Former parish councillor from East Yorkshire jailed for historic rape and sexual assault of teenage girls

Kenneth Cooper, 82, resigned his position on Gilberdyke parish council in April last year after he was charged with six charges of rape of a girl aged under 16 and three of indecent assault of a girl under 14. He is also believed to have served as the chair of trustees for a local charity.

Today he was found guilty at York Crown Court and sentenced to 25 years in prison after a week-long trial. He will remain on the Sex Offenders Register indefinitely.

The first victim bravely came forward in 2017 to report the abuse Cooper had subjected her to over a period of years in the 1970s.

An investigation was immediately launched by North Yorkshire Police’s Criminal Investigation Department. As specialist detectives made their enquiries, a second victim was discovered who disclosed that Cooper had also abused her throughout the 1980s.

When questioned, Cooper, of Chapel Meadows, Gilberdyke, denied the abuse against the second victim, but stated he had been involved in a consensual sexual relationship with the first victim which began on her 16th birthday.

Cooper was subsequently charged with six counts of raping a girl under 16 and three charges of indecent assault on a girl under 14. A jury found him guilty of all charges.

Speaking after sentencing, investigating officer Detective Sergeant Hannah Davies said: “I commend both victims for their bravery in coming forward and making a report to police and reliving a truly horrendous period in their lives.

“The abuse that Cooper subjected them to when they were young girls is truly sickening and has left both of them with trauma and pain that they are still dealing with to this day. The fact that Cooper denied the abuse he committed against one victim and claimed the abuse he subjected the other victim to was a consensual relationship, meaning both women had to undergo a week-long Crown Court trial, just shows the depths abusers will go to to try and get away with their depraved behaviour.

“The sentence handed to Cooper will never bring back the childhoods that he stole from these women. However, I hope it provides some sense of justice being delivered and closure, so they can both move on to happier times.”

Detective Sergeant Davies also extended her thanks to a number of other agencies who had been involved in the lengthy and detailed investigation.

She said: “Due to the fact that Cooper’s crimes extended over two decades, a number of agencies have played a key role in bringing about this outcome. I thank them all for their diligence, hard work and persistence that has resulted in putting Cooper where he deserves to be, behind bars.”