June 2015 Female teacher – Branded a ‘dirty pervert’ and sentenced to eight years A nationally-acclaimed headteacher branded a ‘dirty pervert’ has been jailed for eight years after ‘corrupting’ two underage boys by taking their virginity in the 1980s. Highly-regarded Anne Lakey, 55, from Stanley, County Durham, carried out a ‘gross breach of trust’ for her ‘own sexual gratification’ by simultaneously grooming the two teenagers at her marital home. The teacher had once been hailed as a visionary for turning around a failing school and making it one of the most improved in the country. But her sordid past was laid bare in court as her two victims detailed the years of abuse they suffered at the hands of the paedophile. The court heard how, when away from the classroom, Lakey – who has been married three times, each to a younger man – was a ‘disgusting sexual monster’ who preyed on the teenagers, even having sex with one for the first time in a tent on a school camping trip.  The then 28-year-old, who taught history at the time, then continued to have sex with the teenagers at separate times, unbeknown to her first husband. Police fear there could be even more victims that Lakey may have targeted during her successful career and urged witnesses to come forward. Today, the head’s career was left in tatters as Judge Howard Crowson told Lakey – who had always denied the charges – that she had ‘corrupted two young boys half your age’ during the three-year campaign of abuse. He added: ‘You used subtle persuasion and flattery, encouraging each boy to take his first tentative sexual steps with you. ‘This will destroy the career you have worked so hard to build.’  He also said he had seen a photo of the younger victim when he was 14 and said that he appeared to be ‘a child, not a young man’. A jury at Teesside Crown Court had yesterday convicted the teacher of 13 counts of indecent assault on a boy aged 13 or 14 and one aged 15. As she was led away from the dock, Lakey mouthed to her family, including her third husband David, 39: ‘I love you’.   Despite the extensive jail term she was facing, the convicted paedophile had yesterday been granted bail to spend one last night with her family, including her sick 81-year-old father Fred Westwater, in a move which the court heard had never been done at that stage in proceedings. During the trial, the court heard how the sexual relationships had had a long-term impact on her first victim, who was just 13 at the time.   He told the court: ‘As a kid I thought it was great what has happened but now I see it for what it is. It was wrong and I think Anne was a dirty pervert.  ‘It is not like I was 13 and she was 15 – we were not even the same generation. She was old enough to be my mother. ‘She is in a position of trust and she is supposed to be a great teacher. It makes me feel sick.’  The second victim, who was 15 at the time, said the crimes had taken place while he was ‘impressionable’ – and that she had tried to ‘manipulate’ him after it was reported to police. He said: ‘This has been a constant worry for me and it has really effected me. I have also had to disclose this part of my life to my children. ‘I realised I was a victim of sex exploitation. I feel Anne Lakey manipulated me causing me to lie to my parents which I deeply regret.’   Lakey was a national leader in education, lauded for improving the exam performance at her schools. She oversaw a huge change at Fyndoune Community College in Sacriston, which had been failing. It went on to be one of the most improved in the country and was rated as ‘outstanding’.  She was also named in a Department for Education pamphlet as a ‘visionary leader’, described as ‘inspiring’ by Sir Michael Wilshaw, the chief inspector of education. But was suspended from her role as chief executive of the Durham Federation, in charge of two secondary schools, in 2012 when the younger complainant sent an accusing email about the historic offences. During the trial, the court had heard how, while she was married to her second of three husbands, Lakey had groomed the younger victim. He was encouraged to expose her breasts during a dare game at her home before she let him watch her bathe, the jury was told. She then took his virginity on the marital bed while he was still in his school uniform, the court heard. Lakey phoned the boy’s school when he was truanting, pretended to be his mother and said he was sick. She also encouraged him to call her ‘mommy’.  The court heard they met up to twice a week for sex and on one occasion he was forced to hide in a cupboard when Lakey’s husband came home. The jury was told the pair never used contraception and eventually had a row when he told her he wanted to stop having sex. Lakey ordered him not to ‘tell anybody’, the court heard.  At the time, she was about 28 and working as a history teacher in Sunderland.   Meanwhile, she also took the older boy’s virginity in a tent at a camp in the middle of the night after she encouraged him to sneak over. She had repeated sexual relations with those boys. Her second victim told the jury he was ‘confused’ and with a ‘mess of emotions’ after the incident, which took place when he was 15. He claimed he crept across fields in the dark for the ‘clandestine’ meeting. The teacher had told her husband Eamonn Toland to sleep in a separate tent before asking the boy to visit her.  Lakey had denied all the allegations but admitted having a legal, sexual relationship with the older complainant when he was 18 and she was in her early 30s. Lakey rose up the career before taking on the chief executive role, but was exposed by the younger victim’s late night email which branded her a ‘disgusting sexual monster’. Its author was furious after he spotted a blog in which she said her ‘raison d’etre’ was to help young people. He named the second complainant who was to later tell police he too had been abused. In the witness box he described how the sexual exploitation by an older woman immediately left him confused. ‘On the one hand, I was happy with my little self that I managed to lose my virginity before I was 16, which seemed really important at the time,’ he said. ‘On the other hand, everything was over so quickly. It should have been a bit more interesting than that. It was a bit of a confusing mix of emotions as I left the tent.’ When the police began investigating the younger complainant’s accusing email, Lakey rang him out of the blue to persuade him to lie to detectives. He recalled: ‘The delivery was like A Level psychology 101. There was the initial ‘My poor father, lost my mother’ – a trump card to play. ‘There was ‘my career, my daughter, my husband. I’ve definitely not had sex with any other children since’ was mentioned early on. ‘It was laid on thick, emotionally at the start, towards the end there was flattery alongside that.’ Caroline Goodwin, prosecuting, asked how he felt about what happened to him. ‘The phone call really summed up the whole thing,’ he told the court. ‘Here is somebody who has not spoken to me for 20 years who thought she could get me to pick up the phone and lie to the police, 20 years after. ‘If that doesn’t give you an idea of the control she had over us lads, I don’t know what would.’   Tim Roberts QC, mitigating, said Lakey had received treatment for breast cancer in 2012 and would require ongoing care. The judge said he was conscious of the effect the sentence would have on her family. Lakey’s father, husband David and daughter were in the public gallery. The judge added: You will find prison a particular hardship given the illness you have battled against.’   He also greed that during her career she had been ‘an inspirational teacher and leader of schools’, adding: ‘By your efforts it is clear you have improved the lives of many young people.’   After the case, Detective Inspector Aelf Sampson, of Durham Constabulary, said: ‘This case involved two male victims who reported being the victims of sexual abuse in the late 1980s. ‘They both have a clear memory of what happened to them when they were children, corroborated by friends who they told at the time and over later years. ‘These men were children at the time, and became vulnerable victims of sexual abuse at the hands of a woman who had some power and responsibility for them. ‘She was someone who was respected and seen as successful by the community. These boys should have been safe in her company, instead of being damaged by their experience.’ He added: ‘Regardless of whether these boys appear to have been willing participants in the offences, they could not consent by law to what happened. The law is there to protect victims. ‘Durham Constabulary will continue to support these victims with our partner agencies, as we do for all victims of recent or non- recent sexual abuse. ‘The guilty verdict today supports this approach from within the wider criminal justice system and I urge other victims of sexual abuse to report their crimes to the police so the appropriate action can be taken and support offered.’  John Dilworth, Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor for CPS, said: ‘I would like to praise the bravery of the two victims in this case, who have been instrumental in helping us to build a robust case against Anne Lakey. ‘Mrs Lakey manipulated the youthful naivety of both of these young men for her own sexual gratification. By persisting with her denial of guilt throughout both the investigation and prosecution of this case, she has prolonged the process for both victims. ‘I appreciate that this outcome will involve mixed emotions for the two victims of Mrs Lakey’s actions but I would hope that the sentence passed upon her today brings a measure of closure for both of them. ‘I hope that this case provides further reassurance to anyone who has been a victim of sexual offences, no matter how much time may have passed, that police and prosecutors will continue to work together to bring those responsible to justice.’  June 2015 Female headteacher Guilty Of Indecent Assault On Boys A headteacher once celebrated for her “visionary” leadership has been found guilty of indecent assault against two teenage boys. Anne Lakey had sex with the schoolchildren, aged 13 and 15, over a three-year-period in the 1980s – and one victim has described her as a “disgusting sexual monster”. Anne Lakey, 55, from Stanley, County Durham, had denied 13 counts of indecent assault on two teenagers in the 1980s. But a jury at Teesside Crown Court found her guilty of all charges after a two-week trial. Some of the offences took place when Lakey was a history teacher in her late 20s, the court was told. The 55-year-old’s glittering career, which saw her become a national leader in education, came to an abrupt halt in 2012 after her youngest victim wrote an accusatory email to her school – outlining the abuse that he and the second child had suffered 25 years earlier. Now a father himself, he said he was “sickened” by Lakey’s claims that she always put the interests of young people first. His email led to her suspension as the chief executive of the Durham Federation of Schools – but as police began to investigate, Lakey called the victim and tried to persuade him to lie to detectives. The complainant recalled: “The delivery was like A Level psychology 101. There was the initial ‘my poor father, lost my mother’ – a trump card to play. “There was ‘my career, my daughter, my husband. I’ve definitely not had sex with any other children since’ was mentioned early on. “It was laid on thick, emotionally at the start, towards the end there was flattery alongside that.” The victim had described how Lakey took his virginity when he was 13 – and he told police how they repeatedly had sex in her marital bed. At one point, the teenager had to hide in a cupboard when they almost caught in bed together. When he had tried to break off their relations, the pupil had to force his way out of Lakey’s home. Detective Inspector Aelf Sampson, of Durham Police, said: “These men were children at the time, and became vulnerable victims of sexual abuse at the hands of a woman who had some power and responsibility for them. “She was someone who was respected and seen as successful by the community. These boys should have been safe in her company, instead of being damaged by their experience. “Regardless of whether these boys appear to have been willing participants in the offences, they could not consent by law to what happened. The law is there to protect victims.” Lakey, a mother-of-one who married three times, has been bailed until her sentencing tomorrow at Teesside Crown Court as an “act of mercy” by Judge Howard Crowson.