Crime

Warning to online sex offenders after work by covert officers leads to 1,300 arrests

Published

2 years ago

May 22, 2022

PEOPLE using the internet to abuse children have been warned that they will be caught.

Police have revealed that the work of covert online officers has led to more than 1,300 arrests in Wales and England over the past year.

Between April 2021 and March 2022, police officers working to catch those who commit sexual offences against children online have made 1,362 arrests, safeguarded 1,400 children, and secured jail sentences totalling more than 1,130 years.

Offenders ranged from those who had viewed or shared indecent images online to those who had encouraged children to send them indecent images online, as well as those who groomed children via online sites and then arranged to meet them so that they could sexually abuse them.

National Police Chiefs’ Council lead for Online Child Sexual Exploitation, Assistant Chief Constable Dan Vajzovic, said:

“Thanks to the fantastic work of covert officers across the country, a significant number of children have been safeguarded and dangerous child abusers have been locked behind bars.

“We hope these statistics send a loud and clear message to others who may be tempted to commit these types of offences.

“Many of the offenders we catch online attempt to justify their actions as less harmful than in ‘real life’. This is simply not the case, as we see time and again offenders who are moving between online and real world offending. All child abuse is illegal, causes serious harm to real victims, and will have severe consequences for you as an offender.

“We have officers working around the clock across all areas of the internet to catch those who are seeking to use it as a gateway to abuse children.”

Police regularly work closely with partner agencies to help prevent those people who are on the cusp of offending from taking the next step.

Recent convictions include a man jailed for four and a half years for arranging or facilitating commission of a child sex offence and distributing indecent photographs of children, after he drove 145 miles from his home, where he believed he was meeting the girl and her mother.

Another man was recently jailed for three years after he pleaded guilty to attempting to arrange the commission of a child sex offence.

He communicated online and via email with someone he believed was the mother of a young girl.

He discussed his sexual interest, before making arrangements to meet the woman’s child, with the intention of sexually abusing her.

During these investigations, there was never a real life victim and no children were ever in any danger.

Director of the Stop It Now! helpline, Donald Findlater, said:

“Mostly, the tens of thousands of people in the UK viewing sexual images of children online don’t conform to the stereotypes – they are our friends, family, neighbours and colleagues.

“Many of the people contacting our helpline started out simply looking on mainstream adult pornography sites, but over time they found they needed different or more extreme content. Some don’t know the law and need it spelling out. A few are struggling with a long-standing sexual interest in children and think that looking at ‘only pictures’ is a way of managing that interest.

“Everyone needs to know that looking at sexual images and videos of under 18s is illegal; that children are harmed by it; that serious consequences await those involved in it; but that our helpline and website give anonymous, and confidential support and advice to stop and stay stopped.”

If you have concerns that someone you know is being abused on the internet, or is using the internet to abuse children, please report your concerns immediately to your local police force on 101.
You can also visit www.stopitnow.org.uk for further advice, including if you are concerned for children or young people.
If you become aware of indecent images of children, you can report this to your local police force and/ or to the Internet Watch Foundation: IWF – Welcome to the IWF

Crime

Dangerous dogs warrant executed by police in Carmarthenshire

Published

1 day ago

April 27, 2024

Tom Sinclair

POLICE have confirmed that a warrant under the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 was executed by Dyfed-Powys Police and the RSPCA at a property in Cefneithin Road, Gorslas, Carmarthenshire on Saturday, April 27.

Two prohibited dogs were removed from the premises, and an investigation is ongoing between the two agencies.

At the time of writing, please said that no arrests made.

Crime

Plea hearing for man accused of assault and strangulation

Published

2 days ago

April 26, 2024

Tom Sinclair

A HAVERFORDWEST man is appearing at Swansea Crown Court today (Friday, April 26) charged with assaulting and strangling a woman

Oliver Torkington, 38, of Pembroke Road, appeared at Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court charged with two offences last month, and is in Swansea Crown Court today to make his plea, after the local court declined jurisdiction.

Torkington is alleged to have assaulted a woman in St Clears on March 23 and caused her actual bodily harm.

He is also accused of strangling her.

The case came before Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court on March 25 and Torkington has been remanded in custody since then.

MORE TO FOLLOW

Crime

Teenage girl in court charged with three counts of attempted murder

Published

2 days ago

April 26, 2024

Tom Sinclair

A 13-YEAR-OLD appeared at Llanelli Magistrates’ Court this morning, in connection to the incident at Ysgol Dyffryn Aman on Wednesday.

She was charged with three counts of attempted murder, and one count of possession of a bladed article in a public place.

No pleas were entered, and she was remanded into a youth detention centre until a future court hearing at Swansea Crown Court.

Criminal proceedings are active in respect of this case, and we ask members of the community not to speculate or comment on the circumstances.

On Thursday (Apr 25), the police confirmed that a teenager had been charged in relation to the incident at Ysgol Dyffryn Amman yesterday.

Police were called to the school at around 11.20am, following reports that three people had been injured.

Two teachers and a pupil were taken to hospital with stab wounds. They received treatment for knife injuries, have all since been discharged.

A CID-led investigation was launched, and there has continued to be a police presence at the school today as we gather evidence to assist our enquiries.

Police also said: “Yesterday evening, our control room received a number of calls reporting concerns over messages being shared on social media, which had references to the incident at Ysgol Dyffryn Aman.
Officers swiftly carried out a warrant at the home of the person believed to be responsible for this content, and a 15-year-old male was arrested.

He also remains in police custody while we investigate these allegations.”

At a press conference outside the school, also on Thursday, Superintendent Ross Evans said: “While this investigation is being run separately to our enquiries into events at the school, our officers are seeking to establish if there was a connection between the alleged offences.

“Again, I would urge people not to speculate, not to share any images or videos relating to either investigation, and to allow us to carry out our enquiries fully.

“If you, or your children, are distressed by these events, please seek support from an appropriate agency.

“Finally, I would once again like to thank our colleagues at the Welsh Ambulance Service and Wales Air Ambulance Service for their swift response to this incident, as well as the NHS staff who treated those who were injured, the charitable organisations who are supporting those affected by this incident, and the vigilant members of the public who reported their concerns to us.”

Ysgol Dyffryn Aman has confirmed that it will re-open to pupils on Monday, 29 April. Carmarthenshire County Council and Ysgol Dyffryn Aman would like to reassure the school community, in anticipation of the school reopening, that a broad range of wellbeing support will continue to be offered to pupils, teachers and staff at the school.

From Monday, 29 April, a dedicated Education and Child Psychology Team from the Council will be available for pupils and staff and will maintain a presence at the school, for the next two weeks, to provide ongoing support and assistance as needed.

Upon the school’s reopening, counselling will be available for pupils at Ysgol Dyffryn Aman to offer support and guidance to students facing difficulties.

The Council’s internal Occupational Health Team, in collaboration with the Education Department, is working to provide comprehensive support for affected staff members. This will entail offering wellbeing support sessions, drop-in sessions, group sessions, and referrals for 1:1 therapeutic support as needed.

Carmarthenshire County Council is grateful to the numerous offers of support from external agencies to provide additional assistance for our students during this time. We are carefully considering how and when to use these services.

Council Leader, Cllr. Darren Price said: “As a County Council, we are doing everything that we can to support the community of Ysgol Dyffryn Aman and we have set out a wellbeing support plan to help the pupils and staff.

“This will be a joint support approach, as we are adopting a collaborative approach to ensure that all individuals affected receive the support they require. This includes coordinating between internal and external resources to provide holistic assistance.”