Victim of 'monster' York child sex abuser Graham Howard speaks out on seeking justice after CPS dropped case

Naomi Clayton was abused sexually, physically and emotionally from the age of five by "vile monster" Graham Leslie Howard, with the abuse continuing until she was 15.

Howard was jailed for 30 years at York Crown Court in August 2019, where it was heard Ms Clayton was raped multiple times and bribed with sweets so that she would not tell anybody. She was also beaten with a baseball bat.

A North Yorkshire Police detective who led the case described it as "one of the worst cases of child abuse I have ever dealt with".

Ms Clayton, 29, has bravely waived her anonymity to speak about her abuse and encourage other survivors whose cases were not prosecuted to have them reviewed.

"From the very first interview I did [with police], I was able to tell them every single tiny little bit of detail," she said.

"Right down to the texture of the fabric I could feel while he was abusing me, the smell and what I could hear. You don’t ever forget. I wanted to put every detail I had in my head out there."

Police were first made aware of Howard in 2008, when another girl reported she had been abused by him. He was arrested and questioned, but the case was dropped due to a lack of evidence.

Ms Clayton later fell pregnant aged 17 and had to give up her daughter on the day she gave birth, as social services were aware she still had contact with Howard against whom allegations of abuse had been made.

Driven to despair, she finally reported her abuse in December 2014.

"I just realised I couldn’t let this man take anything else away from me," she added.

The case was referred to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), which considered the evidence for a year before deciding not to charge Howard.

"We received this news and decided there and then to submit it under the Victim’s Right to Review," said Cat Hockney, a case worker with the York-based charity, IDAS, which has supported Ms Clayton since January 2015.

"We stood outside the police station and put the call in to get the appeal going."

It took another two-and-a-half years of re-consideration from the CPS, in which time Ms Clayton was hit by further tragedy as she lost her mother and split from her long-term partner.

"It took, I would say, monthly - if not every other month - emails chasing up what they were doing," Ms Hockney added.

"It was like an empty void and I think if it hadn’t been for those constant emails, they would have never gotten back to Naomi.

"So, two-and-a-half years later, we got the news he was going to get charged."

Ms Clayton, who now lives in Scarborough, said: "There were plenty of times I could have decided I couldn’t go through with it all, but I kept on fighting."

Two other victims abused by Howard came forward ahead of his appearance at York Crown Court, where he pleaded not guilty to 18 charges, including 11 of rape of a child. He was found guilty in August last year, when Ms Clayton was 30-weeks pregnant with her second child at the time.

"Up until this moment, I just kept thinking 'I'm cursed'," she said.

"I needed this result. It was all worth it. Most importantly for me it was knowing that someone believed me because all those years I just thought they wouldn’t. To have 12 strangers listen to all those gruesome details of what happened to me and believe them, it just meant the world.

"I’ve protected my future and my children’s future and I know he can’t hurt me or anybody else."

Official figures show that the vast majority of serious sexual offence cases result in "no further action". Out of 1,555 rape cases reported to North Yorkshire Police between January and July last year, 1,302 were not taken any further with only 250 resulting in a prosecution.

However, all victims have the Victim's Right to Review, which means they can request that the CPS must take a second look at a case after deciding not to press charges.

Ms Clayton added: "He thought he had gotten away with it. This man is a vile monster. In that time of two-and-a-half years, what did they allow him to get up to?

"He was very cruel and arrogant through to the end. He turned around in the dock and swore at me when he was sentenced."

Ms Clayton now lives in Scarborough, and is a full-time mother to her son who was born several weeks after Howard was jailed.

She added: "No matter how bad it is, no matter how scary it seems and how terrified you are, you are not alone.

"It might be that you have to find that inner strength to speak up and speak out, but I promise someone will listen to you."

The CPS confirmed Ms Clayton's case had initially been dropped due to a lack of evidence, but was successfully prosecuted following a review.

The Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor for Yorkshire and Humberside, Chris Hartley, said: “The CPS worked closely with the police throughout the re-review of this case.

“As part of the re-investigation, further lines of inquiry were opened, some of which involved lengthy liaison with other agencies.

“These new investigations were not without their challenges and took some considerable time to complete. They eventually resulted in building a very strong case to put before the jury, and the defendant was found guilty after trial and sentenced to thirty years in prison.

“Over the course of the review we sent some 15 letters to the victims, explaining that investigations were ongoing and providing revised timescales.

“In this case however, although the additional enquiries were detailed and complex, and sometimes involved matters outside our control, we acknowledge that there was significant delay with concluding the VRR process, and I offer my apologies for this.

“I hope that the very substantial sentence the defendant received is of some comfort to the victims.”

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