South Yorkshire paedophile who raped own children jailed after ‘instincts’ of officer who found hidden folders

A Sheffield paedophile who had raped and repeatedly sexually assaulted his young children has been jailed for 18 years – after ‘meticulous’ work by a police officer who found hidden folders on his devices.
By Daniel Sheridan
Published 5th Apr 2023, 16:22 BST
Updated 5th Apr 2023, 16:23 BST
Detectives working in the Internet and Sexual Offences Team (ISOT) at South Yorkshire Police spent almost a year building an ironclad case, police said.Detectives working in the Internet and Sexual Offences Team (ISOT) at South Yorkshire Police spent almost a year building an ironclad case, police said.
Detectives working in the Internet and Sexual Offences Team (ISOT) at South Yorkshire Police spent almost a year building an ironclad case, police said.

Detectives working in the Internet and Sexual Offences Team (ISOT) at South Yorkshire Police spent almost a year building an ironclad case, police said.

The man, who is in his 30s, pleaded guilty to multiple charges in March 2023 as he faced the mountain of evidence secured by the team since he was first arrested in January 2022.

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On Wednesday April 4, he was jailed for 18 years and handed a further five years on licence.

The judge also categorised him as a ‘Dangerous Offender’ due to the grave risk he poses to children, and placed him on the Sex Offenders’ Register for life.

The man first came to the attention of officers after he posted prohibited images online.

After tracing the images back to him, a warrant was executed at his address and a number of electronic devices were seized.

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It was only when a detective constable conducted scrupulous searches of those devices that she uncovered the full extent of his depravity – with pictures showing him sexually abusing his three young children.

Sharing more on the investigation, DI Lee Wilson said: “The officer assigned to this case, DC Jess Hawley, conducted meticulous analysis of this man’s devices which uncovered hidden folders and files which could have quite easily gone unnoticed had it not been for her instinct that there was more to this case.

“Due to the children’s incredibly young ages, they were unable to tell anyone what had happened to them. Our work focused heavily on comparing pictures of scenes and clothing in order to prove the identity of each victim and place the offender in every single image and video.

“It is testament to DC Hawley’s tenacity and dedication that she was able to build a case so strong, this man had nowhere to hide.”

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On March 2, 2023, the offender pleaded guilty to a total of 22 sex offences including rape of a child under 13, sexual activity with a child, sexual assault of a child and making indecent images of children, with the age of children pictured ranging from one to 14-years-old.​DI Wilson continued: “We are relentless in protecting children from the serious and predatory sex offenders and securing justice on their behalf, and I would like to acknowledge the significant sentence passed by the judge.

“Crimes like this have a lifelong impact on victims and their families and it is right that this is recognised by the courts. I only hope that those affected can begin to move forward.”

Please note: The name of the man cannot be shared due to a reporting restriction protecting the identity of his children, who are entitled to lifelong anonymity. Sharing information that could lead to the identification of one of the victims is a criminal offence, police said in their press release.