The horrific numbers of Dorset children suffering sex abuse – and how you can help stop it
Age Number
Four women claim ex-principal abused them while pupils at Co Fermanagh school
MORE THAN 70 children under the age of eight were sexually abused in Dorset last year, shock figures show.
According to the NSPCC ten of the children were aged just four. A total of 22 children aged five were found to have suffered sexual abuse. Ten six year olds, 16 seven year olds and 13 children aged eight also suffered.
Age Number
4 10
5 22
6 10
7 16
8 13
<18 >700
The figures were obtained from a Freedom of Information request asking for the number of sexual offences against children aged under 18 between April 1 2018 and March 31 2019 and reveal that more than 700 children in the south west region endured this type of assault.
Dorset is the third worst in the region, with Devon and Cornwall receiving the most complaints, at 452.
CEO of the NSPCC, Peter Wanless, said: “It is very concerning that the number of recorded sexual offences against young children is at such a high level and it is vital we do more to help them stay safe from sexual abuse."
The NSPCC is using the figures to re-launch its Talk PANTS campaign, which helps parents with children aged eight and under to have vital conversations about staying safe from sexual abuse.
"It enables parents to have vital conversations with their child in an age appropriate way,” said Mr Wanless.
The charity’s PANTS rules, Pantosaurus song and activity pack help parents find the right words to talk to their children about staying safe, he said. "They don’t mention the words sex or abuse so it is easier for parents to tackle the sensitive subject."
Victims allege the abuse was an "open secret" in Irvinestown
Serious child sexual abuse allegedly carried out by a school principal in Co Fermanagh was an "open secret", an investigation by a Northern Ireland newspaper has claimed.
Alleged victims of John McElholm, who was principal of St Paul’s Primary School over 30 years ago, have spoken to the Impartial Reporter about the abuse they claim they received at the hands of the man who was regarded as a pillar of the Irvinestown community.
It is claimed that McElholm, who died in 1995, abused his position by preying on innocent children and sexually abusing them in school.
Four alleged victims have approached Impartial Reporter journalist Rodney Edwards to tell their stories, with a fifth source claiming he witnessed the alleged abuse but his parents stopped him from reporting it because McElholm was “treated as a God” in the community.
It is understood detectives from Public Protection Branch are interviewing the alleged victims as part of a review into historic sex abuse in Fermanagh (3rd story on link).
The Clogher diocese said it had never been made aware of any allegations against McElholm.
The PSNI said that while it cannot comment on specific cases the public should be assured that detectives treat every allegation of child sexual abuse seriously, whether it happened years ago or recently.
Mr McElholm was a highly respected member of the community in Irvinestown. He was the chairman of Fermanagh GAA County Board, the Chairman of the Irish National Teachers Organisation and the President of the local St Vincent de Paul Society.
He served on the Arts Council, was involved in Fermanagh Feis, was a member of the Sports Council and was involved in drama productions at Mount Lourdes Grammar School and St Fanchea’s College in Enniskillen.
Rodney Edwards, who has published a series of stories about historic sex abuse in Fermanagh, told the Belfast Telegraph: “The sheer volume of victims coming out now in Fermanagh to share their stories and report sex abuse claims to police continues to shock, sadden and sicken people here.
“We have now received allegations of historic child sex abuse (4th story on link) about more than 60 men in Fermanagh, some of whom are dead.
“We have many more stories to tell and important questions to ask such as who knew what? Why was nothing done about this case or many of the others? And crucially – McElholm is dead.
"His victims will never get justice so when can we expect the PSNI to start questioning the very many alleged perpetrators who are still alive and walk the streets of Fermanagh?”
Belfast Telegraph Digital
‘Don’t go out alone’: Swedish police warn women
after four rapes in four days
after four rapes in four days
© Reuters / TT News Agency
Police in the Swedish city of Uppsala have warned women to walk in groups and to “think how to behave,” after four women were raped in as many days.
A sleepy college town of 170,000 people, Uppsala is more usually known for its universities and cathedral than for violent crime. However, police are investigating a series of sex crimes in recent days.
Two “completed rapes” took place last weekend, with another attempted rape on Saturday night, and another sexual attack in the early hours of Wednesday morning. All four attacks took place at night, and all four victims were walking alone. Police are treating the incidents as unconnected and no descriptions of the suspects have been released.
A study revealed that more than half of all sex abuse crimes in Sweden were committed by foreign-born men. You can rest assured that if the suspect were not expected to be migrants, that fact would have been quickly publicized.
Police did, however, release a warning. Not to any would-be rapists, but to their potential victims. “Women in town should not be worried, but must think how to behave,” the city’s police force said in a statement to newspaper Expressen.
“Feel free to walk on illuminated streets and not alone in alleys or parks,” they continued, adding that because officers “cannot be in all places, both men and women have to think ahead.”
Similar advice to women in Uppsala has been criticized before. When four out of five schoolgirls said they felt unsafe outdoors in the city earlier this year, women’s rights groups called for a greater police presence on the streets, instead of security advice to potential victims.
“Reducing girls’ freedom of movement is a serious development,” activist Mariet Ghadimi told SVT Nyheter in March. “It is a structural problem that restricts girls’ freedom and rights, and in the long run affects women generally.”
Sweden’s rape count has been rising since 2005, and jumped ten percent in 2017 alone. Between 2005 and 2017, rapes nearly doubled and sexual molestation incidents more than doubled.
This is what I call cultural suicide!
‘Monster hiding in plain sight’: Grace Tame’s ‘repulsive’ schoolgirl sexual abuse ordeal revealed in Tasmania
After nine years of forced silence, Grace Tame can finally reveal
the horrific sexual abuse she suffered at just 15.
the horrific sexual abuse she suffered at just 15.
One Survivor's Story
Nina Funnellnews.com.au
WARNING: Graphic content
Nine years after 15-year-old Grace Tame was repeatedly sexually abused by her 58-year-old teacher, she has won her fight to be named. This is her story.
Grace Tame had just turned 15 years old when her 58-year-old high school maths teacher, Nicolaas Ockert Bester, began grooming her, later committing between 20 and 30 sexual assaults against the schoolgirl.
As part of the news.com.au campaign #LetHerSpeak, Grace is finally telling her story.
A talented student and dual-scholarship holder at the elite St Michael’s Collegiate Girls’ school in Hobart, Grace had recently been hospitalised with anorexia, and was suffering from depression and low self-esteem. In the playground the “academic tomboy” had been targeted by schoolyard bullies, and at home, normal routine was disrupted by the impending arrival of a new baby brother.
The stage was set. And unbeknown to the family, a predator was hiding in plain sight.
Grace Tame, now aged 24, remembers the exact moment that the grooming began. Following a morning medical appointment in April 2010, she had arrived to school late. Her year 10 classmates were on a school excursion and as Grace wandered the playground alone, Nicolaas Bester — the head of maths and science — spotted her.
He invited Grace to wait in his office, where she gradually opened up, confiding details of her eating disorder in a man she thought she could trust.
“We talked for a long time and after that day he became a confidant,” Grace tells news.com.au. “He would give me advice and let me stay in his office whenever I wanted. I was given a key, and if I got distressed in class other teachers knew to take me to him for a time out.”
Today, Grace Tame becomes only the fourth sexual assault survivor in the state of Tasmania to be granted a court order allowing her speak out under her real identity. Picture: Patrick Gee, News Corp Australia
For hours they would talk about Grace’s illness and other subjects and he would flatter the schoolgirl telling her he had “learnt more from her than any other student in 30 years of teaching”.
But as Grace began to place more trust in him, he gradually isolated her by undermining her relationships with others.
“He knew my mum was pregnant so he would disparage pregnant women saying they are irrational,” Grace says. “He told me to ignore the advice of my doctors saying I could cope with my anorexia on my own and that he would help me. He measured me in his office and told me what weight I would need to get to. I began to substitute his judgment and advice for that of the experts.
As Bester manoeuvred into the role of therapist and friend, his advice began to take on more sinister sexual tones — a grooming process known as ‘desensitisation’.
Please jump to the original article for the rest of this disturbing story.
Israeli indicted for sexual abuse of 45 underage girls
Prosecutors add obstruction of justice charge after 26-year-old Uriah Assis tried to fake mental illness in bid for leniency
By TOI STAFFProsecutors on Sunday indicted a 26-year-old resident of the ultra-Orthodox West Bank settlement of Emmanuel for dozens of alleged sex offenses against underage girls.
The indictment handed to Uriah Assis by the Tel Aviv District Court said that over the past four years, he used the internet to abuse at least 45 girls aged 13 to 18, along with several young women over 18.
The charges against Assis include rape or sodomy of a minor, indecent assault, sexual harassment, making threats, obstruction of justice and the possession and production of child pornography.
According to reports, prosecutors said they added the obstruction of justice charge after Assis sought leniency from police during his interrogation, claiming that he had schizophrenia. But a psychiatric examination found that he was faking the mental illness and was fit to stand trial.
Police announced Assis’s arrest last week following a months-long investigation by the Lahav 433 (Israel's equivalent to the FBI) serious crimes unit’s cyber crime division.
In a statement released Thursday, police said Assis had been targeting underage girls online using fake social media profiles for years. Lahav investigators said Assis posed as a soldier, police officer, modeling agent, swimming coach or gynecologist to approach the young girls online.
The headquarters of the Israel Police’s Lahav 433 anti-corruption unit in Lod. (Flash90)
Investigators uncovered dozens of fake social media profiles that Assis used to contact the girls. Police said they had identified profiles under the names Eleanor Cohen, Anna Issac, Daniel Assus and Sivan Linoy as being the ones he used most.
Once he successfully made contact, Assis would convince the girls to send him explicit photos and videos of themselves. Police said that some of the girls agreed to meet him in person, and he would sexually assault them.
“This is an extensive investigation with a large number of victims,” police said in Thursday’s statement. “The investigation has revealed that serious sex offenses were committed against dozens of minors, some of which were committed when he met the girls in person and some of which were committed online.”
“It’s hard to overstate the seriousness of this case, which is subject to the most thorough investigation by police possible… who appear to be uncovering just the tip of the iceberg,” police said.
Modeling agent abuses at least 8 aspiring actresses
Prosecutors said Nir Sandler, a resident of Moshav Zeitan, used his position as head of his talent management firm, Passion Management, to abuse at least eight aspiring teenage models and actresses since 2013.
According to the charge sheet, Sandler told the girls the sex acts were part of the “professional training” that they needed to undergo in order to get acting or modeling jobs.
Prosecutors asked the court to remand Sandler into custody until the conclusion of the legal proceedings against him.
UK female pedophile who raped children and took
obscene pictures boasted about abuse in
'graphic' detail online
By Smriti Bosco A female pedophile by name Rebecca Holloway, 26, of Grimsby, Lincolnshire, has confessed to raping children even as a court hearing the case termed it 'most distressing.' She was caught after the police came across 'highly sexualized and exceptionally graphic' conversations she had online, the Daily Mail reported.
Holloway admitted that two children were raped and also confessed to sexual assault crimes that involved a child younger than 13 years of age. She reportedly said she had made indecent images of the children for use on social media. Paul O'Shea, the case prosecutor, said: 'It's a depressing, serious and grave case', the Daily Mail reported.
The prosecution said she had gone into the depths of "degradation" to fulfill her sexual temptations. Holloway has no previous convictions and was reported to be "a good character." So, the authorities had no evidence to suspect her for anything until the truth was revealed. Daily Mail said she would have been sentenced a year ago. But it was adjourned to a future date due to the complexity and seriousness.
In November 2018, Judge Paul Watson QC took over and wanted the hearing to start from scratch. Holloway is behind bars awaiting her sentence date to be fixed.
Were the children required to be witnesses? Could the judge have watched a video of the previous hearings rather that starting over. Are hearings videoed? They should be if children or other vulnerable people are involved, and that should normally be enough for retrials and appeals, otherwise the children are being revictimized.
New Caledonia daycare centre boss jailed for
child sex abuse
child sex abuse
The prosecutor says the 55-year-old man, who ran an arts centre for children in Noumea, was detained for questioning on Friday when he partly admitted to the allegations.
The man is alleged to have abused three children between the ages of four and 11 between 2016 and now.
In the early hours of today, two vehicles belonging to the centre and parked outside the premises were torched.
Brighton, UK, man jailed for child sex abuse
By : Frank le DucA Brighton man has been jailed for three years for sexually abusing two young children.
Dowds sexually abused the boy and girl on a number of occasions in the late 1980s, a jury was told.
He denied the offences but was found guilty at the end of a 12-day trial at Hove Crown Court.
Judge David Rennie told him today (Monday 12 August) that he would be a registered sex offender for life.
Dowds was found not guilty of similar offences against another young girl.
Detective Constable Stewart Cameron, of the Brighton Safeguarding Investigations Unit, said: “Dowds had been convicted in 1990, following a police investigation, of an indecent assault against the boy and was sentenced to two years’ probation. However, there was insufficient evidence at that time for further action against Dowds in relation to the boy or one of the girls.
“Three years ago the boy, by then a man in his early thirties, decided to revisit his past and contacted us again. Our inquiries elicited more information from him and from the girl. We built a compelling picture of the way in which Dowds had ingratiated himself with the victim’s families over time and systematically taken advantage of these innocent young children for his own sexual gratification.
“The two victims resolutely gave evidence at the trial and we are glad that justice has now been done for them after all these years.
“Anyone who has been the victim of such offences can come forward, no matter how long ago they happened.
“Contact us online or by calling 101, and arrange to talk in confidence to experienced investigators.”
Danish PM apologises for historical abuse
in children's homes
The prime minister addressed a room filled with dozens of victims of abuse in state-run homes
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has officially said sorry to hundreds of victims of historical abuse in state-run homes.
From 1945 to 1976 children were sexually abused, beaten and drugged at the homes, an official inquiry found.
The abuse took place across Denmark and campaigners have for years appealed to the state to accept it was at fault.
"The apology means everything. All we wanted was peace of mind," said one of the victims, Arne Roel Jorgensen.
The sixty-eight-year-old told the BBC how the lives of many of the children had been ruined by the abuse. Alcohol, drugs, multiple jobs and failed marriages had all taken their toll.
The Social Democrat prime minister met dozens of victims of the scandal at her official residence at Marienborg on Tuesday. "I would like to look every one of you in the eyes and say sorry," she told them. "I can't take the blame but I can shoulder the responsibility."
Many were in tears as she said that children had been taken from their parents and instead of getting support and warmth, they received humiliation and abuse.
"The authorities did nothing. As a society, we cannot and must not close our eyes," she had said earlier.
How did the abuse come to light?
Details about the homes first hit the headlines in 2005, when a Danish TV documentary featured shocking allegations of abuse and mistreatment from victims of the state-run Godhavn Boys' Home, in north-eastern Denmark.
The documentary also uncovered evidence that a psychiatrist had tested drugs on some of the children. Bjorn Elmquist, then an MP who had already been working on the abuse cases, said the drug LSD had been used to counter bed-wetting, leading to many of the children later becoming drug addicts.
Soon after the programme, the National Association of the Godhavn's Boys was formed and an independent inquiry was conducted in 2010.
The report, published in 2011, investigated allegations of abuse and neglect at 19 homes for both boys and girls, interviewing children, staff and state inspectors.
Despite its limited scope, it documented "alarming physical, sexual and psychological abuse" and researchers found blood traces on a gymnastic horse, indicating children had been beaten on it.
Mr Elmquist, now a lawyer, said many of the victims felt great shame over what had happened: "Some of them contacted me and begged me not to have their names mentioned publicly."
He spoke of boys working in fields who were punished by adults using metal tools and of the overweight master at Godhavn having his own special form of punishment. "He pushed them with his big stomach and they fell down the staircase. He put them on a sofa and sat on top of them and jumped on them," he told the BBC.
Arne Roel Jorgensen found out three years ago that he was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder because of what had happened to him many years ago. "Many of us have had failed marriages and we didn't learn how to act in society because nobody told us. I'm 68 now and definitely still living with the effects."
What now?
Nobody was ever prosecuted for what took place at the homes and successive governments decided the case was too old to be pursued. Before she was elected in June, Ms Frederiksen promised she would apologise for the state's role.
Poul-Erik Rasmussen, who was at Godhavn in the early 1960s, has fought for years to secure an apology and always felt that recognition was the main aim.
Many of the victims have made a point of not asking for compensation but Mr Rasmussen says he can understand anyone who wants it.
Bjorn Elmquist believes a commission and a fund should be set up to assess compensation, as he considers the abuse a clear infringement of the convention of torture that was incorporated into Danish law in 1984. "It's not just a case of saying sorry," he says.
Illegal American teacher with child sex record
deported from Thailand
WASSAYOS NGAMKHAMBankok Post
Immigration police commissioner Pol Lt Gen Sompong Chingduang, left, holds a press conference on the arrest of an illegal American language teacher, at the Immigration Bureau in Bangkok on Tuesday. (Photo supplied)
Immigration police have deported an American man, 66, previously convicted of child sex abuse in the US. He was arrested in Phayao, where he was illegally teaching English.
They have not named him!
Immigration police commissioner Pol Lt Gen Sompong Chingduang said on Tuesday that the American was arrested at house number 5/1 on Soi Omsin off Prasat Road in Muang district on July 11.
The commissioner said that according to United States' Homeland Security Investigations, the American had been found guilty of sexually abusing a child in the US and sentenced to four years in jail. He was also ordered pay US$4,248.51 in compensation and $11,500 in a fine, although the fine was suspended.
The man was arrested while teaching English at the rented house in Phayao, which had been modified and used as a language school, Pol Lt Gen Sompong said.
The American had a visa but no work permit, and so was charged with unauthorised employment, he said.
The man was deported and blacklisted on Aug 2, Pol Lt Gen Sompong said.
Paedophile and former magistrate Peter Liddy applies for release from South Australian jail
One of Australia's most notorious paedophiles, former magistrate Peter Liddy, has applied for release from jail.
Liddy's victims were notified about his bid for parole by letter.
The 75-year-old was initially housed in solitary confinement in Yatala Labour Prison's high-security wing, home to some of the state's most dangerous criminals.
With his sexual abuse of young boys at Brighton Surf Life Saving Club putting him on the other side of the dock, he gained the record for the longest jail sentence to be handed down in South Australia at the time.
Liddy was found guilty of unlawful sexual intercourse, indecent assault and attempting to bribe a witness.
A lifelong sentence for Liddy's victims
The family of Byron Mills, who was one of the first to come forward with allegations against Liddy, pledged to fight to keep the former magistrate behind bars. "It amounts to a lifetime sentence of torment for them, caused by Liddy's selfish, evil and depraved actions; the abuse made worse, if possible, because of his position in the club and in society," Byron's father, Trevor, said.
"Even now, health issues arise, the cause of which are directly attributable to Liddy's treatment of him. Liddy has forfeited his right to live in our society and should, at the very least, serve his full sentence of 25 years."
Andy Martin received his letter in the mail today alerting him to Liddy's parole bid. "There shouldn't be one bit of leniency shown toward him," he said.
"I have sought advice from the Crown Solicitor's Office (CSO) as to whether it would be appropriate for an application to be made for Mr Liddy to be indefinitely detained on the basis that he may be either unwilling to control or incapable of controlling his sexual instincts," she said. "That advice is currently being prepared by the CSO."
Victims' Rights Commissioner Bronwyn Killmier said Liddy's application for release could be triggering for his victims, who continued to suffer despite the passage of at least three decades since the offences occurred.
"People don't always recover — they cope, but they don't always recover — so this could traumatise some victims," she said. "I know that Corrections are contacting the already registered victims but if anybody else would like help, please contact our office and we can help with submissions to the Parole Board."
Parole Board takes into account many factors
Under South Australia's corrections law, Liddy must apply to the Parole Board for release, because he was found guilty of a sexual offence.
If you or anyone you know needs help:
Lifeline on 13 11 14
Kids Helpline on 1800 551 800
MensLine Australia on 1300 789 978
Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467
Beyond Blue on 1300 22 46 36
Headspace on 1800 650 890
ReachOut at au.reachout.com
In considering whether to release him into the community, the board takes into consideration sentencing remarks, prison behaviour, victim submissions and psychological reports. This can also include admissions of guilt and demonstrated understanding into why the criminal offended.
In some cases, indefinite detention orders can be made, including when a sex offender is eligible for parole but is still considered to be at high risk of reoffending.
If Liddy is released, his name could be included on a yet to be established national public register on child sex offenders. The Morrison Government committed $7.76 million over four years from 2019 to develop the national register, but the system is yet to go live.
Peter Liddy was initially held in solitary confinement at Yatala Labour Prison. (ABC News)
Once the state's longest-serving magistrate
Nearly two decades ago, Liddy was South Australia's longest-serving magistrate, sitting on the bench for 25 years.
In 2010, a push to prosecute Liddy on an additional 10 child sex charges allegedly committed between 1969 and 1983 was thrown out of court because of concerns Liddy would not get a fair trial as a result of the widespread publicity his case had attracted and the decades that had passed since the alleged sex acts.
Medical evidence on Liddy's health also hindered the likelihood of a successful prosecution.
Seven claims for damages against Liddy were later dropped because there was very little left of his estate. His victims were instead given $10,000 each in State Government victim compensation funding.
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