One of Wales' most notorious paedophiles has died in prison
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A notorious child sex offender has died in prison. Former Wrexham care home owner John Allen spent 11 years behind bars for offences carried out over "several decades".
In court he was labelled a 'predatory paedophile' who committed 'seriously depraved behaviour'. Allen, who ran several Bryn Alyn community children's homes in Wrexham, was serving a life sentence for child sex abuse.
HM Prison Service has confirmed he died at HMP Bure, a prison for sex offenders. He was aged 83. A spokesperson said: 'HMP Bure prisoner John Allen died on May 3, 2025. As with all deaths in custody, the Prison and Probation Ombudsman will investigate.'
Allen set up the children's homes in 1968 and ran them for 20 years. Bryn Alyn became one of the UK's largest providers of residential care for children, at one point accommodating more than 150 youngsters from around the UK at 11 properties. Many were subjected to repeated abuse.
In 2014, Allen was jailed for life, with a minimum of 11 years, for 33 sex offences committed between 1976 and 1992. Further victims then came forward and he was found guilty in December 2019 of seven counts of indecent assault and one of a serious sexual offence against children.
Jailing him for a further 14-and-a-half years, judge Rhys Rowlands told Mold Crown Court that Allen had shown 'sheer wickedness' by taking advantage of children in his care. Sign up now for the latest news on the North Wales Live Whatsapp community
He was arrested as part of Operation Pallial, an independent investigation launched in 2012 by the National Crime Agency (NCA) into allegations of past abuse in the care system in North Wales.
By January 2020, 375 people had come forward with information, leading to 13 convictions. The NSPCC said Allen had conducted a 'reign of terror over a dark period of several decades'.
His actions, added the children's charity, put him 'high up the scale of the most prolific child abusers of recent times'. Sign up for the North Wales Live newsletter sent twice daily to your inbox
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