A 20-year-old man from Sonning has been jailed for three years for sexual offences.
Nicholas Faithfull, of Glebe Gardens, was found guilty on March 23 of seven counts of an offender over 18 years engaging in penetrative sexual activity with a girl aged 13-15 and one count of an offender over 18 years engaging in non penetrative sexual activity with a girl aged 13-15.
At the start of the eight-day trial Faithfull had pleaded guilty to one count of causing or inciting sexual activity with a child, making a total of nine offences and five victims.
Faithfull was first arrested on January 15 2015 and charged on June 1 that year. The offences are in relation to incidents involving five victims between January 1 2014 and June 1 2015 in Wokingham.
Senior Investigating Officer, Detective Chief Inspector Stuart Bosley of Force CID in Berkshire, said: “I want to thank the victims of these terrible crimes for their bravery throughout this investigation and during the trial. They have ensured that Faithful cannot commit similar crimes against other young girls.
“Faithfull knew full well that these girls were underage but he still set about grooming them online and before perpetrating his crimes.
“I hope this case will give others the confidence to come forward and report crimes or concerns they may have about similar inappropriate behaviour of adults towards children. Thames Valley Police takes all such reports seriously and will investigate them fully.”
Adrian Foster, Chief Crown Prosecutor for Thames and Chiltern Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said: “This case involved sexual activity, between a teenage boy aged 17-18, now aged 20, and the schoolgirls in Wokingham, Berkshire.
“Nicholas Faithfull preyed on the young girls via social media, namely Facebook and Blackberry Messenger (BBM), befriended them, flattered them, engaged them in sexual chat and then sexually abused them for his own sexual gratification.
“Despite the sexual activity being consensual, the girls were under the legal age of consent and he was fully aware of that. It is only due to the great courage of the victims that the disgraceful behaviour of this man has been exposed. I would like to pay tribute to them for their strength and tenacity in coming forward.
“The convictions and today’s sentence serve as an important message to people who have been the victim of crimes such as these, or those that know such crimes are being committed, that they should come forward. The CPS will work closely with partners, as we did with Thames Valley Police in this case, to ensure that robust criminal cases are put before the courts.
“The emotional impact, on the victims and their families, of the actions of this man is impossible to quantify. I hope that the convictions and sentence give some small comfort to them. Our thoughts are very much with them all at this time.”
