John Stringer, another paedophile Gwent police officer, has been convicted of five charges pertaining to the sexual assault of a minor. John Stringer, aged 42 and hailing from Cardiff, refuted the allegations.
Today, following slightly more than a day of deliberation, the jury rendered guilty verdicts on all counts.
The jury unanimously convicted John Stringer on two counts of sexual assault by touching and one count of encouraging or enticing a juvenile to participate in sexual activity.
John Stringer was additionally convicted of a further charge of inducing or persuading a child to participate in sexual activity and one charge of forcing a child to observe a sexual act, by majorities of 11 to 1 and 10 to 2, respectively.
Judge Daniel Williams expressed gratitude to the jury, consisting of 9 men and 3 women, and ordered John Stringer to remain in detention until the sentence on October 28th.
The paedophile policeman, John Stringer , is presently suspended from his responsibilities with the Gwent force.
The week-long trial at Cardiff Crown Court focused on the testimony of a young girl victim, who was under 13 years old at the time of the acts.
Today, following slightly more than a day of deliberation, the jury rendered John Stringer guilty verdicts on all counts.
The jury unanimously convicted John Stringer on two counts of sexual assault by touching and one count of encouraging or enticing a juvenile to participate in sexual activity.
The victim – who can’t be named for legal reasons – told police that John Stringer had put a blanket over her while she was playing video games before touching her inappropriately.
She also told officers how, on another occasion, the defendant had shown her a video of an adult woman performing a sex act, before telling her to act out what she’d seen.
She went on to describe how John Stringer had asked her what she’d learned in SRE (Sex and Relationships Education) classes and that it would be “her fault” if her parents found out about what had happened and he got into trouble.
His behaviour made her feel “very uncomfortable”, she told officers.
The court was told the allegations related to December 2019 and July 2021.
The trial was shown a video of the girl being cross-examined. In the video, she said she was “sure” that the touching had happened.
The jury also heard that many internet searches for adult material were found on John Stringer’s phone, including several relating to a particular sex act and featuring the words ‘young’ and ‘voyeur.’
Giving evidence, John Stringer said he’d been “absolutely devastated” to be arrested after the girl told a Teaching Assistant at her school about the allegations.
Assistant Chief Constable Vicki Townsend said, “As soon as we became aware of the allegations against John Stringer, we immediately decided to suspend him from duty, and he remains so.
“These offences, which were committed against a child, are sickening. These are some of the most heinous crimes that we, as a police service, are dedicated to investigating; his offending is a betrayal of his role as an officer.
“We’d like to commend the bravery of the victim in this case; speaking out about such horrific abuse is hard, and we understand the further impact of going through the court process will have.
The police constable, John Stringer, is currently suspended from his duties with the Gwent force.
“We’re now able to rapidly progress appropriate misconduct proceedings against this individual following the conclusion of the trial.”
The Police Officer said to be of previous good character, admitted the alleged victim was a regular visitor to his home over the period in question but said he’d never been with her alone.
He admitted making 100s of internet searches for pornography but denied having an interest in young girls.
John Stringer appeared tearful in the dock, and the judge said he would be sent to prison when he is sentenced next month.
UPDATE 041124
A former police officer from Cardiff, who sexually abused a girl under the age of 13, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison.
John Stringer, 43, was found guilty of five counts of sexual abuse at a trial at Cardiff Crown Court in September.
After his conviction, Stringer was dismissed from Gwent Police and barred from policing for life.
Stringer was found guilty of two counts of sexual assault by touching and one charge of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.
He was also found guilty of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity and causing a child to watch a sexual act.
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