian Unsworth, QC, branded the defendant a dangerous and prolific paedophile.

Mr Unsworth said: "Each and every one of the hundreds if not thousands of children that you have looked at over the years is a victim.

"Each and every one of them is being exploited by other paedophiles, by those who are carrying out their vile abuse upon them, those who are filming them and those who are, like you, viewing them."

Prescott, who appeared via a video link from HMP Altcourse, was sentenced to 30 months in jail and given a lifelong Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

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A MARRIED British Army instructor who raped a teenage recruit at a Hampshire base has been jailed for eight and a half years.

Corporal Thomas Biggs 'pressurised' the 18-year-old trainee into performing oral sex on him after getting her out of bed at 3am when he was drunk, a court martial heard.

The instructor's victim said she felt she had 'no other option' after the 30-year-old kept saying to her 'you'll lose your job' unless she complied.

And the attack was only interrupted when Cpl Biggs took a call from his wife which distracted him, the hearing was told.

His 'degrading' behaviour may put off potential recruits joining the Army, he was told.

Sentencing Cpl Biggs, Judge Advocate Jane England said: "You owe all of the recruits a duty of care but instead you abused your position and helped yourself to what you wanted.

"(Your actions) may also deter those with the qualities armies are seeking from joining the armed forced thinking they may be subject to similar degrading behaviour by one of the instructors."

Bulford Military Court, Wilts, heard that the rape took place at the Army Training Regiment in Winchester.

Wing Commander Michael Saunders, prosecuting, said: "[Cpl Biggs] had got [the recruit] who was 18 years of age out of bed in the early hours when he was drunk and ended up leading her to an isolated location and pressurised her in to performing oral sex.

"He told her she would lose her job. He was a Corporal instructor, she was a young recruit, he was drunk, she submitted to him but she did not consent."

The court heard that Cpl Biggs went to the recruit's room in the early hours and woke her up by calling her name.

A video of the victim's interview with military police was shown in court.

She told officers she could smell alcohol on the breath of Cpl Biggs after he woke her up and she followed him into the corridor.

She said: "I don't know what was going on, I thought I was receiving some bad news.

"He was really close to me... he just kept looking around and asking 'do you know why you are here?'.

"He was saying 'I saw you in your grey tight pyjamas, you're trying to impress all the Corporals, trying to impress me'.

She explained that a girl from her room came out and went to the toilet, prompting Cpl Biggs to open a fire door and take the recruit through the door.

She said: "I said 'this is stupid', I kept repeating you will lose your job, you will lose your job but he kept saying 'no you'll lose yours'."

The victim told police she complied because he told her she could lose her job.

She said: "That's the reason why I did it because at that point I was scared he would use that against me.

"If he didn't threaten me with the fact I could lose my job... that really got to me I just thought I'm not risking anything where I am now.

"He's a Corporal, he has power against me, I'm just a recruit, I have nothing.

"It would never have got to this point if he wasn't saying the things he was saying, bringing work in to it.

"It was like, this is what's going to happen to you if you don't just get on with it."

Wg Cdr Saunders told the court martial that Cpl Biggs received a call from his wife which distracted him and the recruit managed to get away and returned to her room crying.

In a statement read to the court on the impact the rape had, the victim said: "I constantly think about what I could have done differently to have stopped Corporal Biggs from raping me but I know that I was so confused at the time.

"I know that I did the right thing by reporting this because Corporal Biggs' actions and behaviour cannot be tolerated."

Cpl Biggs, of the 3 Armoured Close Support Battalion of the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, was found guilty of one charge of rape.

He was dismissed from the army and sentenced to 8 and a half years in prison

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A SOUTHAMPTON man sent intimate photos of an ex-partner to her 84-year-old godmother as part of a revenge porn attack, a court heard.

Mick Kevin Domican also messaged the intimate photos to six other people, including the woman's mother and sister.

Prosecution barrister, Alex Lloyd told how the elderly woman was disgusted that someone would share such images.

Domican, 36, used his phone and Facebook messenger to send three photos which had been taken during the relationship.

Mr Lloyd described the images as "quite explicit".

He said the messages from Domican were "only really brought to an end when police arrested him".

Mr Lloyd read out a victim personal statement in which the woman said she could not understand Domican's behaviour, adding that she was worried he would send further images.

She said: "I do not want any further issues from him."

Domican, of Landguard Road, was charged with nine counts of disclosing private sexual photographs and films with intent to cause distress.

He was also charged with a single count of sending by public communication network an offensive/indecent/obscene/menacing message/matter.

He was also accused of breaching a suspended sentence.

Domican pleaded guilty to the offences which happened over five days in October last year.

Defending, Oliver Foy said that his client "struggles with alcoholism and his recollection of what happened is not great".

He argued that the images were not put on a public forum and there was no significant planning.

Mr Foy added: "The cause of his offending is obvious, even to himself. He offends when he drinks."

At sentencing, Judge Peter Henry said how Domican has 29 previous convictions involving 72 offences.

These include battery, harassment and breaching community orders.

Judge Henry criticised his actions saying he had intended to cause maximum distress and to humiliate his victim.

He jailed Domican for ten months and made him the subject of a five year restraining order.

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A man has been jailed for ten years for a string of non-recent sex offences against a child. Steven Roy Reddin, aged 58 years, of Arundel Close in Ryde, abused the child between 1991 and 1994, beginning when the victim was just 9 years-old. The girl, now an adult, bravely reported this to police in 2019 and a lengthy investigation followed. As a result, Reddin was charged with the following offences:

• 2 counts of rape a girl under 16
• Gross indecency with a child
• Incite a girl under 14 to commit an act of gross indecency
• 2 counts of indecent assault on a girl

Appearing at Isle of Wight Crown Court on Monday 24 May, he admitted all six offences. Reddin appeared at the same court today (Friday 20 August) where he was handed ten years in prison, a life time restraining order and a 15 year Sexual Harm Prevention Order. DC Gillian Harvey, who led the investigation, said: "The woman in this case has shown incredible courage in coming forward to report this terrible abuse, which she had kept a secret for many years. "The damage that this type of offending causes, and has caused, is indescribable, but this woman's bravery has ensured that Reddin has been brought to justice. "Reddin was fully aware that his actions amounted to abuse of the most horrific kind, yet continued his behaviour without sparing a thought for the impact this would have." We encourage anyone who has been a victim of child sexual abuse to contact police on 101 where you can speak to someone in confidence.

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An Ipswich man who raped a drunk woman at an 18th birthday party at a house in the town has been jailed for seven and a half years.

Sentencing 23-year-old Keiffer Sewell, Judge Emma Peters described the offence as “ opportunistic” and said he had taken advantage of the woman while she was particularly vulnerable, because she was drunk.

“You have been convicted on the basis of quite compelling evidence,” said the judge.

She said that after removing the woman’s clothes, Sewell had stifled her cries for help by putting her duvet over her mouth before raping her.

She said that after his DNA was found on internal swabs taken from the woman, he had desperately tried to come up with ways it could have got there.

Sewell, of Hadleigh Road, Ipswich, denied raping the woman, who is in her 20s, four years ago in 2017, when he was 19.

He was found guilty by a jury by an 11-1 majority verdict after a week-long trial at Ipswich Crown Court.

He will have to serve at least two-thirds of the sentence and will have to sign the sex offenders’ register for life.

The court was told that during the party, the woman was sick after having too much to drink and went upstairs to her bedroom.

Sewell went upstairs with the woman, undressed her and raped her.

The police were called after the woman complained that she had been raped.

Sewell’s full DNA profile was found on internal swabs taken from her.

Giving evidence, Sewell told the court the girl had kissed and hugged him during the party.

He said the woman’s mother had asked him to take her to her bedroom after she was sick, because of the amount she had to drink.

He said he had rubbed the woman’s back and accompanied her to the toilet when she was sick. He denied removing her clothes and raping her.

Juliet Donovan, for Sewell, who has no previous convictions, said he had a young son and a loving partner and family.

She said Sewell maintained his position that he was not guilty.

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A former winner of the BBC Young Composer of the Year has been convicted of taking images of women from social media and uploading them to pornographic websites.

Alex Woolf, 26, downloaded clothed images of 15 women and added them to Reddit, asking people to paste their faces onto porn actresses' bodies.

He then posted these pictures on adult sites.

Woolf has been given a 20-week prison sentence, suspended for two years.

At Thames Magistrates' Court on Monday, Woolf, of Cox's End in Over, Cambridgeshire, admitted 15 charges of sending messages that were grossly offensive or of an indecent, obscene or menacing nature over a public electronic communications network.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said none of the original images were pornographic or indecent and all of the women were acquaintances of Woolf.

Woolf won the prestigious BBC Young Composer of the Year title in 2012.

One of his victims learned of the posts in January when an anonymous email warned her that her picture was on Reddit, the CPS said.

She received another email in March stating her picture was on a pornographic website and that Woolf was behind it.

The victim found other pictures and recognised one of the other women, who helped her track down and notify the others.

'Morally repugnant'

Woolf was ordered to undertake a 40-day rehabilitation programme, to do 40 sessions with a sex offender programme and 180 hours of unpaid work.

He must pay each of his victims £100 in compensation, as well as £85 in court costs and a £128 victim surcharge.

Woolf was ordered to delete all of the victims' images from his devices and was given an indefinite restraining order prohibiting contact with the women.

Varinder Hayre, district crown prosecutor at the CPS, said: "Woolf's behaviour is severely depraved and reprehensible... and has had a drastic impact on his victims.

"We will always look to prosecute the sexual exploitation of victims and this prosecution is a clear message that this morally repugnant action will not be tolerated."

Description

A hidden camera pervert who filmed people on the toilet at Creamfields was caught after a woman spotted his phone peeping over her cubicle door in a pub.

Andrew Smith also filmed teenage girls getting changed at a theatre as well as up schoolgirls' skirts.

However the 39-year-old of Pickerings Close, Runcorn, was caught after a woman using a pub toilet spotted his hand holding a phone above her and she ran out and kicked in his cubicle door to confront him.

Smith fled but was stopped by door staff and then arrested.

Police uncovered a shocking collection of secretly-filmed videos of adults and young girls stored on Smiths digital devices.

Smith was sentenced at Chester Crown Court on Tuesday, having pleaded guilty to one count of voyeurism in relation to his adult victims, and one count each to possessing and making Category C indecent images of children - the latter two counts relating to the same eight covertly-captured clips of girls backstage at Haltons flagship culture venue The Brindley Theatre and upskirt videos of schoolgirls.

Jayne Morris, prosecuting, told how Smith provided a basis of plea in which he admitted obtaining sexual gratification from secretly filming people, mainly adult females and female children, then saving these images and viewing them.

She said Smith was arrested after two female customers in the toilets at The Bank Chambers pub, also known as Chambers, in Runcorn looked up at 4am one night in 2018 and spotted a hand holding a mobile phone over the side of the toilet cubicle, while one of them was using the toilet.

She ran out of the stall and kicked open the neighbouring cubicle door, where she caught Smith - who was stood on the toilet seat with his mobile telephone in his hand.

Smith fled but door staff stopped him and police were called and arrested him.

A search at the scene and his home address resulted in devices including a mini-camera in his wallet which he had with him, a Toshiba camera, a laptop, and a Samsung phone being examined.

This revealed 20 video clips of adults being filmed without their knowledge: 16 of which featured men and women using the toilets at Creamfields - where Smith was working and had set up a covert camera; three from The Bank Chambers; and one from The Brindley theatre.

Officers from Cheshire police also discovered four video clips of teenage girls getting changed backstage at Haltons flagship culture venue The Brindley Theatre, where he had worked his way up in lighting and production and managed to get a roof box on the side of the stage where he could take these images - that is in relation to the children in various states of undress", and four upskirt clips of schoolgirls.

Smith further divulged that he used a camera hidden in a duffle bag that was positioned when he was outside the school so he could film up schoolgirls' skirts.

His younger victims were aged 13 to 16 years.

All of the footage, except the final clip in The Bank Chambers when he was caught in the act, had been recorded covertly via secret cameras and without his victims knowledge.

Smith gave no comment answers during his two initial interviews with the police but made full admissions on February 26 this year

He pleaded guilty to voyeurism and one count each to possessing and making indecent images of children relating to the same eight videos at the first opportunity.

Andrew McInnes, defending, said his client had shown genuine remorse, admitted he had a problem and had sought help via his general practitioner and The Lucy Faithfull Foundation, which is a charity that works to divert men from looking at indecent images of children.

He said: The pre-sentence report notes the defendant has taken significant steps to deal with what he knows is a significant issue.

He added Smith had not offended since 2018, and had a realistic prospect of rehabilitation.

Mr McInnes urged the judge to consider a suspended sentence, arguing Smith had no previous convictions and clearly had a good work ethic, although Miss Morris noted that Smiths sex offender management officer has been caused some concern upon discovered Smith had recently been working at Wetherspoon in Warrington.

She added he no longer works there.

Judge Simon Berkson, presiding, refused Smith bail when the court adjourned for lunch until the afternoon, when he jailed Smith for two years in prison, comprising consecutive sentences of eight and 16 months, to be served immediately.

He said Smith was ashamed of what you have done and show clear remorse but that appropriate punishment can only be achieved by a period of immediate imprisonment.

During his summing-up, Judge Berkson said: Your arrest led to a search.

In your house, police discovered computer equipment and other equipment including a digital camera which was to reveal the terrible secret you had been hiding - you enjoyed taking and watching these videos.

In count one, some were from the Creamfields festival at Daresbury outside Warrington where you had set up a camera in the toilets.

As well as the invasion of privacy of those using these toilets, you were employed at Creamfields and you were in breach of trust.

Nobody knew you were filming in these toilets.

At the end of the festival you took away this equipment and would view whatever you had taken for your own pleasure.

One you have was from the changing room at The Brindley Theatre in Runcorn where you worked in a technical capacity.

You had set up a camera - again a gross breach of privacy, a gross breach of trust.

He added: You filmed teenage girls dressing and undressing at the theatre Ive referred to.

Their parents would drop them off for a (type of) competition or the like.

They assumed they would be safe at a theatre where they would no doubt be sitting in the stalls to watch their children perform.

You had taken secret video, which you took home for your own pleasure.

They werent safe, they were being filmed by you so you could watch them at a later date.

The judge also imposed a 10-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order with Smith to sign the sex offenders register for the same length of time.

A destruction order was made for any devices implicated in the case.

Smith looked to the public gallery with tears in his eyes and smiled to relatives as he was led down to the cells.

Description

A paedophile who considered himself 'untouchable' has finally been jailed more than 50 years after he began preying on young boys.

Terrence Ryan, now 77, sexually assaulted a young boy in the early 1960s and would go on to abuse three more children until the late 2000s.

The pensioner, from Warrington, came to the attention of police after one of his victims bravely came forward to Northumbria Police, sparking an investigation by the forces safeguarding unit.

Ryan, from the Woolston area of the town, was arrested and denied the allegations.

But he later pleaded guilty to 14 counts of historical child sexual abuse, including sexual touching, engaging in sexual activity with a child, inciting sexual activity with a child and oral rape.

Last Friday, Ryan, of Austral Avenue, Warrington, was jailed for 14 years and eight months at Newcastle Crown Court.

Detective Sergeant Andrea Burns said of the case: "This man thought he was untouchable and continued to abuse young boys for more than 50 years.

My heart goes out to the brave victims who have suffered in silence for so long, and I hope the conviction of Ryan gives them all a sense of solace and closure.

This also sends a really strong message that it is never too late to report sexual abuse to police.

Some of these offences were committed in the early 1960s, yet we have still been able to seek justice for the victims.

No-one deserves to suffer the way these victims have so please, if you have been a victim of abuse, speak out.

We are here to help.

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A PERVERT who described himself as a nice paedo in messages to young girls, continued attempting to contact children even after he was caught by paedophile hunters. But his second attempt ended in further arrest as the 12-year-old girl he thought he was grooming was really a decoy police officer. Bolton Crown Court heard how, on October 26, 2019 paedophile hunter Kirsti Trott, posing as 13-year-old Missi was contacted by Nathan Kennedy on via the childrens section of the website Chat-Avenue. Kennedy, aged 34, did not hide his intentions, giving himself the user name UK Predator. Rachel White, prosecuting, said: The conversation immediately became sexualised and he asked if she had ever been with an older man. Conversations continued on WhatsApp with him using sexualised language, sending photographs of his private parts, inviting her to meet in a hotel, wanting to know where she lived so he could book a train ticket and even offering to obtain the morning after pill for her. He also acknowledged what he was doing was grooming and that he could go to prison because his activities were unlawful, said Miss White. Missi introduced Kennedy to a fictitious 13-year-old cousin, called Sophie. He asked if he could fool around with all three of them, said Miss White. Kennedy also contacted Sophie via WhatsApp, discussing sex and offering to buy her clothes and shoes. Pretending to be someone called Marcus, Kennedy contacted Missi again. The conversations were mostly short-lived and mostly concentrated on checking that Missi had not told anyone about her chats with Nathan, said Miss White. He asked about Missis mother and asked whether he could drive to her address to have sex with her and her mother. On December 6, 2019, paedophile hunters from the Keep Kids Safe organisation visited Kennedy at his then home in Wythenshawe and confronted him after phoning and making arrangements for the delivery of a fictitious parcel. They filmed the encounter, live streaming it on Facebook.

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A SPIRITUAL healer who had a "sincere belief" in his abilities has been jailed for more than two years after inappropriately touching women he claimed he was helping.

Derek Thurlbeck, of The Pastures, High Wycombe, went to the homes of four separate women and touched their genitals over their clothes while carrying out his practices.

Described by a 'master manipulator', he told one woman she was 'cursed' in a bid to convince her to get healed.

A court heard how Thurlbeck, 63, sexually assaulted the four women at their Slough homes over two years between 2017 and 2019.

The High Wycombe man offered spiritual healing to these women free of charge but when he carried out his practice he touched them in ways which were "inappropriate" and "unprofessional", Her Honour Judge Real said.

He used the "rhetoric of spirituality" to justify his actions, the Judge added.

Thurlbeck "did not have an elaborate plan", Judge Real continued, but did "take advantage" of the "vulnerable" women.

Reading Crown Court heard how Thurlbeck approached one woman on the basis that she had a curse, and that "something terrible" would happen to her if she did not receive his healing.

The woman, whose identity we are not revealing, had a statement read out in court by prosecutor Walton Hornsby.

She said: "The incident has affected me emotionally. It has left me with flashbacks.

"I feel he has invaded a space in my own home.

"Since the incident I have lost trust in anyone I don't know, I have stopped going out and I want it all to end soon so I can get on with my life.

"If I see a small car like the one he used to drive I get scared he has returned.

"This went on for two whole years and I'm still living with the consequences of this.

"He is very dangerous; he is very clever and a master manipulator."

Edward Butler, defending, said: "This is not a case where the defendant was entirely motivated by a sexual appetite.

"This was somebody who had a genuine and sincere belief in his ability and his calling to try to help people.

"It is something he has lived with his entire life. There were momentary lapses during his dealings in which he succumbed to temptation.

"For the most part, the defendant was sincerely motivated towards these defendants.

"All of this can not be explained away by some great charade."

Mr Butler said since his arrest in March 2019, the defendant had undertaken "two-and-a-half years of abstinence" as he had not provided healings to anyone else.

Sentencing, Judge Real told Thurlbeck: "They [the women] would not have agreed to your sessions if they knew there was a sexual motivation behind it.

"All of this gives me cause for concern for your future risk.

"You don't seem to have very much insight into the problematic nature of what you did."

Judge Real sentenced Thurlbeck to two years and six months in prison after he was convicted of five counts of sexual assault by a jury following a week-long trial earlier this year.

He will serve half of this before being released on licence.

The 63-year-old was also handed an indefinite sexual harm prevention order.

Thurlbeck was sentenced at Reading Crown Court on Monday, August 16.

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A SCOTS Scoutmaster who had a secret 10-month sexual relationship with a schoolgirl has avoided a jail sentence.

Paedophile Lewis Ala Findlay, who led a troop in the Scouts, was 23 years old at the time and his victim was just 15.

Falkirk Sheriff Court heard that the girl, who had known Findlay since she was 12, had initially thought his interest in her was "one of support".

But in November, 2018, at his home in Bo'ness, West Lothian, while his girlfriend was abroad and his mother was also away leaving them alone in the house together, the Scout leader made advances as they sat on his bed watching a film - telling her "just let it happen".

Prosecutor Alex Kirk said the girl was hesitant and uncomfortable, but agreed to sex "as she didn't want it to be awkward".

The following month he had full sex with her again, this time in his car parked in a layby, and the situation developed to the point where the girl thought they were "seeing each other".

The court heard they had sex "a couple of times a month" in Findlay's car parked in laybys on back roads in Stirlingshire and West Lothian.

In early 2019 the girl confided in another adult about what had been going on, and he encouraged her to report the matter.

After she refused, he reported the matter himself and Findlay was afterwards suspended by the Scouting Association.

However the girl denied everything when interviewed by police and social workers.

After a break of a couple of weeks the incidents resumed, but around the end of August Findlay started buying the girl lingerie and sending her pictures of it.

The court heard that on one occasion she dressed up in lingerie, which she had not wanted to do but when she said "no" Findlay asked her repeatedly and she eventually agreed.

Mrs Kirk said: "This incident made her realise how much older the accused was."

She ended the relationship and blocked Findlay on Snapchat, but he continued to contact her using texts and Facebook Messenger, which "alarmed" her.

One "lengthy" message concluded with "a list of 50 things he stated he loved about her".

Mrs Kirk said that by then the girl was "stressed and didn't know what to do".

In November 2019, scout leaders were "made aware" of the messaging and concluded that a sexual relationship was going on.

Police were again called in, and in February last year Findlay was charged.

Now 24, Amazon worker Findlay, of Bo'ness, pleaded guilty to stalking the girl and having unlawful sexual intercourse.

Advocate Niall McCluskey, defending, said Findlay had "craved" the girl.

He said: "He describes how he fell for the complainer, and he accepts he should not have acted on his attraction to her."

"He fully acknowledges that as the adult he ought to have know better, and regrets that he didn't act appropriately when he realised he was developing cravings for her."

He said Findlay was due to become a father in October, following "a longstanding relationship with his partner".

He produced a reference from a youth leader, stating that since 2015 Findlay "had begun volunteering on major national projects" and was "steadfast and true".

Mr McCluskey said: "I understand he was involved in a project called Heart and Soul, which involved the National Youth Assembly, linked to the Church of Scotland."

Sheriff Simon Collins QC sentenced Findlay to 300 hours of unpaid work, placed him under social work supervision and on the sex offenders' register for three years, ordered him to take part in the Scottish Government's "Moving Forward, Making Changes" programme for sex offenders if directed, and banned him from having any unsupervised contact with children under 16.

He said the offences had been "an abuse" of Findlay's "position of relative seniority" in the Scout Association.

Sheriff Collins said: "Although unlawful because of your respective ages it is not suggested the complainer did not consent to the sexual activity. I have seriously considered whether the public interest requires that you be given a prison sentence."

"With some hesitation, I am satisfied that it does not, and that there is a proper community-based alternative."

Findlay, who had arrived at court with a bag packed for jail, refused to comment to a reporter as he walked free from the building.

A spokesman for the Scouts said: "The Scout Association is aware of recent court proceedings involving Lewis Findlay

"The Scout Safeguarding Team worked in conjunction with statutory agencies to share relevant information and Findlay was suspended from his role with the Movement in December 2019 when concerns about his behaviour came to light.

"We can confirm that he will never volunteer with us again.

"The safety of all our members is our number one priority. It is at the heart of our decision-making.

"We carry out stringent vetting of all adults who work with young people and work together with statutory agencies and other parties to share relevant information to ensure the safeguarding of young people in Scouting.

"We require everyone at Scouts to work to a strict code outlined in the 'Young People First' Code of Practice."