CPS News Brief

51 year sentence for men in Leeds child sexual exploitation case

Four men have today been sentenced at Leeds Crown Court to a total of 51 years for child sexual exploitation.

Tariq Islam (sentenced to 13 years), Nasir Sultan (12 years), Amir Zaman (11 years) and Zafar Iqbal (15 years) were sentenced for committing rape and other sexual offences against a child aged 12 to 14 between May 2010 and September 2012 and were convicted by a jury yesterday.

Also convicted of offences of a sexual nature were Arshid Younis, Abid Younis, Farahk Younis, Junaid Rashid, Shazabe Hussain, Zafar Iqbal and Awais Butt. They will be sentenced at a later date.

Andrew Penhale, Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor, CPS Yorkshire and Humberside said:

“Ten individuals have been convicted of offences which involve a shocking catalogue of child sexual exploitation. The victim was targeted by older men precisely because of her youth and vulnerability. The offences involved an appalling breach of trust - the victim was groomed and plied with cigarettes, alcohol and drugs to make her compliant. The defendants then showed a complete lack of remorse for their actions, with ten of them claiming throughout the contested trial that the allegations were fabricated, or that they believed the victim to be over 16.

“The victim of these terrible crimes has shown immense courage, not only to make a complaint initially but to then give evidence in a long and complicated trial. The prosecution of these men could not have succeeded without her evidence. We hope that the convictions/sentences handed down today will help her to begin to rebuild her life.

“This was a complex and difficult matter to bring to court and prosecuting it has required extremely detailed and painstaking work. It demonstrates that the use of special measures such as screens or giving evidence over video-links, helps vulnerable victims of even the most horrifying sexual exploitation to give their account before a criminal court.

“The Crown Prosecution Service and West Yorkshire Police have the utmost determination to prosecute sexual abusers of children wherever we are able to and to support victims through the criminal justice process.”

Decision in relation to the death of Olaseni Lewis

Background: 

Olaseni Lewis died on 4 September 2010 following his restraint by a number of Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) officers at the Bethlem Royal Hospital, where he was, initially, a voluntary patient because of mental health problems. He was aged 23 at the time.

On 29 August 2010, Mr Lewis was taken by his parents to Croydon University Hospital where he was detained under section 136 of the Mental Health Act 1983. Mr Lewis was then taken to Maudsley Hospital but left during his assessment. The police were called and returned Mr Lewis to the hospital before he was later transferred to Bethlem Royal Hospital as a voluntary patient. 

At the Bethlem, the evidence suggests that Mr Lewis became restless and was forcibly sedated by staff. However, this had no effect and he damaged a door attempting to get out of the hospital. Mr Lewis was sectioned before the police were called and were asked to assist in his restraint and removal to a seclusion room. Once there, Mr Lewis was restrained for a second time. Other officers were called to assist and were in the course of arranging to exit the room when Mr Lewis collapsed.  He was transferred back to Croydon hospital where he died.

The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) referred the case to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in August 2011 with a report which concluded there were no criminal suspects and that no criminality and no misconduct under police regulations had been identified. The report was withdrawn by the IPCC in October 2011 and was re-referred in June 2012 with the same findings.  No one had been treated as a suspect, although the IPCC expressed concern over the length of the restraint. In February 2013, the IPCC reopened their investigation with a view to interviewing under caution those officers involved in the restraint. The MPS declined to allow their officers to be interviewed by the IPCC, arguing that a reinvestigation would be unlawful.

There then followed legal action in the civil courts where Mr Lewis’ family succeeded, in September 2013, in having the original investigation quashed, allowing the IPCC to reinvestigate and interview under caution. The case and updated IPCC report were then re-referred to the CPS in 23 April 2015. The latest IPCC report concludes that a number of officers have a case to answer for non-criminal misconduct. No final recommendations are made in respect of criminal offences within the report but the IPCC referred the report to the CPS because it was of the view that the evidence outlined in the report may in the circumstances indicate offences of assault, misconduct in public office or manslaughter. It should be remembered that the threshold for a criminal prosecution is far higher than that of internal disciplinary proceedings.

Decision:

Following very careful consideration of the evidence provided to us by the IPCC, the CPS has decided that there is insufficient evidence for a realistic prospect of a conviction against any of the police officers involved in Mr Lewis’ restraint for any offence. Our consideration of the case included an external review by a Queen’s Counsel which was concluded in early 2013. The additional material recently supplied by the IPCC has not changed the evidential position in relation to possible criminal charges.  The decision was taken in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors which requires there to be sufficient evidence for a realistic prospect of a conviction and a consideration of the public interest factors before charges can be authorised.

It should be noted that despite the reinvestigation launched in 2013, the bulk of the evidence has remained unaltered from that which was referred to us in 2012. The QC instructed by the CPS advised the IPCC on a number of points to be put to the police officers in interview but they invoked their right to silence (the right of every suspect) and did not answer questions, relying on prepared statements.

The offences that we have considered, and the reasons for taking no further action, are set out in turn below.

Actual Bodily Harm (ABH):

In law, police officers are entitled to restrain an individual until they have achieved control and are not required to run the risk of being assaulted.

The evidence suggests that at various points during the restraint of Mr Lewis, he was handcuffed, struck with a police baton and had his jaw held by a police officer. There was also an allegation, made by a member of the medical staff, that he was punched by an officer.

In deciding whether there is sufficient evidence that these alleged actions were criminal, the law requires us to consider the specific circumstances of the situation. The IPCC report suggests that officers arrived at the hospital having been warned that Mr Lewis was violent or posed a threat of violence and they could see the damage to a door frame allegedly caused by Mr Lewis. The majority of the accounts from hospital staff support the view that Mr Lewis was behaving aggressively.

As such, we consider there is insufficient evidence that the baton strikes, which left only superficial injury, and the handcuffing of Mr Lewis were unreasonable or unlawful in the circumstances and cannot be considered as amounting to the offence of assault occasioning ABH as defined by law. There is also insufficient evidence that the pressure to Mr Lewis’ jaw caused any significant injury. Indeed, the evidence suggests that this was applied early on with a view to obtaining control over Mr Lewis. If this was the punch seen by the hospital staff member, it follows that no charge can result. Alternatively, if the punch was some other incident there is insufficient evidence to say who inflicted it.

Unlawful act manslaughter and Gross Negligence Manslaughter (GNM):

In relation to unlawful act manslaughter, we would need to demonstrate that the actions of the officers were unlawful in the circumstances. In order to prosecute an offence of GNM, we would need to demonstrate to the criminal standard that the way in which the officers restrained Mr Lewis was not necessary in the circumstances and therefore amounted to them breaching their duty of care towards him.

In considering these offences, it is important to remember that the law entitles officers to restrain an individual until they achieve control. Having carefully considered the evidence, including the views of a number of experts, we have concluded that there is insufficient evidence to show that the manner in which he was restrained was unlawful or unnecessary given the circumstances in which the officers found themselves. The evidence of the hospital staff does not, on the whole, criticise the methods as excessive and there is considerable evidence as to Mr Lewis’ strength and violence.

Misconduct in a public office:

The offence of misconduct in public office has a high criminal threshold, far higher than the threshold required to bring internal disciplinary misconduct hearings. The severity refers to the initial act rather than any tragic outcome. 

Whilst it may well be said that Mr Lewis’ restraint might have been handled better, there is insufficient evidence that the actions of the officers meet the high criminal threshold required for this offence.

Conclusion:

For the reasons set out above, we have advised the IPCC that no further criminal action should be taken in relation to this matter. The issue of whether to bring internal disciplinary proceedings, which do not require the same level of evidence, is a matter for the IPCC.

We understand that our decision will be hugely disappointing and frustrating for the family of Mr Lewis who have acted with dignity throughout this process.  However, the CPS can only prosecute where there is sufficient evidence of an offence as defined by the law.

We also understand that the time taken to reach this decision has only added to the disappointment and frustration. We want to reassure Mr Lewis’ family that we have reached this decision as swiftly as possible since receiving the IPCC’s latest referral which was made in April of this year.

We have written to Mr Lewis’ family to explain our decision in detail and to offer a meeting should they want one.

Liverpool’s ‘Pencil Man’ convicted of five counts of fraud

John Bailey has today been convicted of five counts of fraud at Liverpool Crown Court. Known as the ‘Pencil Man’, Mr Bailey has 24 previous convictions from 55 separate offences, which includes 28 fraud offences. He has also previously been banned from entering, contacting or causing harassment alarm or distress in a number of licenced betting offices.

Andrew West, prosecutor at the CPS said: 

“John Bailey used his powers of persuasion to encourage people to ‘invest’ in him and his alleged businesses. However, instead he used these sums of money to fund his prolific, and disastrous, gambling habit.

“This was entirely dishonest. Not only did he lie to investors in order to gamble with their money, he also then demanded further betting money from them, in order to regain their original savings that he had lost. This cycle of debt continued with some victims losing hundreds of thousands of pounds. One victim lost just over £2m.

“Far from appreciating the damage he had wrought, John Bailey continued to gamble and deceive investors, breaching a previous ban of holding a specific betting account. Known as the ‘Pencil Man’ because he always carried a pencil when visiting betting shops, he has now been held to account for the substantial losses and distress he caused his victims.”

Man guilty of Iraq bombings

Anis Abid Sardar, 38, of north west London, has today been convicted at Woolwich Crown Court for his involvement in the making of bombs used against coalition forces in Iraq in 2007. He was convicted on two counts: murder and conspiracy to murder.

A number of pressure-plate activated bombs, or Improvised Explosive Devices, were found buried under the roads leading west out of Baghdad and in an area close to the US Army’s Camp Liberty. One of those bombs detonated fully on 27 September 2007 as a US military vehicle passed over it, killing Sergeant First Class Randy Johnson.

During the course of the trial, Anis Sardar admitted taking up arms against Shia militia north-west of Baghdad, the same area where the bombs were discovered.

Sue Hemming, Head of Special Crime and Counter Terrorism at the Crown Prosecution Service, said:

“This was a landmark prosecution that shows we will do everything in our power to ensure that international borders are no barrier to terrorists in the UK being brought to justice for murder committed anywhere in the world.

“Anis Sardar is a highly dangerous man who created bombs so large that not only did they tragically kill Sgt Randy Johnson, but they put other lives in danger and caused significant damage to heavily armoured US military vehicles.

“Although Anis Sardar’s fingerprints were found only on two of the bombs, it is beyond doubt that he was part of a joint enterprise to make four such devices, and potentially many others, given their similarity and location.

“He knew precisely what he was doing and was working with murderous intent against coalition forces.”

Two Libyan soldiers convicted of rape

The Chief Crown Prosecutor for East of England CPS, Jenny Hopkins, has urged male victims of rape to have the confidence to come forward and report attacks after two Libyan soldiers stationed at a barracks in Cambridgeshire have been convicted of raping a man in Cambridge city centre.

Moktair Ali Saad Mahmoud and Ibrahim Abugtila were convicted at Cambridge Crown Court on 15 May 2015 of rape and aiding and abetting the other to rape. They were each sentenced to 12 years’ imprisonment.

Ms Hopkins said:

“As this case has shown, victims of rape, whether male or female, can have confidence that they will be believed; they will be treated with dignity and respect and supported throughout the progress of their case.

“It takes enormous courage for anyone to report an allegation of rape but we know that male victims can find it particularly difficult – 12% of rapes in England and Wales are estimated to be carried out against men but many choose not to report it. I hope today’s verdict might offer some victims the confidence they need to come forward.

“In this case, Mahmoud and Abugtila attacked a complete stranger, targeting him because he was vulnerable through alcohol, took him to a deserted park in the early hours of the morning and then took it in turns to hold him down while the other raped him.

“They were identified through DNA evidence and claimed in their defence that the victim had consented to sex and had made the story up after stealing money from them. The jury has clearly rejected this defence by their verdicts today.

“We applied to the court for special measures for the victim, which were granted, and he gave his evidence by video. Special measures are something that we would discuss with any rape or sexual assault victim before making an application to the court.

“We know that rape has a devastating effect on victims and we would like to praise the bravery of the victim in this case whose evidence has put two vicious men behind bars for many years.

“We are committed to supporting victims of rape and indeed all sexual assaults and to building strong cases which we can bring to court. We would urge all victims of rape, male and female, to have the confidence to come forward and help us bring the perpetrators to justice, as in this case.”

CPS statement: No further action against one individual for conspiracy to commit misconduct in public office

No further action against one individual for conspiracy to commit misconduct in public office or aiding and abetting misconduct in public office

Gregor McGill, a senior lawyer at the Crown Prosecution Service, said,

“The CPS has decided that no further action will be taken regarding one journalist. After careful consideration it has been decided that there is insufficient evidence for a realistic prospect of conviction for charges of conspiracy to commit misconduct in public office or aiding and abetting misconduct in public office.

“This decision was taken in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors and the Director’s guidelines on assessing the public interest in cases affecting the media, which includes the additional guidance published in April 2015 on cases involving payments made to corrupt public officials by journalists.

“Any decision by the CPS does not imply any finding concerning guilt or criminal conduct; the CPS makes decisions only according to the test set out in the Code for Crown Prosecutors and it is applied in all decisions on whether or not to prosecute.”

 

For editors:

The CPS's function is not to decide whether a person is guilty of a criminal offence, but to make fair, independent and objective assessments about whether it is appropriate to present charges for the criminal court to consider. The CPS assessment of any case is not in any sense a finding of, or implication of, any guilt or criminal conduct. It is not a finding of fact, which can only be made by a court, but rather an assessment of what it might be possible to prove to a court, in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors.

This assessment is based on the evidence available arising out of the police investigation and not on the evidence that is likely to be gathered by the defence, and likely to be used to test the prosecution evidence. The CPS charging decision is therefore necessarily an assessment on the basis of the evidence that is available to the CPS at the time the decision is made.

CPS prosecutors must also keep every case under review, so that they take account of any change in circumstances that occurs as the case develops, including what becomes known of the defence case. If appropriate, the CPS may change the charges or stop a case.

Teenager sentenced for sexual assault of Ione Wells

A 17-year-old boy was sentenced today at Highbury Corner Magistrates’ Court to a 24 month detention and training order for the sexual assault of Ione Wells. He was also ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register for five years. The defendant pleaded guilty to one count of sexual assault at the first hearing on 13^thApril 2015. The defendant followed Ione home in the early hours of 11^th April and attacked her near to her home in the Primrose Hill area. He ran off when her screams alerted nearby neighbours but was arrested shortly after by police.

Gerallt Evans, CPS London Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor, said:

 “Today a 17-year-old male was sentenced to a 24 month detention and training order for the sexual assault of Ione Wells. A Victim Personal Statement was read to the court.

“Ione has shown real courage throughout this case - this was a terrifying attack which no one should have to experience. I want to let victims know that we will do all we can to support them through the prosecution process. This includes the use of special measures such as giving evidence behind a screen and by giving victims the opportunity to tell the court about the impact of the crime through the use of Victim Personal Statements.”

 

Notes to Editors:

More information about Special Measure and Victim Personal Statements can be found here:

http://www.cps.gov.uk/legal/v_to_z/victim_personal_statements/ 

http://www.cps.gov.uk/legal/s_to_u/special_measures/

Letter to the Daily Mail concerning coverage on assisted suicide

In an article in Wednesday's newspaper concerning CPS guidelines on assisted suicide, the Daily Mail wrote that the DPP "brought in new guidelines on her own initiative without consulting Parliament or the courts." 

The DPP has written to the newspaper to correct this point:

Dear Sir,

Contrary to your report (DPP’s assisted suicide rules to be challenged, 29 April 2015), I was actually invited by the Supreme Court to make a small clarification to the Crown Prosecution Service’s existing guidelines on assisted suicide in October last year.

The change was a direct result of a Supreme Court judgement. It did not amend the law in any way; assisting or encouraging suicide remains illegal and nothing in the guidelines offers immunity against prosecution.

Yours,

Alison Saunders
Director of Public Prosecutions
London SE1

Two guilty of football match-fixing

Two football players, Moses Swaibu and Delroy Facey, were today convicted at Birmingham Crown Court for their part in a conspiracy to commit bribery by fixing football matches in the Conference Premier Division.

Today’s verdicts follow the earlier convictions of Chann Sankaran and Krishna Ganeshan, business men from Singapore, who were central figures in the plot to bribe UK footballers to engineer the results that they needed in order for their associates to win money on bets. A football player by the name of Michael Boateng was also convicted last year for his part in the conspiracy.

Andy Young, specialist prosecutor in the Crown Prosecution Service Organised Crime Division, said:

“Delroy Facey acted as the middleman in this conspiracy, sourcing players who would be willing to fix matches. When he played professional football, he earned good money, being paid over £65,000 in 2010/11. But by the time of his arrest, he was no longer playing professionally and was earning considerably less.

“The jury heard how recordings made by an officer from the National Crime Agency captured Michael Boateng conspiring to give away a penalty to Moses Swaibu, a conversation facilitated by Facey on behalf of the professional fixer Krishna Ganeshan. Swaibu also advises Facey on how to approach fixing, including bribing referees, and on one occasion suggests that a match could be lost by two or three goals.

“These and other recordings provided vital evidence which showed the men had a settled intent to make an agreement about engineering the results of matches, in return for money, a reality.”

Three sentenced in ‘honey trap’ murder of Mehmet Hassan

Kyrron Jackson and Nicholas Chandler were sentenced today to life imprisonment with a minimum of 37 years for the murder of Mehmet Hassan on 24^thMarch 2014. Leonie Granger was sentenced to 16 years imprisonment for manslaughter for the part she played in Mr Hassan’s death. All three were also sentenced for conspiracy to rob and conspiracy to falsely imprison. Jackson and Chandler were also sentenced for offences related to an earlier robbery and attempted robbery.

 Baljit Ubhey, Chief Crown Prosecutor for CPS London, said:

“Mr Hassan was savagely attacked in his own home where he was beaten to death by Kyrron Jackson and Nicholas Chandler.

“Earlier in the evening Granger had met with Mr Hassan and went back to his flat, knowing that she was going to set him up to be robbed by Jackson and Chandler.

“Showing absolutely no remorse for their terrible crime the trio filmed themselves playing with bundles of Mr Hassan’s cash within hours of the murder.

“I hope the sentences today give some small comfort to Mr Hassan’s family. Our thoughts are with them at this time.”

 

Background:

The motive for the attack was to rob Mr Hassan of large amounts of cash which Jackson and Chandler knew Mr Hassan kept in his flat. They knew this because Leonie Granger had befriended Mr Hassan in a casino and had then helped to plan the robbery with Jackson and Chandler.

Granger met with Mr Hassan a number of times and on the night of his death had accompanied him back to his flat in Islington. Jackson and Chandler waited nearby and after Granger left, leaving the way into the flat insecure, they later entered the flat and attacked Mr Hassan.

Convictions:

Kyrron Jackson

First Grosvenor Casino robbery (between 1^st and 13^th January 2014)

Conspiracy to rob

Conspiracy to have a firearm with intent to commit an indictable offence

Conspiracy to have a firearm with intent to commit an indictable offence

Conspiracy to falsely imprison

 

Second Grosvenor Casino robbery (between 14^th January and 10^th February 2014)

Conspiracy to rob

Conspiracy to have a firearm with intent to commit an indictable offence

Conspiracy to have a firearm with intent to commit an indictable offence

Conspiracy to falsely imprison

 

Mehmet Hassan’s murder

Conspiracy to rob

Conspiracy to falsely imprison

Murder

 

Nicholas Chandler

First Grosvenor Casino robbery (between 1^st and 13^th January 2014)

Conspiracy to rob

Conspiracy to have a firearm with intent to commit an indictable offence

Conspiracy to have a firearm with intent to commit an indictable offence

Conspiracy to falsely imprison

 

Second Grosvenor Casino robbery (between 14^th January and 10^th February 2014)

Conspiracy to rob

Conspiracy to have a firearm with intent to commit an indictable offence

Conspiracy to have a firearm with intent to commit an indictable offence

Conspiracy to falsely imprison

 

Mehmet Hassan’s murder

Conspiracy to rob

Conspiracy to falsely imprison

Murder

 

Leonie Granger

Mehmet Hassan’s murder

Conspiracy to rob

Conspiracy to falsely imprison

Manslaughter

Andrew Hutchinson jailed after pleading guilty to 27 sexual offences.

On Monday 27^th April Andrew Hutchinson, aged 29, was sentenced to 18 years imprisonment at Oxford Crown Court. The sentence was to be extended to allow for a further seven years on licence, which means that he will not be released until he has served at least 12 years of his sentence and then only with the approval of the parole board.

Further sentences were passed for the additional 25 counts – but were ordered to run concurrently to the extended sentence of 18 years which was imposed for the two counts of rape.

This case involved a sustained and prolonged course of sexual offending against a number of girls and women (aged between 9 and 35) in Oxfordshire between 2011 and 2013, by an A&E staff nurse.  Several of his victims were unconscious and receiving medical care, therefore extremely vulnerable.

His offending came to light after his arrest on 4th November 2013, on suspicion of voyeurism in the unisex changing rooms at an Abingdon leisure centre.  Images and films of sex offences being committed, indecent images of children, and images taken up women’s skirts taken at the hospital and in public were recovered on devices seized from him. 

Adrian Foster, Chief Crown Prosecutor for Thames and Chiltern Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said:

“Andrew Hutchinson abused his position of trust and took advantage of his circumstances to assault his victims. Many of the victims of the sex offences had been unaware that offences had been committed against them because they were unconscious when they took place.  They only became aware when they were contacted by the police during the course of their investigation.

“The emotional impact on the victims and their families is impossible to quantify.  I hope that the conviction and today’s sentence gives some small comfort to them.  Our thoughts are very much with them all at this time.”

On 30 March 2015, at Oxford Crown Court, Hutchinson pleaded guilty to all 27 counts, including rape, voyeurism, sexual assault, making indecent photographs of children, and theft.

Vladimir Bukovsky to be prosecuted over indecent images of children

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has authorised the prosecution of Vladimir Bukovsky, 72, for five charges of making indecent images of children, five charges of possession of indecent images of children and one charge of possession of a prohibited image.

Jenny Hopkins, Chief Crown Prosecutor for the CPS in the East of England, said:

“Following an investigation by Cambridgeshire Police, we have concluded that there is sufficient evidence and it is in the public interest to prosecute Vladimir Bukovsky in relation to the alleged making and possessing of indecent images of children. It is alleged that, collectively, the images meet the definition of categories A, B and C, as defined by Sentencing Council Guidelines.

“The decision to prosecute was taken in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors.”

Vladimir Bukovsky has been summonsed to appear at court on the following charges:

• Five counts of making an indecent photograph of a child contrary to section 1(a) of the Protection of Children Act 1978, on or before 28 October 2014
• Five counts of possession of indecent photographs of children contrary to section 160 Criminal Justice Act 1988, on or before 28 October 2014
• One count of possessing a prohibited image contrary to section 62 (1) of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009

Ms Hopkins continued:

“Vladimir Bukovsky will appear before Cambridge Magistrates’ Court on 5 May 2015.

“May I remind all concerned that Mr Bukovsky has a right to a fair trial. It is extremely important that there should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information online which could in any way prejudice these proceedings.”

14 year old charged in connection with Australia terrorism plot

Deborah Walsh, Deputy Head of Counter Terrorism at the Crown Prosecution Service, said:

“Following an investigation by police in the North West Counter Terrorism Unit, we have today authorised charges for a 14 year old male of two offences of inciting terrorism overseas, contrary to section 59 of the Terrorism Act 2000.

“The first allegation is that, between 15 and 26 March 2015, the defendant incited another person to commit an act of terrorism, namely to carry out an attack at an ANZAC parade in Australia with the aim of killing and/or causing serious injury to people. The second allegation is that on 18 March 2015, the defendant incited another person to behead someone in Australia.

“The decision to prosecute has been taken in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors. We have determined that there is sufficient evidence for a realistic prospect of conviction and that a prosecution is in the public interest.

“The defendant will appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court tomorrow, 24 April 2015.

"May I remind all concerned that the defendant has a right to a fair trial. It is very important that there should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information online which could in any way prejudice these proceedings. For these reasons, it would be inappropriate for me to comment further."

Adam Johnson charged with child sexual offences

Gerry Wareham, CPS Chief Crown Prosecutor for the North East, said:

"Following an investigation by Durham Police, I have today authorised police to charge Adam Johnson, aged 27, with four offences under the Sexual Offences Act 2003. The offences are alleged to have been committed on one girl aged 15 at the time.

“Adam Johnson was arrested on 2 March this year.

“We have reviewed the available evidence in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors and concluded that there is a realistic prospect of conviction and it is in the public interest to charge Adam Johnson with one offence of meeting a child following sexual grooming, contrary to Section 15 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 and three offences of sexual activity with a child, contrary to Section 9 of the Sexual Offence Act 2003. The alleged offences date from 30 December 2014 to 26 February 2015.

“Durham Police have charged the defendant accordingly and he is due to appear before Peterlee Magistrates on 20 May. 

“May I remind all concerned that the defendant has a right to a fair trial. It is very important that there should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information online which could in any way prejudice these proceedings. I would also remind people that the complainant in this case is entitled to lifelong anonymity under the law. For these reasons, it would be inappropriate for me to comment further."

Seven men guilty of multiple sexual offences on children

Seven men have been convicted of more than 30 child sexual abuse offences, including the rape of a child under the age of 13.

John Denham, formally known as Benjamin Harro, has been found guilty of conspiring to commit sexual assault against a child and possessing and distributing indecent images of children. Matthew Stansfield has been found guilty today of conspiring to rape a child under 13. Adam Toms, Christopher Knight, Robin Hollyson, David Harsley and Matthew Lisk all pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing.

The men shared indecent images and videos of children being abused, communicating via social networking forums. The victims identified so far were under the age of five at the time the offences were committed.

Greg McGill, Head of the Crown Prosecution Service Organised Crime Division, said:

“It is difficult to find the words to describe the activities of these men, and the harm that they have done. They groomed families to gain access to babies and toddlers and then streamed images of themselves sexually abusing the children live on the ‘dark net’. On one occasion, Adam Toms gave a sleeping pill to a four year old child in order to facilitate abuse alongside Christopher Knight.

“Fortunately, the CPS, NCA and Police forces were able to coordinate a swift and effective response when matters came to light which resulted in the arrest and prosecution of these men. The efforts of all resulted in guilty pleas from all involved followed by further convictions secured after a trial for other offences.

“The families of these children have endured a horrendous ordeal and I would like to thank them for their invaluable assistance in securing these convictions.

“Finally, I wish to thank the commitment and dedication of all of the investigators who were involved in this case and also the skill and commitment of the prosecution staff concerned.”

For further details, see the National Crime Agency website.