A 60-year-old Paedophile from Congleton, Eric Mottershead, has been sentenced to 30 years in prison after being convicted of a series of sex crimes.
Eric Mottershead, who has no known residence, was found guilty of 29 of the 35 charges after a three-week trial in March.
Rape, indecent assault, assault of a kid under 13 by penetration, assault by penetration, and taking indecent images of a child were among the charges.
Eric Mottershead appeared at Chester Crown Court on Friday, July 5, to be sentenced to 30 years in jail and two years on an extended licence. He was also granted a restraining order, placed under a Sexual Harm Prevention Order, and ordered to sign the sex offenders registry for life.
Between 2001 and 2007, four minors were charged with offences in the Congleton area.
On September 8, 2020, one of the victims came forward to Cheshire Police and reported that Mottershead had assaulted them as children.
Eric Mottershead was detained on September 16, 2020, and his home was searched, with several devices seized. These proved crucial to the argument. They were later inspected by the Digital Investigation Unit, who discovered numerous inappropriate photographs of youngsters.
Investigating officer DC Lee Ferris, now a Sergeant, discovered three more victims during the course of the inquiry. Each victim was approached and supplied video evidence to Cheshire police.
Sergeant Ferris interrogated Eric Mottershead four times over the course of a year, and each time he strenuously disputed the charges levelled against him. He stated that each victim made everything up and worked together to bring him down. Evidence, including indecent photographs on his phones and computers, demonstrated that this was not the case.
In January 2022, the Crown Prosecution Service approved the charges against Eric Mottershead, and he was freed on bail with the condition that he not contact the victims.
Due to the complexities of this case, a trial at Chester Crown Court was not held until March 2024. During that time, Sergeant Ferris was transferred from Cheshire Constabulary to Greater Manchester Police, but he refused to hand up the case to anyone else and maintained contact with each victim. He collaborated closely with detectives from Macclesfield LPU to bring the case to Chester Crown Court.
Sergeant Ferris said:
“I’d want to commend the victims for their bravery in coming forward and speaking up about the abuse they experienced.
“Eric Mottershead is now paying the consequences for preying on them as children and committing awful and demeaning acts against them.
“I’m hopeful that gaining justice may help them in some way and inspire others who have been subjected to such abuse to come forward, regardless of how long ago the abuse occurred. You’ll be treated seriously. You will be supported. And we will do everything we can to secure justice for you.”
If you or anyone you know have been affected by the people highlighted in this article, then please report those individuals to the Police on 101 (999 if an emergency) or visit their online resources for further details of the options for reporting a crime. You can also make a report at Crimestoppers should you wish to be completely anonymous. There is help available on our support links page.