DAVID HOPKINS FROM LYMINGE AND MAIDSTONE RELEASED AFTER SEX ABUSE SCANDAL

In a disturbing development, David Hopkins, a man with a long history of heinous sexual offenses against young boys, has been released from prison after serving a fraction of his original sentence. Hopkins, aged 72, was convicted of a 30-year period of sexual abuse targeting boys under his care, primarily associated with the 3rd Hawkinge Scout Group during the 1970s and 1980s. His criminal activities, however, reportedly date back even further, to the 1960s.

Hopkins was sentenced to ten years in prison by Judge David Croft at Maidstone Crown Court in 2003. Despite the severity of his crimes, he was released after serving just six and a half years, which is approximately two-thirds of his sentence. It is understood that he is now residing in halfway-house accommodation near Maidstone, where he was incarcerated. His release occurred more than four months ago, but the news has only recently come to public attention.

During his time in custody, Hopkins was known for his disturbing behavior, which included meticulously documenting his abuse in ledgers and taking thousands of photographs of his sickening activities. Much of his abuse was inflicted upon children from vulnerable backgrounds, often from single-parent families or those living in poverty. The abuse predominantly took place in a dilapidated cottage located on Skeete Road in Lyminge, where he lived alone. This location became a site of his heinous acts over many years.

A police source, speaking on condition of anonymity, expressed grave concern about Hopkins’s release, stating, “I don’t suppose his many victims will be cheering this news. Hopkins is a snake and always will be – the damage he has done is incalculable.”

Detectives first became aware of Hopkins’s abuse in 2003 when a man, arrested for unrelated reasons, blamed his criminal history on abuse suffered at Hopkins’s hands. This man indicated that he was not alone in being victimized. Following a media appeal, additional victims came forward, but authorities believe that the true extent of Hopkins’s crimes could involve dozens, if not hundreds, of victims, with potentially tens of thousands of separate offenses committed over the years.

Chief Superintendent Chris Hogben, who was the Detective Chief Inspector overseeing Operation Weaver—the investigation that led to Hopkins’s conviction—admitted he was unaware of the offender’s release. He commented, “One the one hand, these were serious offences, but what made it far worse was the breach of trust. If you get ten years, serving two-thirds of it is standard. What will happen is that he is going to be subject to the sex offenders management programme that we have in place.”

Hogben also noted that due to Hopkins’s advanced age and the fact that he had not offended for several years prior to his conviction, he does not believe Hopkins poses the same threat as before. Nonetheless, the impact of his crimes remains a grave concern for the community and the victims alike.