Latest Offenders

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A Bedfordshire paedophile who sexually assaulted a young girl also downloaded thousands of disturbing child sex abuse images of children as young as eight years old.

Justin Sandilands, of Shefford, Bedfordshire, has been jailed for four years for sexual assault and downloading child sex abuse images onto his computer and other devices.

Police found the material after visiting Sandilands' home in September 2019.

Officers had gone to the address in Church Street, Shefford, after receiving information that he had been viewing the material.

Luton Crown Court heard that when the items seized were examined it was found Sandilands had 36 Category A images of young people - some as young as eight - being abused.

This is the level given to the very worst depraved material found online.

He also had 123 Category B images - the next most serious category - and thousands of Category C images.

Officers could see the search terms Sandilands had been using to seek out the sickening material on the internet, some of which included moving images of child sex abuse.

In court on Friday, August 13, he appeared for sentence having earlier pleaded guilty to sexual assault on a child, three offences of making indecent images of a child and one offence of possessing a prohibited image.

Judge Gary Lucy jailed him for a total of four years and ordered the forfeiture and destruction of the devices on which the material had been found.

Sandilands was also told he would be made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order which will, once he is released, monitor his internet use.

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A man has been sentenced for sexually assaulting a "vulnerable young" woman in Slough.

Kevin Kivindyo, 42, of St Pauls Avenue, Slough, was sentenced at Reading Crown Court on August 16 to eight years imprisonment.

Kivindyo was found guilty by a unanimous jury verdict of three counts of sexual assault following a trial at Reading Crown Court, which concluded on July 23 2021.

Description

A paedophile working as a landscape gardener was caught with child sex abuse images for a second time.

John Andrews was previously been spared jail for having indecent images of children.

But today the 36-year-old was jailed after he was again caught with sick images of boys aged between 12 and 17.

The judge, Recorder Ian Unsworth, QC, sentencing today at Liverpool Crown Court, said the background to the case was "of significance".

In 2016 Andrews was handed a three-year community order for possession of Category C indecent images of children.

He was also ordered to comply with a five-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order and told to complete a sex offender treatment program.

The judge said following the order, Andrews was in breach of his Sex Offenders Register requirement because "you saw fit to go on holiday to Tenerife without informing authorities".

In August last year police went to Andrews' home to ensure he was complying with court orders.

The judge said: "You provided some details about your sex life and other matters as part of the visit, in line with the conditions."

When the officer checked his mobile phone Andrews "appeared to have been looking at pornography, which contradicted what you had been saying".

The phone was sent for further analysis and officers discovered 22 child sex abuse images, 12 of which were unique and not duplicates.

The images showed boys aged between 12 and 17 and three of the images involved rape.

Two of the images were Category B and there were 17 Category C images, the court heard.

The judge said the site was accessed in June, July and August 2020.

Brian Treadwell, prosecuting, said he had searched on the site for terms such as "first time boys" and "very young friends".

Mr Treadwell said Andrews has four previous convictions for six offences including damaging property in 2014, battery in the same year, failing to comply with notification requirements in 2016 and possession of controlled drugs in the same year.

Simeon Evans, defending, said the pictures had been stored on the phone as a consequence of Andrews clicking through links on the website, and said he had not been actively looking for each image through a search engine.

Mr Evans said Andrews has his own gardening and landscaping business.

He said following his previous conviction he undertook a sex offender program which had "not had the best press" and had "led to a complete overhaul of the system".

Mr Evans said: "He is a man who has been able to stay out of trouble for quite a long time."

He said there was a "realistic prospect of rehabilitation" and said he has a medical "XXY issue" and "might suggest Mr Andrews is someone who needs a bit more help than most".

The court heard Mr Andrew's partner, who sat in the public gallery, had provided a character reference.

Mr Evans said: "I submit in this case Mr Andrews could be given one more chance to grasp the help there is."

Andrews, of Cooper Avenue, Warrington, admitted possessing 22 indecent images of children.

The judge said: "I have carefully considered this case. It does present a sentencing challenge."

Description

A former assistant beaver leader has been jailed after being found guilty of making and possessing indecent images of children.

Patrick Jackaman, 25, of Hossack road, Ipswich was sentenced at Suffolk Magistrates Court on Friday.

Jackaman had pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent photographs of a child and one count of possessing a prohibited image of a child last month at court.

He was arrested in October 2019 after four devices were found containing hundreds of prohibited images and films of children.

An iPhone, a pc specialist tower unit, and Macbook air and an iPad were all removed from his home by Suffolk police.

Of the images found, 49 were classified in the most serious 'A' category of indecency, as well as 16 of the videos.

There were also 110 category B images and 22 category B videos, 101 category C images and seven category C videos, along with 3,040 prohibited images and 147 prohibited videos of children.

Jackaman had previously volunteered within the Scout movement as an assistant beaver leader.

The movement had previously confirmed that Jackaman's role was terminated as soon as the police brought the matter to its attention.

The court heard that Jackaman had no previous convictions and had fully co-operated with police during the investigation.

Mitigating, Shelley Drew, told the court that Jackaman had been engaging with a course run by the Lucy Faithfull Foundation, a charity which works to tackle child sexual abuse.

Magistrates told the court that Jackaman's offences had been "very serious" in nature and could only be dealt with a custodial sentence.

They said that they had given him credit for his guilty plea by not moving the case to the crown court.

In total, Jackaman was sentenced to a 12 month custodial sentence and will be released on license after serving half of this.

Jackaman was made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order for five years and put on the sex offenders' register.

The devices which were removed from his house will now be destroyed.

He was also fined £156 as a victim surcharge.

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AN EBBW Vale man has denied a series of offences relating to possessing indecent images of children. Joey Morgan, 48, of Armoury Hill, denied three charges of possessing an indecent photograph of a child, one charge of possessing an indecent image of a child, and three charges of breaching a sexual harm prevention order. The charges of possessing an indecent photograph and possessing an indecent image relate to offences on June 14 and November 7 last year. Two of the charges of breaching a sexual harm prevention order relate to an offence on August 6 last year, while the other relates to an offence on September 10. Morgan appeared at Cardiff Crown Court to plead not guilty to all charges. Judge Michael Fitton QC ordered Morgan will face trial on December 15. James Evans appeared for the prosecution, while Hashim Salmman appeared for the defence.

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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.

Description

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.

Description

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.

Description

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.

Description

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."