Jersey minister who provided Le Tocq reference “appalled” by “heinous” crimes

A senior Jersey politician who provided a character reference for disgraced Guernsey minister Jonathan Le Tocq has said he is “shocked and appalled” by the “heinous” crimes.

At Le Tocq’s sentencing on Monday – when he was jailed for nine years having admitted committing a string of offences, including creating pseudo-indecent images over nearly a decade – Guernsey’s Royal Court heard that five references had been provided, including one by a Jersey politician.

That was from External Relations Minister Ian Gorst, who worked alongside Le Tocq when the former politician and pastor held the equivalent position in Guernsey.

Talking to Express, Deputy Gorst said: “I was asked by the family, in a personal capacity, to provide a short factual statement reflecting on my time working with him when I was External Relations Minister and he was my counterpart in the Guernsey government.”

I wasn’t fully aware of the scale or extent of these crimes when I made my statement

“I wasn’t fully aware of the scale or extent of these crimes when I made my statement, which were, of course, made clear at the judgment on Monday, and I recognise they are of a truly heinous nature,” he continued.

He added: “I did make clear in my statement that I didn’t want it to distract from the trauma of the victims or the breach of trust to them that his actions have caused.

“I also recognised in that statement that I never truly knew the individual in question, and I can say now I’m shocked and appalled by the crimes he committed.”

Deputy Gorst’s reference was one of five submitted; others were provided by a friend, a retired dentist, a HR professional and one of Le Tocq’s daughters.

They were referred to by Le Tocq’s defence lawyer at the sentencing on Monday but were not read out in court.

Le Tocq’s wide range of offending, committed between 2016 and 2025, included using AI platforms to ‘nudify’ innocent images of women he knew, and their children, to create pseudo-indecent images.

He also admitted sending indecent messages and photographs over the telecommunications network, downloading indecent images of children, and the possession of extreme pornography.