WATCH: “Abhorrent” paedophile jeered by public

Tuesday 20 August 2019

A 68-year-old paedophile, who plied "vulnerable" children with cigarettes, alcohol and money to sexually abuse them, was jeered and heckled by his victims and members of the public, as he began a 16-year prison sentence for his "abhorrent" crimes.

Leaving the Royal Court building after his sentencing yesterday, a cuffed Kenneth Gordon was met with shouts of “paedo” and “paedophile” from a crowd of people gathered around the Police van waiting to take him into custody at HMP La Moye.

Video: Kenneth Gordon was heckled by a group including some of his victims as he left the Royal Court yesterday. (WARNING: Contains swearing)

Someone shouted: “Enjoy your life in prison you f***ing dirty scumbag!” Another joined in with: “You dirty b*****d, I hope you rot in hell!”

Earlier this year, Gordon admitted 17 counts of “serious” sexual offences against four girls – abuse which dates back to the 1990s – and one charge of common assault against another child.

The Birmingham-born sex offender, who had previously spent time in jail for similar offences against two other victims, did not react when his 16-year sentence was handed down by the Deputy Bailiff Tim Le Cocq.

The extensive list of sexual offences against the children, who were all under 18 at the time, includes several charges of indecent assault, acts of gross indecency and other instances of sexual abuse – some of which were described as “heinous” by prosecutor Crown Advocate Emma Hollywood.

Pictured: The 68-year-old was heckled as he left the Royal Court.

The Court ultimately imposed a sentence more than two years higher than the one sought by the prosecutor.

Describing details of Gordon's offending to the Court, Advocate Hollywood explained how he would force his victims to carry out the sexual acts by either giving them gifts - usually in the form of money, alcohol or cigarettes - or making threats.

According to one of his victims, she would know what Gordon expected her to do just from the amount of money he offered her. 

Another of the victims, referred to only as Miss E, recalled that Gordon “provided her with a secret mobile telephone.”

Pictured: Money was one of the gifts Gordon used to bribe his victims. 

It was through this “secret” phone that Gordon stayed in touch with her and arranged times for them to meet.

It was heard that by the time this girl was in her teens “she had been groomed to the extent that she saw herself as being in a relationship with the defendant”, who was, at the time, a man approaching middle-age.

Some of the girls – now grown women – made statements attesting to the impact the abuse has had on their lives, with two deciding to address them directly to Gordon.

Pictured: Gordon was taken back to La Moye to begin his jail sentence.

In a statement read by the prosecutor that described Gordon as “the person who destroyed me in ways no one could ever fix”, one woman said: “For many years you made me feel worthless… like I wasn’t good enough for anyone… You tried to silence me, but now I am free whilst you are sat there in cuffs finally feeling what it is like to be controlled.”

Although she may have healed physically from the abuse, the survivor said that “the mental scars are still there”, speaking of anxiety, depression and night terrors that she still suffers.

“You took away what should have been the best days of my life; my childhood, my innocence.”

“You found me at my most innocent and my most vulnerable stage,” another woman's statement read, adding that Gordon was “the first man in my life to tell me you loved me.”

Pictured: Some of the victims' statements were directed at Gordon himself.

“You groomed, manipulated and isolated me so I would keep your secrets quiet.”

A background report compiled by an officer from the Probation Service found that Gordon’s “overall level of remorse is significantly limited” and that his version of events put forward a “narrative”, which was deemed “to be somewhat self-serving.”

Advocate Julian Gollop, representing Gordon, opened his defence address to the Court by acknowledging that the offences are “exceptionally serious” and “nothing that I’m going to say is intended to undermine or diminish” that.

The defence Advocate, however, argued that the sentence moved for by the Crown was too high and that the prosecution had not allowed full credit for, amongst other things, his client’s good character prior to this spate of offending.

In disagreement with a probation report, he also insisted that his client's remorse was "genuine".

Pictured: Gordon was jailed for 16 years.

In a letter for the Court which was in part read out by his lawyer, Gordon described himself as “deeply ashamed of [his] behaviour”, adding that he “regretted the damage” he caused.

Advocate Gollop subsequently invited the Court to impose a lesser sentence of 10 to 12 years’ imprisonment, but it disagreed with his arguments.

Making a statement following the sentencing, Detective Sergeant David Hill said: “The victims should have felt safe and been able to trust him however he grossly abused this trust and gave no consideration to the impact his actions had on their lives and the impact has been profound.

“This investigation has been long and complex and throughout the victims have demonstrated great strength and resilience. They have showed immense courage in reporting this abuse to the Police and I hope that after today’s sentencing they can now start to rebuild their lives.”

The decision on sentencing was made by a panel of Jurats – Kim Averty, Jane Ronge, Anthony Olsen, Charles Blampied and Jerry Ramsden – sitting as the ‘Superior Number’, which only assembles to hear the most serious of cases. 

In addition to his lengthy custodial sentence, Gordon was also placed on the Sex Offenders’ Register for a minimum of 10 years and various restraining orders were put in place to prevent any contact with those who he sexually abused for a period of 15 years.