A perverted bus driver who preyed on his daughter

A perverted bus driver who preyed on his daughter waved to
the distraught girl in the Old Bailey public gallery and said
‘See you’ as he was jailed for five years.

The mocking gesture added to the torment the 42-year-old
man had inflicted on the girl since the age of nine.

He began her ordeal by making heR watch blue videos with
him and later ensured her silence by threatening to tell her
mother she watched them voluntarily.

And the father’s years of abuse at the Thamesmead home
were kept a dark secret for over six years.

It was not until he locked his daughter out after she
stayed out late that the girl told her mother and the police were
called in.

The girl told how the abuse would take place when her
mother was working night shifts.

Her father would send her brothers to bed early so he was
left alone with her in the living room.

‘The defendant would put a video on, a blue video, then he
would take the opportunity to cuddle and stroke her,’ said
prosecutor Mr Christopher Ball.

‘He would then take her to his bedroom and intimately
touch her and get her to intimately touch him.

‘
Later the father progressed to raping the girl.

‘It took place simply because he was using his position of
trust to exploit her,’ said counsel.

The man stopped molesting the girl when she was 12, but
their relationship became increasingly strained and she accused
him during a bitter row three years later.

He did not refute the allegations but warned her:
‘Don’t don’t tell anyone or I will tell youR mother your have been
watching blue videos.

‘
She became increasingly despressed and was given
counselling after a suicide bid.

The court heard that the girl had told her mother but she
was inItially not believed.

A school teacher was also informed after the girl told a
friend at school, but again no action was taken.

The horrible truth finally came to light when the girl,
then 18, was locked out in July last year and went to stay with a
friend.

When she collected her things the following morning she
blurted out the whole story to her mother.

The man confessed to his crimes after his wife accused him
three times.

He later wrote a letter of apology to the girl stating:
‘At last the truth is out.

I am so sorry for the trouble I
have caused you.

‘I have lost everything, my wife, my house and my
children.

‘I will be leaving very soon.

We both need each other.

.

.

time will heal its wounds.

‘
The father refused to comment when he was later
questioned by police.

At an earlier trial he was found guilty of indecent
assault but the jury could not agree on rape and buggery charges.

The buggery allegation was dropped at the second hearing
and the jury found him guilty of rape between October 14 1981 and
October 13 1985.

Passing sentence The Common Serjeant of London Judge
Robert Lymbery said: ‘This was a dreadful thing to have done to
your own daughter, aged eight, nine or ten, a breach of trust, of
the duty you owed her.

‘You indulged yourself at her expense.

Even though the
emotional scarring is there, now that she has been believed,
maybe she can put it behind her.

‘This is always The risk with young children that the
effects go far into the future.

‘I cannnot give you credit for sparing her the ordeal of
giving evidence.

‘
‘You have lost your wife home character and job, and it is
highly unlikely this type of behaviour will ever occur again.

‘
Telling the father he was going to pass a five year term,
the the judge said: ‘I don’t see that there is much point
occupying prison space much further.

‘
ENDS
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