A PAEDOPHILE whose sickening sexual abuse ruined the lives of three children in west Cumbria has finally faced justice – five decades after committing his crimes.

As he jailed 72-year-old Ronald Wilson for 12 years, Carlisle Crown Court Judge Michael Fanning told him: “You are truly a perverted sexual predator, and your past has caught up with you at last.”

Though he was in his 20s when he preyed sexually on the children, former Workington steel worker Wilson evaded justice.

He did this by fleeing from the county because one of his victims attacked him, leaving him fearful the police would get involved and his abuse would be revealed. Only years later, as Wilson continued to commit sex crimes, did police link him to the abuse.

The defendant denied the offences but was convicted after a trial.

Noting that he was always drunk when he abused the children – aged between seven and 12 – prosecutor Tim Evans said: “Drink seems to be tied to the sexual abuse of his victims.”

The details of Wilson's crimes are too distressing to report, but he repeatedly sexually abused the three children, though each was unaware that they were not the only victim. One told her partner about what happened in the 1990s.

“But the investigation could not progress at that stage because police had relatively little to go on,” said Mr Evans.

“They had a name, Ronald Wilson, but that was a not uncommon name and he’d left the county.”

Wilson had moved to west Yorkshire. The investigation was finally relaunched because Wilson’s details appeared on the Police National Computer as a sex offender and another child also alleged that Wilson had abused him.

The court heard that Wilson committed sexual offences repeatedly over the years, including indecent exposure in 1986, outraging public decency in 2009, and the sexual assault of a boy in a pub in 2015.

Mr Evans read extracts from statements made by the victims.

The female victim spoke of suffering anxiety and sleeplessness and being unable to concentrate at school. “She tried to bock everything out… and talks about keeping herself busy so as not to think about it the abuse she suffered.”

One of the victims said: “I was subjected to awful abuse, which had a massive effect on my life as I grew up.”

Rendered a nervous wreck, his confidence destroyed, he too was unable to learn while at school.

He said he hoped the sentence would prevent Wilson from ever subjecting anybody else to such “cruel and despicable acts.”

The third victim spoke of how he was left scared to go to sleep. “Even now,” said Mr Evans, “when lying in bed, trying to go to sleep, he would think about it. 'You are chasing round in circles in your mind, just feeling helpless.'”

What happened left him feeling horrible and there was also the distress of going back over it all and knowing there were other victims.

Esther Bukoye, defending, said mitigation was necessarily limited, given that the defendant denied his wrongdoing and was convicted after a trial. “He would have been relatively young at the time,” she said.

The barrister accepted that Wilson was drunk when he abused the children, adding: “He was disregarded by his father and his family and turned to alcohol and consequently the offending took place.”

The impact of Wilson’s offending lived on even now, said Judge Fanning. “There are no mitigating factors,” he said. “I consider someone like you, offending throughout your life, as posing a significant risk of harm to others…

“Your actions have lived with your victims for all their lives; they have struggled with the effects of it every day since your offending against them. You went on offending sexually against others.”

At points in his sentencing hearing, Wilson shook his head and stared at the court's ceiling.

As the defendant, recently living at Burnsall Court, Leeds, was being led away to begin his sentence, one of his victims in the public gallery yelled: “I’ll be waiting for you!”

Judge Fanning said that he hoped the sentence would help all the victims move on with their lives. The defendant was convicted of 12 child sex offences, including indecent assaults and acts of gross indecency with a child.

After the case, Detective Constable Alexandra Todd, who oversaw the case, said: “It’s never too late to report a crime. We will do our best for victims no matter how long ago the offences against them happened.

“No matter how much time has passed, support is available in Cumbria.

“The Constabulary works closely with trusted partner agencies to provide the appropriate support, which is tailored to an individual’s circumstances.

“Taking that first step to telling somebody what has happened to you is often the most difficult.

“But please know that if you do, you will be provided with information which will enable you to make choices on how you wish to move forward.”

HOW DO I REPORT TO POLICE

If you wish to report to police you can do so online at cumbria.police.uk/report-it

You can also phone on 101. Always phone 999 in an emergency or if a crime is in progress. Alternatively, you can contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

If the issues in this story affect you, you may wish to read the following: 'The Bridgeway' - a lifeline for Cumbria's sex crime victims 

And this:

Police highlight help for victims of sex crime