Child sex offenders can't be cured – only taught not to act on their feelings, says criminologist who worked on Milly Dowler case

Dr Graham Hill is a consultant criminologist who retired from policing to work with child sex offenders and has been involved in high-profile cases such as the re-opening of the Madeleine McCann investigation and the murder of Milly Dowler.

Speaking to The Yorkshire Post, Dr Hill described how offenders who have a sexual interest in children will never be able to repress their feelings, and instead must be taught to manage them if society is to solve the issue of child sexual exploitation and abuse.

Currently a research fellow at the University of Leeds but based from south London, Dr Hill also said treatment programmes for these offenders were "inherently flawed" as they are often run as group meetings, which are less effective as criminals will be less inclined to share their thoughts in front of others.

"When I was a detective in the police force 20 years ago, nobody really wanted to be involved in CSE investigations," Dr Hill explained.

"Attitudes generally have changed in the past 10 years in the wake of the Jimmy Saville scandal and the Rotherham scandal.

"CSE isn’t just about what we used to think of as middle aged men interested in children anymore. It’s part of wider scale operations such as county lines and organised crime."

"The world in general is more enlightened and we’ve broken down a lot of barriers and certain things have become more acceptable which weren't acceptable before. Obviously, one thing which will never be acceptable in any society is the sexual abuse of children. But the more people are informed about this issue, the more people will be protected. You can’t intervene in something you don’t understand."

Dr Hill added: "Sex offender treatment programmes are inherently flawed, because most of them are run as groups in prisons or with probation services. They tend not to have an impact on offenders because they’re in front of other offenders.

"Treatment programmes which are one-to-one do work, but the problem with these is that they’re really expensive. The prisons can’t afford them, so the offenders themselves have to pay for them. The programmes give people strategies to help offenders manage their thoughts and feelings.

"You can’t cure someone with a sexual interest in children, only help them to contain and manage it."

Dr Hill has an illustrious career working to solve serious crimes, including the M25 serial rapist Antoni Imiela and London's "Night Stalker" Delroy Grant. He also led the investigation into Craig Harman, whose conviction in 2004 for the manslaughter of a lorry driver was the first in the world to use familial DNA.

Dr Hill's comments come as an independent inquiry into organised networks of child sexual abuse like that in Rotherham heard this week how the problem is still "under-reported" in England and Wales.

The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) heard from leading counsel Henrietta Hill QC that the "big picture" was that "many thousands of children are sexually exploited each year" by gangs who groom and manipulate them.

Meanwhile, a 57-year-old man from Merseyside was jailed this week after detectives in Yorkshire posed as a 12-year-old girl online and arranged to meet him in Barnsley where he was arrested.

James Buntain had been engaging online with other children and was also convicted at Sheffield Crown Court for messages sent to an unidentified, but presumed, child victim.

Dr Hill added: "The thing about people who develop a sexual interest in children is they see children as sexual beings. It’s ingrained in them and there’s nothing they can do about it, it’s a case of lifelong management so that you never act upon it. This is why so many sex offenders take their own lives.

"I’m not trying to make anyone feel sorry for them, but that is what they have to carry."

Support The Yorkshire Post and become a subscriber today.

Your subscription will help us to continue to bring quality news to the people of Yorkshire. In return, you'll see fewer ads on site, get free access to our app and receive exclusive members-only offers.

So, please - if you can - pay for our work. Just £5 per month is the starting point. If you think that which we are trying to achieve is worth more, you can pay us what you think we are worth. By doing so, you will be investing in something that is becoming increasingly rare. Independent journalism that cares less about right and left and more about right and wrong. Journalism you can trust.

Thank you

James Mitchinson (Editor)