Southampton Crown Court Sentencing Results

Andrew Sealey, 39, used an online theme parks forum to lure children to attractions. He arranged to meet a person he believed to be a 15-year-old girl for sex at a park toilet in Hampshire. The 'girl' was actually a vigilante paedophile hunter. He was arrested and pleaded guilty to eight counts of attempting to incite a child to sexual activity and one count of attempting to meet a child after grooming.

Dr Andrew Semple and Samantha Semple-Thomas caused unnecessary suffering to five donkeys (Fire, Sooty, River, Rosie, Ruby) and failed to ensure their needs between January and March 2024 in a field off Hatchet Lane in Beaulieu. RSPCA found donkeys underweight with poor coats, eating mouldy hay, struggling in thick mud, with mud fever and dental ulcers causing painful ulcers. One donkey found dead with missing eye.

Andrew Burtt had 4,778 indecent images of children aged two to seven being tied up and abused, stored on devices including a Samsung phone and memory card. He sent and forwarded images via Kik social media app. Arrested at a property in Fern Road, Hythe on September 10, 2018. Admitted downloading in police interview on January 24, 2020, but denied sexual arousal by children. Offences occurred between January 2011 and September 2018. Of Marram Close, Lymington, Hampshire.

Andrew Grimsted sent 'abhorrent' images and footage of himself performing a sexual act to people he believed to be 13-year-old girls online. He was communicating with members of vigilante group Justice for the Innocent, who confronted and detained him outside his flat on Millbrook Road East, Southampton. Police were called and he was arrested on suspicion of grooming a child.

In 2015, officials from the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre used a fake profile of a ten-year-old to catch Aaron Hutter contacting young children in internet chat rooms, including a ten-year-old girl via social media and email. Police raided his home on Spring Road, Southampton, seizing computer equipment with 1,103 indecent images of children as young as five, including 158 of the worst category and some clips involving animals.

On 21 April 2022, at around 8pm in supported living accommodation on Emsworth Road, Lymington, Aaron Low and his victim had been drinking at a pub, bought vodka and energy drinks, and returned home. They had sex during which he bit her cheek and neck causing injury. An argument ensued after she checked her face in the bathroom. Low pushed her to the ground, kicked her repeatedly in the chest and stomach (victim rated pain 10/10), threw her phone against a wall breaking it, dragged her back to his room, and punched her several times. Others heard banging and shouting. Victim sustained three fractured ribs, bite mark on cheek, bruises on neck, collarbones and temples, cuts to left arm. Both were distressed when police arrived; she was treated at Southampton General Hospital.

Adam James Robinson, 28, of Southampton, was found in possession of 65 indecent images of a 14-year-old girl, including 21 Category A images, and breached a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) imposed in 2014. The investigation began after a tip-off from US authorities about his online relationship with the girl. Following his initial arrest in 2016, he was released under investigation but later accessed the images on a computer and USB stick. He attempted to conceal the images using a hard drive requiring a separate USB stick to access. The SHPO breach was aggravated by his previous convictions and deliberate cover-up efforts. Robinson had prior convictions for sexual offences, including a suspended sentence in the US for having sex with an underage girl and a UK voyeurism conviction for filming a 13-year-old girl.

Adam Piggott, 36, of Mansfield Park Street, Southampton, used social media to message a profile posing as 13-year-old girl 'Molly' between October 28 and November 7, 2019. Messages turned explicit and sexual. He arranged to meet her at McDonald's in Shirley High Street on November 7, 2019, but was arrested nearby by police. Transcripts totalled 81 pages. He admitted knowing her age and intent for sex.

Aron Marczylo, a former Saints steward, was found in possession of more than 6,000 category A indecent images of children as young as four years old, 78 category A movies, 12 category B movies, seven category C movies, and thousands of still images depicting child abuse obtained via a peer-to-peer search system. Police seized his computer, laptop, mobile phone, and PC tower unit from his home on Janson Road, Southampton on October 25, 2016. Some videos showed children crying in pain during abuse.

A 63-year-old man from Southampton, Anthony Albert Witts, has been spared immediate imprisonment after admitting to attempting to engage in sexual communication with children online. Witts, who resides on Mansel Road East and uses a walker due to his cerebral palsy, was exposed by online paedophile hunters who set up decoys posing as 13-year-old girls. The first incident occurred in 2021, when Witts believed he was communicating with a 13-year-old girl. He sent naked and semi-naked pictures of himself to the decoy. Adult decoys from the vigilante group identified and confronted him, leading to his arrest by police. During a no-comment interview, Witts reportedly said, 'I did not even realise.' He was released under investigation but committed a similar offence in 2022, contacting another supposed 13-year-old girl, telling her not to be shy and to keep their communication secret. At Southampton Crown Court, Keely Harvey, prosecuting, detailed how Witts had no previous convictions but engaged in this deviant behaviour twice. Chris Gaiger, mitigating, described Witts' actions as stupid, noting that he could offer no explanation for repeating the offence after the first investigation. Judge Christopher Parker KC remarked, 'You plainly had a deviant sexual interest in children. You attempted to communicate with a 13-year-old girl, not knowing she was a decoy set up by vigilante paedophile hunters. When you were being investigated for that you did the same thing again with another supposedly 13-year-old.' The judge imposed a 22-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, explicitly stating, 'If it were not for the fact you have cerebral palsy, there is no question you would have immediately been sent downstairs to custody.' Witts was also subjected to a ten-year sexual harm prevention order.

Barry Shaw was arrested after a search at his property in July 2017 uncovered an image of a teenage girl dressed in stockings and underwear which he had downloaded and moved to the recycle bin of his laptop. He has a history of child sex abuse image offences, including being jailed in 2012 for possessing the largest collection of extreme category indecent images and fantasising about kidnapping Madeleine McCann.

On 31st October 2023, Bayleigh Howden (27), of Tristan Close, Calshot, followed an 89-year-old pensioner for a mile after the victim pulled out in front of him following collection of his car from a repair garage. Howden drove erratically behind him for five minutes, then approached the victim on his driveway, shouted at him, and pushed him with open palms with such force that he fell, breaking his femur. The victim required surgery, three weeks in hospital, and suffered lasting physical limitations (e.g. unable to garden, walk long distances, play golf) and mental health impacts including anxiety about leaving home.

Benjamin Kerrison, 37, of Penny's Crescent, Fordingbridge, Hampshire, was sentenced at Southampton Crown Court after police attending his home in February found nine category A indecent images of children aged five to seven, as well as category B and C images, on his phone. Further analysis revealed Snapchat conversations with six unknown children. The offences occurred between June 2023 and January 2025. Kerrison pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent images of a child and one count of attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child. He had been on remand after breaching bail conditions. His defence attributed his behaviour to deteriorating mental health, past trauma, and increased alcohol use. The judge suspended the 14-month prison term for 18 months, imposing an alcohol treatment programme, rehabilitation activity requirement sessions, and a sexual harm prevention order barring him from owning internet-enabled devices without notifying police.

Curtis Goodwin, then 17, had sex with a 14-year-old vulnerable girl in Southampton last summer after she approached him for cannabis. He knew her age but continued, preying on her vulnerability. The victim reported feeling dirty, depressed, and impacted in schoolwork.

Clinton Jackson, with two accomplices, broke into the Welcome Store on Lyndhurst Road, New Milton, at around 6am on July 27, 2014. They threatened the 68-year-old shopkeeper with a handgun, menaced her with a knife, and punched her during a sustained 10-minute assault. The victim suffered bruising and needed hospital treatment. Jackson was later arrested in London and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to rob.

Facilitated acquisition of criminal property in smuggling ring at HMP Winchester, involving phones, spice, cannabis, and steroids from early 2015, uncovered by two-year investigation.

Christopher Roberts set up a password-protected folder on his mobile phone to hide over 500 indecent images of children being sexually abused, some as young as six: five category A still images, four category B still images, and 544 category C images. The images were discovered by police during a routine check at his home in March 2018 due to his prior sexual offences and sexual harm prevention order. He initially claimed to have forgotten the password but was arrested for not providing access.

Police raided Christopher Wagstaff's home in Foldsgate Close, Lyndhurst, on October 17, 2017, seizing a tower computer and Toshiba laptop. Found three Category B and four Category C indecent images of children. Internet searches for 'pre-teen boys' and 'very, very young porn'. Charged with creating indecent images of children.

Between January and March 2017, Chris Hatherley viewed live streams of babies and children aged two to three being sexually abused via an online app such as 'Kick'. He chatted with other users, commented on enjoying the material, requested videos of children crying from assaults, and described acts he wanted to carry out. Police seized devices after online tip-off; no images found but disturbing communications present. Arrested and admitted huge problem influenced by drugs.

On 18 September 2015, outside the Turtle Bay restaurant in Southampton, Billy Midmore and Geoffrey Midmore sprayed drain cleaner into the face of Carla Whitlock during a drugs deal gone wrong. The attack caused severe burns and left the 37-year-old victim blinded in one eye. The pair were convicted of causing grievous bodily harm with intent.

Carl Bray, a 46-year-old resident of Union Road in Southampton, was sentenced to 21 months in prison for breaching the terms of his Sexual Harm Prevention Order. The order was imposed following his conviction in October 2023 for attempting to engage in sexual communications with a child, for which he received a 15-month suspended sentence for 24 months. In September 2024, officers from Hampshire Constabulary examined his electronic devices and discovered he had downloaded and used social media apps including Snapchat, Telegram, TikTok, and Zangi to communicate with unknown individuals, then deleted them to conceal his activities. A further search revealed two unauthorised devices. He was charged with breaching the Sexual Harm Prevention Order and failing to comply with sex offender register requirements.

Charles Edwin March, 58, of Southampton, contacted an online profile portraying an 11-year-old girl, which belonged to the child protection team ‘SKID’. He sent highly sexually explicit messages from the outset, including sexual images of himself, and arranged to meet for sexual acts and possible full sexual penetration, though the meet did not occur. SKID members confronted him at his address, where he admitted the offence on video. Police arrested him.

Police found 683 category A (most serious) indecent images of children and extreme pornography involving animals on a MacBook and external hard drive at his Bridge Road, Southampton home on May 18, 2019. Images downloaded from dark web between August 2016 and May 2019, some distributed via sharing application.

Police raided Louis Joe Kalizewski's home on Sullivan Road, Southampton, on July 12, 2019, finding him in bed with an electronic device containing one category A, three category B, and four category C indecent images of children. The offences took place between April 15, 2018, and July 12, 2019. He claimed no knowledge of the images during interview.

Louis Rumis (82) of Farmers Walk, Everton, possessed over 70,000 indecent images and videos of children on computers, laptops and mobiles at his home. Police found 4,091 category A pictures (most severe) and 232 videos of the same category, 10,445 category B pictures and 40 videos, 60,787 category C pictures and 63 videos. Some children were as young as six months old. Arrested on 11 April 2024, admitted possession, but continued downloading while on bail, leading to more material found in 2025.

Lewis Griffiths-Bungard killed 75-year-old Jill Stevens in a hit-and-run crash in New Milton on March 24, 2022. He struck her with a Citroen C1 as she crossed Old Milton Road and drove off without stopping. He was driving uninsured and unlicensed.

Kyle McGhee, then aged 17, filmed a 15-year-old girl having sex in Romsey on July 1, 2018, during what he described as one of his 'idiot moments'. He showed the video to four people and claimed she was 'loving it'. The girl later asked him to delete the footage. Initially arrested on suspicion of rape but not charged.