CHARLES BLACK FROM FIFE SENTENCED FOR PAST AND RECENT SEX OFFENCES INVOLVING SCHOOLGIRL
In March 2019, Charles Black, a man with a troubling history of sexual offences from Fife, found himself back in legal trouble after breaching a court-imposed order designed to prevent further misconduct.Black, aged 48 at the time, had previously been convicted of serious sexual offences involving a young girl and was under a sexual offences prevention order (SOPO) issued in May 2018.
This order mandated that he report any contact with female acquaintances and prohibited him from engaging in certain types of communication.
The breach occurred when Black failed to inform his supervising officer that he had been in contact with the mother of his former victim between September 6 and November 4, 2018.
During this period, he also took steps to conceal his communications by deleting text messages and call records from his mobile phone, a Sony device, at his residence on Dick Crescent, Burntisland.
The court was told that the victim’s mother reached out to Black seeking answers regarding her daughter’s pregnancy, which had resulted from Black’s previous sexual misconduct.
This contact was particularly sensitive because the girl was only 13 when she became pregnant in 2010, a fact that added gravity to the case.
On November 6, 2018, police and social work officials visited Black’s home.
He answered the door and allowed them inside, but he denied any violations of his SOPO.
An inspection of his mobile phone was conducted, during which Black voluntarily admitted to deleting messages from the woman he had been communicating with.
The authorities seized his phone, which contained numerous messages, some of which had been deleted, discussing meetings and contact between Black and the woman.
Further investigation revealed that the woman, who initially did not want to engage with police, later disclosed that she had initiated contact with Black herself, seeking explanations for her daughter’s pregnancy and Black’s previous conviction.
Black’s defense attorney, Dewar Spence, acknowledged the seriousness of the offences but did not offer specific mitigation.
Ultimately, Sheriff Grant McCulloch sentenced Black to 16 months in prison, with the term backdated to November 28, 2018, when he was remanded in custody.
This sentence followed Black’s earlier conviction for unlawful sexual activity with a minor, which had resulted in a previous prison term of three years and nine months.
That earlier case, which took place in the Levenmouth area, involved Black fathering a child with a girl who was just 13 years old at the time, shortly after her birthday in 2010.
In July 2012, Black appeared at the High Court in Glasgow, where he admitted to having unlawful sexual contact with the same girl, who could not be identified publicly.
The court heard that Black, then 41 and residing in Methil, Fife, had fathered her child, born in August of that year.
The pregnancy was uncovered after the girl’s mother reported to police that her daughter had revealed Black was the father.
Medical tests confirmed Black’s paternity, and records showed that he had engaged in sexual activity with the girl in 2010, shortly after her 13th birthday.
Black’s prior conviction for indecency was also taken into account, and he was ordered to be supervised for two additional years upon release.
The judge, Lady Stacey, described the offences as “serious” and sentenced Black to three years and nine months in prison, with his name to be added to the sex offenders’ register.
The case underscored the ongoing concerns about child protection and the importance of effective law enforcement and community cooperation in tackling such grave crimes.
