Unmasked: The Co Antrim woman who tried to stop us exposing her as sex offender
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scotsman
a day ago
- Scotsman
East Lothian paedophile youth football coach and NHS manager jailed for fifth time for sex offences
A paedophile youth football coach has been jailed for the fifth time for sickening sex offences against children and breaching court orders. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Craig Raeburn was caught trying to hide a computer containing images of youngsters being raped when police officers visited his home in Haddington, East Lothian, earlier this year. Raeburn, 60, initially denied owning the electronic tablet when confronted by the constables but eventually confessed he had stashed the device in his kitchen and was forced to hand it over. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad An examination of the device was carried out and horror pictures depicting the sexual abuse of children were found including four at Category A - the most depraved end of the spectrum. Craig Raeburn, 60, pictured outside Edinburgh Sheriff Court. | Alexander Lawrie The former NHS manager has been caged on four previous occasions for possessing indecent images of children, sending sex pics to a teenage boy and breaching a Sexual Offences Prevention Order [SOPO]. He admitted the latest offences when he appeared from custody at Edinburgh Sheriff Court last month and was back in the dock for sentencing today, Friday, August 15. Defence agent Andrew Docherty said: 'Mr Raeburn is fully aware of the sentence the court will have in mind due to his previous offences.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The lawyer added Raeburn had shown 'insight and self-reflection' into his behaviour while in custody. Sheriff Christopher Dickson said: 'These are both serious offences set against the background of analogous offending. There is only one appropriate way of dealing with you and that is a custodial sentence.' Raeburn was sentenced to a 20 month jail term backdated to his remand date in January and placed on the sex offenders register for 10 years. Raeburn pleaded guilty to breaching the SOPO conditions by owning a device he had not declared, and to possessing indecent images of children on January 21 this year. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Previously prosecutor Xander van der Scheer told the court Raeburn was 'a high risk' sex offender who was being managed by police after being placed on a five year SOPO for a previous offence in March 2022. The court heard the order's conditions included police officers attending his home on unannounced visits and checking if he had any devices to access the internet. The fiscal depute said officers carried out 'a routine check' and spotted a black electronic tablet leaning against a sofa on January 21 this year. Craig Raeburn was sent back to jail on Friday, August 15. | Alexander Lawrie Raeburn, who was a children's football coach when he first offended, was seen to quickly scoop up two blankets from the couch and take them into the kitchen. The constables then noted the electronic tablet was missing and demanded he hand it over. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The court was told Raeburn, a father of two, denied any knowledge of the device but eventually confessed to owning it. Mr van der Scheer said a cyber crime examination had discovered 31 child sexual abuse images including four Category A, 14 Category B and a further 13 rated at Category C. Raeburn was previously jailed for 14 months when he was caught with around 1400 child abuse images in 2016. He was subsequently sacked from his position as a practitioner services manager with the NHS following the conviction. Just weeks after his release from custody he was snared in an online paedophile hunter sting when he sent images of his penis and sexualised comments to an adult decoy on Skype and WhatsApp. He was jailed again for 20 months and placed on the sex offenders register for 10 years following the incident in 2018. Raeburn was then given a 15 month sentence the following year when he admitted breaching the SOPO when he was caught attempting to search for men on the gay social media app Grindr. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad And the serial offender was back in court in 2023 after he was caught Googling his own name on an illicit device he had not informed police he owned. He was initially fined £1000 by a sheriff but that sentence was appealed by the Crown and the High Court of Judiciary quashed the financial penalty and judges imposed 12 months custody.
Daily Mirror
3 days ago
- Daily Mirror
'Deviant' paedophile raped girl, 9, and then gave her Roblox credits
A man who raped a girl, nine, and then gave her Roblox credits was handed a 13 year sentence - a judge said Jason Harkness had a 'deviant sexual interest in children' A man who was convicted of a string of sex offences including the rape of a nine-year-old girl has been handed a 13 year sentence. A judge said Jason Harkness indicated he had a "deviant sexual interest in children". Harkness, 31, was jailed for 15 offences including raping and sexually assaulting the girl, as well as possessing indecent images of children and extreme pornographic images. He was convicted by a jury in Dungannon, Northern Ireland, in November last year. During the trial, the jury heard Harkness' grim offences emerged when the girl, who is not related to him, became upset during a well-being lesson in school in September 2021 and made disclosures to a teacher. An investigation was then launched at the PSNI spoke with the child in December 2021. She revealed she was exposed to abuse over a period from 2019 to 2021. Part of the abuse included being raped and sexually abused when she was nine. Harness was arrested in March 2022. Officers seized a number of electronic devices during the search and officers located over 1,000 indecent images as well four extreme pornographic images. Harkness denied any wrongdoing against the child, who was called to give evidence during the trial. She said Harkness assaulted her and threatened her with further violence when she complained about the sexual abuse. Regarding the rape, the child said it 'felt horrible' and that is hurt her. She also said she told Harkness to stop 'over and over again', but he told her to be quiet and carried on. After his sick act, he gave the child credits for the online game platform Roblox. The jury returned unanimously guilty verdicts on all 15 charges levelled at Harkness. At Dungannon Crown Court, Judge Brian Sherrard divided the 13 year sentence equally between prison and supervised licence. Judge Sherrard told him he has a "deviant sexual interest in children" and that he used the victim to fulfil his "deviant sexual needs." Harness was also told he will be on the Sex Offenders Register and will be the subject of a Sexual Offences Prevention Order. Both of these court orders are for an indefinite period.
Daily Record
3 days ago
- Daily Record
Child sex offender who penned 'paedo manifesto' breaches order after failing to report to cops
Darren Adams - who claimed his "community" of fellow paedophiles faced discrimination - was fined £200 after he admitted the charge at Perth Sheriff Court. A child sex offender who penned a paedophile manifesto has been fined after breaching an order by failing to report in with police. Darren Adams - who claimed his "community" of fellow paedophiles faced discrimination - was fined £200 after he admitted the charge at Perth Sheriff Court. Adams was previously caught when police raided his home and uncovered a sick stash of 18,000 child abuse images and videos. The material, featuring boys as young as four, was found on his home computer alongside a written proclamation stating he and other paedophiles should be recognised as a"minority group" whose legal and human rights should be respected. Adams, 54, stated he was not ashamed of being a paedophile and asked: "Why should I respect a law which doesn't respect me?" Adams, of St Catherine's Square, Perth, has now admitted breaching his notification requirements by failing to give police vital basic details for his annual review in April. Solicitor Linda Clark, defending, said: "Unfortunately his mother died in April 2025. He had been living with her in Blairgowrie. "Inevitably, council sympathy did not extend to him and he was told the tenancy would be removed from him. He was effectively going to be homeless. "That triggered numerous issues for him and he's now in temporary accommodation. He simply forgot about attending." In May last year, Adams appeared at the same court and admitted breaching the terms of his Sexual Offences Prevention Order (SOPO) by having a Blu-Ray player that could access the internet. Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. He was placed on a three-month nightly curfew. Edinburgh Sheriff Court had previously heard police uncovered a stash of sick videos and images featuring boys as young as four when they raided Adams' home in Dalkeith. Officers also found his manifesto, which stated: "I believe I was born a paedophile. There's nothing anyone can do about it. "I'm not proud of this but I'm not ashamed either. I am more ashamed of the bigoted and close-minded way that society and the law treats people from my community." Adams also wrote society should recognise paedophiles as "another minority group" and respect their human rights.
