Massimo Capazzo’s offending against the boys was brought to the attention of the police after he confessed to some of his crimes last summer. A paedophile who subjected two young boys to “truly wicked” acts of depravity over a five-year period has been jailed for more than six years.

Bradford Crown Court heard yesterday Capazzo, 41, who was formerly known as Andrew Collins, had been a member of the Jehovah’s Witness faith.

Prosecutor Sophie Drake said his behaviour had been brought to the attention of the elders at a Bradford place of worship and he was “disfellowed”. She said: “Although he was shunned by the congregation he was still allowed to attend meetings. At that time matters were not brought to the attention of the police.”

But last year Capazzo, of Brookfield Road, Pollard Park, Bradford, walked into a police station and told officers he wanted to confess to clear his conscience because he had committed “a terrible crime”.

Miss Drake described how the Capazzo had plied the two boys, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, with strong alcohol and shown then adult horror and pornographic films.

The court heard that one of the youngsters described becoming “numb” to the sexual abuse and estimated that he had performed sex acts on Capazzo between 40 and 50 times.

Capazzo might also have filmed some abuse and Miss Drake said his offending had had a profound and continuing effect on the boys who are now adults.

In their victim personal statements they described feelings of worthlessness and guilt and Miss Drake said they had needed professional help.

Capazzo, who had no previous convictions, pleaded guilty to a series of sex charges including indecent assaults and sexual activity with a child.

His barrister Yunus Valli said the most significant mitigating feature of the case was the fact that his client had walked in to the police station and confessed his crimes.

He said his client clearly knew what he had done was wrong.

Judge John Potter said Capazzo would receive credit for his admissions, but he noted that when he went to the police he only accepted abusing one of the boys. He told Capazzo that the abuse was a gross breach of trust and instead of respecting that trust he had groomed both boys and then subjected them to serious sexual violation.

The judge said the complainants had both battled, and continued to battle, with the psychological effects caused by the defendant’s “truly wicked acts”.

“This was, Mr Capazzo, systematic child abuse,” said Judge Potter.

The judge jailed Capazzo for a total of six years and eight months.

The defendant will also be subject to an indefinite sexual offences prevention order which restricts his contact with children and he will have to register as a sex offender with the police for the rest of his life.

Evil barman David Minto was yesterday convicted of stabbing to death a petrified 16-year-old girl in a frenzied attack at a hotel.

Minto, 23, was jailed for life after knifing child care student Sasha Marsden 58 times, sexually assaulting her as she lay dying or was already dead, then burning her body in an alley.

The killer – who nicknamed himself Demon – used Facebook to lure Sasha to the hotel where he lived and worked.

A court heard that when she rejected his sexual advances at the property, she was stabbed in the head, neck and face with a kitchen knife as she tried to flee.

Sasha’s grief-stricken mum Jayne said: “For his sexual gratification he’s robbed us of saying goodbye to her. He’s robbed us of everything. I can never forgive him.”

In a victim impact statement heard in court, Jayne and Sasha’s dad Gary said: “Each wound you inflicted upon Sasha has stabbed at the heart of each and every one of her family.”

They added that the way she died “will haunt us for the rest of our lives”.

Minto enticed Sasha to the hotel on January 31 on the pretence of giving her a job as a cleaner.

The killer probably attacked her from behind because 48 of the stab wounds were to the back of her head, Preston crown court heard.

Minto wrapped her body in carpet underlay, a duvet cover and a bin liner before taking it to the alley behind the property in Blackpool, Lancs, and setting it alight.

Sasha’s injuries were so severe she had to be identified by DNA from her toothbrush

The Recorder of Preston, Judge Anthony Russell QC, said yesterday: “You murdered her in the most brutal fashion.”

Telling Minto he must serve at least 35 years, the judge added: “You are a very dangerous and evil man.”

Neighbours spotted the burning body but thought it was a mannequin until Minto pointed out it was a person.

Police then found the victim’s blood on Minto’s clothes and throughout the hotel owned by his girlfriend’s family.

The killer, found guilty of murder, claimed he and Sasha, who lived with her parents in Staining, Lancs, had sex at the hotel before she left unharmed.

Minto said she must have returned unnoticed and was killed by someone else.

He said he removed her body from the hotel because blood makes him queasy.

The court heard he had lured other girls to the hotel when he knew it would be empty.

To combat increasing sexual approaches to children on-line, there is a new offence of meeting a child following sexual grooming. This makes it a crime to befriend a child on the Internet or by other means and meet or intend to meet the child with the intention of abusing them. The maximum sentence is 10 years imprisonment.

A new civil preventative order, the Risk of Sexual Harm Order, may be imposed which will prohibit adults from engaging in inappropriate behaviour such as sexual conversations with children on-line.

(CPS)

Paul Mitchell, of East Avenue, Oxford, was yesterday branded dangerous by a judge after he admitted breaching a Sexual Offences Prevention Order. The PAEDOPHILE started a relationship with a woman to get close to her 15-year-old daughter, a judge heard.

The 42-year-old was jailed for rape in June 1991 and has been repeatedly convicted of sexually assaulting teenage girls.

Tom Godfrey, prosecuting, said he indecently assaulted a girl aged 15 or under in 1987, a girl under 16 in 1999 and two 14-year-old girls in 2001.

He said in July last year he began a relationship with a woman from Liverpool he had met playing computer games on the internet.

The barrister said Mitchell found out the woman had three children, including a 15-year-old girl, and went to stay with the family on a number of occasions.

Mr Godfrey said during these visits the defendant’s focus was on his new partner’s daughter, who he followed around and started texting frequently.

He added: “On one occasion he followed her up to her room and she slammed the door in his face.

“After that she asked if she could have a lock on her door, which was duly done.”

Mr Godfrey told Judge Mary Jane Mowat the girl’s mother became concerned about Mitchell’s behaviour towards her daughter.

This included offering to take her out on trips and to a pop concert, as well as telling the 15-year-old he loved her in text messages, he explained.

Mr Godfrey said although nothing happened between Mitchell and the girl, his behaviour suggested “a plan that was thwarted before it got to its completion”.

The barrister also said that the defendant told his former partner he wanted to marry her and she now feels “used and taken advantage of”.

Imran Mahmood, defending, said his client had genuine feelings for the girl’s mother and had intended to marry her.

His behaviour breached his Sexual Offences Prevention Order in four ways – by lying to probation about where he was; by texting a girl under 16; by using the internet without restrictions; and by staying in a house where there was a girl under 16.

He has also repeatedly breached his order in the past. At Oxford Crown Court Judge Mowat sentenced him to three and a half years in prison.

She told him he had shown complete defiance of the court order, which will now continue indefinitely.

Judge Mowat said: “It goes without saying in my view given your record that you are dangerous and potentially a risk to children.

“It is very, very difficult to avoid the conclusion that your reason for starting a relationship with this woman was her daughter.”

Michael McCartney – WANTED

Officers in Hertfordshire are looking for convicted sex offender Michael McCartney.

The 78-year-old went on the run after being found guilty of eleven sexual assaults including two against children.

He was sentenced, in his absence, to eight years in prison and was given an indefinite sexual offences prevention order.

He has links to Letchworth in Hertfordshire, Cyprus and Spain.

Anyone with any information about Michael McCartney should contact Hertfordshire Police on 01707 354000 or call Crimestoppers in confidence on 0800 555 111.

A SPORTS coach used the school where he worked to groom and have sex with a young girl.

Glyn Thompson, 31, faces jail after pleading guilty to nine counts of sexual activity with a child at Burnley Crown Court yesterday.

The offences, which included intercourse and oral sex with the same girl, all took place between 2011 and 2012 while the defendant worked at Stoneyholme Primary School in Burnley.

He admitted having sex with the girl once at the school, once in his car, and once at his home.

Thompson, who was unshaven and wore a grey T-shirt, hung his head in the dock throughout the hearing, speaking only to enter his guilty pleas.

Thompson, of Padiham Road in Burnley, asked to be sentenced yesterday, but Judge Jonathan Gibson said another hearing would be held on August 23.

He said: “It’s going to be a custodial sentence.”

He remanded Thompson into custody and said he would be liable to the terms of the sex offenders’ register.

After the hearing, it was confirmed that Thompson remained suspended by the school, pending disciplinary proceedings.

At an earlier hearing at Blackburn Magistrates’ Court, the court was told Thompson befriended the girl, who he had known for a number of years, and began to email her.

The emails between Thompson and the girl progressed from conversation, to flirting, to more intimate content with the pair exchanging photographs.

After a few months, the relationship became sexual after she and Thompson found themselves alone together.

At the earlier hearing, Thompson’s encounter with the girl was described as ‘not just a one-off’, but a sustained period of grooming that led to a ‘full blown sexual relationship’.

Thompson, who was in a relationship at the time, was caught when an anonymous letter was sent to the school.

The defendant, who has a young son, was asked speak to police voluntarily about the letter, and initially made no comment.

But he arranged to return to the police station the next day, and made a full confession, volunteering to show officers the e-mails that had been exchanged.

The magistrates’ court heard that Thompson, who had no previous convictions, could face 14 years in jail.

He was warned because of the period over which the offences took place, and because of the position of trust he was in, he should expect to serve six years.

Det Insp Paul Broxson, of Burnley CID, said he was pleased the girl would not need to give court evidence.

He said: “We will continue to work with the victim, with the support of other agencies, to offer all of the help and support we can.

“Thompson groomed her and took advantage of her. We take offences of this nature very seriously and will work hard to bring offenders like this to justice.”

Three Manchester men guilty of grooming and exploiting two vulnerable teenage girls

Three men have been found guilty of sexually exploiting two vulnerable teenage girls.

A jury was told the girls were passed around and raped while they were overwhelmed by the effects of drink and drugs.

It was claimed the girls, aged 14 and 15, were taken to houses and hotels and attacked while they were so intoxicated that they were falling over and feeling sick.

Manchester Crown Court was told one of the girls was so distressed that she wrote desperate messages all over the walls of her bedroom.

The offences took place between 2009 and 2011.

Three brothers, Shamin Uddin, Giash Uddin and Shahab Uddin, from Chorlton -on-Medlock, and two other brothers, Robert Jackson and Scott Jackson, were on trial over the allegations.

Shamin Uddin, 26, was found guilty of two counts of rape, two counts of attempted rape and one count of sexual activity with a child. He was also found not guilty of two counts of rape.

Giash Uddin, 27, was found guilty of one count of sexual activity with a child.

The jury did not reach a verdict on two other charges -  one count of rape and one count of trafficking for sexual exploitation – he faced and they are not being proceeded with. The judge has ordered that they lie on file.

Robert Jackson, 23, of Bramwell Drive, Chorlton-on-Medlock, was found guilty of one count of rape.

Scott Jackson, 20, of the same address, and Shahab Uddin were each found not guilty of one count of rape.

Nazir Afzal, Chief Crown Prosecutor for North West England, said: “These men have been found guilty of serious sexual offences against vulnerable and impressionable young victims.

“The two girls were initially flattered by the attentions of the adult men in this case. They were groomed, and plied with drugs and large amounts of alcohol and then manipulated so that they felt obliged to repay their abusers in the form of sexual favours.

“This often took place when the victims were so intoxicated that they were in no position to freely consent to the sexual acts. Nevertheless, the men used them for their own gratification and cruelly exploited them.

“The victims have shown enormous courage in coming to court and giving evidence. As a result of their bravery, we have been able to bring these defendants to justice for their abhorrent crimes.

“This outcome demonstrates the commitment of the CPS and Greater Manchester Police to supporting victims of child sexual abuse, and tackling offenders through the courts. It is a top priority for us.

“I would urge any victims of sexual offences to come forward and report the abuse to the authorities.”

Ian Samson, 72, serially abused young people and raped one girl at the premises where he lived in while his wife worked there as the matron. Paedophile pensioner abused Edinburgh church home children

A paedophile pensioner who preyed on vulnerable children in care at a church-run home faces a lengthy jail sentence.

Even after he severed links with the home, Samson continued to abuse children.

He wore a cross round his neck at his trial at the High Court in Edinburgh.

A string of victims relived their ordeals from the witness box and one woman, now aged 48, told the court: “I just thought it happened because I was in a children’s home.”

Previous convictions

The jury found him guilty of 22 charges including rape, indecency and assault involving 12 different victims.

Eight of the crimes took place at the former children’s home in Edinburgh between 1975 and 1981.

Samson, a prisoner in Glenochil jail, is a registered sex offender who has previously been jailed and has previous convictions for indecent exposure.

Judge Lady Scott told him: “You have been convicted of extremely serious charges. This was a course of conduct of serious sexual abuse and rape of children over a period spanning 30 years.”

She warned Samson he faces “a serious and substantial” jail term when sentence is passed next month.

Jurors, who had to listen to “sordid and distressing events”, were discharged from any further service in criminal trials by the judge.

The rape victim’s younger brother – one of four siblings taken into care after they were abandoned – said he used to sleep in a dog’s basket in a bid to escape the unwanted attention of Samson who had molested him in his bed.

The rape victim told police she had been assaulted from the age of 12 and said: “I remember him saying I was special to him and it was our little secret.”

She became pregnant by Samson, but had a termination.

She said: “I just thought it was normal. I was young.”

The woman’s younger brother, now aged 45, said: “He basically said if I said anything I won’t see my family again.”

The court heard children saw him viewing pornographic films at his former home in Coalgate Avenue, in Tranent, and abuse also occurred there.

Samson, a former ice cream van operator, later went on to run a shop in Goosegreen Road, Musselburgh, East Lothian, and continued to perpetrate abuse.

Ajay Mitra, of Clifford Road, South Norwood, pleaded guilty to attempting to meet a girl under 16, following sexual grooming. The paedophile has been jailed for 30 months after admitting to grooming a young girl online.

Surrey Police launched an investigation in May after learning Mitra was messaging a girl online and by text message, with a view to arrange sexual activity with a child under the age of 13.

Specially trained officers carried out an investigation into the communications and the 32-year-old was arrested outside a McDonalds in Redhill on May 15.

He had travelled to the area with the intention of meeting the victim and was later charged with several sexual offences.

Detective Inspector Paul Gordon of Surrey Police’s Paedophile Online Investigation Team, said: “I welcome the custodial sentence for Mitra which represents the culmination of a complex investigation.

“Mitra’s behaviour in persistently targeting such a young victim over a number of weeks was clearly concerning.

“Surrey Police takes all online-offences extremely seriously and we will continue to use all available resources to bring those who prey on young and vulnerable people online to justice.”

Matthew Hunt, a Cradley Heath pervert built up a vile collection of over 120,000 indecent photographs and films of youngsters after becoming addicted to child abuse images.

Judge John Warner sentenced Matthew Hunt to two years behind bars at Wolverhampton Crown Court.

Judge Warner said: “This was dreadful and appalling behaviour towards young children and I hope you are thoroughly ashamed at watching what you were watching.”

“It got to the stage where you had to see more and more things to satisfy your addiction.”

Mr John Evans prosecuting said Hunt, aged 28, operated a share system that enabled him to look at sickening indecent images owned by other like minded people and they had access to his files.

When police officers acting on information went to Hunt’s home in Meadow Walk and he told them: “You will find what you are looking for.”

Hunt said he had downloaded hundreds of thousands of images, his interest was in six to 12 year old’s and he described how he fantasied about the photographs and films.

It was an “escape,” he went on adding that he had thought about doing some of the things in the images but he was “too scared.”

There were over 120,000 images and films with the likelihood of many more, said Mr Evans and they ranged from level one to level five – the most serious category..

Mr Gurdeep Garcha defending said Hunt accepted the images were “disgusting” and that “untold misery” had been caused to the children involved by the “continuous cycle of abuse.”

He said: “He acknowledges he has deep seated problems. He is someone who is isolated socially. These images were a refuge for him and a sexual outlet.”

Mr Garcha said: “He was downloading more images than he could possibly view and there was an element of relief when the police knocked on his front door.”

Hunt admitted 10 charges of making indecent images of children and 10 of distributing the images and he was further told he must register as a Sex Offender for 10 years and made the subject of a lifelong Sexual Offenders Protection Order.

Graeme Leighton, a man from Cricklade has been sentenced after pleading guilty to eleven counts of possessing, making and distributing indecent images of children.

Thirty year old Graeme Leighton was sentenced to 2 years 8 months in prison by Judge Ambrose when appeared at Swindon Crown Court on Friday, 26th July 2013.

In September last year Wiltshire Police received intelligence from another police force that Mr Leighton was making indecent images of children and sharing them online. A search warrant was executed at his home address in Cricklade and a number of items seized. He was arrested and admitted in interview that he had make indecent images and shared them online by giving other users his password.

An examination of a seized laptop revealed over 850 indecent images and videos. More images and movies were discovered on his iPhone.

Detective Constable Sarah Dalby from the Child Internet Exploitation Team said: ”It was clear from the examination of material in this case that the offender had progressed from simply accessing and possessing images through to sharing and covertly recording material for his own gratification.

”Those who view and download indecent images or videos of children fuel a demand for more and more content of this nature.

‘‘This case highlights our commitment to tackling these crimes and working with others forces and partner agencies in order to do this.

”We have specialist teams of officers trained to deal with all aspects of sexual abuse against both children and adults. Victims can be assured that they will be believed and all reports will be thoroughly investigated.”

Anyone who has been a victim of sexual abuse or suspects that children are being abused should contact Wiltshire Police on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111, where information can be left anonymously if they wish.

Victims can also seek support and counselling from the Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) based at the New Swindon Sanctuary, The Gables, Shrivenam Road, Swindon.

The SARC is a dedicated centre offering support to any victim of a sexual assault where trained professionals can provide immediate medical care and treatment, a forensic examination, counselling and onward referral to other necessary services

Michael Guy, a pervert who sexually groomed three girls and also kept child abuse pictures, including some of babies being abused has been jailed for three years

Michael Guy, 56, plied the girls with alcohol and two of them got drunk.

He made sexual comments to the girls aged between 12 and 14, and tickled one of them. One of the girls told her uncle, after Guy told them not to tell their parents.

The defendant was arrested and police found more than 300 indecent photos of children on a computer and discs at his home, Burnley Crown Court was told.

Guy, who has convictions for unlawful sexual intercourse from 1978 and indecent assault, was later said to have commented he would have tried to have sex with one of them.

Guy, of Spring Street, Rishton, admitted three counts of sexual grooming and 11 allegations of possessing an indecent photo of a child.

He was jailed for three years, given an indefinite sexual offences prevention order, banning him from having children in his home, and barred from working with children and ordered to sign the sexual offenders’ register for life.

Jon Close, prosecuting, told the court one of the girls said she told Guy her age and another said she was wearing her school uniform at his house.

On one occasion, Mr Close said the defendant tickled one of the girls. She became uncomfortable and the girls left.

They returned three days later, Guy apologised and specifically asked them not to tell their parents, as they might take it the wrong way.

Guy was arrested on February 3 and police seized a laptop, CDs and physical photos of girls.

On the computer, police discovered 148 indecent images – 114 at level one, the lowest, five at level two, six at level three, 22 at level four and one at level five. The discs had on them 190 pictures at level one, one at level three and nine at level four. The pictures showed children aged from babies to 12.

Philip Holden, for Guy, said there was no coercion or intimidation of the girls.

Sentencing, Judge Andrew Woolman said the images were ‘quite disgusting’ and parts of Guy’s pre-sentence report were disturbing.

May 2013

Rishton man faces jail for sexual grooming

A RISHTON man who has confessed to meeting three schoolgirls after ‘sexual grooming’ has been told he faces jail.

Michael Guy, 56, was also discovered with a stash of child pornography by Lancashire Police when he was arrested, Burnley Crown Court was told.

Guy, of Spring Street, admitted three offences of meeting a child following sexual grooming. One victim was said to have been aged just 12.

He also pleaded guilty to 11 offences of possession of indecent images, at least 23 of which are in the two most serious categories of child pornography.

Guy denied one offence of sexual assault, involving the 12-year-old, and prosecutor Michael Lavery said it was not in the public interest to proceed with that allegation, given his pleas to the other offences. The defendant was remanded in custody for probation reports to be prepared and will be sentenced on June 14. Adjourning the case, Judge Simon Newell said: “I am ordering a pre-sentence report, but you must expect custody.”

Darren Shearer, a former BBC engineer has admitted downloading tens of thousands of indecent images of children.

Darren Shearer, 26, from Newtown Road, Worcester, pleaded guilty at Worcester Crown Court to 18 counts of making the images and five counts of distributing them.

The court heard 270 of the images he viewed were at the most serious Level 5 category.

He will return to Worcester Crown Court for sentencing on 30 August.

The offences took place between December 2008 and February this year and were said by defence barrister Daniel Oscroft to depict teenage boys who had “gone through puberty”.

Shearer worked at the BBC’s outside broadcast unit based at its Mailbox site in Birmingham at the time the offences came to light.

A BBC spokesperson said: “Darren Shearer no longer works for the BBC – he was suspended at the earliest opportunity upon hearing of the shocking allegations and was dismissed in March 2013.”

Raphael Farina, a central banker admitted hoarding up to 700k child abuse videos and pictures – Judges free him from 4 year jail term because the warrant was wrongly dated.

A BANKER found with up to 700,000 images of child abuse walked free from court yesterday after his conviction was quashed due to a misdated warrant.

The Court of Criminal Appeal yesterday overturned the conviction of Central Bank administrator Raphael Farina, 67, even though some of the images he had were of toddlers being abused.

A warrant used to search his home was dated incorrectly and consequently did not permit entry to gardai. Farina, of Temple Bar, Dublin, pleaded not guilty to three counts of possession of child abuse images at his home in June 2007. He was jailed for four years and fined €5,000 by Judge Patricia Ryan in February 2011 after a jury found him guilty. Farina’s defence counsel did not contest any of the evidence against him during the trial but only challenged the validity of the warrant.

Gardai had called to Farina’s home with a search warrant as part of an investigation led by the Bavarian Police in Germany. The trial heard that Farina allegedly made a statement admitting to possession of the material.

Farina, who has no previous convictions, worked in the Central Bank as a senior administrative officer from the early 1960s and retired from his job the day after he was arrested. Moving the appeal, Ms Aileen Donnelly SC told the court that flaws in the warrant obtained to search the home rendered it invalid in law and incapable of permitting entry to the apartment. Mr Justice Donal O’Donnell said that the court had not reserved judgement because Farina has been in custody since 2011.

Febuary 2011

Four-year sentence over child abuse images

A 65-year-old man has been sentenced to four years in jail and fined €5,000 for possessing hundreds of thousands of images of child pornography.

Raphael Farina, a former Central Bank employee, of Spranger’s Yard, Crowe Street, Dublin 2, was convicted after a trial at the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court last month.

More than 700,000 files containing images or information on child pornography were found on CDs, DVDs and computer disc when his home was searched in 2007.

10,000 images were also found on his home computer.

The files contained images, videos and instructions on avoiding detection from paedophile groups specialising in sharing information.

Farina told gardaí he had been downloading child pornography for ten years and had thousands of images. When his apartment was searched he handed a box to gardaí containing compact discs and DVDs and said ‘there is no point denying it’.

Detective Garda Gerard Keane, a computer forensic examiner, said some of the files had descriptive names and showed graphic images of sexual activity with young children. Over 100 of the images involved babies or toddlers.

Farina told gardaí the material in the box had been kept at work and he had taken it home the previous day. He said he had never downloaded the material at work. He said he was fascinated by breaking the codes and ‘just kept decrypting it’. He told gardaí it became an obsession.

The court was told he had no previous convictions and had been a public servant all his working life, reaching the rank of senior administrative officer in the Central Bank.

He was separated from his wife four years ago and now has a partner in Thailand with whom he has a child.

PAEDOPHILE Emlyn Francis has been locked up for 10 years after raping a child. The Paedophile tried to hide his rape victim in Hanley flat.

The 56-year-old former soldier – who was already a registered sex offender – subjected the girl to a campaign of sexual abuse.

Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court heard the victim, who was aged under 13, was assaulted over a three-year period.

Francis’s crimes were discovered when police found the girl at his home during a routine check.

Prosecutor Neil Ahuja said: “Police visited his flat as part of monitoring him as per his sex offenders registration.

“There was a reluctance by the defendant to open the door, he was nervous on arrival and tried to hide the girl’s presence.”

Following the police intervention the victim told a family member what Francis had done to her.

Officers seized his mobile phone and found photographs of the abuse.

Francis, of Linfield Road, Hanley, pleaded guilty to two counts of raping a child, and seven counts of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.

Mr Ahuja said: “The counts are based on a combination of the victim’s disclosures to a family member, those made during her interviews and the photographs found on his mobile phone and what they revealed.”

The court heard Francis was dishonourably discharged from the Army in 1990 after he sexually assaulted an 11-year-old girl.

In 2001, he was convicted of three counts of indecently assaulting a female under 16, and gross indecency with a child.

Anis Ali, representing Francis, said his client had been ‘hard-working’ for most of his life.

“Of late, he has lived a lonely, perhaps sad, and isolated existence without active support,” said Mr Ali.

“He lost the support of his wife when he was last convicted, and he has no meaningful relationship with his children, who are now adults.

“He accepts full responsibility for his conduct.

“He is able to demonstrate a level of understanding of the long-lasting consequences and the trauma that he has caused the complainant.”

Judge David Fletcher sentenced Francis to 10 years in prison for the two rape charges and eight years – to run concurrently – for the seven further counts, making a total of 10 years.

He said: “You utilised your position, as an adult in a position of power, and you also used coercion.

“You required her to do things and if she did them she got a reward – that’s grooming.

“When the victim was interviewed she found the whole experience hugely difficult.

“I suspect that going through life she will find the recollection of this whole set of circumstances equally difficult to deal with.

“Goodness knows how this is going to affect her in years to come.”

Magdelena Luczak and Mariusz Krezolek have been found guilty of murdering the four-year-old, who was subjected to a six-month campaign of starvation and cruelty.

A mother and stepfather who starved and beat their four-year-old son to death have been found guilty of murder.

Daniel Pelka was the victim of an “incomprehensible cycle of cruelty and violence” which left him looking like “a concentration camp victim” before he died of a head injury in March last year.

Magdelena Luczak, 27, and Mariusz Krezolek, 34, who arrived from Poland in 2006, had denied subjecting Daniel to a campaign of punishment which reduced his weight to only 10.7kg (24lbs) by the time of his death.

Further cruelty involved being submerged in a cold bath and sent to school with only half a sandwich in his lunchbox.

He was so desperate for food he would steal from other lunchboxes at his school in Coventry. Other children had to lock their food away.

Staff said he picked up muddy and dirty pancakes from the floor, ate out of bins and even tried to eat beans which had been planted in soil as part of a school experiment.

His stepfather was accused of checking Daniel’s stomach for swelling when he arrived home from school to discover whether and how much he had eaten.

Dr Karen McLachlan had told the court that over a 30-year career she had never seen a child so emaciated.

“I think most of the jury will have seen pictures of children and adults who have been victims of concentration camps, that’s what Daniel looked like.”

She added that Daniel’s ribcage and hip bones were sticking out. Skin was hanging in folds from his thighs and arms.

Giving evidence during their trial Luczak and Krezolek blamed each other for the ordeal Daniel suffered.

His sibling, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, gave evidence to the court.

The child said Daniel would often ask for extra food but was not allowed to go downstairs or leave his bedroom to go to the toilet. Daniel had been put in a “really, really cold bath”, his head was banged against the bath and it was left to the sibling to try to look after Daniel.

The youngster described how on one occasion Daniel could not be woken up.

“I tried to wake him up but I didn’t, I couldn’t. I listened to his heart but it didn’t. It couldn’t beat. I shouted and shouted ‘what’s the matter?’ but they didn’t come to see.”

Text messages between Luczak and Krezolek were read to the jury.

The boy’s mother wrote: “Daniel is crying because he wants to eat.”

Another text read: “Well now he is temporarily unconscious because I (nearly) drowned him … I won’t be hitting him but if I hear when / as he later wakes up / regains consciousness then he’s going back into the bathtub I didn’t let the water out.”

Daniel’s stepfather claimed in court that the four-year-old had fallen accidentally on the floor on March 1.

He said his partner prevented him from calling an ambulance immediately because social services would notice bruising. A 999 call was made 36 hours after the alleged fall and Daniel was declared deceased at a local hospital.

School staff had been alarmed by Daniel’s dramatic weight loss. They phoned his GP and spoke to his mother. A full review is under way.

The jury at Birmingham Crown Court reached a unanimous verdict in under four hours and the pair will be sentenced on Friday.

Here is a timeline of events leading to the death of Daniel Pelka

2005: Krezolek comes to the UK seeking a better life and finds employment within three days.

February 2006: Luczak comes to England to live with Eryk Pelka and another friend, and initially finds work as a cleaner. Soon after her arrival, she begins a relationship with Mr Pelka, sharing a house with him in Foleshill, Coventry. In the same month, Krezolek is convicted of drink-driving and given a 16-month driving ban. The following month, he is fined £50 for theft from a shop.

May 19, 2006: Krezolek is convicted of driving while disqualified and given a 16-week jail sentence, suspended for a year.

August 14, 2006: Krezolek is again convicted of driving while disqualified and the suspended jail term is activated. He is sentenced to serve 18 weeks in prison.

September 21, 2007: Krezolek is again guilty of driving while disqualified and sentenced to 16 weeks in prison.

February 13, 2008: Krezolek is given a further 20 weeks’ jail for a fourth offence of driving while disqualified.

December 6, 2009: Luczak meets Krezolek for the first time, hours after he spilt from his previous partner after finding her in bed with another man.

January or February 2010: Luczak and Krezolek move into a flat in Bedworth together, assuming joint care of Daniel.

January 5, 2011: Daniel suffers a broken arm at Krezolek’s hands and is not taken to hospital for at least 12 hours despite being in pain each time the broken bones grind together. Luczak and her partner tell doctors, police and social services the injury was sustained accidentally when Daniel fell off a sofa. They also enlist the help of Daniel’s sibling to lie to the authorities about the incident. Daniel’s weight is recorded at 14.8 kg.

January 17, 2011: Daniel has surgery on his arm.

March 14, 2011: Luczak and Krezolek move into the three-bed property in Coventry where Daniel will later be “imprisoned” in a box room and subjected to a fatal assault.

June 14, 2011: Social services close their case on Daniel after the medical evidence relating to the broken arm is reviewed.

July 13, 2011: Luczak saw a health professional at her “spotless” home in connection with a matter unrelated to Daniel. During the home visit, Luczak, who had no injuries to her neck, claimed that Krezolek had tried to strangle her and pulled her hair. The same health worker also saw Luczak on February 9, June 23, August 16 and August 19, 2011.

August 26, 2011: A health visitor went to Daniel’s home on a matter unrelated to the four-year-old. Luczak told the female health visitor that her son had a problem with his “excessive appetite” and a referral was made to the school nurse.

September 14, 2011: Daniel starts as a reception class pupil at Little Heath Primary School in Coventry.

October 7, 2011: Text messages between Krezolek and Luczak show that Daniel is being routinely “imprisoned” in a box room with no handle on the inside of the door. The same text messages also prove that the couple have begun their campaign of starvation.

October 11, 2011: A school nurse and a school health support worker make a home visit and are told that Daniel is eating excessively every night. The school nurse refers Daniel to a community paediatrician after being told that he has punched Luczak when not given food.

October 18, 2011: The school health support worker makes another visit to Daniel’s home, which is noted as being clean and tidy. Luczak said Daniel did not want to go to school and that Krezolek “treated her like a princess”.

October 31, 2011: The same support worker makes a further home visit to speak to Luczak. They discuss Daniel’s walk to school and Luczak is advised to give him some fruit or a snack on the way to Little Heath.

November 2011: Daniel’s teacher starts to notice that he is eating a lot of fruit at school and “stealing” food from other pupils. Luczak tells the teacher he has been “raiding the fridge” at home and is going to see a doctor.

November 15, 2011: Daniel missed an appointment with consultant paediatrician Dr Supratik Chakraborthy. A text message on that day from Luczak to Krezolek reads: “I’ll call this clinic and change this appointment for him because he’s even more ill than he was.”

November 16, 2011: The support worker goes to the house for an appointment with Luczak but no one is in.

November 28, 2011: Luczak is telephoned by the health support worker. Krezolek answers the call and says Luczak will ring her back but she fails to do so.

November 29, 2011: Luczak fails to turn up with Daniel for an appointment at Dr Chakraborthy’s clinic.

December 2011: Daniel’s school attendance rate has slipped to 63% and he is continuing to take things from other pupils’ lunchboxes, as well as eating food which had been thrown in bins.

December 7, 2011: The school health support worker cannot make contact with Luczak by telephone and sends her a letter.

December 14, 2011 : An educational welfare officer makes a home visit and was told that Luczak was unwell and was unable to take Daniel to school. Daniel is seen sitting at a kitchen table eating cereal. Luczak later texts Krezolek: “I was telling you I’d be having problems. The hags from the council were here.”

December 20, 2011: Another appointment at Dr Chakraborthy’s clinic is cancelled by Luczak, who claims Daniel’s sibling is unwell.

January 2012: Daniel, who appeared to have lost weight when he returned to Little Heath after the Christmas holidays, is found to have secretly eaten half a birthday cake that had been brought into school by a teacher. A bump was also seen on the boy’s forehead.

January 16, 2012: Teacher Lisa Godfrey recorded that she had seen bruising around Daniel’s neck which she thought resembled finger pressure marks.

February 2012: Miss Godfrey spoke to Luczak and drafted a letter on February 8 to the community paediatrician. At some point in February, Daniel attends school with what appear to be two black eyes.

February 2, 2012: A text message sent by Luczak to Daniel’s stepfather shows that he has been subjected to a form of water torture which left him, in his mother’s words, “temporarily unconscious”.

February 10, 2012: Daniel, whose weight has dropped by around 1kg in a year, is seen by Dr Chakraborthy, who carries out a full examination and sees no injuries. He is said to look thin but not to appear “wasted”. Further investigations are said to be warranted and the doctor issues a prescription to treat worms.

February 22, 2012: Daniel is spotted eating a pancake, covered in grit and mud, which he had pulled from a rubbish bin at Little Heath.

Tuesday February 28, 2012: Daniel is said to appear “pasty” and was not interacting with other pupils. He is also observed to be pale and his eyes were sunken.

Thursday March 1 2012: Daniel attends school, where he is seen to take a half-eaten piece of fruit out of a bin, and to eat play jelly which other children were making shapes with. After being collected from school by Luczak, who was caught on CCTV, Daniel was beaten about the head at his home at about tea-time, suffering a fatal brain injury. He is then left to die alone in a box room.

Friday March 2, 2012: At 11.25am, Luczak, with Krezolek present, conducts a Google search for “care – patient in a coma”. At 4.30pm, Luczak texts Krezolek, who had left the house, to say that Daniel would “get over” his injuries and that an ambulance should not be called.

Saturday March 3, 2012: Krezolek dials 999 at 3.07am and hands the phone to Luczak, who tells the operator her son is no longer breathing. A senior paramedic arrives at the property at 3.14am. The schoolboy, whose mother claimed he had been complaining of chest pains, was formally pronounced dead in hospital at 3.50am. At about 6am on March 3, an initial examination of Daniel’s body found 10 bruises to his shoulders and back. It was also noted that he was “very emaciated” and his hair was thin. At 9am Krezolek and Luczak were allowed to leave the hospital as neither child protection specialist Dr Karen McLachlan, nor a police officer, had seen the body.

Monday March 5, 2012: Luczak and Krezolek visit Little Heath to speak to the headteacher, informing him that Daniel had suffered “heart failure”. A strategy meeting involving police and representatives of other agencies started at 2pm. After the meeting, Dr McLachlan went to the hospital mortuary at 3.40pm to view Daniel’s body and was “horrified” by what she saw, recognising immediately that he was extremely emaciated. Luczak and Krezolek were then arrested at around 7pm. The kitchen cupboards at their home were full of food and a large bowl of fresh fruit was also present.

John Elsworth will be released in a matter of weeks.

Child abuser tried to buy victims’ silence with money gifts

A REMORSELESS child abuser who bought his victims’ silence with gifts of money was behind bars last night after being condemned by a judge and the detective who helped put him there.

John Elsworth, 76, from North Yorkshire, was criticised for putting his accusers through the ordeal of having to give evidence, and was told he had blighted their lives.

He still denies doing anything wrong and claims the victims have made up their stories, and his barrister Brian Russell said: “As a result, there is very little I can say on his behalf.”

John Elsworth was found guilty of 16 charges of indecent assault, sexual assault, sexual activity with a child and indecency with a child following a trial at Teesside Crown Court last month.

The judge, Recorder Michael Slater, said the fact he was cleared of 11 charges should be remembered as he jailed Elsworth for three years and put him on the sex offenders’ register for life.

He told Elsworth, a retired fabricator, that his abuse was “gross and sustained and calculating”.

“I have no doubt it was facilitated by the gifts of money you lavished on each of them,” said the judge.

“It is clear from the evidence and from what I have read in the victim impact statements that it has had a significant effect upon them.”

“It was a sad, lamentable blight on their childhoods that should never have occurred.

Throughout these proceedings, it seems to me you have shown not one jot of sympathy for them.”

After the case, Detective Constable John Bosomworth, of North Yorkshire Police, said: “Elsworth is an evil man who preyed upon defenceless little children. He has shown no remorse whatsoever.

“The victims should be commended for their bravery – not only for coming forward to the police, but also facing the ordeal of giving evidence at a trial Elsworth could have prevented.”

Mr Russell provided a doctor’s letter for Elsworth, of Clarkson Court, Northallerton, and told the judge: “It makes the very valid point that a custodial sentence is always going to have a greater impact on someone of Mr Elsworth’s age than someone younger”.

This is the smug faced Capita TV Licensing Official from Burton-upon-Trent that thinks it’s OK persecuting 4 women on benefits to support a capitalist organisation supporting and covering up for BBC paedophiles.

Adam Mark, a convicted paedophile and rapist, described by police as “exceptionally dangerous”, who went on the run after absconding from an open prison for a second time has been found.

Adam Mark, 37, who is serving a life sentence after being convicted in 1996 of three rapes and one attempted rape involving strangers, has been arrested after he was spotted by a member of the public in the Hambrook area of Gloucestershire.

Police have been searching for Mark since Tuesday when he was last seen outside the reception area at HMP Leyhill in south Gloucestershire at 7.30pm and is thought to have left some time between 7.30pm and 9.30pm.

Avon and Somerset Police said he will be handed over to the prison authorities.

As the hunt for Mark continued today, Detective Inspector Jill Kells, co-ordinating the search, said: “Adam Mark is a very dangerous man. He is serving a life sentence for a series of stranger sex attacks against women and children as young as 12. He has also carried out robberies to fund his drug habit. We know he had started using drugs again before he absconded from prison.

“We are doing all we can to locate Adam Mark and return him to prison. We think he may still be in Bristol but we do not have confirmation of that so he could be anywhere in the country.”

Mark first went on the run in 2008 from North Sea Camp prison in Boston, Lincolnshire, and was arrested later in nearby Skegness.

Despite this incident, he was able to abscond again on Tuesday evening.

Local MP Steve Webb said: “I think this is the first occasion that I am aware of where someone has absconded once from an open prison, been given another opportunity and absconded again.”

The Liberal Democrat MP for Thornbury and Yate added: “You will never have 100% certainty, clearly there is a risk assessment done, but if someone has proved once they can’t be trusted in open conditions, there ought to be an incredibly high bar for them to be given another opportunity. In this case, clearly the wrong judgment was made.

“The long term trend in absconding at Leyhill is down, but you can’t just ignore a case like this, and I want a full investigation.”

A police spokesman said of Mark, who is originally from West Yorkshire: “He is considered to be a danger to the public and particularly children. On a number of occasions he has targeted women and girls alighting from buses or who were at bus stops as well as a woman walking her dog alone.”

A Ministry of Justice spokeswoman said: “The level of absconding from open prisons in 2012/13 was the second lowest since records began.

“Absconds are still 13% lower than when this Government came to power. We are not complacent about this issue and are looking at ways in which the risk of absconding can be reduced further.

“We are committed to ensuring that risk to the public is minimised. All those located in open conditions have been rigorously risk assessed and categorised as being of low risk to the public.”