October 2010 Four men are jailed for their part in paedophile ring FOUR men have been jailed for more than 15 years for their part in a “sordid” and “disgusting” nationwide paedophile ring. They never actually met each other, but exchanged sexual images of youngsters and what started out as a sick “fantasy” turned to a perverted desire to arrange sex sessions with children, a court heard. The central link was Grimsby man David Jones, (pic above) who pretended to be a teenage girl during explicit conversations on websites, the court was told. The four men faced a total of 25 charges and were convicted of all of them at Hull Crown Court. Jones, 34, formerly of Coventry Avenue, Grimsby, was jailed for seven years after being branded the “worst” of the four men. Gavin Marshall, 34, (pic above) of Alfreton, Derbyshire, was jailed for four years, suspended teaching assistant Mark Summerfield, 36, (pic below) of Burgess Hill, West Sussex, was locked up for two-and-a-half years.  And Alan Lockyer, 34, (pic below) of Kidderminster, Worcestershire, was jailed for two years. Jones denied attempting to arrange or facilitate the commission of a child sexual offence by asking Gavin Marshall to procure a girl aged under 11 for sex, between November 10, 2008, and February 15 last year. He also denied two other similar offences between November 24, 2008, and January 19 last year and between December 24, 2008, and January 19 last year. Jones also denied five offences of distributing indecent photographs of children to Marshall, Lockyer and Summerfield, between December 25, 2008, and January 16 last year and on December 26, 29 and 30, 2008, and on January 16 last year. He denied two offences of possessing indecent photographs of children for show between January 1 and June 3 last year, but admitted possessing them. He denied possessing 112 indecent photographs of children for show between the same dates with a view to them being distributed by himself or another person. Marshall, Summerfield and Lockyer also denied attempting to arrange or facilitate the commission of a child sexual offence through asking the others to procure a girl for sex. Marshall denied seven offences of distributing indecent photographs of children to Jones twice on November 11, 2008, three times on November 14, 2008, on December 27, 2008, and on January 15 last year. Summerfield denied attempting to cause a child to watch a sexual act by sending a sexual image to a girl he believed to be a child, on December 29, 2008. Lockyer denied three similar offences on January 15, 16 and 17 last year. Nicholas Lumley, prosecuting, told the court: “These defendants were part of a paedophile ring, each of them intent on arranging to have sex with young children and each exchanging graphic images, usually involving sexual offences against young children. “They did not, it seems, ever meet each other, but did communicate fervently, extensively and explicitly with each other by text message. “The principal offender – the link between each of these men – who were from quite different parts of the country, is Jones. He lived alone in Grimsby, but he posed as Saskia, a young girl, who befriended adult males through websites and then invited each of them to abuse her but also to provide other children for her “Father” to abuse. “The other three defendants, to varying degrees, joined in with Jones and became part of the sexual offending. “It seems they probably met through chatrooms on the internet. Of course, the other men believed they had met and were befriending Saskia, a 14-year-old girl.” Recorder Anton Lodge QC branded Jones the “worst” of the defendants and told the court that what started as a “fantasy” over the internet turned to something more serious when they wanted to meet a child to abuse. Jones and Marshall were ordered to sign the Sex Offenders’ Register for life and Summerfield and Lockyer for ten years.