Teacher Simon Clark who posed as teen to groom girls is jailed
A 46-year-old teacher who posed as a teenager online to ask girls for indecent images of themselves has been jailed for eight years.Simon Clark, from Ellesmore Port, Cheshire, was a teacher in Flintshire when he pretended to be a 14-year-old boy and sent messages to 26 girls aged between 10 and 15.Clark previously admitted 29 offences including inciting children under 13 to engage in sexual activity, and 21 counts of sexual communication with a child and making indecent images of children - 26 of which were in the most serious category.His offences came to light in January 2023, when a mother saw explicit messages from the father-of-two on her 12-year-old daughter's laptop.
Chester Crown Court heard the messages included requests for pictures of the girl's body, which the mother reported to North Wales Police.The account was in the name of Jamie_jones6968 who claimed to be a schoolboy in England, but the IP address of the account which sent the messages was traced to Clark.
The court heard the case was then passed to detectives from the Online Child Abuse Investigation Team at Cheshire Police.Devices were seized from Clark's home where police found hundreds of messages to dozens of girls - many under the age of 16.He had sent indecent videos to some girls and asked for them to send some back to him.Cheshire Police praised the complainants for their bravery and described Clark as a sexual predator who despite being in a position of trust, continued his crimes to "satisfy his own warped sexual desires".Sentencing him to eight years, Judge Simon Berkson said his crimes were "a parent's worst nightmare" and showed "clear grooming of young girls".He said it was "well planned, sophisticated, criminal behaviour". As a result he said Clark had "lost everything" including his job, marriage and unsupervised access to his own young children.He will face an extended four years on licence at the end of his sentence.An NSPCC spokesperson said: "As a teacher Clark had a duty to keep children safe."Instead for seven years he posed as a teenage boy on a social media platform, using his fake profile to target and groom young girls before persuading them to send naked images of themselves."This kind of sexual abuse can have a devasting impact on the victims and it is vital all the children involved in this case have access to the support they need to move forwards with their lives."This case also highlights the need for social media sites to be doing much more to protect children and prevent offenders like Clark from using their platforms to carry out their crimes."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
36 minutes ago
- BBC News
Woman, 94, seriously hurt after being hit by car in Wallasey
A 94-year-old woman has been seriously injured after being hit by a car on pedestrian was struck by a black Mini Cooper Countryman car on St Albans Road, Wallasey, Wirral at about 12:25 BST, Merseyside Police was taken to hospital where she is being treated for her 89-year-old driver of the car stopped at the scene and has been helping officers with their inquiries, the force said. One lane of St Albans Road has been closed while investigations are carried out to establish what happened. Listen to the best of BBC Radio Merseyside on Sounds and follow BBC Merseyside on Facebook, X, and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.
Daily Mail
44 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Medical student who was paralysed when man fell 120 feet onto her from shopping centre third floor says: 'I wouldn't change a thing'
Grace Spence Green was just 22 years old when a man plummeted from 120 feet and landed directly on top of her, crushing her spine and leaving her paralysed. The medical student had been walking through Westfield shopping centre in east London when the intoxicated man leapt from the third-floor balcony and violently collided into her. Her next memory was waking up on the floor screaming, frantically telling those around her that she had no feeling in her legs. Ms Green, who was later taken to surgery, had been left with a broken spine, paralysing her from the chest down. Meanwhile, the man who had fallen on top of her, Amsumana Sillah Trawally, had suffered a mere leg fracture. Following the incident in October 2018, he has since been deported. The 25-year-old was jailed in 2019 for four years after admitting causing grievous bodily harm. It was concluded that he had likely been under the influence of cannabis at the time he vaulted the third floor barrier at Westfield Stratford. Recalling the day of the terrifying crash in a previous Radio 4 interview with Jane Garvey, Ms Green said: 'It was the most surreal, bizarre experience. I can't describe waking up when you thought you were already awake. 'Because it was Westfield and state-of-the-art, all I could see was this brilliant white light. It felt like I was in a dream or in heaven or something. 'Apparently I was out for about eight minutes. 'My first thought was this brilliant white ceiling, then my second thought was, "oh my god I can't feel my legs." 'It really did feel like that movie scene you see. Then, as you say, I realised I was the one screaming. I remember screaming to the police officers nearby me screaming, "I can't feel my legs." 'I was desperately trying to tell them something was wrong. It was the absence of feeling that was the shocking thing. It was like my legs just ceased to exist. I always describe it as like when you unplug a cord. It felt like I'd been unplugged from half of my body.' Ms Green was immediately rushed to King's College Hospital where she underwent eight hours of spinal surgery. Titanium was then bolted into her spine in a bid to keep her shattered vertebrae in place. After an initial two weeks in hospital, the then trainee doctor was later admitted to the Royal National Orthopaedic hospital in Stanmore, Middlesex. There, she endured endless nights of desperately trying to wiggle a toe, learning the skills required to navigate life in a wheelchair and eventually coming to terms with her new reality. Now, nearly seven years on, in her new book To Exist As I Am, the now 29-year-old has relived the horrendous experience, alongside her road towards a mental and physical recovery. But, despite the trauma of her life-changing ordeal, Ms Green insists that she still wouldn't change a thing. Speaking to The Mirror, she said: 'As the years went by, what I gained through my disability, how it's changed me, the relationships that have changed - I can now say I wouldn't change it because of all I've gained from it'. Remarkably, she also doesn't harbour any bitterness towards the man responsible for her injury. Adding that she had taken comfort in the fact that she likely saved Trawally's life, she said: 'That made it much easier to start navigating all of the emotions I felt because what I was going through was really difficult. But I wouldn't have changed it'. Ms Green added that while she had initially experienced a 'sense of denial' towards her injury, her partner of three years, Nathan, was by her side throughout it all. The couple are set to marry in July. Describing her beloved partner as a 'constant' source of strength, she said: 'It always felt like we were dealing with this together. It wasn't just my burden to bear'. 10 months after her injury, Ms Green returned to medical school. Since graduating in 2021, she has now begun her career as a doctor. Not once, even at her lowest point, did she consider giving up her aspiration for a career in medicine. Now, she hopes to use her traumatic injury as an opportunity to inspire and advocate for other disabled individuals who can face a daily barrage of micro-aggressions and inappropriate comments. Believing that disability remains a highly stigmatised topic in society, she feels assured that while challenging, sharing her vulnerable experience offers a unique chance for others to listen and learn.
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Man arrested after city centre rape reported in Brighton
A man has been arrested after a reported rape in a busy area of Police said a member of the public reported the incident in Manchester Street, at about 11:00 BST on Saturday.A 45-year-old man arrested on suspicion of rape remains in custody, police with information has been asked to contact the force. Det Insp Kirstie Neal said: "Anyone in the area with relevant CCTV, mobile phone, doorbell or dashcam footage is also asked to come forward."It took place in a busy area just off St James's Street and there will be an increased police presence in the area while this matter is investigated."The victim, a woman in her 20s, is receiving support from specially-trained officers, the force added.
