Latest news with #DavidSutton
The Sun
2 days ago
- The Sun
How revered charity leader groomed and raped a 12-year-old boy then told twisted pal it was ‘naughty and kinky'
STEPHEN IRELAND was a popular LGBT activist, who co-founded Surrey Pride and held the important position of its head of safeguarding. But he will now spend the next 24 years in prison after raping an 'extremely vulnerable' 12-year-old boy in April 2024. 8 8 I was in Guildford Crown Court on Monday to watch Judge Patricia Lees hand Ireland, 42, his sentence, which included a further six years on extended licence. His 27-year-old boyfriend and flatmate, David Sutton, was jailed for four and half years for his part in the sickening ordeal. The boy — referred to in court as Child A — who had been reported missing at the time, had been lured to Ireland's home in Surrey after meeting him on the popular gay dating app Grindr. In a carefully calculated move, Ireland provided the boy with a set of instructions and a key code to his flat, to avoid being seen together in public. The boy, tired and hungry, was given a bong to smoke, which was later found to be laced with methamphetamine, while pornography played on a laptop. Then he was raped by Ireland and the assault filmed, for the sadistic enjoyment of their cohorts. The four-week trial followed an extensive investigation by Surrey Police's Complex Abuse Unit. 'Keep it a secret' It began following the reported rape, which led to Ireland's arrest in April 2024. A search of a phone hidden in his flat revealed indecent images of children. Ireland and Sutton were both arrested on June 11, 2024, for distribution and possession of indecent images of children, and on August 14, 2024, charges were authorised for 44 offences (later increased to 45) relating to both, covering the period between August 2022 and July 2024. Ireland's full list of crimes is horrifying. He was also convicted of three counts of causing a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity, sexual assault, conspiracy to engage in sexual activity with a child, facilitating a child sexual offence, six counts of making child abuse imagery, distributing pornographic images of children, and possession of one of the most serious child abuse images, involving a toddler. Sutton, who was a Surrey Pride volunteer, was sentenced for offences including voyeurism and possession and distribution of prohibited images of children. He was also sentenced for perverting the course of justice for disposing of a phone owned by Surrey Pride (supposedly used for Pride business only). On a separate device, police found a message from Ireland to Sutton, telling him to wipe all the images and messages off the Pride handset. That device has never been found. Child A had originally told Ireland he was 17, but when he later claimed in a message that he was 13, Ireland replied: 'OK — we just have to keep it a secret.' Sickeningly, he later told the boy he found his young age 'naughty and kinky'. Other messages between Ireland and Sutton described the child as a '14-year-old baby . . . who wants to play with men's bodies'. 8 8 Judge Patricia Lees said Ireland and Sutton 'fed off one another' and had supported one another in their 'perversions'. She said: 'Stephen Ireland is a man who prided himself on being versed in and highly alive to the vulnerabilities of young people linked to the Surrey Pride organisation he was at the time pivotal to. ''A' was quite obviously to any adult an extremely vulnerable child who was highly sexualised. 'Any responsible adult would have quickly appreciated that there was a high likelihood 'A' is a young man who had been the subject of sexual grooming by adult men at a very early age and been concerned for him instead of taking advantage.' It is clear that Ireland, who co-founded Surrey Pride in 2018, used his position to gain access to young people and children. He was once so revered by the community, he was chauffeured around by Surrey Police in its 'Pride Car'. But some volunteers had complained after feeling uneasy about the young age of his then boyfriend. 8 8 One of those, Eve — not her real name — told me: 'There were some volunteers that raised concerns and there was a full safeguarding investigation, which was also escalated up to Surrey County Council. 'They had a huge issue about the fact that Ireland had a younger boyfriend, but he was above the age of 18, so that was that.' Ireland was also involved in the Pride Hub, which encouraged young people to join in-person social events. There is video footage of him sitting with an older 'trans woman' telling kids they could 'have sweets and popcorn' if they came along to a film screening. He also gave talks to schools. Throughout his time at the helm of Surrey Pride, Ireland waged a harassment campaign against Policing and Crime Commissioner Lisa Townsend, which included lobbying for her removal from office, and regularly referring to her as 'anti-trans' and 'exclusionary' in public. So militant were his views on trans rights, he targeted gender critical feminists, including author JK Rowling, who had spoken out against transitioning children, and for the protection of women-only spaces. 8 In June 2020, Ireland tweeted: 'How to ruin a legacy . . . Become a TERF! Very disappointing JK!' Rowling posted on X about his 30-year sentence on Monday. Maria Esposito, an LGB campaigner since the 1980s and an attendee of the inaugural Surrey Pride, expressed unease about how quickly Ireland appeared to embed both himself and Pride within mainstream institutions. She said: 'Watching them gain access to Surrey County Council, Surrey Police and local radio stations was deeply concerning.' Esposito believes Surrey Pride should now be shut down.
The Sun
3 days ago
- The Sun
Pride group founder, 42, who raped 12-year-old boy he met on dating app Grindr is jailed alongside partner
A PRIDE group founder who raped a 12-year-old boy he met on the Grindr dating app has been locked up alongside his partner. Stephen Ireland, who co-founded Pride in Surrey in 2018, raped an 'extremely vulnerable' boy and has been jailed for 24 years. 4 4 4 The 42-year-old raped the child at a flat he shared with his then-partner and co-defendant David Sutton, 27, in Addlestone on April 19 2024. The court heard Ireland had arranged for the 12-year-old boy, referred to in court as Child A, to meet him at his flat after messaging on dating app Grindr. Ireland told the boy they would have to keep his age a "secret" and found his young age "exciting", the court heard. The boy, who had been reported missing at the time, told police they had sex in the flat, smoked a bong which was later found to have contained methamphetamine, and that pornography was played on a laptop. Judge Patricia Lees, sentencing at Guildford Crown Court on Monday, told the hearing Ireland 'took advantage' of a vulnerable child. She said: 'Stephen Ireland is a man who prided himself on being versed in and highly alive to the vulnerabilities of young people linked to the Surrey Pride organisation he was at the time pivotal to. 'A was quite obviously to any adult an extremely vulnerable child who was highly sexualised. 'Any responsible adult would have quickly appreciated that there was a high likelihood A is a young man who had been the subject of sexual grooming by adult men at a very early age and been concerned for him instead of taking advantage of him.' The court heard the boy had initially told Ireland he was aged 17 – but when he later claimed to be aged 13, Ireland replied: 'OK – we just have to keep it a secret.' 'Your response was telling,' Judge Lees told Ireland, who sat in the dock dressed in a large red T-shirt and showed no emotions throughout the hearing. 'Far from finding that repugnant, you found that exciting, and sought to do it again.' In a Telegram chat that took place after their encounter, Ireland sent Child A a message in which he described his age as 'naughty and kinky', the court heard. On the same day, Ireland asked the boy if he would have a threesome and sent the child pictures of himself and Sutton. Jurors heard that Ireland sent a picture of Child A to Sutton, describing him as a '14-year-old baby' who 'wants to play with men's bodies', and the pair exchanged messages about the child. Ireland and Sutton, who was a volunteer for Surrey Pride, were found guilty of a string of sexual offences against children. These included voyeurism, arranging commission of a child sex offence, and possession of prohibited images of children, after a trial at Guildford Crown Court earlier this year. In August 2022, Ireland and Sutton discussed arrangements to procure a 13-year-old boy for Sutton's 25th birthday in October of that year, the court heard. Both men were also sentenced on one count each of voyeurism after Ireland watched live camera footage of Sutton having sex with another 16-year-old boy at their flat in March 2024. The teenager did not know he was being recorded, with Ireland sending Sutton messages such as 'he doesn't know I'm here' and telling him what to do, the court heard. 'You fed off one another,' Judge Lees told the defendants during the sentence hearing on Monday. 'You definitely supported one another in your perversions.' Ireland and Sutton also perverted the course of justice by intentionally deleting material and search history from their phones after they were released on police bail in June 2024. Ireland was sentenced to 24 years' imprisonment, with a further six on extended licence. He was found guilty of one count of rape, three counts of causing a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity, sexual assault, conspiracy to engage in sexual activity with a child, arranging commission of a child sex offence, six counts of making indecent photographs of children, four counts of distributing indecent photographs of children, possession of prohibited images, and possession of an extreme pornographic image. Sutton was sentenced to four-and-a-half years in jail for offences including voyeurism, possession and distribution of prohibited images of children, and perverting the course of justice. Ireland's defence lawyer Alex Kirkler told the court his client did not abuse his position within the Surrey Pride organisation to commit these offences.
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Daily Mail
JK Rowling gloats at virtue-signalling paedophile who slated her for her transgender views - as he is jailed for 24 years for raping 'vulnerable' boy, 12
A gloating JK Rowling has revealed how a virtue-signalling paedophile harassed her over her transgender views - before he was jailed for 24 years for raping a 12-year-old boy. The 59-year-old Harry Potter author lashed out online after perverted social media troll Stephen Ireland was sent to prison for his depraved abuse of the 'vulnerable' schoolboy. Ireland, 42, who co-founded Pride in Surrey in 2018, raped the youngster after luring him to the flat he shared with co-defendant David Sutton and plying him with drugs. The sex predator had arranged to meet the boy, referred to in court as Child A, after linking with him on homosexual dating app, Grindr in April 2024. But four years before Ireland went on to molest the boy, he had been vitriolically abusing Rowling online for her gender-critical views. In a post aimed at the multi-millionaire, Ireland raged: 'How to ruin a legacy... become a TERF! Very disappointing JK! 'What happens when women enter menopause? What about women who had hysterectomies? Women who don't menstruate because of hormonal issues? Are they not women? Nothing YOU say stops Trans Women from being Women.' Now, after Ireland was jailed alongside Sutton, 27 - who was sentenced to four-and-a-half years - Rowling wrote: 'Stephen Ireland, who targeted me with endless abuse on here because I oppose the chemical castration of children and the removal of protected spaces for women and girls, has just been sentenced to 30 years in jail for child rape.' Pictured is Ireland's post on X directed at JK Rowling for her views on transgender women Ireland was sentenced to 24 years in prison, not 30, as Rowling had claimed in her post on X. Guildford Crown Court heard the boy, who had been reported missing at the time of his rape, told police he had sex with Ireland in his flat. The victim said they also smoked a bong which was later found to have contained methamphetamine, and that pornography was played on a laptop. Judge Patricia Lees, sentencing at Guildford Crown Court on Monday, told the hearing Ireland 'took advantage' of a vulnerable child. She said: 'Stephen Ireland is a man who prided himself on being versed in and highly alive to the vulnerabilities of young people linked to the Surrey Pride organisation he was at the time pivotal to. 'A was quite obviously to any adult an extremely vulnerable child who was highly sexualised. 'Any responsible adult would have quickly appreciated that there was a high likelihood A is a young man who had been the subject of sexual grooming by adult men at a very early age and been concerned for him instead of taking advantage of him.' The court heard the boy had initially told Ireland he was aged 17 - but when he later claimed to be aged 13, Ireland replied: 'OK - we just have to keep it a secret.' 'Your response was telling,' Judge Lees told Ireland, who sat in the dock dressed in a large red T-shirt and showed no emotions throughout the hearing. 'Far from finding that repugnant, you found that exciting, and sought to do it again.' In a Telegram chat that took place after their encounter, Ireland sent Child A a message in which he described his age as 'naughty and kinky', the court heard. On the same day, Ireland asked the boy if he would have a threesome and sent the child pictures of himself and Sutton. Jurors heard that Ireland sent a picture of Child A to Sutton, describing him as a '14-year-old baby' who 'wants to play with men's bodies', and the pair exchanged messages about the child. Ireland along with Sutton, who was a volunteer for Surrey Pride, were found guilty of a string of sexual offences against children including voyeurism, arranging commission of a child sex offence, and possession of prohibited images of children, after a trial at Guildford Crown Court earlier this year. Rowling added Ireland was not the only sex offender to now find themselves behind bars after berating her online for her trans-critical views '[Sutton] follows in the footsteps of trans-identified man Lexi Secker, who also sent me reams of abuse on here, especially for my belief that women should have single-sex spaces and rape crisis centres. Mr Secker has since been sentenced to six and a half years in jail for rape,' she wrote on social media last night. Secker was obsessed with the Harry Potter creator and slammed other women - including MP Rosie Duffield - who have spoken out on trans issues. The father-of-two, whose birth name was Alexander, lashed out on social media attacking the high-profile figures who have waded into the trans row. Despite being one of the world's most successful authors, she said Rowling was a 'shallow, insecure pleb who mistook success for intelligence'. Despite being one of the world's most successful authors, she said Rowling was a 'shallow, insecure pleb who mistook success for intelligence' Rowling had followed the case and wrote about it afterwards on X She accused the author, who has repeatedly stood up for women's rights, of 'pushing her hate too far' by condemning Edinburgh Rape Crisis Centre's policy of allowing men to identify as women. The abuse took place throughout much of 2024 - a year after Seckler had raped a woman in Blunsdon, Wiltshire, while identifying as a man. After the attack on April 23 2023, she started identifying as a woman and was even referred to in court as 'she' when she was caged last September. The victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, read out a victim impact statement in court where she said she had been left traumatised and feels ongoing 'unbearable anxiety, shame and fear.' The woman referred to her attacker in court as 'Alex' while the prosecutor and defence lawyers addressed her as 'Ms Secker' during the trial. A mug shot issued by police showed Secker with a full beard. Later pictures from social media sites revealed Secker to be clean shaven and her hair styled. Sending Secker to a male prison the judge accepted it would be difficult but told her 'You now identify as a woman and are attracted to men. At the time of this offence, you were a man. 'You identified as a man and you were, on the evidence, clearly attracted to women.' Rowling had followed the case and at its conclusion wrote on X: 'The important thing to remember is, he's a total one off*, none of the other men arguing against women-only spaces are predators** and we won't find out down the line there are more rapists hiding in plain sight.*** '*He really isn't. '**They totally are. '***We definitely will.'
BBC News
3 days ago
- BBC News
Surrey Pride founder jailed for rape of boy, 12
A man has been jailed for 24 years for raping an "extremely vulnerable" 12-year-old boy after the pair met on a dating Ireland, 41, who co-founded Pride in Surrey in 2018, raped the child at the flat he shared with his then-partner and co-defendant David Sutton, 27, in Addlestone on 19 April 2024 after messaging on was also sentenced to a further six years on extended licence, while Sutton was jailed for four-and-a-half years for making indecent photographs of children and possession of an extreme pornographic Guildford Crown Court on Monday, Judge Patricia Lees said Ireland "took advantage" of a vulnerable child. The boy - referred to in court as Child A - who had been reported missing at the time, told police they had sex in the flat, smoked a bong which was later found to have contained methamphetamine, and that pornography was played on a court heard the boy had initially told Ireland he was aged 17 – but when he later claimed to be aged 13, Ireland replied: "OK – we just have to keep it a secret.""Your response was telling," Judge Lees told Ireland, who sat in the dock dressed in a large red T-shirt and showed no emotions throughout the hearing."Far from finding that repugnant, you found that exciting, and sought to do it again." In a Telegram chat that took place after their encounter, Ireland sent Child A a message in which he described his age as "naughty and kinky", the court the same day, Ireland asked the boy if he would have a threesome and sent the child pictures of himself and heard that Ireland sent a picture of Child A to Sutton, describing him as a "14-year-old baby" who "wants to play with men's bodies", and the pair exchanged messages about the along with Sutton, who was a volunteer for Surrey Pride, were found guilty of a string of sexual offences against children including voyeurism, arranging commission of a child sex offence, and possession of prohibited images of children, after a trial at Guildford Crown Court earlier this August 2022, Ireland and Sutton discussed arrangements to procure a 13-year-old boy for Sutton's 25th birthday in October of that year, the court heard. 'High likelihood' of grooming Ireland and Sutton were also found guilty of one count of voyeurism and one count of perverting the course of court heard that Ireland had watched live camera footage of Sutton having sex with a 16-year-old boy at their flat in March teenager did not know he was being recorded, with Ireland sending Sutton messages such as "he doesn't know I'm here" and telling him what to do, the court heard."You fed off one another," Judge Lees told the defendants during the sentence hearing on Monday."You definitely supported one another in your perversions."Ireland and Sutton also perverted the course of justice by intentionally deleting material and search history from their phones after they were released on police bail in June was sentenced for one count of rape, three counts of causing a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity, sexual assault, conspiracy to engage in sexual activity with a child, arranging commission of a child sex offence, six counts of making indecent photographs of children, four counts of distributing indecent photographs of children, possession of prohibited images, and possession of an extreme pornographic was sentenced for offences including voyeurism, possession and distribution of prohibited images of children, and perverting the course of justice. Judge Lees said: "Stephen Ireland is a man who prided himself on being versed in and highly alive to the vulnerabilities of young people linked to the Surrey Pride organisation he was at the time pivotal to."'A' was quite obviously to any adult an extremely vulnerable child who was highly sexualised."Any responsible adult would have quickly appreciated that there was a high likelihood A is a young man who had been the subject of sexual grooming by adult men at a very early age and been concerned for him instead of taking advantage of him."Ireland's defence lawyer Alex Kirkler told the court his client did not abuse his position within the Surrey Pride organisation to commit these offences. Additional reporting by PA Media.
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Daily Mail
Pride group founder, 42, who raped a 12-year-old boy he met on dating app Grindr is jailed alongside his partner
The founder of a Pride group, who raped an 'extremely vulnerable' boy who he met on Grindr, has been jailed for 13 years. Stephen Ireland, 42, who co- founded Pride in Surrey in 2018, raped the child at the flat he shared with his then partner and co-defendant David Sutton, 27, in Addlestone on April 19, 2024. Ireland had arranged for the 12-year-old boy, referred to in court as Child A, to meet him at his flat after messaging on dating app Grindr, the court heard. The boy, who had been reported missing at the time, told police they had sex in the flat. The boy said they also smoked a bong which was later found to have contained methamphetamine, and that pornography was played on a laptop. Judge Patricia Lees, sentencing at Guildford Crown Court on Monday, told the hearing Ireland 'took advantage' of a vulnerable child. She said: 'Stephen Ireland is a man who prided himself on being versed in and highly alive to the vulnerabilities of young people linked to the Surrey Pride organisation he was at the time pivotal to. 'A was quite obviously to any adult an extremely vulnerable child who was highly sexualised. 'Any responsible adult would have quickly appreciated that there was a high likelihood A is a young man who had been the subject of sexual grooming by adult men at a very early age and been concerned for him instead of taking advantage of him.' The court heard the boy had initially told Ireland he was aged 17 - but when he later claimed to be aged 13, Ireland replied: 'OK - we just have to keep it a secret.' 'Your response was telling,' Judge Lees told Ireland, who sat in the dock dressed in a large red T-shirt and showed no emotions throughout the hearing. 'Far from finding that repugnant, you found that exciting, and sought to do it again.' In a Telegram chat that took place after their encounter, Ireland sent Child A a message in which he described his age as 'naughty and kinky', the court heard. On the same day, Ireland asked the boy if he would have a threesome and sent the child pictures of himself and Sutton. Jurors heard that Ireland sent a picture of Child A to Sutton, describing him as a '14-year-old baby' who 'wants to play with men's bodies', and the pair exchanged messages about the child. Ireland along with Sutton, who was a volunteer for Surrey Pride, were found guilty of a string of sexual offences against children including voyeurism, arranging commission of a child sex offence, and possession of prohibited images of children, after a trial at Guildford Crown Court earlier this year. In August 2022, Ireland and Sutton discussed arrangements to procure a 13-year-old boy for Sutton's 25th birthday in October of that year, the court heard. Both men were also sentenced on one count each of voyeurism after Ireland watched live camera footage of Sutton having sex with another 16-year-old boy at their flat in March 2024. The teenager did not know he was being recorded, with Ireland sending Sutton messages such as 'he doesn't know I'm here' and telling him what to do, the court heard. 'You fed off one another,' Judge Lees told the defendants during the sentence hearing on Monday. 'You definitely supported one another in your perversions.' Ireland and Sutton also perverted the course of justice by intentionally deleting material and search history from their phones after they were released on police bail in June 2024. Ireland was sentenced to 13 years' imprisonment on one count of rape, three counts of causing a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity, sexual assault, conspiracy to engage in sexual activity with a child, arranging commission of a child sex offence, six counts of making indecent photographs of children, four counts of distributing indecent photographs of children, possession of prohibited images, and possession of an extreme pornographic image. Sutton was sentenced to four-and-a-half years' imprisonment for offences including voyeurism, possession and distribution of prohibited images of children, and perverting the course of justice. Ireland's defence lawyer Alex Kirkler told the court his client did not abuse his position within the Surrey Pride organisation to commit these offences.
