A man has been jailed after he had sex with an underage girl in Oldham.
Timothy Edwards (20/03/57), of Walk Mill, Dobcross, was found guilty of four counts of sexual activity with a child, five counts of making and possessing indecent photographs, and one count of attempting to incite sexual activity with a child, after a trial at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court.
He was sentenced on Thursday 29 January 2015 to six years in prison and forced to sign the sex offenders register indefinitely.
In February 2013 Edwards met his victim, who was 13-years-old at the time, online via Facebook, and began chatting to her. He asked her to send him explicit pictures and videos, but she refused and after messaging each other further, Edwards persuaded his victim to meet with him in early December 2013. He went to her house, where he had sex with her.
After his arrest in January 2014 police seized his computers and, after forensic examination, discovered 15 indecent images of children.
Detective Sergeant Lindsey Curry of Oldham Division said: “Edwards actively pursued his victim because of her young age and sexually abused her.
“The girl was very brave to speak to police and disclose these crimes and I would like to commend her for that, as coming forward and disclosing the assaults that he committed against her must have been extremely hard.
“I would urge anyone who believes they may have been a victim of sexual abuse to come forward and talk to police.
“I hope this case sends out a strong message to those who target young girls and abuse them that we will track you down and bring you before the courts.”
Anyone who is concerned about a child or young person should call Greater Manchester Police on 101 or 999 in emergencies.
Any child or young person wanting help and advice can use the numbers above or contact Childline on 0800 1111.
Help and advice can be found on the It’s Not Okay website – http://www.itsnotokay.co.uk or Parents Against Child Sexual Exploitation website
Telltale signs of child exploitation to look for include:
– Disengagement from education; young people who are not in school during the day may be more at risk of sexual exploitation. Children who are becoming involved in this activity may begin to skip school or become disruptive
– Risky behaviours; including secretive use of mobile phones and the internet
– Repeatedly going missing
– Unexplained gifts; children who appear to have new clothes, jewellery, mobile phones or money that cannot ‘plausibly’ be accounted for
– Peers and friends; involved in sexual exploitation and with ‘older’ boyfriends/girlfriends
– Drugs/alcohol; drug or alcohol abuse may leave children more vulnerable to sexual exploitation, it is also true to say that ‘abusers’ may use drugs and alcohol to help control children.
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