A 41-year-old man has been jailed for 15 years for a series of child sexual offences which he committed while living in Northallerton.
Ricky Andrew Clench appeared at Teesside Crown Court yesterday where he was found guilty of raping a child under 13, assaulting a child under 13 by penetration and of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.
He was remanded into custody overnight and was sentenced this morning.
He was also issued with an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order and was placed on the Sex Offenders’ Register for life.
Clench’s reign of abuse started in August 2017 when he lived in the Northallerton area and continued until September 2018, when the victim bravely came forward and reported his offences to the police.
Clench denied the offences and maintained his innocence throughout the investigation and court hearings.
The jury found him guilty of all three of the charges.
Detective Constable Jason Roper, of Northallerton CID, led the investigation.
He said: “The significant sentence handed to Ricky Clench reflects the gravity of the offences he has committed.
“He is a predatory and manipulative paedophile who has shown no consideration for his victim throughout the investigation and the court proceedings.
“Thankfully he is now behind bars for a very long time and has been made subject to two lifetime protection orders, preventing him from inflicting harm on any other innocent victims.
“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank the victim for their bravery and courage in coming forward to report such a harrowing experience, and also to their family for the support they have shown throughout the investigation.”
Seeking further support, advice and ways of reporting child abuse
If you have been a victim of child abuse, no matter when it occurred, please do not suffer in silence – we are here to help you.
- Please contact North Yorkshire Police on 101. If you are in immediate danger, always dial 999 for an emergency response
- Victims who would prefer not to go direct to the police and are not in immediate danger, can contact Bridge House, North Yorkshire’s Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC), on 0330 223 0362, email sarc@nhs.net or go to www.bridgehousesarc.org/
- You can also contact Supporting Victims direct at supportingvictims.org or call 01609 643100
- NSPCC Helplines: * Help for adults concerned about a child – call 0808 800 5000 * Help for children and young people – call Childline on 0800 1111 * Go to www.nspcc.org.uk/preventing-abuse/
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