Hospital worker and husband planned brutal rape of young children

North Wales Live

10 hours ago

A hospital worker and her husband, who sent depraved messages to each other, where they planned and discussed the rape and sexual abuse of children, have been jailed.
During the sick messages, they spoke about taking one child to a shed where they would rape and choke her, and spoke about "disposing" of her, a court heard.
Tracy Turner, 52, and Stuart Compton, 46, from Cardiff, were also found to be in possession of indecent images of children being sexually abused. Compton had also told other like-minded paedophiles his "preference" was for children aged between one and six years old, reports WalesOnline.
A sentencing hearing at Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court on Monday heard the messages came to light following the arrests of the couple in June, 2024, and the police received information from a well known dating app. For the latest court reports sign up to our crime newsletter.
There were more than 100,000 lines of messages between the defendants over WhatsApp, in which they spoke in detail about committing sexual acts against real children, and referred to each other as "Bonnie and Clyde".
In 2022, the couple began discussing the rape of a girl, who was under the age of 10.
Prosecutor Matthew Cobbe said Compton and Turner, an operating theatre assistant at the University Hospital of Wales, planned to take the girl for a walk in woodland and a nearby cemetery before taking her to a shed near a rail line and carrying out the "brutal acts".
Compton was said to be "obsessed" with performing a sex act on the child before raping her. They also discussed Turner performing a sex act upon the child, to "make her ready" for Compton to rape her.
During these discussions, Compton described masturbating at the thought of the abuse, with Turner encouraging him, and on occasions she would describe masturbating.
Mr Cobbe said: "They both recognised the brutality of the sexual acts that they discussed, they recognised that they would need to take steps to ensure (the child) could not cry out or scream as she was being abused."
The defendants came to the conclusion Turner would sit on the child's face, to prevent any sound of distress or call for help.
The prosecutor added: "They recognised the abuse for what it was, they recognised that it was rape. It was not a realization that it would amount to rape, instead they were clearly stimulated by the fact that it was rape....
"They discussed that they could choke (the child). Compton derived a thrill from the prospect of continuing to rape (the child) both during the choking and after she lost consciousness.
"They recognised that the completion of the act would in turn lead to the difficult prospect of what to do next with (the child). They discussed disposal of (the child), Compton clearly linked the choking to a fatal conclusion."
The court heard that Compton claimed he would "accept all responsibility" for the act if either of them were arrested. He added: "There will be blood and tears babe so be prepared". Turner said she would not tell anyone, and added: "The only person who knows my darkest secrets is you."
Their attention later turned to a boy, who was under the age of 13 when Compton told Turner he would get the boy to feel her breasts.
After initially being reluctant, Turner quickly agreed she would like to have sexual intercourse with the boy, and told Compton she was masturbating at the thought of having sex with him.
Compton told Turner this was "different from fantasy" and he wanted to do this for "real".
They spoke about grooming the boy by touching him.
Mr Cobbe said the ultimate plan was for Turner to perform a sex act on (the boy) and to cause him to penetrate her. He said Compton said that he wanted to watch and at one stage admitted that he also wanted to carry out a sex act on the boy.
It was also said Turner called Compton (the boy's) name during sex and Compton fantasised about having sex with Turner, the boy and the female child together.
Reference was also made to a second girl, who was also under the age of 10. Compton told Turner he had masturbated over the thought of her.
During their conversation, Compton told Turner he had a sexual desire for girls under the age of 10, and told her to leave him.
He went on to tell Turner he would handcuff her while performing sex acts on the girl and he wanted to rape the girl.
Compton said he wanted to steal the child's underwear and for her to sit on his lap.
They spoke about a plan to sexually abuse the child, but Turner said she would "end her life" if anyone became aware of the plan. She went on to say she was "turned on" by the plan, but it "felt so wrong".
The couple spoke about giving the girl a sleeping tablet or diazepam and once she was unconscious they would position her body and take photos of her.
Compton described the plan as "my favourite fantasy of all through realism and sexiness combined".
On June 25 last year, police officers located Compton smoking a cigarette outside the Crwys pub in Cardiff and he was arrested. He claimed the dating app he was signed up to had been "hacked".
The defendant told the officers his phone was at work and Turner approached them, wanting to know what was going on.
Compton was taken to Cardiff Bay police station, and officers returned to the pub to speak to Turner, who also claimed her husband had left his phone at work.
The pub manager later handed a mobile phone to the police, which Turner had given to her and asked her to look after it.
A search of Compton's home led to the seizure of a sharp ended baton, a knuckle duster and a concealed blade.
His phone was examined and a number of indecent images of children were discovered in the gallery app and within the Session app.
A total of 22 category A images, six category B images and 39 category C images were discovered and related to children who were of primary school age.
Compton had also been distributing images on WhatsApp and Session to paedophiles, during which he adopted different identities, and told contacts his preference was for children aged between one and six years old.
Turner's phone was found to contain one category B image and nine category C images, which had been sent to her by Compton, as well as videos of him masturbating while they were discussing child abuse.
In 2023, the couple discussed going to a "family festival" where there would be young children, with Compton saying he'd like to go to a "hippy one, where lots of drugs consumed leaving unattended girls, great f****** idea that's genius babe."
During his police interview, Compton claimed the conversations were "role play" and that one of the children they were discussing was not real.
Turner claimed she was "not being serious" and denied having any sexual interest in children, saying Compton was a "fantasist" and had "manipulated her".
Compton, of Daniel Street, Cathays, later pleaded guilty to six counts of arranging a child sex offence, three counts of making indecent images, and three counts of distributing indecent images.
Turner, of Ninian Road, Roath, pleaded guilty to six counts of arranging a child sex offence and two counts of making indecent images.
Both defendants were of previous good character.
A series of victim personal statements were read to the court by Mr Cobbe, the first from the mother of the first female child.
She said: "Police visited our home and informed us our child had been discussed by the defendants in a sexual nature. It's difficult to describe the impact on us as parents, we are overcome with emotion, sickness and shock. The increased sense of protectiveness over our children is overwhelming...
"How did no-one see what was happening?... When we learnt the extent of the charges it was gut wrenching and devastating. I was unable to sleep or eat, I lost my appetite and felt upset or sick all the time. Our family dynamic has changed and our relationship as a couple is strained and has deteriorated. It's constantly on my mind and my husband tries to put it in a box. I become numb and he becomes angry at the world.
"We have taken independence away from our children for fear of something else happening. I didn't know who I could trust, we had to make changes for our family to feel safe and feel an overwhelming sense of protectiveness. The decisions we make as parents are very different out of paranoia and fear...
"We're trying to rescue our family from something that is out of our hands. Sometimes it's very real and sometimes it's like a soap opera. How has this happened to our child? We feel guilty, overwhelmed and out of control... The thought of what could have happened to our daughter by two people with monstrous sexual intent is unimaginable. The gravity of this is huge and hard to put into words."
The next statement is from the second female child's father. He said: "The pain they have put me and my family through is incomprehensible... I hope what they have done to me and my family stays with them for the rest of their lives."
The second female child's mother said: "Our world is turned upside down. It's difficult to process the information which was given to us by police and devastated to learn of our daughter's involvement in their distorted schemes... We'll have to try and navigate our lives and this will hang over us until we are able to do so. I am furious I have been put in this situation to lie to my child to protect her from the harsh reality of the truth... I hope I can regain some sort of balance and the internal horror will diminish."
In mitigation, Kevin Seal, for Compton, said his client was a user of drugs including cocaine and cannabis, and was misusing alcohol. He said the defendant had a mild depressive and anxiety disorder, chronic pain in his back and had been diagnosed with compulsive sexual behaviour disorder.
Nicola Powell, for Turner, said her client had worked for the NHS for 33 years "without blemish" and was suffering from a number of issues including stress, financial debt, low mood, anxiety and depression.
The barrister described the defendant having an "unhealthy relationship" with Compton, which was described as "consuming, possessive, controlling and oppressive". It was also said she abused alcohol and took cocaine every day having been introduced by her co-defendant.
The defendant said she had ended her relationship with Compton, and told a probation officer: "I just said what he wanted to hear, I never thought any of it would have happened. I wish I reported it to the police, I regret it every hour of every day."
Sentencing, the Recorder of Cardiff, Judge Tracey Lloyd-Clarke said: "There was clear intent to arrange sexual acts but these acts did not take place."
Referring to the messages and plans made by the defendants, the judge said: "They were not pure fantasy, you both had a sexual interest in children and intended to carry out your brutal sexual plans... Your actions have devastated the families of the children involved."
Judge Lloyd-Clarke said she found both defendants posed a significant risk to children and were dangerous in respects of the legal definition.
Compton was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of seven years. He was emotionless as the sentence was delivered.
Turner, who sobbed throughout the hearing, was sentenced to 12 years imprisonment with an extended licence period of two years.
Both defendants were made subject to sex offender notification requirements for life, and to Sexual Harm Prevention Orders and restraining orders until further notice.